Marine Ground-Air Radar
The Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) is a critical CMC Force Design program. G/ATOR is a multi-role, ground-based, expeditionary 3D radar system employed by both the Air Combat Element (ACE) and Ground Combat Element (GCE) within the Marine Air Ground Task Force. It satisfies the Marine Air Command and Control System and the Ground Counter Fire/Counter Battery capabilities. G/ATOR provides mobile, multi-functional, three-dimensional surveillance of air breathing targets, detection of cruise missiles, Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), rockets, artillery and mortars, and the cueing of air defense weapons. G/ATOR contributes to Littoral Operations in a Contested Environment (LOCE) and Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO) by surveillance and detection of enemy air threats not seen by Navy sensors in the littorals and participating in a cooperative engagement network of sensors and shooters. G/ATOR enables Integrated Fire Control (IFC) and provides engage/fire on remote capability. G/ATOR surveillance coverage with IFC will provide unprecedented reach, volume, and precision in the execution of Operational Maneuver from The Sea allowing Naval forces to project and sustain power deep inland. G/ATOR is the primary Ground-Based sensor for the United States Marine Corps and is the only Air Defense/Air Surveillance radar currently in the Marine Corps inventory. The increase from FY 2026 to FY 2027, driven primarily by the initiation of the Digital Receiver/Exciter (DREX) concept development effort. The DREX design, development, and test efforts will span multiple years to upgrade components from analog to digital, which will improve radar performance, enhance spectrum management, and enable future capability insertions. Remaining funds will support software and hardware capability enhancements based on emerging warfighter needs, such as the development and integration of software for Naval Integrated Fire Control (NIFC), Mode S, the Multi-Domain Radar in a Contested environment (MuDRaCE) Family of Systems (FOS), and Non-Cooperative Target Recognition (NCTR). This funding also covers all associated support, systems engineering, and testing required for the successful execution and implementation of these critical improvements.
- Initiate Digital Receiver/Exciter (DREX) concept development efforts such as modeling and simulation activities to define and validate the DREX architecture and to predict performance improvements; and, conduct component-level systems engineering efforts to select and mature critical digital components design while addressing risk…
Read the FY2027 plan →- Complete Mode S development. - Continue the development and integration of software and hardware capability enhancements.
Read the FY2027 plan →FY2027 planned work - Continue Government support from activities such as MITRE; Naval Information, Surface and Air Warfare Centers; AIMS; and DTIC, with an increased level of effort focused on providing hardware and software engineering analysis for the Digital Receiver/Exciter (DREX) development.
FY2026 to FY2027 change Increase from FY 2026 to FY 2027 reflects additional Government engineering support for the DREX development effort.
FY2026 plans — current year - Continue Government support from the following activities to enable program execution: MITRE; NIWC Atlantic, NSWC Dahlgren; NSWC Crane; NAWC-AD China Lake; AIMS and DTIC.
FY2027 planned work - Complete Expeditionary Airfield Surveillance Radar (EASR) testing. - Continue testing of capability enhancements, such as for adaptive layers for C2 integration and for Near Range and Far Range passive detection and air surveillance in spectrum dense environments, Naval Integrated Fire Control (NIFC), and Radar Signal Processor Refresh (RSP-R).
FY2026 to FY2027 change No significant changes from FY 2026 to FY 2027.
FY2026 plans — current year - Continue testing of adaptive layers for C2 integration and for Near Range and Far Range passive detection and air surveillance in spectrum dense environments. - Initiate Expeditionary Airfield Surveillance Radar (EASR) testing.
FY2027 planned work - Continue program office travel in support of system development and management services related to engineering test events. - Continue RDT&E related engineering, management, program office support and travel for G/ATOR and MuDRaCE FOS.
FY2026 to FY2027 change No significant changes from FY 2026 to FY 2027.
FY2026 plans — current year - Continue program office travel in support of system development and management services related to engineering test events. - Continue RDT&E related engineering, management, program office support, and travel for NCTR, NIFC, Mode S and MuDRaCE FOS.
FY2027 planned work - Continue the development of MuDRaCE capabilities, such as those for adaptive layers for C2 integration, Mission Planner, and Composite Tracking Network capabilities for passive detection and air surveillance in spectrum dense environments.
FY2026 to FY2027 change MuDRaCE decreases from FY 2026 to FY 2027 in order to continue to enhance Radar and Force Survivability in a Peer/Near-Peer Competitor environment, via the Medium Range Air Defense Radar (MRADR) program, by allowing for aviation ground command and control agencies to minimize probability of detection through signature management.
FY2026 plans — current year - Continue the development of adaptive layers for C2 integration and for Near Range and Far Range passive detection and air surveillance in spectrum dense environments.