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AN-
From Citizendium, the Citizens' Compendium
Due to technical limitations, this article uses an unusual title. It would normally be:
AN/ prefix.
Most U.S. military electronics equipment has designations in the form AN/ABC-99. This always-evolving system began as the Joint Electronics Type Designation System. Information security equipment under the control of the National Security Agency belongs to the TSEC/XYZ series, except certain of the letters in the AN/ system are reserved for NSA use.
While the designation systems are quite complex and still contain special cases, the basic structure is:
- First letter: Where or how is it installed?
- Second letter: What kind of information or energy does it handle/
- Third letter: What does it do with the information or energy?
The next numbers indicate a main model number within the series, followed by a bewildering and inconsistent set of version levels, alternate configurations, etc. Sometimes, what may seem an incremental improvement gets an entirely new model number, while a radical change may get a version change only. In other words, grasp the general principles of the system, but know that you will have to examine a specific system to understand its designation nuances.
So, an
- AN/APY-2 is an airborne tracking radar, which is aboard the E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Command System aircraft
- AN/SPY-2 is a shipboard tracking radar, in this case the ballistic missile defense radar on ships equipped with the AEGIS battle management system
- AN/TPY-2 is a ground-based ballistic missile defense radar, which is moved from operating location to location by truck or cargo aircraft
An
- AN/APG-63 (V)3 is the airborne radar in the F-15 Eagle fighter. (V) not only shows that it is a new version, but the (V) means it has a modular configuration, which can be changed in the field. As a practical demonstration that the number following the three letter code can be fairly arbitrary, the AN/APG-63 (V)4 not only replaces the (V)3 on the air superiority F-15, it also replaces the AN/APG-70 on the ground attack F-15E Strike Eagle.
In contrast, a simple letter suffix means that the system is not field reconfigurable.
- AN/ALR-56 is a software-controlled radar warning receiver. Its AN/ALR-56C model is on F-15 series fighters, but the AN/ALR-56M model is used on F-16 Fighting Falcon fighters and C-130 Hercules transports.
In the table below, only current codes are used; alas, animal-carried systems are no longer designated. Alas, the air-transportable pigeon loft & message center is no longer in service.
| Letter | Installation | Information | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Manned aircraft | Infrared | Auxiliary equipment |
| B | Submarine (once was pigeon) | Infrared | Bombing |
| C | NSA reserved | Electronic carrier wave | Communictions |
| D | Pilotless aircraft (UAV, drone) | Ionizing radiation | Direction finding, surveillance |
| E | - | Laser | Ejection |
| F | Fixed ground installation | Fiber optics | - |
| G | Ground mobile | Teletype or telegraph | Fire or searchlight control |
| H | - | - | Recording |
| I | - | Intercom | - |
| J | - | Electromechanical | - |
| K | Amphibious | Infrared | Computing |
| L | - | Countermeasures | - |
| M | Self-propelled ground | Meteorological | Maintenance |
| N | - | Sound in air | Navigation |
| O | - | - | - |
| P | Portable (personal) | Radar | - |
| Q | - | Underwater sound | Special |
| R | - | Radio | Receiving or passive detecting |
| S | Ship | Special | Active detecting, search |
| T | Ground transportable; not usable while moving | Telephone | Transmitting |
| U | Utility/combination | - | - |
| V | Vehicle | Visible light | - |
| W | Water | Miscellaneous weapons | Remote control |
| X | - | Television or facsimile | Identification or recognition |
| Y | - | Computing | Target tracking, fire control |
| Z | NSA reserved | Infrared | NSA reserved |
