French and British Sonar

Henson · 06-22-06, 04:07 PM

I know the germans, for one, have one hell of a combat control system, especially suited for littoral ops.

One thing that is hard to grasp is that a Combat Control System (CCS) is not as one-size-fits-all as we would like it to be. After a couple of semi-failed experiments with fully integrated CCS (BSY-1 and 2) the US and Australia moved towards CCS Mk2 Block 1C, which is a deep-water traditional american system paired with the new COTS sonar system (BQQ-10). That combo is awesome for tracking submarines; however, while it is a step-up for the US as far as operating in high contact density waters, it still leaves something to be desired in that regard. The new BYG-1 with BQQ-10 (ARCI) is an improvement on that, and the great thing about it is the rapid upgrades that are now possible because of the use of commercially available computer technology.

Some of the european vendors, on the other hand, have been working on systems that were specifically designed for littorals with high-contact densities for decades now. Those are really good at that, but are not as good at tracking submarines. There is currently no perfect middle ground, so the americans go their way and the rest go theirs. We have different missions and different focus, and our CCS/sonar systems reflect that. An ASUW mission has substantially different requirements than an ASW mission or an ISR.

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06-22-06, 04:07 PM	#7
Henson Planesman Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 185 Downloads: 13 Uploads: 0	I know the germans, for one, have one hell of a combat control system, especially suited for littoral ops. One thing that is hard to grasp is that a Combat Control System (CCS) is not as one-size-fits-all as we would like it to be. After a couple of semi-failed experiments with fully integrated CCS (BSY-1 and 2) the US and Australia moved towards CCS Mk2 Block 1C, which is a deep-water traditional american system paired with the new COTS sonar system (BQQ-10). That combo is awesome for tracking submarines; however, while it is a step-up for the US as far as operating in high contact density waters, it still leaves something to be desired in that regard. The new BYG-1 with BQQ-10 (ARCI) is an improvement on that, and the great thing about it is the rapid upgrades that are now possible because of the use of commercially available computer technology. Some of the european vendors, on the other hand, have been working on systems that were specifically designed for littorals with high-contact densities for decades now. Those are really good at that, but are not as good at tracking submarines. There is currently no perfect middle ground, so the americans go their way and the rest go theirs. We have different missions and different focus, and our CCS/sonar systems reflect that. An ASUW mission has substantially different requirements than an ASW mission or an ISR.