Israeli firm IAI to equip Sa'ar 6 corvette with MF-STAR radar.

According to a press release published by IAI on July 4, 2021, naval battle systems, including the MF-STAR (Magen Adir) radar, are being installed on the Israel Navy’s Sa'ar 6 premier defense warship, and will provide a layer of defensive and offensive capabilities from air and sea Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) is integrating offensive and defensive systems, to enhance the "Sa'ar 6" corvette's capabilities and usher the Israeli Navy into a new technological era, under the guidance of Israel's Ministry of Defense (IMoD) and the IDF.
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MF-STAR installed on the Israel Navy Sa'ar 6 corvette (Picture source: Israel Aerospace Industries)

IAI, together with the Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure (part of IMoD) and the Israeli Navy, completed the first phase of installing the MF-STAR (Magen Adir) radars on the Israeli Navy’s ‘Sa’ar 6’ corvettes and will continue to integrate the BARAK MX Air Defense System (Ra’am Adir) on the vessels. The radars will serve to locate and classify air and surface targets and help to build an advanced and detailed maritime picture of the surveillance area.

The MF-STAR radar system, one of the world's most advanced radar systems, will serve as the “brain,” integrated with all surveillance sensors on every one of the Israeli Navy's new warships. The radar system is also an important component of the BARAK MX Air Defense System (Ra’am Adir), and provides a layer of defense against advanced aerial and naval threats.

The MF-STAR radar systems are based on advanced technology including active electronic scanning array (AESA) developed by IAI's ELTA Systems Ltd. These systems reduce the target acquisition response-time, and provide advanced ability to accurately and simultaneously track a wide range of targets. The radar provides an optimal picture of maritime situation awareness and hemispheric protection to all accompanying forces. The radars are an integral component of defending air, space and territorial waters, including Israel’s strategic assets: the natural gas rigs, defending against rockets, enemy aircraft and more.

Upon identifying a threat, the radar supplies all required data immediately to each control, defense and support systems on deck (e.g., firing of anti-aircraft missiles), enabling key decision-makers to respond to the threat in real-time. The MF-STAR radar includes four staring radar panels that provide 360-degree hemispherical coverage around the vessel.

The MF-STAR radar can be easily scaled to fit different requirements and different ship sizes – from 1200-tonne corvettes to frigate/destroyers weighing 7000+ tons. The radar is already in service with two navies in missions similar to those proposed for the Canadian Surface Combatant.

The BARAK MX Air Defense System developed by IAI's Systems, Missiles and Space Division is one of the world's advanced operational defense systems, used by IDF land and naval forces and the Indian Navy and Air Force. The BARAK MX Air Defense System provides both wide-area and targeted defense capabilities to an array of threats, including: land, air and sea. The system aggregates several key cutting-edge systems: a digital radar, weapon control system, launchers, a range of interceptors for different ranges with advanced homing devices, data-link communication and system wide connectivity.

The Sa'ar 6-class corvette is a series of four German-made corvettes ordered for the Israeli Navy in May 2015.

The Sa'ar 6 has a displacement of almost 1,900 tons at full load and is 90 m (295 ft 3 in) long. It is armed with an Oto Melara 76 mm main gun, two Typhoon Weapon Stations, 32 vertical launch cells for Barak-8 surface-to-air missiles, 20 cells for the C-Dome point defense system, 16 anti-ship missiles (likely Gabriel 5), the EL/M-2248 MF-STAR AESA radar, and two 324 mm (12.8 in) torpedo launchers. It has hangar space and a platform able to accommodate a medium-class SH-60-type helicopter.