The Presidency of Defence Industries and Meteksan Defence Industry Inc. signed a contract in 2019 to develop an active laser-based Helicopter Obstacle Detection System (HETS) to be integrated helicopter platforms. Meteksan Defence has completed the development stage of the product and HETS will be exhibited for the first time at the Meteksan Defence booth during IDEF 2021 Exhibition, İstanbul.

HETS was developed with a fibre laser that has a wavelength of 1550 nm. It has the capability of detecting human-made structures such as buildings, towers, poles, power lines, and natural obstacles such as trees, forests, and hills. It provides audible/visual warnings to pilots. The system supports different interfaces for easy integration into different helicopter platforms. It, therefore, differs from its competitors in the world with its low power consumption and low weight.

HETS can detect horizontal and vertical obstacles, including 5mm power lines, by scanning twice a second in its 30*40 degrees’ field of view and has an instrumental range of 1500 m. It warns the pilot against obstacles at appropriate times with LIDAR technology, high precision signal processing, and user-friendly visual creation capability. Also, HETS can produce synthetic sound and tones in addition to a visual warning. The system supports MIL-STD-1553, RS-422, and ARINC-429 interfaces for use in integrated structures and producing video for MFDs.

Operating in 6 main fields, including radar systems, perimeter surveillance systems, laser and electro-optical systems, communication systems, underwater acoustics systems and platform simulators, Meteksan Defence has been involved in platform projects of Turkey, such as national ship, helicopter, unmanned aerial vehicle, and many critical projects such as the development of anti-tank and air defence missile systems. Radar systems, perimeter surveillance radars, altimeters, tactical and strategic missile systems data links, sonar systems, underwater early warning and communication systems and training simulators for helicopters and UAVs are the main original and national products developed by Meteksan Defence.