An overview of the multistatic sonar program in Australia

With the advent of quiet contacts, passive detection is becoming increasingly more difficult. One method of increasing the detection capabilities of the Australian Defence Force is the use of multistatic active sonar systems. A multistatic system places the source and multiple receivers in different locations. This allows the problem of dead zones to be overcome giving greater coverage. One such system is Bistatic Barra that uses both an incoherent or coherent source and a Barra sonobuoy for the receiver. This paper describes the advantages that a multistatic system has over a monostatic system using the example of a Bistatic Barra system and shows some results obtained from trials undertaken comparing the Barra sonobuoy with a Difar sonobuoy.