On 27 September 2024 the ECR MK2 AESA radar took its first flight aboard an Eurofighter Typhoon, taking off from the BAE Systems plant in Warton, Lancashire on the BS116 / ZK355 aircraft, the very first of the Tranche 3 jets for the Royal Air Force.

The MK2 radar, which is very different and much more ambitious than the precedent MK 0 developed for Kuwait and MK 1 adopted by Germany and Spain, was born out of the British Royal Air Force's need for a system with powerful electronic warfare capabilities for use in suppressing adversary air defenses. It is a long-running project on which the UK has already invested, either directly or indirectly through previous development programs and demonstrators (e.g., the BRIGHT ADDER), some 800 million over the past 10 years.

The MK2 The British MOD awarded an initial £72 million contract for de-risking activities back in 2014. Development of the ECRS MK2 received the final impetus in September 2020 with the award of a £317 million contract to Leonardo UK. Finally, in early July last year the MOD signed a 5-year contract, worth 870 million, to bring the new AESA to full maturity by completing development and starting production.

The contract includes the production of 12 radars to be used for testing and certification before being brought to final configuration when the final contract for production and integration will be signed. At present, the RAF plans to equip its 40 TYPHOON Tranche 3s with the MK2, while a decision on whether to retrofit the 67 Tranche 2s will be made at a later date, also with an eye on the timing of the TEMPEST/GCAP project and thus the TYPHOON retirement date.

The MK2 is a fully multi-role system with electronic warfare and wide-band jamming capabilities and the ability to act as a data transmission antenna, with a gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductor antenna. Compared with MK1, it has a new processor, a new receiver, a dedicated receiver and jamming technique generation system for electronic warfare, and a new mechanical antenna rotation system that will provide further expansion of the field of view.

The MK2 radar, produced by Leonardo UK, is accompanied by a new radome, manufactured by Meggit. Integration of the radar on BS116 was carried out at BAE's Warton facility, from which ground-based tracking tests were also carried out: from a special building, the radar has been used to track air traffic over Liverpool and Manchester.

The first flight is only the first step in a long campaign of tests that will run through 2028 with the production and installation of additional radars, until the system is fully mature and can be sent into series production. This 870 million radar contract from last year is part of £2.35 billion announced in July 2022 at RIAT for the roll out of the Phase 4 Enhancement capabilities of TYPHOON.

It will therefore be followed by further contracts for other capabilities, certainly including a new radar planning and management functionality system, with related work on symbology and interface in the cockpit. The RAF is keenly interested in the new extra-large, F-35-style touch screen that BAE is developing for the TYPHOON, which will enable it to take full advantage of both the new radar and the high-definition, full-colour images collected by the new LITENING V pods. At present, cockpit screens are a major limiting factor.

However, retrofit of the new wide area display is not yet a program of record within planned P4E enhancements and might have to wait for a later phase of works. Italy has also joined the MK2 development program without, however, formalizing an adoption plan for AMI aircraft for now.

The radar is also reportedly in the crosshairs of Saudi Arabia, amid enduring discussions towards the acquisition of a second tranche of Typhoon jets with local manufacture within the kingdom. Tim Bungey, Chief Engineer for ECRS Mk2 at Leonardo UK, said that in parallel with the trials, the radar’s production design has also been progressing apace. He added: “The development of the ECRS Mk2 is fully utilising the UK’s world-class radar design skills. Over the past few months, its Processor, Receiver, and Antenna Power Supply and Control (APSC) units have all been re-engineered from the prototype design to further enhance the capacity, capability, and performance of the Mk2 system in alignment with the new antenna and electronic warfare capability.”

Development of the Mk2 is estimated to support some 600 high value jobs across the UK.

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