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Italian Army Orders Arthur Weapon-Locating Radar

By tom kington
Published: 9 Nov 2009 16:13

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ROME - The Italian Army has placed an 83 million euro ($123.3 million) order for five Saab weapon-locating radar systems, which will be delivered within three years of a contract signing.

The acquisition of the Artillery Hunting Radar, known as Arthur, was announced Nov. 9 by Finmeccanica unit Selex Sistemi Integrati, which heads the temporary industrial consortium, including Saab Microwave, supplying the systems.

The contract covers training and installation, with Selex integrating the radars with the Army's SIACCON command-and-control system. Selex also will ensure the mobility of the system, the company said.

Saab describes the Arthur system as a brigade- or division-level counterbattery sensor system, aiding the suppression of enemy artillery.

The system, generally transported by truck, tracks incoming artillery projectiles to determine launch positions, but it also can simultaneously track outgoing projectiles to determine the impact point.