Industrial Focus MT 5/2022· 61 and the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. UHF enables lightweight, robust and highly secure communications and a wide range of suitable hardware is available. Airbus is the only armed forces private satcom operator to cover the full spectrum of military (UHF, X, Ka Mil) and commercial (L, C/Ku, Ka) frequency bands and applications. The company will build the Eutelsat 36D satellite based on its Eurostar Neo platform: the platform will be equipped with 70 Ku-band transponders for TV broadcast, as well as its milsatcom function. Northrop Grumman and Cubic Demonstrate JADC2 Connectivity Northrop Grumman and Cubic Mission and Performance Systems have successfully demonstrated a high-capacity backbone (HCB)-enabled Gateway System solution for connectivity for the US Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) system, ensuring delivery of the right data, to the right place, at the right time, the companies announced on 13 September. In a recent demonstration, the companies showcased an interconnected, vendor-agnostic network through Open Mission Systems (OMS) interfaces, proving the ability to deliver significantly enhanced, all domain command and control capabilities to 4th– and 5th-generation platforms. “We connected disparate systems that will enable interoperability to help the Department of Defense achieve their JADC2 vision,” said Kevin Berkowitz, Director, Network Solutions, Northrop Grumman. “This further illustrates our commitment to seamlessly integrate advanced networking capabilities with multiple industry partners, which will in turn create an information advantage critical to succeed in an era of technology-driven conflict.” The demonstration showcased technologies and solution sets that are critical enablers for JADC2. Incorporating PlatformONE, GatewayONE and its Resilient Network Controller, Northrop Grumman demonstrated rapid technology insertion and network management, recovery and optimization in a contested environment. These solution sets showed how quickly new technology can be deployed to the tactical edge utilizing containerized software architecture. “Cubic sees this successful demonstration as the first of many to come, including a complex air/ground flight test event we have planned for next year,” added David Harris, VP/GM of Secure Communications & GATR, CMPS. “The development of our Halo Software Defined Antenna, utilizes novel digital beam forming techniques to enable an ad hoc directional mesh for problem sets like JADC2. The modular, building-block approach will allow the system to be integrated on a variety of platforms enabling secure data transport into and out of highly contested environments.” This cross-industry event is the fourth in a series of demonstrations designed to showcase the advanced OMS connectivity, networking and processing capabilities achieved by Northrop Grumman and third-party systems in JADC2 mission environments. Northrop Grumman plans to further expand capabilities with an additional demonstration later this year. LITENING Pod Makes First Super Hornet Flight Northrop Grumman’s LITENING advanced targeting pod has been successfully flight tested on US Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets, the company announced on 7 September. The flight encompassed manoeuvres and operations representative of combat missions, including ground moving target tracking, air-to-air tracking and target designation. The eye-safe training laser mode, that allows the pod to be used for realistic training with combat controllers on maintenance for over two decades. Indra has retained responsibility in two areas for which EM&E did not bid, reportedly totalling €3.4 million. TRC also won business valued at some €0.8 million in logistics management support for the system. Escribano’s footprint with the Guardia Civil is thus expanding. The service last year selected the company’s OTEOS-S electro-optical sensors to upgrade SIVE. EM&E sensors are also prescribed for Guardia Civil border security and maritime service applications. In addition, the company will collaborate with radar manufacturer ART in providing the range of maintenance services required. ART radars have already been selected for SIVE modernisation. Airbus Satcoms for Czech and Dutch Armed Forces Airbus is to provide the Czech and Dutch armed forces with satellite communications over a 15-year period, the company announced on 9 September. The two nations will use two and three channels respectively of the Airbus UHF military communications hosted on Eutelsat 36D, scheduled for launch in 2024. The payload allows the company to offer a new UHF service to the armed forces – particularly those of European and NATO states. As UHF capacity is in global short supply, the solution resolves capacity shortages – and explains why Airbus is signing up firm orders well ahead of launch. To be operated from the Airbus Network Operations Centre in Toulouse, the 18 UHF channels will enable up to 200 simultaneous communications over an area including Europe, the Middle East, Africa, large parts of Asia EM&E sensors are gradually replacing obsolete technologies in the SIVR+E surveillance system. (Photo: EM&E) The Eutelsat solution will help mitigate global shortages of UHF secure communications capacity. (Photo: Airbus)
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