STOCKHOLM: Pakistan has signed a contract with two Swedish companies for a land surveillance system that could have been useful in emergency operations arising from the earthquake in Kashmir, the aircraft maker Saab announced on Wednesday.
The system operates aboard a Saab 2000 turbo-propelled aircraft, relying on the Erieye on-board radar system developed by Ericsson Microwave Systems, a subsidiary of the telecom giant Ericsson, a news release stated.
Saab will receive two thirds of the 8.3 billion Swedish kronor (878 million-euro, one-billion-dollar) contract and Ericsson will get the other third. Saab said the surveillance system would be used together with ground-based radars "to provide a more detailed picture" to assist rescue operations and help Pakistan face "different threats to the country".
"In the aftermath of the severe earthquake, the system would have been able to play a significant part in the search and rescue operations" and in logistical support, the statement read. Saab added that "important conditions remain to be settled" before the contract becomes effective.
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