The APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar fire control system, which is being considered for several types of fighter aircraft. Photo courtesy of Northrop Grumman

Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Northrop Grumman has successfully installed an APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar on a U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18C Hornet at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.

The fit check demonstrated SABR is an option for installation on F/A-18C/D Hornets and that the radar is compatible with the aircraft's power, cooling and avionics systems, the company said on Monday.


"The Marine Corps asked for an Active Electronically Scanned Array solution due to the radar's increase in reliability and sustainability with no decrease in operational performance," Greg Simer, vice president of integrated avionics systems for Northrop Grumman, said in a press release.

"The Marine Corps' stated objective is to modify an in-production, fielded AESA while meeting the current size, weight, power and cooling requirements of the F/A-18 C/D. We have proven our production APG-83 SABR radar fits into the F/A-18 C/D, achieving the objectives and bringing the technical maturity needed to attain the Marine Corps fleet insertion timelines," Simer said.

The APG-83 is an advanced fire control radar that is a derivative for 5th-generation fighters like the F-22's APG-77 and the F-35's APG-81 radars.

It has high speed acquisition and targeting capabilities and is designed to be highly resistant to jamming. It has also been proposed for upgraded F-16 Fighting Falcon tactical fighter jets.