Sierra Nevada (SNC) and ITT Exelis are soon to complete testing of Vigilant Stare. It is a Wide-Area Persistent Surveillance (WAPS) concept demonstrator based on a manned aircraft.
The first Vigilant Stare system was set-off on a Twin Otter aircraft, accomplishing initial operational capability in August. It will deliver novel, well-proven solution in airborne wide-area persistent surveillance on a fee-for-service basis, cost-effectively. The flexible capability of vigilant Stare allows adoption on other manned aircraft platforms including Pilatus PC-12, the Bombardier Q200, Dornier 328, and King Air 350.
During system testing by SNC, the commercially based backend of Vigilant Stare has demonstrated that imagery chip-outs can be directly accessed in real time to field elements through WIMAX/4G LTE dissemination channel, based on common hand-held off-the-shelf devices.
SNC and Exelis technology –based operationally proven systems like integrated EO/IR sensor of Vigilant Stare captures day/night motion and synoptic imagery of city-sized fields having number of sub-views of the full field of view. Furthermore, real time maximum-resolution tactical chip-outs benefit users of commercial devices and centralized command centers. Variety of dissemination capability leverages situational awareness throughout multiple echelons concurrently.
Vigilant Stare’s potential mission support areas are national security at special or sporting events; military contingency operations; natural disaster response; border security surveillance and networks characterization; search and rescue efforts; surveillance of suspected areas of illegal activity; and port security surveillance.
The collaboration of SNC and Exelis under Vigilant Stare provides the market with mature operational capability, supplying multiple service options to readily available WAPS capabilities that benefit a variety of customers.
Source: http://www.sncorp.com/