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AN/APG-66

Description of the radar set, tactical-technical characteristics

Figure 1: F-16 aircraft with radar receiver and transmitter in lower section for easy accessibility

Figure 1: F-16 aircraft with radar receiver and transmitter in lower section for easy accessibility

Specifications
frequency: X-band
pulse repetition time (PRT):
pulse repetition frequency (PRF):
pulsewidth (τ):
receiving time:
dead time:
peak power:
average power:
instrumented range: 80 NM (≙ 150 km)
range resolution:
accuracy:
beamwidth:
azimuth angular coverage: ±10°/±30°/±60º
MTBCF: 120 h
MTTR: 5 min

AN/APG-66

AN/APG-66 is an X-band fully coherent pulse Doppler radar which was originally designed for use on the F-16 multirole combat aircraft in support of AN/AIM-7F/M Sparrow, AN/AIM-9L/M Sidewinder, AN/AIM-120A, Penguin, MICA and Skyflash E missiles. The radar is of modular design and comprises six functional Line-Replaceable Units (LRUs) each of which has its own power supply (Antenna, Transmitter, Low-power RF, Digital signal processor, Radar computer, Display). In total, AN/APG-66 is noted as containing 9,500 component parts and in its production form, has no associated hydraulics or rate/roll gyros. The first model was fitted with a traveling wave tube (TWT) which was later replaced by a solid-state power amplifier.

The equipment has formally demonstrated a Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) figure of 121 hours and a meantime to repair of five minutes. The AN/APG-66 offers 10 operating modes, some of which are associated with frequency agility to resist jamming. All system functions, including self-test, are computer controlled via a serial digital databus. LRU production has involved a European consortium which included companies in Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands and Norway.

Variants

The basic APG-66 has spawned a range of variants as follows: