Air Force asks L3Harris to build height-sensing radar proximity sensor for precise attacks on enemy targets

Questions and answers:

• What is the purpose of the C-HOBS proximity sensor being developed by L3Harris? C-HOBS enables combat aircraft pilots to set the precise height at which bombs and smart munitions detonate.
• How does C-HOBS improve on the obsolescent DSU-33D/B sensor? C-HOBS offers improved radar-guided performance, and enables manual and cockpit-selectable burst heights while maintaining the same form, fit, and function as the DSU-33D/B.
• What kinds of munitions use the new C-HOBS sensor? C-HOBS works with the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) and the Next Generation Area Attack Weapons (NGAAW).

HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah – Airborne weapons experts at L3Harris Technologies Inc. will design and build an avionics radar proximity sensor to enable combat aircraft pilots to set the heights at which their bombs and smart munitions explode over targets under terms of a $29.3 million U.S. Air Force order.

Officials of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, are asking the L3Harris C5 Integrated Systems segment in Camden, N.J., to build the Cockpit-Selectable Height-of-Burst Sensor (C-HOBS).

This avionics subsystem will replace the now-fielded Northrop Grumman DSU-33D/B height-of-burst sensor, as well as address obsolescence issues. Northrop Grumman has been building the DSU-33D/B sensor since 1999.

C-HOBS is a radar proximity sensor that provides a precise variable proximity function to the fuze system. The sensor provides manual and cockpit-selectable heights of burst, precision height sensing, and possible terrain discrimination. The sensor will interface with weapons systems like the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) the on U.S. Navy and Air Force bomber aircraft.

Tell me more about how a proximity fuze works ...

• A proximity fuze is for munitions like artillery shells, bombs, or missiles that detonates the explosive when it comes close to a target, without requiring a direct hit. It senses when it is near a target and then triggers the explosion at the optimal distance to make the most of damage. Most proximity fuzes send out continuous or pulsed radar signals from a small built-in transmitter that sends an electric signal to detonate the warhead when the signal indicates the target is within a specific range.

C-HOBS is a modification program to resolve obsolescence issues with the DSU-33D/B sensor and to improve sensor performance. It will maintain the same form, fit and function as the DSU-33D/B, and will address certain targets of opportunity to future-proof the sensor. Details of the C-HOBS specifications are classified.

Upgrades of the C-HOBS program include manual and cockpit-selectable radar-guided height-of-burst with improved system performance for JDAM and the Next Generation Area Attack Weapons (NGAAW) missions, Air Force officials say. L3Harris is expected to build as many as 60,000 C-HOBS units.

On this order L3Harris will do the work in Cincinnati, and should be finished by August 2029. For more information contact L3Harris online at www.l3harris.com, or the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at www.aflcmc.af.mil.