4 March 2021

On March 3, the President of Argentina, Dr. Alberto Fernández, and the Minister of Defense, Engineer Agustín Rossi, visited INVAP, where they signed an agreement with the aim of providing 3D Argentine Primary Radars 200 (RPA-200) to be incorporated to the National System of Aerospace Surveillance and Control (SINVICA, in Spanish).
President Fernández was welcomed by Lic. Arabela Carreras, Governor of the Province of Río Negro; Dr. Vicente Campenni, INVAP’s General Manager; and Engineer Darío Giussi, Manager of Defense, Security and Environment of the company.

The presidential delegation also included the Head of the Argentine Air Force, Brigadier Major Xavier Julián Isaac, and the Chief of Staff of the Training and Enlistment Command of the same force, Brigadier José M. Greissing. The ceremony was also attended by the Mayor of San Carlos de Bariloche, Engineer Gustavo Genusso; national legislators, members of the Armed Forces and other senior officials and employees of the company.

The recent agreement includes the supply of a series of state-of-the-art 3D radars (RPA-200) together with the civilian infrastructure for its installation, communications, radomes, tools, simulators and information systems for their control, operation and maintenance, as well as logistic and training support. The new project will contribute to maintain strategic development capabilities in radar technology, to support and develop highly qualified professionals, and to generate a new competitive and high value-added exportable offer for Argentina.

The reactivation of INVAP’s radar development will have an impact on the work of 150 Small and Medium Enterprises (PYMES, in Spanish) directly or indirectly involved in the production chain, since 80 percent of the radars’ manufacture is carried out with Argentine supplies and labor.

The agreement signed comprises, at the initial stage, the manufacture of five new units of the Argentine Primary Radar 200 (RPA 200) for the cities of Río Grande (Tierra del Fuego), Posadas (Misiones), and Resistencia, Charata and Taco Pozo, (Chaco).

At the signing ceremony, President Fernández stated: “We, who are convinced that the world of the future is the world of knowledge, bet that INVAP will be an immense, huge company, able to develop the science and technology we need.”

In turn, Minister Rossi said: “Today is an important day for the concept of Argentine sovereignty we subscribe to. Only 15 countries in the world have access to radar technology, and this advantage gives us more independence and freedom in making decisions.”

Then, Vicente Campenni assured that the objective is “to make INVAP a company whose aim is to contribute to the development of our country on the basis of its science and technology capabilities.”

During the tour around the company, the national and provincial authorities visited INVAP’s Radar Assemblage and Test Facilities located on the outskirts of San Carlos de Bariloche International Airport “Teniente Luis Candelaria”, where they could see the RPA-240. Then, at INVAP’s headquarters, they visited the Radar Integration Building, where projects of the Defense and Security area of the company are carried out.

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