Infrared search and track and imaging system: testing in the laboratory and during flight

Abstract

The PIRATE, short for Passive Infra Red Airborne Tracking Equipment, multi mode Infrared Sensor, has been developed and manufactured by the Eurofirst consortium for the Eurofighter 2000 Aircraft. The consortium is led by SELEX Galileo, contract award, from Italy, and includes THALES UK, and TECNOBIT from Spain. Testing of the unit has been performed either in the laboratory and in flight. In the laboratory, sophisticated measurement techniques to verify optical parameters like the MTF, the NETD and the MRTD in the different Field of View have been employed, as well as for the detection, tracking and identification functions. On top of that, a flight test campaign has started to verify the performance, when operating in real scenarios, with cooperative and opportunity targets, across different weather conditions, like clean sky, but also misty and cloudy weather, haze and hail, generally not ideal to the infrared wavelength operation, either during tracking or imaging.