FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1972
1972 - 3354.PDF
880a SWEDEN'S AIRCRAFJT INDUSTRY STANSAAB Formed as recently as January 1971, Stansaab is concerned with all aspects of real-time data systems, principally in relation to air traffic control but also for commercial applications. The company was created round a nucleus from Standard Radio and Telefon, which retains a one-third interest, the other two partners being Saab-Scania and the Swedish Development Company. The Censor 900 family of processors originated in the SRT days and has formed the basis of the two best-known systems produced by the company, the Stril 60 air defence surveillance and the semi-automated air traffic control centre at Arlanda, Stockholm. The company has, however, advanced from a supplier of process equipment to the stage of offering total programme management under the so-called turnkey technique familiar in the United States. Stansaab will contract to undertake the complete design and installation of, for instance, an air traffic control tower with all associated communications and services. A recent project of which Stansaab is proud has been the Dutch upper airspace control system Pharos (plan handling and radar operating system) which the company claims to be "the only real-time system in Europe to be delivered in real time." In partnership with NSEM and Software Sciences of Aldershot, Stansaab has created and delivered on schedule a twin-computer assembly with a target down-time of no more than one in 10,000. The level of reliability has been achieved by the use of a pair of Censor 932 units, of which one is active and the other is on line but redundant. The two units are constantly monitored by a dual computer automatic supervisor (DuCAS) which can pick up a malfunction and switch computer loading to maintain the system capability. While Pharos makes use entirely of synthetically pre sented radar information, a comparable system, Seros, which Stansaab has recently put into commission in Belgium, uses both raw and processed displays. Currently based on a single computer this installation is expected to be upgraded to a dual capability in the near future. Stansaab considers its data processing to be even more advanced than that employed in the Dutch system in that it The Svenska-Radio head-up display for the Viggen comprises, left to right, the power supply, waveform generator, head-down radar display and Elliott HUD. The latter presents take-off, landing, approach and attack information to the pilot on the reflector (the landing symbology is shown on page 869). Brightness is controlled automatically by the photocell, also shown. The radar display is sufficiently bright that no shield is needed FLIGHT International, 14 Decem'eer 1972 includes remote information displays transmitted from the centre to Brussels international airport on Alfaskop units which allow the instant transmission of flight plans from airfield to centre or vice versa. After working closely with Cossor in the United Kingdom for most of 1972, Stansaab has recently formalised the arrangement by signing an agreement for the exchange of production facilities for, respectively, the Cossor airborne transponder unit and the Stansaab radar plot extraction equipment. The latter has been under evaluation by he British Civil Aviation Authority at its Burrington radar head since August. Stansaab is looking for more active co-operation in the United Kingdom and has made presenta tions of its defence radar capability to the British Ministry of Defence. SVENSKA-RADIO Svenska-Radio's five product divisions employ about 2,000 people, but its aviation electronics activity is located mainly in the Defence Electronics Department. This division heads three groups which are responsible for SRA's main aero nautical products:— electronic counter-measures, IFF, and ground and airborne displays. They account for 25-30 per cent of the organisation's total sales, and this proportion has remained substantially constant for some years. Svenska Radio is owned by L- M. Ericsson (71-5 per cent) and Marconi (29-5 per cent). Most of the company's ECM work is highly classified, but an installation known as Pod-70 has been developed for wing mounting on the Saab 105XT and is on offer abroad. Air-cooled, it weighs 225kg and can be tailored largely to customer specification. The company's IFF interest goes back to the early 1960s, in conjunction with L. M. Ericsson, and efforts are now concentrated on the development of equipment for the Viggen fighter. But the largest activity of the division is in the field of radar displays, and the Lansen, Draken and Viggen all have Svenska-Radio equipment aboard. Present interest naturally centres on the Viggen, by far the most advanced of the three aircraft and representing a much greater financial investment. Production equipment is now being delivered for the AJ37 (attack) Viggen. This consists of a radar display, power supply and waveform generator, designed and built by SRA, and a head-up display supplied by Marconi-Elliott Avionic Systems. Advances planned in the equipment to be built for the fighter version include a digital waveform generator, which will be easier to pro gram than the existing unit. The storage tube in the present radar display will be replaced by a high-brightness tube for better visibility at high altitude. The Land Mobile Radio Division's line of portable and hand-held VHF and UHF radios and communication sets is also of aviation or para-military interest. These have particular application in the north of Sweden, where instal lations such as airfields are less well served than in the south. Voice communication equipment predominates, but radio links will play a large part in the control of Viggen operations. Annual production is 8,000-9,000 units, of which nearly 30 per cent is exported. Another group, Research and Development, plays a part in Esro's space programmes. It was a subcontractor to Saab-Scania on the TD-1A scientific satellite built by the European Mesh consortium (Matra, Erno, Saab and Hawker Siddeley) and launched in March this year. The division built the telemetry system. SRA was also involved with the attitude-hold system on the Hughes-led Intelsat IV communications satellite. A clean room was established for these programmes, and there is no doubt that the company has learnt a lot about technology and project management. The division has a fine new plant for the design and construction of thick- and thin-film microcircuits, all so far tailored to the needs of thecompany, though SRA says that a wider market may be sought later.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
