Foreign sales may offset U.S. cost of Raytheon radar-US Air Force | Reuters: The U.S. Air Force said foreign sales of 50 to 100 of the new long-range radar systems to be developed by Raytheon Co could help lower the cost of U.S. purchases in coming years.
Dave Allen, the Air Force's lead engineer for the next-generation radar program, said in an interview on Tuesday that the program was designed from the start with "anti-tamper" features and other equipment to enable easier exports.
Allen declined to name potential customers, but said many countries would need to replace current radar systems built by Raytheon and its rivals, Northrop Grumman Corp and Lockheed Martin Corp as they reached the end of their service lives, normally about 20 to 25 years.
Raytheon declined comment on possible targets for foreign sales of the new radar system, the Three-Dimensional Expeditionary Long-Range Radar (3DELRR), which will serve as the Air Force's primary long-range, ground-based sensors for detecting and tracking aircraft and missiles.
