AN/APY-10

The AN/APY-10 is a maritime, littoral, and overland surveillance radar that provides synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imaging, search, detection, and tracking features for anti-ship warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.

The APY-10 is based on Raytheon's APS-137, designed as a search radar to detect and track surface vessels, submarine periscopes, and snorkels in high sea states. The latest version, the (V)5, designed for the U.S. Navy's Anti-Surface Warfare Improvement Program (AIP), incorporates many upgraded features, including the ability to track smaller targets close to the shore and an overland surveillance capability.

Improved features on the APY-10 include color weather radar and an upgraded inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) with improved ability to track, image, and classify small, fast-moving boats close to the shore. The radar's SAR mode has a low-level resolution for mapping and a high-resolution mode for tracking and identifying targets. The upgraded radar will also fully integrate with Boeing's mission system. In addition, the radar will weigh less than its predecessor and feature better reliability.

Another important technological development that could be included on the APY-10 is the Automatic Radar Periscope Detection and Discrimination (ARPDD) system. It is not known whether the ARPDD system is standard equipment for the APY-10. The system, jointly developed by Raytheon and the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, allows the radar to discriminate between periscopes and objects commonly found in littoral waters that could be mistaken for periscopes.

In production and in service.

The radar is operational on P-8A Poseidon and Indian P-8I aircraft. A total of 183 radars are believed to have been produced as of April 2024.

In July 2005 Raytheon was awarded a System Development and Demonstration (SSD) to develop the radar that would equip the Multi-Mission Maritime Aircraft (MMA). Under the contract, Raytheon would provide two radars, at the time known as the APS-137D(V)5. The contract also covered software design and integration, as well as lab simulations.

Because the APS-137 had undergone such extensive upgrades, a need for a completely new nomenclature was ascertained, resulting in a name change. In June 2006, the Navy designated the system the APY-10. Raytheon said that changing the third letter from an S to a Y was indicative of the radar's expanded mission. An S denotes a system used for detecting range and bearing, and for searching; a Y indicates one used for surveillance, a much broader mission.

In April 2006, Boeing offered its P-8A to fulfill India's requirement for eight maritime patrol aircraft to replace its TU-142s. The aircraft competed against teams led by Airbus, Israel Aerospace Industries, Lockheed Martin, and Ilyushin. India signed a $2.1 billion deal with Boeing in January 2009 for eight P-8Is.

Boeing began final assembly of India's first P-8I in June 2011, and Raytheon delivered the first international APY-10 radar to Boeing in February 2012. Raytheon was contracted to deliver eight APY-10 radars for the Indian Navy by 2015. India is believed to have purchased an additional four P-8Is through a follow-on order in 2016.

In July 2006, Raytheon delivered a radar Mission Systems Integration Laboratory to Boeing. The MSIL represents key hardware for the integration of the APY-10 radar into the Boeing P-8A MMA. The delivery was a key milestone in the APY-10 and P-8A programs.

The P-8A completed a Critical Design Review in June 2007, and production of the aircraft proceeded.

In August 2007, the Australian government expressed interest in acquiring the P-8A aircraft. To facilitate this, the Australian Ministry of Defence signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S. Department of Defense to join the Spiral 1 development phase of the project. Australia planned to purchase eight P-8As, each equipped with the APY-10 radar system.

Integrated tests of the first APY-10 radar began in July 2008. The radar was installed on a specially designed tower. Three additional radars were built in 2008 for the System Design and Development phase. The U.S. Navy conducted the first flight test of a P-8A in the second quarter of 2009.

In July 2010, Raytheon was contracted to develop an international version of the APY-10 to be installed on P-8I aircraft for India.

In February 2011, Boeing awarded Raytheon a low-rate initial production contract for six APY-10 radars plus spares for its P-8A Poseidon aircraft.

Aviation Week reported in April 2011 that one-fifth of the U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon's flight tests had been completed. The P-8A T-2 entered the test program in the third quarter of 2010; it was used for APY-10 radar, sonobuoy, and chaff/flare dispensing tests.

Boeing began final assembly of India's first P-8I in June 2011, and Raytheon delivered the first international APY-10 radar to Boeing on Feb. 13, 2012. Raytheon was contracted to deliver eight APY-10 radars for the Indian Navy by 2015. India is believed to have purchased an additional four P-8Is through a follow-on order in 2016.

In September 2013, the U.S. Navy awarded a US$48.8 million contract that followed two types of payment structures: Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) and Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF) for the procurement of 13 APY-10 radar kits, designed for the P-8A Poseidon aircraft's Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) Lot IV, along with one additional spare unit. The work under this contract was scheduled to be completed by January 2016.

On June 11, 2015, the U.S. Navy awarded a Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) contract valued at approximately US$152.886 million for 53 APY-10 radar system production kits and related services. These kits were designated for integration into the P-8A Poseidon aircraft as part of the Full Rate Production (FRP) from Lot 2 to Lot 6. The contract stipulated that 46 of these radar kits were for the U.S. Navy's aircraft, while the remaining 7 were allocated for the Australian government. The work under this contract was projected to be completed by August 2021.

On Jan. 28, 2016, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that the Navy awarded Boeing a US$2.47 billion modification to a previous fixed-price-incentive-firm contract to exercise an option for additional P-8A aircraft. Under the terms of the deal, the U.S. Navy would receive 16 full-rate production Lot III P-8As and Australia would receive four. That translates to orders for 20 additional APY-10 radar systems

In November 2016, the U.S. Navy awarded a Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee (CPFF) contract focused on Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RD&T) for developing new radar algorithms. These algorithms were intended to enhance the capabilities of the APY-10 and APG-79 radar systems. The main goals of these new algorithms included improving how targets are identified and classified, making it easier for operators to distinguish between different types of objects or threats. The work outlined in this contract was scheduled to be completed by November 2019.

According to the Australian Defense Force, the first P-8A aircraft arrived in Canberra on 16 November 2016 and all 12 aircraft were delivered by December 2019.

The U.K.'s request for nine P-8A aircraft believed to be equipped with the APY-10 radar was approved by the U.S. State Department in March 2016 for an estimated cost of US$3.2 billion. The U.K. Royal Air Force received its nine P-8As between February 2020 and January 2022.

On Dec. 21, 2016, the U.S. State Dept. approved a possible foreign military sale to Norway for five P-8A aircraft equipped with the APY-10 radar for an estimated total of US$1.75 billion. Norway received all five P8-A aircraft between February and May 2022.

On April 28, 2017, the U.S. State Department approved the sale of four P-8A aircraft and associated support to New Zealand for an estimated total cost of US$1.46 billion. Each aircraft included the APY-10 radar. New Zealand received the four P-8A aircraft between December 2022 and July 2023.

In September 2017, the U.S. Navy awarded a mixed Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF) and Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) contract valued at $28.721 million for specific support services related to the APY-10 radar systems installed on P-8A Poseidon aircraft. This contract was aimed at establishing initial troubleshooting capabilities, termed "organic depot initial troubleshooting activation support," at the Fleet Readiness Center Southeast located in Jacksonville, Florida. The scope of this contract included the procurement of unique support equipment tailored for the P-8A's radar system. This equipment was intended for use directly on the aircraft and included tools for flight line system diagnostics. The work outlined in the contract was scheduled to be completed by September 2019.

On Sept. 13, 2018, the U.S. State Department approved the sale of six APY-10-equipped P-8A aircraft to South Korea for an estimated total of US$2.1 billion. The request for the P-8As was intended to replace South Korea's aging fleet of P-3 maritime surveillance aircraft, which have been in service for over 25 years.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced the approval of a possible foreign military sale to Germany of five P-8A aircraft on March 12, 2021. The sale was valued at US$1.77 billion. Then in November 2023, Germany requested an additional three P-8A aircraft. Germany is expecting to receive the first five aircraft by October 2024.

On Feb. 21, 2023, the U.S. Navy awarded Raytheon a US$77 million contract for five APY-10 radar system production kits.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced the approval of a possible foreign military sale of 16 P-8A aircraft to Canada on June 27, 2023, for an estimated total of US$5.9 billion. Canada's purchase of the P-8A aircraft was designed to replace the Royal Canadian Airforce's longstanding maritime patrol aircraft, the CP-140 Aurora, which has been in service for more than 40 years.

Raytheon, Texas, USA (prime contractor)
Compass Systems, Maryland, USA (subcontractor)

 Australia           [14]  (P-8A Poseidon)

 Britain             [09]  (P-8A Poseidon)

 Germany             [05]  (P-8A Poseidon)

 India               [12]  (P-8A Poseidon)

 New Zealand         [04]  (P-8A Poseidon)

 Norway              [05]  (P-8A Poseidon)

 South Korea         [06]  (P-8A Poseidon)

 USA                 [128] (P-8A Poseidon)

 WEIGHTS 
   Total                 416 lb (189 kg)

 DIMENSIONS 
                         (H x W x D)
   Antenna controller    8.8 x 11.5 x 17.4 (in)
   electronics          22.4 x 29.2 x 44.2 (cm)
 
   Receiver exciter     12.8 x 18.0 x 20.7 (in)
   processor            32.5 x 45.7 x 52.6 (cm)

   Transmitter          11.0 x 12.2 x 19.6 (in)
                        27.9 x 31.0 x 49.8 (cm)

   Antenna              40.9 x 36.2 x 27.2 (in)
                       103.9 x 91.9 x 69.1 (cm)
  
   Radar Data Center     8.8 x 14.5 x 19.0 (in)
                        22.4 x 36.8 x 48.3 (cm)

Design of the APY-10's predecessor, the APS-137, began in the late 1970s, with a prototype system delivered in 1983. The APS-137 was selected to equip S-3 Viking and P-3 Orion aircraft.

The U.S. Navy began studies of a successor to its Lockheed Martin P-3C Orion maritime patrol / anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft during the late 1990s. The Multi-Mission Maritime Aircraft competition was won by Boeing with a variant of its 737-00ERX business jet in June 2004.

Expanded Mission Capability

Ultimately named the P-8A, the P-3 Orion's replacement was to be equipped with a modified version of the APS-137.

In July 2005, Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems (SAS) and Boeing finalized a US$60.8 million contract for continued participation on the P-8A MMA industry team. Under the System Development and Demonstration (SDD) contract, Raytheon would provide two upgraded APS-137D(V)5 maritime surveillance radars. The company would also contribute to related software design and provide radar simulation for design labs and program reviews.

According to Raytheon, specific upgrades to the APS-137 for the P-8A MMA included reduced weight, improved mean time between failures (MTBF), a color weather display, joint technical architecture compliance for seamless net-centric operation as part of the Boeing aircraft backbone, and full integration with the Boeing mission system.

Because the APS-137 had undergone such extensive upgrades, a need for a completely new nomenclature was ascertained, resulting in a name change. In June 2006, the Navy designated the system the APY-10. Raytheon said that changing the third letter from an S to a Y was indicative of the radar's expanded mission. An S denotes a system used for detecting range and bearing, and for searching; a Y indicates one used for surveillance, a much broader mission.

The price of an APY-10 falls in the $2.88 million to $3.85 million range, based on known comparables and several known contracts.