The new eyes of the Hellenic Navy and Hellenic Coast Guard: Miltech Hellas TDR-10A and TDR-HR-300

TDR-10A EO-sensor on a Hydra class frigate

This is the last update on the news regarding the equipping of Hellenic Navy warships and Hellenic Coast Guard offshore patrol vessels with new electro-optical (EO) sensors. In the article The new eyes of the Hellenic Navy Fleet: Miltech Hellas TDR-10 and IRB-75, I reported that a sensor designed and produced by the Greek company Miltech Hellas, the TDR-10 model, has equipped three Hellenic Navy gunboats and one frigate while 15 more systems of the advanced model TDR-10A, a completely new system, would equip front line surface combatants of the Greek Fleet that lack such a sensor. The TDR-10A was described in detail in the previous article The new eyes of the Hellenic Navy: Miltech Hellas TDR-10 ADVANCED. 

MLT-TDR-10 on a Hydra class frigate

MLT-TDR-10A on a Hydra class frigate

The  MLT-TDR-10 equips four (4) ships and the MLT-TDR-10A (right) equips or will equip very soon 15 ships, total 19 Hellenic Navy vessels have received a Miltech TDR electro-optical surveillance sensor. Note that there are already six (6) frigates (Elli/Kortenaer class) and four (4) fast attack missile boats (Laskos/Combattante IIIA class) that are equipped with the MIRADOR EO-sensor of Thales after a modernization programme they received, as well as five (5) Roussen class fast attack missile boats and four (4) Machitis class large patrol vessels equipped also with MIRADOR from construction; total 19 vessels with Thales MIRADOR.

More analytically, the TDR-10 is installed on the following ships:

• Two Pirpolitis class patrol vessels
• One Armatolos class patrol vessel (with the old pedestal)
• One Hydra class frigate (Salamis)

The TDR-10A is installed or will be installed on the following ships:

• One Armatolos class patrol vessel (Navmachos)
• Three Hydra class frigates
• Three non-modernized Kortenaer/Elli class frigates
• Five Kavaloudis (Combattante IIIB) class missile boats, on a new small dedicated mast towards the stern of the ships, similarly to the MIRADOR on Laskos class (Combattante IIIA) missile boats.
• The three remaining systems logically on the three S148 class missile boats of which two operate as patrol vessels without their missile systems.

Non-modernised Kortenaer/Elli class frigate Kanaris with TDR-10A sensor installed

Kavaloudis class with TDR-10A sensor installed on the rear mast

S148 class with TDR-10A sensor installed on the rear mast

S148 class with TDR-10A sensor installed on the rear mast

More likely in the future the sole Hydra class frigate equipped with the TDR-10 will "exchange" its system with the sole Armatolos class patrol vessel equipped with TDR-10A.

MLT-TDR-10A forward of the front STIR FCS of a Hydra class frigate

MLT-TDR-HR-300

MLT-TDR-10A

Now, regarding the sensor that will equip the three Sa'ar 4 class offshore patrol vessels (OPV) of the Hellenic Coast Guard (HCG), the new system is completely new design and its performance surpasses all the rest of the Miltech sensors presented here! Its name is TDR-HR-300. The new day/night surveillance system is equipped with an even more advanced HD cooled thermal imaging camera than the one on the TDR-10A model in order to identify very small objects in a long distance. That's why is heavier and much bigger. 

TDR-HR-300, the EO-sensor that will equip the three HCG Sa'ar 4 OPVs.

The new sensor on the mast of HCG
Agios Efstratios. Photo: AegeanHawk

The new sensor on the mast of HCG
Agios Efstratios. Photo: AegeanHawk

The new multi-sensors will replace the old Rafael TopLite systems on the HCG ships' main mast perhaps before the end of the year. Note that the new model, as TDR-10A, features a dual-axis pan tilt  pedestal, with an extremely high stabilization accuracy and a high load capacity, which is produced by the company itself. This is another advanced system entirely designed and produced by Miltech and most important a system made entirely in Greece at an extremely competitive price!

The TDR-HR-300 replace the old generation TopLite on Sa'ar 4's mast

The 16kg advanced cooled
thermal sensor of TDR-HR-300

The "heavy-duty" stabilized pan-tilt
pedestal of TDR-HR-300

The TDR-HR-300, similarly to its predecessor, consists of a high performance 3rd generation cooled sensor of high resolution (1280x720 pixels HD resolution and 10υm pixel pitch vs 680x512 pixels and 15υm pixel pitch in TDR-10A!), an advanced laser rangefinder (up to 31km!), motorized high definition thermal lens (18mm-330mm), GPS and a high resolution low-light day camera full HD (1080p, 30x optical zoom and 12x digital, total 360x). The whole system weighs approximately 75kg in comparison with the TDR-10A that weights 22kg; 43kg is the weight of the pan-tilt unit only and each sensor head weight is 16kg. Similarly to the previous models, in order to operate the sensor, the operator uses a touch screen and  a joystick or the pre-existing DAFCO console. One new touch screen accompanied by one joystick at the bridge, and the pre-existing Detection, Acquisition and Fire Control System (DAFCO) at the Combat Information Center (CIC) will equip each ship that will be outfitted with the new system. The sensor has been integrated to the DAFCO that equips the vessels and thus DAFCO is capable to control the three gun/machine gun remote weapon stations (RWS) on board, enslaving both the Miltech sensor and the RWS, according to the target movements.

MLT-TDR-HR-300