The F-35 Electro-Optical Targeting System (EOTS) Gets a Major Upgrade

The F-35 Electro-Optical Targeting System (EOTS) Gets a Major Upgrade

The Pentagon’s most expensive weapons systems are undergoing major modernization.advanced eots The 360 degree Distributed Aperture System and the new Large Area Display are being replaced with versions that feature advanced optics and software. But one of the most critical components, the F-35’s electro-optical targeting system (EOTS), is getting a major upgrade too. The new version of EOTS will be able to carry a marker and an improved image sensor.

EOTS is integrated into the fuselage of the fifth-generation fighter using a durable sapphire window and provides aircrews with precise air-to-air and air-to-ground targeting capability.advanced eots It enhances pilot situational awareness to allow them to identify targets, perform reconnaissance and precisely deliver laser and GPS-guided weapons. To date, Lockheed Martin has delivered more than 170 EOTS to customers and partners around the world from its Orlando, Florida sensor and datalink production facility.

In 2015, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control / SOF CLSS rolled out a system called Advanced EOTS, which is designed to replace the EOTS that is currently in the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter.advanced eots The system offers a range of upgrades including short-wave infrared, high-definition television, an infrared marker and improved image detector resolution that will be built into the existing EOTS housing with minimal modifications.

The company says it will offer Advanced EOTS to customers as an option for future modernization of their aircraft.advanced eots Unlike other systems such as the Distributed Aperture System and the Large Area Display that were modernized through alternative sourcing, the EOTS upgrade is being developed internally and will not be subject to a cost-cutting initiative. This will give customers significantly expanded capabilities, greatly increased performance and higher reliability, and sizable sustainment savings.

As an internal development effort, Advanced EOTS has been vetted through operational analysis against the most demanding F-35 missions. It is expected to save users more than a billion dollars over the life of the system through reduced costs per operating hour, compared to the current EOTS.

How EOTS works:

The basic EOTS sees infrared light coming from the target through the outer prismatic aperture that is shaped for stealth. That light then hits a series of mirrors, lenses and filters to see the target’s thermal signature in the mid-wave infrared (MWIR) band. The information is processed by a computer and then fed to a display.

But if the target has a marker on it or is moving, the new Advanced EOTS can mark the target and also add an infrared pointer to improve the targeting accuracy of laser and GPS-guided weapons. It can even see reflections and shadows that are not visible to MWIR sensors, which will help in low-light and at night, as well as seeing through clouds.

The improved EOTS will also include a low-light spectral sensor and a visual spectrum sensor that work with the MWIR camera to provide more detail in dark conditions. Adding this capability will require the use of additional cameras, which will increase the overall size of the system and raise power consumption – but Lockheed believes it can be offset by a more efficient cooling technology that uses less energy and fewer cryocoolers.