Project Jindalee: from bare bones to operational OTHR

Project Jindalee officially started in April 1974 as a DSTO project based on over the horizon radar (OTHR) developments made by the USA. Over the years it has progressively evolved to the level of performance where it currently serves a hybrid operational/developmental role. Because of the success of Jindalee, the Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN) was conceived and in 1991 the Australian Department of Defence contracted for the construction of two OTHR systems. The JORN is currently projected to come on line in early 2002. This paper outlines the development of the Jindalee program from its inception as Stage A. This is followed by the Stage B system and its evolutionary development up to the current time. Integral with this development is a brief overview of the DSTO R&D activities into OTHR. This review concludes with an overview of the development of the JORN.