Radar, Airborne Interception, Mark VIII, or AI Mk. VIII for short, was the first operational microwave-frequency air-to-air radar. It was used by Royal Air Force night fighters from late 1941 until the end of World War II. The basic concept, using a moving parabolic antenna to search for targets and track them accurately, remained in use by most airborne radars well into the 1980s.
Low-level development began in 1939 but was greatly sped after the introduction of the cavity magnetron in early 1940. This operated at 9.1 cm wavelength (3 GHz), much shorter than the 1.5 m wavelength of the earlier AI Mk. IV. Shorter wavelengths allowed it to use smaller and much more directional antennas. Mk. IV was blinded by the reflections off the ground from its wide broadcast pattern, which made it impossible to see targets flying at low altitudes. Mk. VIII could avoid this by keeping the antenna pointed upward, allowing it to see any aircraft at or above the horizon.
The design was just beginning to mature in late 1941 when the Luftwaffe began low-level attacks. A prototype version, the Mk. VII, entered service on the Bristol Beaufighter in November 1941. A small number of these were sent to units across the UK to provide coverage at low altitudes while Mk. IV equipped aircraft operated at higher altitudes. After a small run of the improved Mk. VIIIA, the definitive Mk. VIII arrived in early 1942, offering higher power as well as a host of electronic and packaging upgrades. It arrived just as production rates of the De Havilland Mosquito began to improve, quickly displacing the Beaufighter units in RAF squadrons. Mk. VIII equipped Mosquitoes would be the premier night fighter from 1943 through the rest of the war.
The Mk. VIII spawned a number of variants, notably the AI Mk. IX which included a lock-on feature to ease interceptions. A series of events, including a deadly friendly fire incident, so greatly delayed the Mk. IX that it never entered service. During the late-war period, many UK aircraft adopted the US SCR-720 under the name AI Mk. X. This worked on the same general principles as the Mk. VIII, but used a different display system that offered several advantages. Development of the basic system continued, and the Mk. IX would eventually briefly re-appear in greatly advanced form as the AI.17 during the 1950s.
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