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| Updated: December 2004 | NATO Publications |
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Briefing: Improving capabilities to meet new threats 7. Alliance Ground Surveillance
NATO is buying an Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) system that will give Alliance commanders a picture of the situation on the ground in mission areas. It will consist of a mix of manned and unmanned radar platforms that can look down on the ground and relay data to commanders, providing them with "eyes in the sky" over a specific area. AGS will be produced by the Transatlantic Industrial Proposed Solution (TIPS), a consortium of over 80 companies, including the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS), Galileo Avionica, General Dynamics Canada, Indra, Northrop Grumman and Thales. The system is scheduled to achieve an initial operational capability in 2010 and full capability in 2012. It will be owned and operated by NATO. Just as NATO's AWACS radar aircraft oversees airspace, AGS will be able to look at what is happening on the ground. AGS will provide situational awareness before and during NATO operations. This is an essential capability for modern military operations and will be a key tool for the NATO Response Force (NRF). AGS will consist of manned and unmanned platforms, as well as ground control stations in different configurations. The manned platform will be based on the Airbus A321 commercial airliner and the unmanned platform on the Global Hawk high altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Both the manned and the unmanned platforms will carry the Transatlantic Cooperative AGS Radar (TCAR).
AGS will operate from one main operating base as well as forward operating locations and be ready to deploy to any mission area within five days. There will be two orbits, one for the manned aircraft and one for the UAVs. Its exact capabilities will depend on the results of the effort to develop the TCAR it will carry but they will include the ability to identify individual vehicles from a stand-off distance. AGS will be interoperable with national systems belonging to NATO countries, forming a system of systems when necessary. Until AGS is ready, the US Air Force's Joint Surveillance and Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS) will support the NRF. On 1 April 2004, the AGS Steering Committee decided to sign the design and development contract with TIPS, a decision endorsed by the Conference of National Armaments Directors on 16 April 2004. The design and development phase will last for two years between the contract signing with TIPS in 2005 and 2007. It will be followed by the acquisition phase between 2007 and 2009. This will be divided into engineering and manufacturing development and the actual acquisition.
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