Lockheed to provide Anti-Submarine Warfare Sensors for Indian, Danish MH-60R Seahawks

Lockheed Martin has won a $181.7 million contract to provide Airborne Low Frequency Sonars (ALFS) to be fitted on MH-60R Seahawk helicopters operated by the U.S. Navy, India and Denmark.

The modification contract provides for the production, delivery and integration of 24 Airborne Low Frequency Sonars (ALFS) for the government of India; 8 ALFS for the Navy and 7 ALFS for the government of Denmark, into MH-60R Seahawk aircraft, the U.S. Department of Defense said in a statement today.

The AN/AQS-22 Airborne Low Frequency Sonar (ALFS) is the primary undersea warfare (USW) sensor of the MH-60R multi-mission helicopter. This integrated dipping sonar system enables the MH-60R to accomplish the assigned ASW missions of submarine detection, tracking, localization and classification. It also performs missions relating to acoustic intercept, underwater communications and environmental data acquisition, according to Raytheon.

The AN/AQS-22 is the only in-service dipping sonar with multi-frequency operation. This capability enables the AN/AQS-22 to adapt its performance to varying environmental conditions. With a rapid search rate, the sonar identifies and neutralizes threats sooner, enabling it to cover a larger area. The AN/AQS-22 also permits a longer detection range over a wider area, reducing the number of helicopters required to perform active anti-submarine warfare (ASW) screening.