ST. LOUIS, May 08, 2008 -- The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] today dedicated a new test and evaluation facility in Huntington Beach, Calif., that provides the technology and capability to support both current and future radar-based weapon systems. The Dynamic Advanced Radar Test (DART) facility represents a $10 million investment for the company.
"DART is a one-stop, full-service facility to support design, development and qualification testing of our most sophisticated radar-based weapons before taking them to the field, where testing can be very costly," said Debra Rub-Zenko, Weapons Programs vice president for Boeing. "This facility is unquestionably a leap forward in our ability to meet the rapidly expanding requirements surrounding test and production of increasingly complex weapon systems."
The DART facility combines two critical test and evaluation activities, nearly doubling the size of the facility and increasing capacity to meet the challenges of evolving threats.
"As threats evolve and become more sophisticated, it is imperative that industry ensures our response to meet warfighter needs is rapid, flexible, cost-efficient and, most importantly, reliable. This new facility far exceeds our expectations in meeting that imperative," said Rub-Zenko.
The facility includes a new anechoic chamber and flight-worthiness test area that provide a wide range of test capabilities:
- An advanced threat simulator that dramatically increases target simulation capabilities with wide instantaneous bandwidth capable of being tuned across several radio-frequency bands, and a modular design that supports growth for other bands
- A spatial target array that gives Boeing the capability to evaluate in a laboratory environment hardware and software performance that previously could be tested only in costly field exercises
- A radar alignment and positioning system that allows flexible positioning of seekers that range in size from 10 to 60 inches, and quick and easy reconfiguration without costly redesign of test equipment
- A vibration and temperature test capability that combines environmental test or stand-alone vibration or temperature tests, allowing next-generation hardware to be environmentally tested in the way it will be used in the field.