Thursday, March 12, 2020

Philippines to order 4 long range air defense radars from Japanese company

Mitsubishi Electric displays a scale model of the FPS-3ME radar at LIMA 2019 defense exhibition in Langkawi, Malaysia. Photo c/o Mohamed Azmin Ali.


The Philippines’ Department of National Defense (DND) has awarded a project to acquire air defense radars to Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (MELCO) as part of the modernization efforts of the Philippine Air Force (PAF).

A Notice of Award was issued by the DND on 04 March 2020, with a contract for 3 fixed and 1 mobile air defense radars worth around PHP5.26 billion (US$105 million) is expected within 2 months.

According to MaxDefense Philippines, the radars included in the deal are the J/FPS-3ME 3D Active Electronic Scanned Array (AESA) advanced long range fixed radar system, and the J/TPS-P14ME truck-mounted long range mobile radar system, which MELCO has been offering for export to countries. 

It is expected to be the first major export of military radars by Japan, which has only recently revised its policies on arms exports. 

The J/FPS-3ME is a development of the 90s-era J/FPS-3 radar in service with the Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF), incorporating AESA technology, improved signal processing, and jamming resistance. It also has a secondary antenna optimized for short range detection.

The J/TPS-P14ME is also a development from the J/TPS-P14 mobile AESA  radar used by the Japan Ground Self Defense Force (JGSDF) and operates in S-band frequency, with improvements including upgrades on signal processing and modernized hardware. 

Both radar systems are capable of detecting medium and high altitude targets beyond 300 kilometers.

The PAF is expected to receive the radars between late 2021 to 2022, and are expected to be deployed in the northeast, central and southwest parts of the country.


[1] Inquirer.net
[2] MaxDefense Philippines
[3] Philippine Defense Resource

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