Back
to Main Go to Preface
The Advanced Range Instrumentation Aircraft (ARIA) are EC-135E and EC-18B aircraft used as flexible airborne telemetry data recording and relay stations. These aircraft were designed and developed to supplement land and marine telemetry stations in support of DOD and NASA space and missile programs. The ARIA have the capability to acquire, track, record, and retransmit telemetry signals, primarily in the S-band (2200-2300 MHz) frequency range.
The ARIA deploy throughout the world to obtain telemetry data from orbital and reentry vehicles as well as air-to-air and cruise missile tests. This includes support of tests conducted at Cape Canaveral AFS, Vandenberg AFB, Hill AFB, Eglin AFB, Edwards AFB, and from ships and submarines. Normally, the telemetry data is obtained in locations such as broad ocean areas which are outside the coverage of ground stations. Selected portions of the data may be retransmitted in real time, via UHF satellite, to enable the launching agency to monitor system performance. All data is recorded on magnetic tape for post-mission analysis.
Each ARIA has both external and internal modifications. Externally the most obvious difference in appearance from a standard C-135 or C-18 aircraft is the large, bulbous, "droop snoot" nose, a ten-foot radome which houses a seven-foot steerable dish antenna. The ARIA also has a probe antenna on each wing tip and a trailing wire antenna on the bottom of the fuselage (EC-135E only) used for high frequency (HF) radio transmission. Other antenna's are used to provide UHF and VHF air to air, and air to ground voice communications, L-Band for data retransmissions. INMARSAT and UHF satellite antenna's for voice and data communications via satellite. The internal modifications to the cargo compartment include all of the instrumentation subsystems (Prime Mission Electronic Equipment - PMEE) installed in the form of a 30,000 pound modular package. Also provided are facilities for the crew members who operate the PMEE.
| Back
to Main |
Go to Preface
|
| Back
to History |
Go to Deployment
Locations |
[History] [Mission] [Deployment Locations] [Sub-Systems] [Photo-Gallery] [E-Mail]