And though it is kinda of off topic, it is worth mentioning the Su-24M Orion-A can operate on the metric, centimetric and millimetric radar bands. In game it is shown only that it is a I-band radar, which is kind of wrong considering the detection ranges it has in-game
Doesnt it switch bands in game?
I don’t know if multiple bands on one radar set is a feature. Technically the Orion-A is not even “one radar”. If you look the model in game and the real life pictures, it has a big and a small antenna.
only useful thing is ground moving target mode. im sure you had fun writing this post but this is a lot of development for not much gain.
🆗 lol
1 Like
Well, I guess that in the “ground mapping mode topic”, the GMTI could use the resolution of the I-band radars and then the RBM uses the milimeter wave band resolution. In game the Orion-A has a very narrow vertical scanning section for the A-G mode, which can account for the small antenna.
it’s called a downgrade
Proper SAR / Advanced GMTI modes can also locate and track stationary targets as well. It would be very valuable on certain attackers.
Also Ground Mapping Radars on the Tornado IDS would be really fun with the low cloud maps and as an alternative method for setting CCRP target points
1 Like
It is for the A-G mode that can detect fixed ground targets, as I added it later. The GMTI it has uses a “normal” vertical scan section.
The topic isn’t about the performance of the Orion-A, but how to considerate the resolution of the images it would be capable of producing, observing that it can, irl, make maps in various bands.
You have some source mentioning the Tornado capability of producing radar images? I haven’t had luck in finding info about its radar
I dont but you could ask in the Tornado Thread
1 Like
Just checked and the SRC MTI and the SRC modes have the ranges of 100Km, compatible with metric and centimetric bands, the A-G mode has only 10Km of range, which is compatible with the milimeter band. Ground mapping modes would make the Su-24M much more interesting, as it doesn’t uses a laser rangefinder irl, but instead used the radar to measure range.
I found mention of ground mapping modes on the Tornado’s radar, and also this video:
Seems like it had two antennas, one smaller and one bigger for different functions – probably they worked at different wavelengths too. The quality of the video doesn’t help much to identify the components of the radars, though.
Seems like the new event aircraft Kfir C.10 also have ground mapping modes:
Multimode Radar : Airborne Fire Control For Multi Mission Fighters
Another thing worth of mention that I forgot is that foliage can reflect or attenuate radio waves depending on their wavelength. If the Su-24M uses the metric band in SAR, in theory the radar would ignore bushes, thin trees and leaves in general.
This doesn’t seems to be modeled, because it seems very arbitrary which trees and bushes completely block radar beams.
Some trees partially obscures a target if I use the Khrizantema-S radar, but then there will be a small bush that completely hides a very visible target. Remembering that the Khrizantemas radar works in the 2mm band, so it should suffer attenuation.
So big enough wavelengths won’t backscatter on small things like leaves.
+1
1 Like
Trees
We can see how the trees backscatter away the radar waves. They looks like very bright in the angle it was seen from, and the oposite direction there is shadows.
Ground mapping also would mean an actual fix to the Su-24M radar and the Tornado IDS radar.
The Su-24M never had a stationary ground target indicator as it has in game, and the Tornado has only a naval targetting mode and ACM. Those two would greatly benefit from this as the Su-24 was the first all-weather round o’clock bomber the USSR had and the Tornado would have an actual usable radar instead of the gimmick of a radar it has now.
The MiG-29SMT Zhuk-ME also has ground mapping capabilities, from the rosoboronexport catalogue