RAF's latest eye in the sky gathers info on Taliban

The Sentinel, which has been converted from Bombardier Global Express business jets, with its ASTOR system can detect and recognise moving, static and fixed targets on the ground and in the air, and are capable of operating for more than nine hours at a time. The information gathered is transmitted to ground stations to enable rapid tactical planning and the efficient cueing of assets.

Today, Tuesday 10 February 2009, Minister for Defence Equipment and Support Quentin Davies visited the equipment at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire, the RAF's Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) hub, and also home of the E3D Sentry and Nimrod R1 aircraft and 5 (Army Co-operation) [AC] Squadron who own the Sentinel R1 aircraft. Mr Davies said:

"This hugely sophisticated system has already demonstrated what it can do to support operations in Afghanistan. In a trial of the system last year, the Sentinel aircraft and its associated ground stations proved they can feed information about the movements of enemy forces to ground commanders in near real time."

"The ASTOR system enables our forces to learn about the movement of enemy forces and react to prevent threats to our troops. It is clear to me that we are spending nearly one billion pounds of taxpayers money very effectively."

5 (AC) Squadron is a rare mix of Army and RAF Service personnel, and a handful of Royal Navy personnel.

Group Captain Harry Kemsley, Officer Commanding 5 (AC) Squadron, said:

"This system is about answering the questions that the customer on the ground needs answering - getting the information soldiers need to the soldiers. The ability to look beyond the range of the eye, binoculars and rifle sight is now available with our system. We are here to support land forces and we shall do it very well.

"5 (AC) Squadron personnel and supporting elements continue to build on the lessons identified from their recent operational experiences in order to further develop the capability of ASTOR. The utility of the system across both military and humanitarian spectrums is significant and wide-ranging, and we are working closely with potential customers to ensure that our training is relevant and targeted to their requirements."

The new system will prove very useful to ground forces in Afghanistan. Major Will Tosh, Intelligence Corps Detachment Commander, said:

"The ASTOR system was closely embedded within 3 Commando Brigade during the trial and provided a near real time, wide area search capability on operations for the first time. It worked in unison with troops on the ground delivering timely intelligence and situational awareness to those on the front line. The brigade was very impressed and the flexibility of the system surprised them."

The radar on RAF Sentinels works in all weathers, day and night, by looking down to the ground and 'staring' at the target area from high level while the aircraft flies in a straight line. The radar transmits pulses and receives target information as it moves while building up a 'picture' of the target area.

State-of-the-art computers and software allow rapid processing of the information. Data is transmitted to mobile or static ground stations for immediate use by commanders on the ground. The equipment is so sophisticated it is able to produce a near photograph-quality image of the ground from radar readings.

ASTOR is also designed to communicate with a wide range of other systems and networks and is therefore at the heart of the UK's Network Enabled Capability.

The fully operational ASTOR system comprises five Sentinel R1s flown by two aircrew and at least three radar operators.

In the culmination of the £954m contract, Raytheon Systems Ltd has now delivered the last in a batch of five aircraft to 5 (AC) Squadron. The contract also includes eight mobile ground stations. Raytheon will continue to deliver support services to the system over the next ten years.

MOD Defence Equipment and Support ASTOR team leader, Bill Chrispin, said:

"Delivery of the final aircraft is a huge milestone for us and for our contractor. Now our work will concentrate on achieving the full operational capability of the system at the earliest opportunity."