Hill Air Force Base Radar Site

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Hill Air Force Base Radar Site (2000-Active) - A U.S. Air Force FPS-117 radar site relocated from McClellan AFB, California when it closed. The site is now located on the northeast edge of Hill AFB, Ogden, Weber County, Utah. Active radar site.

Hill Air Force Base FPS-117 Radar Site

History

Established in 2000 with the ribbon cutting on Hill Air Force Base Radar Site on 6 Nov 2000. $1.1 million was approved for the new facility to house the FPS-117 relocated from McClellan, AFB. The facility was sited in the northeast corner of the base along the North Perimeter Road on a bluff overlooking I-84.

Initial equipment included the FPS-117 three dimensional (3D) search radar configured to provide Engineering and logistical support for other FPS-117 sites mostly in Alaska and Canada. The Hill AFB FPS-117 radar system is used for all validation, analysis, and testing of hardware and software modifications for the early warning network of FPS-117 radars.

Essential Parts Replacement Program (EPRP)

In 2011 the U.S. Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin $46.8 million in contract options to begin modernization of 29 long-range radars. Under the EPRP contract, Lockheed Martin was to modernize 15 radars in Alaska, 11 in Canada, and one each in Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Utah, all part of the Air Force's Atmospheric Early Warning System. The Utah radar was the FPS-117 at the Hill Air Force Base Radar Site.

By 2011 the FPS-117 radars, which were originally installed in the 1980s, suffered from excessive parts obsolescence and diminishing manufacturing sources. The EPRP program was established to eliminate obsolete components and to ensure continued supportability through 2025. The modifications also provided the hardware necessary for the eventual implementation of Mode 5 IFF.

The program replaced four major subassemblies on the FPS-117: the Maintenance and Control System, the Beacon system, the Uninterruptable Power Supply/Communications Rack, and Local Control Terminals, which allow remote monitoring, troubleshooting, and control of the radars. The modifications reduced the line-replaceable unit count by approximately 80 percent, easing maintenance and the number of parts on the shelf.

More than 25 radar systems were upgraded, including the Hill AFB Engineering Facility, the last site in Hawaii was returned to service in late June 2015 after all the site operations and maintenance personnel had been trained.


Hill Air Force Base Radar Site AFS Major Equipment List
Search Radar HF Radar Data Systems Comm

Current Status

Active radar site.


Location: North Perimeter Road on Hill Air Force Base, Ogden, Weber County, Utah.

Maps & Images

Lat: 41.13052 Long: -111.96488

  • Multi Maps from ACME
  • Maps from Bing
  • Maps from Google
  • Elevation: 4,795'

See Also:

Sources:

Links:

  • Bad Links Hill+AFB+AEWS%2C+UT Hill Air Force Base Radar Site]


Visited: 12 Oct 2018


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