RWC composite radomes facilitate R4 Integration military search and rescue operations

 The delivery of nine Ka-band and KaKu-band radomes to R4 Integration Inc. (Fort Walton Beach, Fla., U.S.) by Rock West Composites (RWC, San Diego, Calif., U.S.) completes a contract that continues work on a previous aerospace program facilitating military search and rescue operations. The sandwich panel radomes meet multiple demanding requirements including very low view angles, a large band of frequencies, truncated schedule and no tooling. The program is anticipated to have follow-on adjacent panel designs in 2026.

The contract called for radomes made of a fiberglass and foam core sandwich configuration, following the design of the original proof of concept. The Ka-band radomes are made of Quartz Btcy1-A/4581 by Toray Advanced Composites (Morgan Hill, Calif., U.S.) and Diab (Laholm, Sweden) foam. The KaKu-band radomes are made of Toray 2510 and Diab foam with a foam tuning layer. The exterior shapes are the same and require very low view angles of 20° relative to the horizon within several frequency ranges: 10.7-14.5 gigahertz (GHz), 17.7-21.2 GHz and 27.5-31 GHz. RWC met an abbreviated schedule and used no tooling by creating a highly optimized flat panel design. The company performed in-house radio frequency testing to verify performance to requirements.

“This opportunity has enabled Rock West to demonstrate a key capability, successfully producing radomes for aerospace applications without the need for tooling, bringing better value and improved schedules to our customers and end users,” notes Adam Saunders, RWC program manager.

Radome panel under radio frequency testing. Source | Rock West Composites (RWC)