 BriteCloud 55 Decoy | |
| Inception | 2013 |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Selex ES Leonardo-Finmeccanica (since 2016) Leonardo (since 2017) |
BriteCloud is a self-contained expendabledigital radio frequency memory (DRFM) jammer developed bySelex ES (merged intoLeonardo since 2017) to help protect military aircraft. The decoy was launched by Selex ES at a conference held at theChurchill War Rooms, London on 6 November 2013.[1]
Military aircraft face a highly developed airborne and surface-based RF threat. Mobilesurface-to-air missiles with highly accurate RF tracking systems present a formidable threat when used in pop-up mode, and many older systems have been retrofitted with modern electronics that have greatly enhanced their capabilities. The modern systems are particularly difficult to counter, and have an array of Electronic Protection Measures (EPM) at their disposal.
BriteCloud was developed to counter modern tracking systems. Its technology is based on previous generations ofelectronic countermeasures such as repeaters and Towed Radar Decoys (TRD). When launched, the battery-powered decoy searches for and counters priority threats. Incoming radar pulses are received and the BriteCloud’s onboard computer copies these pulses and uses them to simulate a ‘false target’ so that the threat system cannot detect the intended target and fails.
It is available in two versions: the BriteCloud 55 decoy launched from standard 55 mm diameterchaff/flare cartridge dispensers, and the BriteCloud 218 decoy launched from smaller 2”×1”×8” square-format standard cartridge dispensers. In 2019, the development of the BriteCloud 55-T was announced, designed for bigger military aircraft with largerradar cross-sections, eg. theLockheed C-130 Hercules.[2]
The first trials of the BriteCloud 55 decoy on theEurofighter Typhoon took place in April 2019. Integration work on the aircraft is ongoing, as part of Project Centurion. Once in service with the RAF, BriteCloud will be one of the countermeasures available to the Typhoon’sPraetorian DASS.[3][4]
The BriteCloud 218 version was first tested on aRoyal Danish Air Force F-16, successfully deploying the decoy after a realsurface-to-air missile targeting system was used to lock on to the aircraft.[5]
The BriteCloud 218 decoy has now been approved by the USAir National Guard for deployment on itsF-16 fleet, after the US Defense Department's Foreign Comparative Testing trials that began in 2019. It uses standard-size rectangular (square-format) rounds, compatible with common dispensers for example theAN/ALE-47, and is thus useable on other 4th Generation fighters including theF-15,F/A-18 andA-10. Its US designation will be theAN/ALQ-260(V)1.[6][7]
The decoy has been integrated on theGeneral Atomics MQ-9 Reaper andMQ-9B Sky/SeaGuardianUCAVs after testing in late 2020. It's deployed by an AN/ALE-47 dispenser, part of the aircraft's Self-Protection Pod.[8][9]
The BriteCloud 55-T version has now been upgraded to pass NATO's STANAG-4871 self-protection standard. This means it now features compatibility with 'smart dispenser' systems, allowing the decoy to share data with the host aircraft's onboard self-protection system. It also now enables the ability to interface with smart dispenser systems using the NATO-developed Smart Stores Communication Interface (SSCI). The SSCI means BriteCloud can be carried with a mixed load of expendibles and allows automatic logging of payload data e.g. air carriage life. Leonardo is planning to apply this update to the BriteCloud 218 version.[10]
Technologies from BriteCloud are being used to develop the payload for SPEAR-EW, the electronic warfare variant of theSPEAR product line under development for theRoyal Air Force. SPEAR-EW will be capable of both stand-in / stand-off jamming / spoofing similar to the capabilities of theUS Air Force'sADM-160 MALD.[11][12]
Selex ES announced at the 2013 launch event that defence and security companySaab will be the first partner to offer the new decoy as an optionalelectronic warfare enhancement for all versions of theJAS 39 Gripen, both new and existing.[13]
| ActiveCountermeasures (Jamming) | |
|---|---|
| PassiveRadar Warning Receivers | |
| Missile Warning Systems | |
| Flare andChaff Systems | |
| Directional IRCM | |
| Dedicated ECM /ESM aircraft | |
