Northrop Grumman wants to integrate EMRIS into a variety of advanced airborne platforms, including Collaborative Combat Aircraft drones and Next-Generation Air Dominance fighters.
Northrop Grumman has completed several flight tests in a “first flight campaign” with its new Electronically-Scanned Multifunction Reconfigurable Integrated Sensor (EMRIS), which it wants to integrate into a variety of advanced airborne platforms, including Collaborative Combat Aircraft drones and potentially the Next-Generation Air Dominance fighter.
Key highlights from the tests include the demonstration of EMRIS’s open architecture capabilities through third-party integration, and the successful rapid deployment of new software updates during flight, illustrating the sensor’s reconfigurability.
The flight tests, conducted in collaboration with government partners and utilizing a government-provided aircraft, showcased EMRIS’s adaptability and technological advancement.
Introduced in February 2023, EMRIS is a versatile, ultra-wideband system designed to handle radar operations, communications, and electronic warfare simultaneously. Its fully digital Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) leverages technology from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s Arrays on Commercial Timescales program and adheres to government open architecture standards. This design enables EMRIS to integrate and perform multiple functions efficiently, highlighting its potential for diverse airborne applications.
Krys Moen, vice president of advanced mission capabilities, Northrop Grumman, said, “Dozens of successful flights with EMRIS demonstrated the ability to reduce development timelines and lower program costs by leveraging our partnerships with, and advancements across, all military services. Our solutions utilize digital engineering and advancements in microelectronics to provide agile capabilities for both crewed and uncrewed platforms.”
Northrop Grumman has also commenced testing a second EMRIS array and is exploring its scalability by developing two smaller apertures for cost-effective and size-constrained applications. This strategic approach not only aims to accelerate field deployment but also ensures the sensor’s adaptability to a broad spectrum of existing and future platforms.
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By incorporating open, scalable software and modular digital components from the outset, EMRIS exemplifies Northrop Grumman’s commitment to delivering cutting-edge technology quickly and affordably to enhance warfighter capabilities.
AESA radars are already in use on U.S. Air Force aircraft like the F-35, F-22, and F-16. Northrop Grumman also supplies the Multirole Electronically Scanned Array radar for the E-7 Wedgetail, which is set to become the Air Force’s new airborne early warning and control aircraft.
