Stealthy F-35 Is Visible To Thermal Imagers

[Penguin]

http://newsletters.tti-ecm.com/April2014/TTInewsletter.html

Note that flares don't hide the aircraft that is dispensing them.

DIRCM (Directional Infrared Counter Measures) protect aircraft from infrared homing ("heat seeking") - mostly manportable - missiles. The term DIRCM is used as a generic term to describe any infrared countermeasure system that tracks and directs energy toward the threat. The system uses an active method of jamming of infrared missile seekers through the sensor aperture.

In principle, DIRCM could also dazzle an IRST/FLIR, but DIRCM being DIRECTIONAL (i.e. point and aim at target), this presupposes that the target has already been detected. And it can deal with only 1 target at a time. So that rather limits the potential usefulness against (passive) IRST surveillance, esp. from stealth(y) aircraft.

they only launch some thermal decoys in a small set pattern, if they increased thermal decoys along the whole ship or use dedicated expendable platforms for releasing a large amount of decoys they may be able to cover the whole ship.

That might work IF the ship is stationary....

I'm thinking like expendable aegis platforms that only launch countermeasures. I don't think any military has built these kind of decoys or missiles yet. Its kind of like a fireworks ship or airplane/drone. There are missile radar jammers, but im thinking more along the lines of a supersonic drone that emits IR fireworks in massive numbers. Stealth fighters would then hide behind the cloud of IR decoys. The drones would be carried by c130s or b52s. or launched from carriers.

In land-based applications IR/Thermal is usually dealt with using special camouflage bankets and netting. In ships, you use internal thermal shielding, dilution of hot exhaust fumes and cooling of hot stack panels with e.g. water spray (in/on the stack), underwater emission of exhaust etc.

In aviation, you look at design and materials too to reduce thermals signatures. I remain seriously unconvinced of thermal decoys along the lines you suggest.

 

[forsigmar]

View attachment 326445

http://newsletters.tti-ecm.com/April2014/TTInewsletter.html

Note that flares don't hide the aircraft that is dispensing them.

DIRCM (Directional Infrared Counter Measures) protect aircraft from infrared homing ("heat seeking") - mostly manportable - missiles. The term DIRCM is used as a generic term to describe any infrared countermeasure system that tracks and directs energy toward the threat. The system uses an active method of jamming of infrared missile seekers through the sensor aperture.

In principle, DIRCM could also dazzle an IRST/FLIR, but DIRCM being DIRECTIONAL (i.e. point and aim at target), this presupposes that the target has already been detected. And it can deal with only 1 target at a time. So that rather limits the potential usefulness against (passive) IRST surveillance, esp. from stealth(y) aircraft.


That might work IF the ship is stationary....



In land-based applications IR/Thermal is usually dealt with using special camouflage bankets and netting. In ships, you use internal thermal shielding, dilution of hot exhaust fumes and cooling of hot stack panels with e.g. water spray (in/on the stack), underwater emission of exhaust etc.

In aviation, you look at design and materials too to reduce thermals signatures. I remain seriously unconvinced of thermal decoys along the lines you suggest.

Syrian rebels burn tires to prevent Russian airforce strikes, I don't see why you can't use drones to do something like that.

 

[Penguin]

Syrian rebels burn tires to prevent Russian airforce strikes, I don't see why you can't use drones to do something like that.

Because the rebels were protecting a STATIONARY target? Besides, thermal imaging infrared will not be bothered by smoke at all, and the source fires can't cover everything. Incidentally, thermal imagers are bothered more by water spray than smoke....

 

[forsigmar]

Because the rebels were protecting a STATIONARY target? Besides, thermal imaging infrared will not be bothered by smoke at all, and the source fires can't cover everything. Incidentally, thermal imagers are bothered more by water spray than smoke....

Fighters have to fly at high altitude where the air is cold. While IR drones cant cover entire airplanes, it should create an environment where manned fighters can blend in better.