Orbital ATK has successfully tested the ShotFinder Acoustic Hostile-Fire Indication System on a fixed-wing aircraft, the company announced on 21 June.
Testing on a Cessna Grand Caravan aircraft configured for ISR missions showed that the ShotFinder system has a high probability of hostile-fire detection and a low false-alarm rate and relays a real-time directional warning to the pilot.
Data analysis and simulated live-fire data injection indicated the system has the capability to accurately produce hostile-fire indications from the expected threats.
ShotFinder identifies and directionally locates small calibre ball and tracer rounds, anti-aircraft artillery, unguided rockets and rocket propelled grenades through multiple display options.
The sensor can be used as a stand-alone hostile fire detection system or in conjunction with other threat warning systems to provide a complete threat awareness capability.
The acoustic hostile-fire warning system has been developed by Orbital ATK in partnership with Scientific Applications and Research Associates.
It was developed by using the supersonic shock wave from a passing bullet and the muzzle blast from the weapon to determine a bullet’s origin and point of closest approach.