The AN/AQS-13 series was a helicopter dipping sonar system for the United States Navy. These systems were deployed as the primary inner zone anti-submarine warfare (ASW) sensor on aircraft carrier based helicopters for over five decades.[1] Companion versions with the AQS-18 designation were exported to various nations around the globe.
AN/AQS-13 dipping sonar deployed from an SH-3 Sea King
Airborne sonar systems provide a light-weight, mobile detection sensor for locating and tracking submarines. Although limited in performance compared to larger, ship-mounted sonars, these helicopter-borne systems have the advantage of rapid deployment/retrieval times, and rapid transition between search areas. Additional advantages over ship sonars include absence of flow noise and engine noise, and the elimination of Doppler shift induced by a moving signal source. Deployed from Aircraft Carriers or other ships, these systems enable the aircraft to locate, identify and attack submerged targets within the flight radius from the home ship.
Descriptionedit
The AQS-13 systems are all primarily active sonar transmitting in the upper end of the medium frequency sonar range. These systems offered the additional capabilities of voice communication, bathythermography and rudimentary passive sonar. Helicopter borne active sonar has significant advantages over other sensors and is especially effective in the inner zone where noise from the ships of the carrier battle group can interfere with passive sensors. The components of the AQS-13 are informally divided into two groups, the "wet end" and "dry end." The "dry end" involves the processing of the acoustic signals to obtain tactical data. The "wet end" components are those necessary to deploy the acoustic unit into the ocean and retrieve it. These "wet" components include the acoustic elements in a submersible unit, the reel & cable and reeling machine. The hydrophone and projector elements are housed within the submersible unit or transducer. The transducer, also called the "dome", a term borrowed from ship-board sonars, is lowered or "dipped" from the helicopter on a cable by means of the hydraulic reeling machine. The dip depth of the transducer is selected by the operator to achieve the maximum detection probability at the dip location on that particular day as determined by the study of ocean conditions (see Underwater Acoustics). During active search, the acoustic pulse is emitted from the projector assembly. Echos or "returns" are received by the hydrophone, routed through the sonar cable, processed in the aircraft and displayed on a cathode ray tube (CRT) in a plan position indicator (PPI) format. Returns were also processed and made available to the RO-358 chart recorder in the AQS-13E and earlier systems. This data was made available to the aircraft tactical computer in the AQS-13F. The various functions were selectable by the operator, such as pulse lengths, range scales and other modes to enhance operations for the particular conditions. Sensor elements on the reeling machine monitor the relative angle of the deployed sonar cable and provide flight reference signals to the aircraft stabilization equipment in order to maintain a steady hover position over the submerged transducer. Tactical data of the target is obtained from the acoustic returns, including range, bearing and relative speed. Later versions of the AQS-13 were also capable of processing acoustic signals transmitted to the aircraft from sonobuoys.
Historyedit
AQS-13edit
The AQS-13 system was introduced to the US fleet aboard the Sikorsky SH-3D anti-submarine warfare helicopter in the mid-1960s. (See military helicopter/maritime helicopters)[2] This was an upgrade from the AQS-10 system carried aboard the SH-3A helicopter. The AQS-13 offered an improved reeling machine and longer cable or "wet-end" than the AQS-10. The "dry-end" components of the system remained essentially the same as the AQS-10. Developed in the 1950s, these components utilized primarily vacuum tube technology. The RO-358 chart recorder provided a means of recording a permanent record of target data as well as additional means for target evaluation.[3][4]
AQS-13A/B/E hydrophone/projector
AQS-13Aedit
The AQS-13A system was an upgrade to the basic AQS-13 system incorporated into fleet systems in the late-1960s/early-1970s. The upgrade was primarily to incorporate built-in test equipment (BITE) circuitry, providing a method for testing system circuitry in the sonar set.
Sonar operator in SH-3H Sea King
AQS-13Bedit
The AQS-13B system was introduced to the US fleet as standard equipment aboard the Sikorsky SH-3H Sea King helicopter, replacing the SH-3D in the late-1970s. The AQS-13B was a significant upgrade from the AQS-13A. The "dry-end" components were replaced with solid state circuitry in a more compact set of replaceable assemblies. The "wet-end" components were essentially the same as the AQS-13A[5] and the RO-358 was maintained as part of the system. The display remained a standard PPI display. The system was built with the potential to upgrade with an acoustic processor.
AQS-13Eedit
The AQS-13B system was upgraded to the AQS-13E beginning in the late 1970s and early 1980s with the addition of a sonar data computer. This added the capability to process acoustic sonar and sonobuoy signals digitally while retaining the original analog processing capability. The computer-processed data could be displayed on the system CRT in various formats. Tactical target data derived from the acoustic signals could be transferred electronically from the sonar data computer to the aircraft tactical computer. To enhance target detection, a longer, shaped pulse was used in conjunction with fast Fourier transform processing by the computer. This enhanced the target selection by weighting each target candidate using frequency and duration information to overcome lower signal return strength.
AQS-13Fedit
The AQS-13F system was introduced to the US fleet as standard equipment aboard the Sikorsky SH-60F Seahawk helicopter,[6] that replaced the SH-3H as the inner-zone ASW platform aboard aircraft carriers in the late-1980s/early-1990s.[7] Key components of the AQS-13F system had origins in the made-for-export AQS-18 sonar developed for the German Navy for use in the Sea Lynx helicopter.[8] The AQS-13F offered improved acoustic processing, a longer transmit pulse, faster reeling machine, longer cable and increased acoustic transmit power. The processed target data could also be displayed on the aircraft multifunction displays and/or recorded via the aircraft mission tape recorder. Due to the limited funding approved by Congress, the aircraft systems were limited to "off the shelf" technology wherever possible.[9] This resulted in the use of a "dry-end" similar to the AQS-13E, even though more modern technology was available.
U.S. Navy SH-60F helicopter with AQS-13F transducer deployed
AQS-13F Dry-End Components
AQS-13F Reeling Machine
Maintainabilityedit
AQM-24Aedit
The AQM-21/AQM-24 and AQM-24A Sonar Test Centrals were used at U.S. Navy shore stations and aboard Aircraft Carriers to support the AQS-13 systems. These test benches provided the essential power for operation and simulated aircraft, ocean and target signals in order to test the individual components of the sonar systems.
The AQS-18 is the export version of the US Navy's AQS-13F. The original AQS-18 was developed for the German Navy from a drawing-board-only plan for an AQS-13D sonar for the US Navy. This version of the AQS-18 was initially deployed in the Westland Lynx helicopter in the early 1980s.[citation needed][13]
AQS-18(V)edit
AQS-18(V) Later variations were sold as the AQS-18(V) to countries around the world. Individual variations are distinct to each customer and used aboard various platforms. Earlier versions shared higher degree of commonality with the German AQS-18 and later versions more with the USN's AQS-13F. Users include the Hellenic Navy (Greece)[14] and the Portuguese Navy.
AQS-18(V)-3edit
The AQS-18 (V)-3 is one export version of the US Navy's AQS-13F helicopter-borne dipping sonar and is used by many friendly nations, including the Republic of China[15] and the Republic of Korea.[16] It contains many of the high-performance features of the US Navy version. In high reverberation-limited conditions the sonar system transmits a specially shaped pulse and its digital signal processor employs fast Fourier transform techniques to increase detection capabilities. A high source level provides long range search capabilities, improved figure of merit, and a high-speed reeling machine to achieve maximum depth and retrieve the sonar transducer rapidly.
AQS-18Aedit
The AQS-18A was developed in support of the Italian Navy and later sold to various international customers, including the Turkish Navy and the Egyptian Air Force. The system shared a common "wet end" with the US Navy's AQS-13F, but had an improved "dry end" with a more modern processor, operator interface and display. These enhancements allowed for longer acoustic pulses and improved processing techniques resulting in improved tactical performance. The Turkish version was sold aboard the Agusta-Bell AB 212ASW aircraft and the Egyptian version was sold aboard the Kaman SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopter.
this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, september, 2020, learn, whe. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources AN AQS 13 news newspapers books scholar JSTOR September 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message The AN AQS 13 series was a helicopter dipping sonar system for the United States Navy These systems were deployed as the primary inner zone anti submarine warfare ASW sensor on aircraft carrier based helicopters for over five decades 1 Companion versions with the AQS 18 designation were exported to various nations around the globe AN AQS 13 dipping sonar deployed from an SH 3 Sea King Contents 1 Purpose 2 Description 3 History 3 1 AQS 13 3 2 AQS 13A 3 3 AQS 13B 3 4 AQS 13E 3 5 AQS 13F 4 Maintainability 4 1 AQM 24A 5 Manufacturer 6 Export versions 6 1 AQS 502 6 2 AQS 18 6 3 AQS 18 V 6 4 AQS 18 V 3 6 5 AQS 18A 7 Users 8 References 9 External linksPurpose editAirborne sonar systems provide a light weight mobile detection sensor for locating and tracking submarines Although limited in performance compared to larger ship mounted sonars these helicopter borne systems have the advantage of rapid deployment retrieval times and rapid transition between search areas Additional advantages over ship sonars include absence of flow noise and engine noise and the elimination of Doppler shift induced by a moving signal source Deployed from Aircraft Carriers or other ships these systems enable the aircraft to locate identify and attack submerged targets within the flight radius from the home ship Description editThe AQS 13 systems are all primarily active sonar transmitting in the upper end of the medium frequency sonar range These systems offered the additional capabilities of voice communication bathythermography and rudimentary passive sonar Helicopter borne active sonar has significant advantages over other sensors and is especially effective in the inner zone where noise from the ships of the carrier battle group can interfere with passive sensors The components of the AQS 13 are informally divided into two groups the wet end and dry end The dry end involves the processing of the acoustic signals to obtain tactical data The wet end components are those necessary to deploy the acoustic unit into the ocean and retrieve it These wet components include the acoustic elements in a submersible unit the reel amp cable and reeling machine The hydrophone and projector elements are housed within the submersible unit or transducer The transducer also called the dome a term borrowed from ship board sonars is lowered or dipped from the helicopter on a cable by means of the hydraulic reeling machine The dip depth of the transducer is selected by the operator to achieve the maximum detection probability at the dip location on that particular day as determined by the study of ocean conditions see Underwater Acoustics During active search the acoustic pulse is emitted from the projector assembly Echos or returns are received by the hydrophone routed through the sonar cable processed in the aircraft and displayed on a cathode ray tube CRT in a plan position indicator PPI format Returns were also processed and made available to the RO 358 chart recorder in the AQS 13E and earlier systems This data was made available to the aircraft tactical computer in the AQS 13F The various functions were selectable by the operator such as pulse lengths range scales and other modes to enhance operations for the particular conditions Sensor elements on the reeling machine monitor the relative angle of the deployed sonar cable and provide flight reference signals to the aircraft stabilization equipment in order to maintain a steady hover position over the submerged transducer Tactical data of the target is obtained from the acoustic returns including range bearing and relative speed Later versions of the AQS 13 were also capable of processing acoustic signals transmitted to the aircraft from sonobuoys History editAQS 13 edit The AQS 13 system was introduced to the US fleet aboard the Sikorsky SH 3D anti submarine warfare helicopter in the mid 1960s See military helicopter maritime helicopters 2 This was an upgrade from the AQS 10 system carried aboard the SH 3A helicopter The AQS 13 offered an improved reeling machine and longer cable or wet end than the AQS 10 The dry end components of the system remained essentially the same as the AQS 10 Developed in the 1950s these components utilized primarily vacuum tube technology The RO 358 chart recorder provided a means of recording a permanent record of target data as well as additional means for target evaluation 3 4 nbsp AQS 13A B E hydrophone projectorAQS 13A edit The AQS 13A system was an upgrade to the basic AQS 13 system incorporated into fleet systems in the late 1960s early 1970s The upgrade was primarily to incorporate built in test equipment BITE circuitry providing a method for testing system circuitry in the sonar set nbsp Sonar operator in SH 3H Sea KingAQS 13B edit The AQS 13B system was introduced to the US fleet as standard equipment aboard the Sikorsky SH 3H Sea King helicopter replacing the SH 3D in the late 1970s The AQS 13B was a significant upgrade from the AQS 13A The dry end components were replaced with solid state circuitry in a more compact set of replaceable assemblies The wet end components were essentially the same as the AQS 13A 5 and the RO 358 was maintained as part of the system The display remained a standard PPI display The system was built with the potential to upgrade with an acoustic processor AQS 13E edit The AQS 13B system was upgraded to the AQS 13E beginning in the late 1970s and early 1980s with the addition of a sonar data computer This added the capability to process acoustic sonar and sonobuoy signals digitally while retaining the original analog processing capability The computer processed data could be displayed on the system CRT in various formats Tactical target data derived from the acoustic signals could be transferred electronically from the sonar data computer to the aircraft tactical computer To enhance target detection a longer shaped pulse was used in conjunction with fast Fourier transform processing by the computer This enhanced the target selection by weighting each target candidate using frequency and duration information to overcome lower signal return strength AQS 13F edit The AQS 13F system was introduced to the US fleet as standard equipment aboard the Sikorsky SH 60F Seahawk helicopter 6 that replaced the SH 3H as the inner zone ASW platform aboard aircraft carriers in the late 1980s early 1990s 7 Key components of the AQS 13F system had origins in the made for export AQS 18 sonar developed for the German Navy for use in the Sea Lynx helicopter 8 The AQS 13F offered improved acoustic processing a longer transmit pulse faster reeling machine longer cable and increased acoustic transmit power The processed target data could also be displayed on the aircraft multifunction displays and or recorded via the aircraft mission tape recorder Due to the limited funding approved by Congress the aircraft systems were limited to off the shelf technology wherever possible 9 This resulted in the use of a dry end similar to the AQS 13E even though more modern technology was available nbsp U S Navy SH 60F helicopter with AQS 13F transducer deployed nbsp AQS 13F Dry End Components nbsp AQS 13F Reeling MachineMaintainability editAQM 24A edit The AQM 21 AQM 24 and AQM 24A Sonar Test Centrals were used at U S Navy shore stations and aboard Aircraft Carriers to support the AQS 13 systems These test benches provided the essential power for operation and simulated aircraft ocean and target signals in order to test the individual components of the sonar systems Manufacturer editThe AQS 13 series systems were manufactured by a division of Bendix Corporation in Sylmar California This division went through multiple ownerships and name changes over the years including ownership by Allied Signal 10 and L 3 Communications L 3 Communications Ocean Systems 11 and is currently part of L 3Harris Export versions editAQS 502 edit The export version of the AQS 13B sonar used in the Royal Canadian Navy s Sikorsky CH 124 Sea King helicopter 12 AQS 18 edit The AQS 18 is the export version of the US Navy s AQS 13F The original AQS 18 was developed for the German Navy from a drawing board only plan for an AQS 13D sonar for the US Navy This version of the AQS 18 was initially deployed in the Westland Lynx helicopter in the early 1980s citation needed 13 AQS 18 V edit AQS 18 V Later variations were sold as the AQS 18 V to countries around the world Individual variations are distinct to each customer and used aboard various platforms Earlier versions shared higher degree of commonality with the German AQS 18 and later versions more with the USN s AQS 13F Users include the Hellenic Navy Greece 14 and the Portuguese Navy AQS 18 V 3 edit The AQS 18 V 3 is one export version of the US Navy s AQS 13F helicopter borne dipping sonar and is used by many friendly nations including the Republic of China 15 and the Republic of Korea 16 It contains many of the high performance features of the US Navy version In high reverberation limited conditions the sonar system transmits a specially shaped pulse and its digital signal processor employs fast Fourier transform techniques to increase detection capabilities A high source level provides long range search capabilities improved figure of merit and a high speed reeling machine to achieve maximum depth and retrieve the sonar transducer rapidly AQS 18A edit The AQS 18A was developed in support of the Italian Navy and later sold to various international customers including the Turkish Navy and the Egyptian Air Force The system shared a common wet end with the US Navy s AQS 13F but had an improved dry end with a more modern processor operator interface and display These enhancements allowed for longer acoustic pulses and improved processing techniques resulting in improved tactical performance The Turkish version was sold aboard the Agusta Bell AB 212ASW aircraft and the Egyptian version was sold aboard the Kaman SH 2G Super Seasprite helicopter Users edit nbsp Algeria Algerian Navy nbsp Australia Royal Australian Navy nbsp Brazil Brazilian Navy nbsp Canada Royal Canadian Navy nbsp Egypt Egyptian Air Force nbsp Germany German Navy 17 nbsp Greece Hellenic Navy nbsp South Korea Republic of Korea Navy nbsp Portugal Portuguese Navy nbsp Italy Italian Navy nbsp Spain Spanish Navy nbsp Taiwan Republic of China Navy nbsp Turkey Turkish Navy nbsp United States United States NavyReferences edit ASW Helicopters Global Security Tailspin 2013 02 18 Tailhook Topics Drafts US Navy ASW SH 3 Sea King Variations Tailhooktopics blogspot com Retrieved 2013 04 12 Military Specification MIL D 81622A AS Section 3 3 6 2 Archived from the original on 2016 03 03 Aviation Electronics Technician 1 Figure 4 16 Archived from the original on 2013 06 15 MILITARY SPECIFICATION DETECTING RANGING SET SONAR AN AQS 13B Sikorsky Wins Navy Helicopter Contract Chicago Tribune S 60B SH 60B Seahawk SH 60F CV HH 60H Rescue Hawk HH 60J Jayhawk VH 60N Sikorsky Moxon Julian CV Helo joins the US Navy PDF Flight International Case Study of the Navy CV Inner Zone Anti Submarine Warfare Helicopter Program PDF Government Accounting Office VARTABEDIAN RALPH Allied Signal to Sell Oceanics 2 Other Units Completes Consolidation of Garrett and Bendix Los Angeles Times L3 Communications Ocean Systems Products Airborne Systems Seaborn Systems l 3com com Archived from the original on 2013 02 09 Retrieved 2013 04 12 AN AQA to AN AQS Equipment Listing Andreas Parsch https www seaforces org marint German Navy Aviation Sea Lynx Mk88A htm AB 212 ASW Greece Dimitris Sunburn Dranidis Archived from the original on 2014 02 22 Sikorsky S 70C M Thunderhawk taiwanairpower org Super Lynx Mk 99 Luis Laranjeira Archived from the original on 2010 01 20 Retrieved 2013 04 14 https www seaforces org marint German Navy Aviation Sea Lynx Mk88A htm a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a Missing or empty title help External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to AN AQS 13 AN AQS 13F Dipping Sonar System webpage permanent dead link Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title AN AQS 13 amp oldid 1179006427, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
