A large scale multinational test in September confirmed a new Italian sensor is compatible with NATO’s ballistic missile defense (BMD) architecture.
The successful Ensemble Test 2 was conducted by the NATO Communications and Information (NCI) Agency from Sept. 25-27. It confirmed the compatibility of a new Italian sensor with the alliance’s BMD architecture. Ensemble tests are to reduce technical risks to the program as various sensors, weapon and communication systems are incrementally added to the defense architecture.
The test was the second in a regular series of test events that are conducted between nations that contribute their missile defense resources to the collective defense of the Alliance’s European populations and territory
“Special mention goes to the successful test and integration of the Italian TPS-77 radar, which was a new asset being tested,” said Program Director Alessandro Pera. “The test showed that the Italian TPS-77, as a BMD sensor, is able to contribute to NATO’s ballistic missile defense situational awareness.”
Twelve laboratories from five nations across two continents took part; a total of 16 national and NATO systems were integrated and tested during this ambitious test.
The participating systems included: the Aegis BMD System, the command and control, battle management and communications system (C2BMC), the Army Navy/Transportable Radar Surveillance (AN/TPY-2), and the Shared Early Warning System (SEW) of the United States and the Patriot missile defense systems of the Netherlands, Germany and the United States.
Additionally included in the test were the ADCF Frigate of the Royal Netherlands Navy, the surface to air medium range missile defense systems (SAMP/T) of France and Italy, the SAM Operations Centre from Germany, the Tactical Transportable Radar (TPS-77) and the Horizon PAAMS (Principal Anti Air Missile System) of Italy.
NATO participated with its Air Command and Control System (ACCS), the Air Command and Control Information Services (AirC2IS), CRC System Interface (CSI), and the Interim Command and Control (ICC) system of NATO.
The test used NATO’s Combined Federated Battle Lab Network (CFBLNet), offering NATO operators the opportunity to work on realistic scenarios.
“The event was very much a team effort, with a special thanks to the Agency’s CFBLNet, AirC2IS, ICC and NIRIS teams,” Pera said. “From planning to execution, ET2 required almost one year’s worth of effort. Thanks to thorough preparation, the test execution phase was actually completed in half the planned time, which saved both time and money for the participants.”
The test confirmed NATO’s ability to work with both existing and new national systems to provide BMD situational awareness and command and control of missile defense forces. This major milestone in the development and future deployment of the NATO ballistic missile defense capability will be followed by an even more ambitious effort, Ensemble Test 3, to be conducted in May-June 2013.