Raytheon to Build MDA Upgraded Early Warning Radar

Raytheon Company has been awarded a $114 million contract by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) to implement the Upgraded Early Warning Radar (UEWR) program at Thule, Greenland.

The UEWR at Thule will build on the radars that Raytheon already deployed to Beale Air Force Base, California, and Royal Air Force Fylingdales, U.K., and will add significantly more surveillance coverage for the U.S. missile defense mission.

As the prime contractor, Raytheon IDS will integrate new electronics, computer hardware and mission software to upgrade the existing two-faced, phased array antenna facility at the remote site. Raytheon will also support integrated tests of the Thule UEWR, performing both missile defense and legacy missions.

Continuing the Raytheon heritage with UHF phased array radars, the UEWR program upgrades existing PAVE PAWS and Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radars by adding missile defense capabilities while retaining legacy missile warning and space surveillance missions.

A key sensor for the MDA's Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS), UEWR provides midcourse target detection and tracking for the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense portion of the BMDS to protect the U.S. from ballistic missile attacks.

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