AUTONOMOUS OPERATING CAPABILITIES

摘要

The most effective way of using the Foxhound are the so-called semi-autonomous group missions with hand-offs from ground-controlled intercept (GCI) stations or airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft. The group tactics are also particularly useful in areas with huge gaps in radar coverage or without any radar coverage from ground stations. A four-ship of MiG-31s could perform line-abreast sweeps of a vast swathe of territory. Each MiG could cover a sector up to 140° wide in the horizontal plane, equal to 200km (110nm) across. With the four-ship's radars set in a co-ordinated search mode pattern, the formation could provide radar coverage across 800 to 900km (440 to 485nm) of territory, searching for targets flying from ground level to 82,000ft (25,000m). The lead Foxhound, acting as the mission commander, can receive target information from the other three aircraft using a secure APD-518 data link. This method is especially useful to counter mass raids of bombers and cruise missiles without relying on ground radars for target detection and guidance.