Performance measurements of the radar “in situ”

Method of implementation and the radar system oriented set of ldquoin siturdquo tests have particular interest in maintaining current radar net (primary/secondary-military/civilian) at the peak of their operational capabilities. This work is traditionally shared between the radar operational personal and the original radar manufacturer (OEM) engineers. The shortcomings of these methods are known, because the level of test or technical check is determined by built in test equipments (BITE) of the radar, and their supplementary tools; the original equipment manufacturer site visits are seldom, expensive and sometimes profit oriented. Because it is difficult to track the safety feature changes of the SSR system and/or ldquowar timerdquo (ECCM) performance levels over a longer period - it is therefore very hard to get an objective picture of the radar performances on a regular basis. However to get the maximum available information regularly regarding a radar under test within a minimum required downtime one has to implement a comprehensive set of tests which complement each other and maintain the data/results. The evaluation of the test results should be based on the scientifically proven criteria and their syntheses. This kind of activity sounds quite interesting for radar experts; however they lack the impetus to gain the attention by the radar scientific community. This paper intends to give the momentum to introduce a practical realisation of the system performance check (SPC) applied for ground-based radars.