The Spanish Ministry of Defense (MoD) has awarded Indra the project to modernize and upgrade its command, surveillance, identification and control (ARS) centers, essential for combating potential threats to the country’s airspace.
As part of the agreement, Indra will equip the ARS centers in Torrejón de Ardoz in Madrid (GRUCEMAC), Zaragoza (GRUNOMAC) and Gando in Gran Canaria (GRUALERCON) and the Command and Control School (EMACOT) with its next-generation AirDef air command and control system, which will contribute to the mission for the permanent surveillance and control of airspace national sovereignty led by the Spanish Air and Space Force.
According to Indra, the modernization of the ARS centers with the new AirDef system, incorporating anti-missile defense for the first time, and the new and more advanced Lanza 3D radars, will reinforce Spain’s status as a country with one of the most comprehensive and integrated anti-missile defense systems in the world and a global leader in this sphere.
AirDef, which is already operational in several countries around the world, has been designed to meet NATO’s demanding air command and control requirements to facilitate its contribution to the Alliance’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense System (NATINAMDS), ensuring its essential and ongoing mission during times of peace, crises and conflicts to safeguard and protect the Alliance’s territory, populations and forces against any air or ballistic missile threat or attack.
Indra believes meeting these requirements and positioning itself with one of the most advanced command and control systems in operation in NATO countries opens up the possibility of other nations adopting its technology in keeping with the decision of the Spanish Ministry of Defense.
Indra CEO Ignacio Mataix, said: “We’re proud to be able to use our technology to keep on helping to strengthen the security of our country and placing it at the cutting edge in the world. Indra’s collaboration with the Ministry of Defence and the Spanish Air and Space Force over several decades is a story of shared successes that have gone beyond our borders, as we’re sure will happen with AirDef, a system with 100% Spanish technology and excellent export potential, as we’ve already proven.”
Indra’s system is said to incorporate the latest software and hardware technologies and architectures, which enhance sensor fusion, recognized air picture generation (RAP) and real-time air and anti-missile battle management, providing operators with multiple smart decision-making air through advanced, geo-positioned and configurable graphical interfaces. The above will be possible with the native integration of the most advanced NATO tactical data links, Link 16, JREAP, Link 22 and VMF between the operating entities, guaranteeing interoperability with those that have been in service in recent decades, Link 1, Link 11B and Link 11A, which are also integrated into Indra’s solution.
The implementation of the AirDef system at the Air Operations Center (AOC) of the Operational Aerospace Command (MOA) in Torrejón de Ardoz is also expected to provide BMD (Ballistic Missile Defense) capabilities to manage the anti-missile defense, thanks to its integration into Indra’s Lanza 3D LRR and LTR-25 sensors (similarly equipped with such capabilities) and the tactical data links with the anti-missile weapon systems. The system will also provide the Air Operations Center with a NATO-interoperable tool to generate the ATOs (Air Tasking Orders) and ACOs (Airspace Control Orders) required for the planning of air operations.
A state-of-the-art digital voice communication system
The project also envisions the implementation of a voice over IP communication system and remote control of state-of-the-art ground/air radios known as GARMEX-300M at the ARS centers. The system guarantees maximum resilience and availability and introduces new architecture to permit security clearance for the separate management of classified and non-classified (red/black) information between operators and between aircraft and centers.
This new system is said to be currently deployed at NATO’s Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC) in Uedem (Germany) with the aim of facilitating the coordination of the Alliance’s air policing missions throughout European airspace north of the Alps, thus demonstrating its ability to facilitate air operations of the utmost complexity.
The project is complemented by the provision of a software maintenance center, key to the concept of autonomous logistic support for the air command and control system units. The above constitutes a replica of the software and hardware architectures and it will facilitate security clearance maintenance, configuration control, the generation of new software packages, the execution of the different tests and the updating of the IETP manuals (Interactive Electronic Technical Publications).
At the forefront of the Europe of Defense
In addition to further strengthening Spain’s air defenses and placing it at the forefront of the field, this project is expected to reinforce Indra’s position as one of the most advanced defense-geared technological engineering companies in Europe and the world, and a leader in the sector’s digitalization.
