Bendix AN/FPS-20 Radar

AN/FPS-20
Bendix AN/FPS-20 Radar
Country of origin United States
Type General Surveillance Radar
Other Names AN/FPS-64, AN/FPS-66, AN/FPS-67, AN/FPS-93

The AN/FPS-20 Radar was a General Surveillance Radar used by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command.

Production of the AN/FPS-20 Surveillance Radar began in 1956. This dual-modulator, fixed station, general surveillance system, developed by RADC became the main surveillance radar for the continental United States. Equipped for dual-channel operations with a klystron transmitter, this system provided long-range surveillance capability.

This Bendix-built radar was an AN/FPS-3 search radar with an AN/GPA-27 installed. Designed to operate in the L-band frequencies of 1250 to 1350 MHz, the radar had a range of over 200 miles. By the late 1950s, this radar dominated the US radar defense network, with deployment continuing into the early 1960s. In June 1959 Bendix received a contract to provide private industry's MK-447 [the same system as the military AN/GPA-103] and MK-448 AN/GPA-102 anti-jam packages to the radars.

With the addition of these packages, the Air Force redesignated the radars as AN/FPS-66 [AN/GPA-102] and AN/FPS-67 [AN/GPA-103] The AN/FPS-93 search radar system is a modified AN/FPS-20 with the addition of the Diplex Gating Unit (DGU) developed by Raytheon for use in the SAGE system.

References

United States Air Force portal
Military of the United States portal

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

External links