Testing of various parameters of electronic devices on aircraft is often carried out directly in the air, for that there is such a thing as a flying test bed, such as the one owned by PT Dirgantara Indonesia, which operates the CN-235 220 Flying Test Bed.
And related to the plan to fly the inaugural fighter jet in collaboration with South Korea and Indonesia, namely the KF-21 Boramae in July, apparently a flying test bed has been carried out on the AESA radar which is the key electronic device on the KF-21.
The AESA flying test bed radar for the KF-21 Boramae uses a narrow body Boeing 737-55S (ZS-TFJ) modified nose by Paramount Aerospace Systems of South Africa. The AESA (Active Electronically Scanned-Array) radar can electronically direct the beam of radio waves in different directions, allowing the aircraft to emit a strong radar signal while remaining stationary.
The function and performance tests of the radar were completed overseas through 10 sorties in November and December 2021. Domestic trials (South Korea) will last until April next year, before the KF-21 goes through a final stage evaluation in the first half of 2026.
About 62 items were tested over a total of 50 flights, along with testing of the detection and tracking function in air-to-air mode and design verification to obtain synthetic property radar (SAR) images. SAR is a form of radar used to create two-dimensional images or reconstructions of three-dimensional objects, such as landscapes.
"The performance of the KF-21 AESA radar will be more stable through domestic flight tests," said Roh Ji-man, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) official in charge of the KF-21 project, in a March 4, 2022 statement on ajudaily.com. .
Barriers from Washington's reluctance to provide key technology transfers for stealth fighters and advanced radar systems have prompted South Korea to acquire related technologies independently or through cooperation with other foreign companies.
Additional test bed flights will be carried out in South Africa and South Korea to test topographical tracking and evasion functions.
Referring to its track record, the AESA radar for the KF-21 (formerly KFX/IFX) began to be developed in 2016 with the involvement of Hanwha Thales Systems and the Agency for Defense Development (ADD), an R&D agency under the Ministry of Defense of South Korea.
Of course, South Korea cannot alone develop the AESA radar, in this project an Israeli company, Elbit Systems - a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) - acts as a collaborative partner in the transfer of technology. One of the roles of the Israeli company is to assist in the hardware testing phase.
The first AESA radar prototype was unveiled on 7 August 2020 and sent to ELTA Systems, an Israeli defense products provider, for ground and flight tests.
In 2021, South Korea unveiled its first KF-21 prototype fitted with the AESA system, after nearly two decades of hard work to dispel dubious or sometimes condescending views from high-end foreign aircraft makers.
With the AESA radar, it is possible to detect a large area, perform multiple missions, and strike multiple targets simultaneously. Hanwha Systems adds that fast beam steering is made possible by electronically controlling a thousand tiny transmission and reception integration modules mounted on the front of the radar antenna.
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