previous page

  back to army index 


ARTILLERY LOCATING DEVICES - COBRA



Counter Battery Radar (COBRA) will give British troops a vital edge in both combat and peacekeeping missions by pinpointing enemy artillery units by detecting and tracking incoming missiles and shells. Britain, which signed a ú350 [Three hundred and fifty million pounds] collaborative agreement with France and Germany in March 1998, will get seven COBRA's by the year 2002. The lorry mounted long range radars, which will be based at Catterick with 5 Regiment Surveillance and Target Acquisition Royal Artillery, will normally be used to detect artillery across a 40 km battlefield although they can operate over much larger distances with modifications. The system can track hundreds of rounds simultaneously and tell the operators what type of shell they are, will also be vital in detecting breaches of cease-fires in places like Bosnia. The system can detect enemy shells, process the data and locate the exact position of the enemy artillery in just 30 seconds - it then sends the co-ordinates to our own artillery within a few minutes. The radar will be operated by a two-man crew who sit inside a specially protected cab unit

AS90

 

Photo Crown Copyright