NEW weapon tracking radars worth nearly £17 million are to be installed on St Kilda as part of a major UK missile testing base revamp.
Two existing radars in the Hebrides rocket range in South Uist will be upgraded in a UK programme worth a total of £95m.
It includes £60m being spent on modern tracking equipment, instrumentation and range infrastructure at the Hebrides Range on Benbecula, South Uist and St Kilda.
QinetiQ is the largest private employer on Benbecula, with about 1 48 workers.
The range offers the largest area in the UK for the live-firing of rockets and missiles. Weapons fired at the range include the Rapier ground-to-air system.
But now as part of a joint investment programme, the MoD and QinetiQ have agreed to invest £16.8m in two new tracking radars, to be installed on St Kilda.
A separate aspect of the programme is revamping the military compound on the island. Most traces of the buildings from the 1960s will be removed and their replacements will be much more sympathetic to the outcrop’s setting.
Cathy O’Carroll, QinetiQ’s group director for test and evaluation said: “The modernisation of UK test and evaluation is a key part of our strategy for future growth.”
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