Atlantic Organization for Security (AOS)

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SSC improves the MSS 6000 for the Finnish Border Guard

by · March 12, 2011

Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) signed a contract with the Finnish Border Guard (FBG) to further improve the surveillance and protection of the Baltic Sea.

With this contract, phase II in the project, the maritime surveillance capacity of FBG’s two Dornier aircraft will be improved with the integration of an advanced search radar and infrared camera with the existing MSS 6000.

The system has also been employed in international surveillance operations coordinated by the EU agency Frontex.

During their surveillance flights the Border Guard’s Dornier surveillance aircraft detect dozens of illegal oil discharges every year from vessels within the Finnish maritime area and also elsewhere in the Baltic Sea in the context of international cooperation with other Baltic coastal states.

Under the new agreement, the environmental monitoring systems installed in 2007-2009 will now be supplemented to become a fully integrated system incorporating latest-generation surveillance radar and electro-optical camera systems as well as other surveillance sensors and communication systems. In the standard setup the surveillance system will be operated by two operators but, if necessary, the system will also allow operation of all sensors from one of the consoles located at the front and the rear of the aircraft. The current phase II will be implemented during 2011 and 2012.

 

The MSS 6000

The MSS 6000 for the Finnish Border Guard is a fully integrated system and will include the following components:

  • Side-Looking Airborne Radar (SLAR) and infrared/ultraviolet (IR/UV) scanner for oil spill detection;
  • 360-degree search radar;
  • High-speed satellite link system with internet connection; 
  • Infrared and HD-level colour surveillance camera with a very powerful optical zoom coupled with the MSS 6000 mission management system and supported by features including laser illumination for target identification and documentation; 
  • Modernized radio direction finder for the relevant frequency bands for SAR missions; 
  • digital video and still image recording system;
  • Two operator consoles equipped with a highly automated system for mission information presentation, recording and re-porting.

MSS 6000 systems have been installed on several aircraft types and are used by coast guard organisations in countries around the world, in addition to Finland e.g. in Sweden, Norway, Estonia, Poland, Portugal, Canada and Malaysia. The system uses state-of-the art technology and is designed to be an integral part of today’s multi-faceted maritime surveillance mission.

Source : Swedish Space Corp.

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