Poland to buy $1.2 billion balloon-based early warning radar system from US

Europe, News May 10, 2024 , by IRIA No Comments

The Polish government is set to finalize a $1.2 billion procurement contract to finalize the purchase of the balloon-based early warning radar system from U.S. defense firms, under the Barbara aerostat reconnaissance program, to protect NATO territory.

The head of the country’s armament procurement agency Gen. Artur Kuptel announced that four systems would be acquired under the program to bolster surveillance. These systems will protect Poland’s eastern border, marking the first such solution in Europe.

“This is a unique, highly advanced, and multi-sensing system. We will be able to monitor any object that would unauthorizedly enter our country’s territory, NATO territory. We will be able to take early actions to neutralize the threat,” Kuptel said.

In February, the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) confirmed the approval for Poland’s plans to purchase Airspace and Surface Radar Reconnaissance (ASRR) aerostat systems from U.S.-based defense manufacturers. The primary contractors fulfilling this requirement are Raytheon Intelligence & Space, ELTA North America, and Avantus Federal LLC.

According to the details by the DSCA, the acquisition package includes ASRR aerostat systems, airborne early warning (AEW) radars featuring identification friend-or-foe (IFF) capabilities, electronic sensor systems, mooring systems with powered tether and integrated fiber optics, ground control systems (GCS), as well as related hardware, training, technical assistance, and logistical support.

*^{ENA-2083 aerostat early warning radar system. (Image Credit: ELTA)}*

Fitted with radar and electronic intelligence equipment, the aerostats will be utilized to provide continuous day and night surveillance, tracking, and monitoring of various air and ground threats. These include low radar cross-section detection of unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) and low-altitude inbound aircraft.

Barrage Balloon Radar systems

Aerostats, also known as “barrage balloons,” are sizable, helium-filled systems employed to aid in long-distance surveillance, reconnaissance, and threat identification. These systems, being lighter than air, are typically anchored to the ground and act as a defensive precaution against low-altitude enemy aircraft.

Raytheon initiated an aerostat program called the Joint Land Attack Cruise Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensor System; however, funding was terminated amidst controversy. In 2015, an unmanned surveillance blimp broke free from its ground tether in Maryland, striking power lines across Pennsylvania and leading to significant power outages.

Poland’s interest in this capability is noteworthy, especially following the cancellation of a similar project by the United States.

Kuptel explained that the aerostat early warning radar system is ideal for Poland’s eastern border, which is near the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, as it eliminates the problem known as radar shadowing, which refers to the difficulty in detecting low-flying missiles, such as modern-day hypersonic missiles which fly parallel to the ground making harder for the conventional ground-based radar systems to detect.

“An object that is near a ground station or the curvature of the Earth itself causes a shadow, in which the object can move with a sense of safety and lack of threat. In this case, that element is negated,” he explained.