In Estonia, at the Electronic Warfare Live (EW Live) exhibition held from September 17 to 19, 2024, Ukrainians presented their unique radio reconnaissance complex "Archont" for the first time.
"(Archont) sparked significant interest among representatives of military departments not only from European countries but also from distant nations in Asia and America," the company Infozakhyst reported.
The EW Live exhibition is organized with the participation of the Estonian Ministry of Defense and Defense Forces and is held every two years. The event focuses on the development of electronic reconnaissance and electronic warfare systems, with a key feature being the demonstration of the capabilities of real equipment in field conditions.
As previously reported by Anton Shcherbakov in a December 2023 publication on DOU, "Archont" is a mobile ground-based complex that can be presented in both mobile and stationary versions. The complex includes a powerful antenna system capable of receiving signals in the lower frequency range, as well as posts that are integrated into a radio direction-finding network to determine the location of emission sources in passive mode while remaining undetectable by enemy radio reconnaissance. Each post, depending on the combat situation and assigned tasks, can perform the functions of the main point of radio technical control.
The uniqueness of the complex lies in the software developed by Ukrainian programmers, which allows for processing, identifying, and classifying signals, as well as performing many other tasks. The software includes artificial intelligence tools that enable the operator to link to specific sources of radio emissions and improve the task execution process.
As of December 2023, "Archont" had already been tested in areas close to combat zones. During its use, it "saw":
- Signals from a number of enemy radar systems, including long-range air reconnaissance radars 1L117;
- Signals from the radar 96L6E, which is part of the S-300 air defense system;
- Radars from the Tor-M1 air defense system;
- Radars of numerous surface targets in the Black Sea area.
During the detection of air targets, "Archont" recorded the operation of the container-type radar M402 "Pika-M," which is installed on the Su-34, as well as the radar N011R "Bars," which is mounted on the Su-30 fighter jet.
