BEL delivers modules for radar unit on Rafale jets

Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) has manufactured transmit and receive modules for a radar unit used in the Dassault Rafale fighter aircraft and has delivered them to the French firm Thales.

The RBE2 Active Electronic Scanning Array (AESA) radar which was specifically developed for the Rafale, is the first in-service European AESA radar. The radar was developed in close partnership with the Dassault Aviation and the French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA). The radar employs innovative technologies to combine advanced fire control radar functions and target tracking.

BEL said that the "transmit/receive modules are key to the RBE2 active electronic scanning performance, enabling it to steer the radar beam with the speed of an electronic chip."

Thales said it is demonstrating its commitment to "Make in India" through the transfer of technology and production, plus associated training for BEL engineers in France.

Thales added that it is an active stakeholder in the Offsets conditions included in the Rafale India programme.

The transfer of technology was initiated at the end of 2017. In November 2020, the first RBE2 radar with a front end manufactured by BEL in India was delivered by Thales to Dassault.

BEL chairman and Managing Director, M V Gowtama, said that the company had "augmented its facilities in Bengaluru to meet the requirements of manufacturing this state-of-the-art sub-system."

Compared to radars with conventional antennas, the RBE2 delivers an unprecedented level of tactical situational awareness, faster detection and tracking of multiple targets, and can also implement several radar modes instantaneously.