The German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) reached full operational capability with its new fleet of Thales-built Ground Alerter 10 (GA10) radars on Oct. 16, with the French defence contractor handing over the final system in a ceremony at Koblenz. Thales secured the initial contract from the German procurement agency, BAAINBw, in February 2021 for five systems, with options for additional units. These options were exercised, resulting in the final system being delivered on time and within budget.
Photo: Thales
The GA10 is a highly mobile, counter-rocket, artillery, and mortar (C-RAM) sense-and-warn system that protects troops in both fixed locations and on the move. It offers a 360-degree ring of protection up to 10 km, detecting incoming projectiles. The system identifies the point of impact when a threat is detected and activates sirens within the affected area, giving personnel approximately 30 seconds to find cover. It also determines the point of origin, facilitating troop reaction and threat neutralisation. The GA10 can be incorporated into a larger command-and-control network for countermeasure deployment.
Beyond fixed-site protection, the GA10 is transportable via helicopter or in two boxes on protected vehicles. A two-person crew can set it up in under an hour, and it operates on batteries in mobile configuration, minimising its noise and visual signature. The sirens have a battery life of 3 to 5 days, extendable with solar panels for uninterrupted, autonomous protection.
At the heart of the GA10’s functionality is a sophisticated sensing capability comprising a radar and a foldable mast. The radar’s 360-degree azimuth coverage, sub-second update rate, and advanced algorithms ensure rapid detection and classification of threats approaching the camp within a 10 km radius. Complementing this is the system’s warning capability, which utilises sirens strategically positioned throughout the camp’s designated alert zones. Upon threat detection and impact point calculation, these sirens emit audible and visual warnings, alerting individuals in the projected impact zone.
This portable C-RAM system is designed for ease of setup, operation, and transport, making it well-suited for dismounted operations and convoy protection. The GA10 comprises a UHF radar, an integrated alarm network with various wireless and wired alarm devices, and a ruggedised laptop for operation. Its radar system consists of an antenna with a 6-meter telescopic mast, an electronic radar frequency control unit (RFC), and an electronic signal processing unit (SPC). Power can be supplied by a battery system containing two 6-packs of Li-Ion batteries housed in a transport box that doubles as a charging station. The GA10 boasts a Circular Error Probable (CEP) of 100m for Point of Origin (POO) and 250m for Point of Impact (POI), indicating high accuracy. Its Dynamic Least Jammed Frequency Search enables automatic identification and operation on the least jammed frequency, ensuring reliability in electronically congested environments. The system’s modular design simplifies maintenance and repair, allowing for easy access and replacement of faulty modules through a “plug-and-play” system.
The GA10 has already demonstrated its efficacy in safeguarding UN camps in Mali and supporting the French Armed Forces. Notably, it is credited with saving lives during a rebel attack on a UN camp in Kidal, Mali, on 8 June 2017, when the camp was bombarded with rockets and mortars.
Thales Vice President of Surface Radars, Eric Huber, commended the timely and budget-conscious delivery of the GA10s at the handover ceremony. He emphasised the system’s significant contribution to the safety of German soldiers during missions both domestically and internationally. Huber highlighted the GA10’s development in Ditzingen as a European military off-the-shelf product, drawing on Thales’s extensive radar expertise and operational experience, and underscored its proven life-saving capabilities.
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