Radar cross-section measurements of a full-scale aircraft duct/engine structure

Cavity radar cross-section (RCS) data are measured from a full-sized generic aircraft duct/engine mock-up experimental apparatus. Details of the experimental measurements and characterization of the RCS from a generic aircraft engine inlet with a fan assembly embedded inside are described. The experimental results reveal that the azimuthal RCS patterns from an aircraft engine inlet with fan components embedded inside are very complex

I. Introduction

A recent research effort in noncooperative target recognition within the Combat ID community involves the development of a synthetic target signature database for target classifiers. For various technical reasons, a synthetically generated database is regarded as the most practical way of fielding an operational target classifier system [1]. Synthetic target signatures are computed using high-frequency electromagnetic radar cross-section (RCS) prediction codes. There has been a great deal of research activities in recent years focusing on cavity RCS modelling of aircraft duct/engine interface. It is known that the inlets of aircraft can produce a significant contribution to the overall RCS of an aircraft. Therefore, cavity RCS computation should be an integral part of the synthetic signature modelling process of aircraft.