Ship Self Defense System ICS completes first live fire test with UAV
NewsFebruary 07, 2019
TEWKSBURY, Mass. The U.S. Navy and Raytheon completed live first testing onboard a Self Defense Test Ship on the Ship Self Defense System (SSDS) Integrated Combat System (ICS) for the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78). During testing, the system successfully engaged an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) target off the coast of California.
Further integrated combat system live fire events will take place during subsequent developmental and operational testing planned for 2019.
The CVN 78 SSDS Integrated Combat System incorporates Raytheon's Dual Band Radar (DBR), which searched for, located, and tracked the target. The DBR then provided radar illumination to the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM) to support missile guidance. The Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC) validated and processed the DBR data for SSDS.
CEC is responsible for providing a single, integrated air picture, fusing data from multiple sensors to improve track accuracy. The SSDS processed the CEC data, determined the appropriate engagement ranges, passed launch commands to the missile, and scheduled Dual Band Radar support for the engagement.
The Evolved SeaSparrow Missile successfully engaged and defeated the target during testing, officials say. Lastly, the Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) interceptor was successfully scheduled by SSDS, but not required, since the target was destroyed by the ESSM.
