Surveillance is crucial in counter-insurgency (COIN) operations, to counter IED attacks, improve force protection and detect change.
Currently, the ADF Surveillance capability is restricted, due to the extent of terrain to be covered and the limited assets deployed.
Defence believes that extending the capability to persistent and expansive surveillance will improve the detection and analysis of insurgency attacks and networks, and provide significantly improved Situational Awareness (SA).
It will also protect personnel.
Last year the RPDE program initiated a Quicklook to identify industry solutions for persistent surveillance over a localised area to protect ADF FOBs on operations.
The FOB Eye, as the proposed system has been dubbed, is expected to provide continuous (all weather, day and night) systematic watch over a defined battlespace to provide timely information for combat intelligence purposes.
At a recent NATO demonstration of Base and Infrastructure Protection systems, the Ultra Electronics Base Protection System was trialled alongside 15 other systems from major manufacturers and conglomerates and was voted as the most ‘Effective system for Critical Infrastructure/Force Protection applications'.
In view of its eminence as a world-leading FOB persistent surveillance system we have no doubt that Ultra's system has been selected for the RPDE's next task of enhancing it with pattern-of-life capabilities.