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F-16 phones home with Iridium
July 20, 1999 (by
Lieven Dewitte) -
LMTAS and AlliedSignal have entered into a cooperative agreement to demonstrate two-way satellite communication on a tactical fighter using the commercial Iridium system, a first for both Iridium and for any USAF fighter aircraft.
A LMTAS leased F-16 will be outfitted with the AlliedSignal AIRSAT 1, which is off-the-shelf equipment that provides Iridium SATCOM communications services for commercial aviation applications. The system will be integrated into the F-16 to provide the pilot with two-way voice and data connectivity to any operating base, command element, or intelligence source located anywhere in the world.
LMTAS has been a leader in developing capabilities to provide Real-Time Intelligence to the Cockpit (RTIC) since the late 1980s when a pioneering project called Fastball was first conceived. Since Project Fastball, LMTAS has continued to advance the state-of-the-art in RTIC technologies. One example is Project Sure Strike -- an initiative originated by COMAIRSOUTH in 1995. Under Project Sure Strike the F-16 SPO directed LMTAS to perform a Class II modification to 38 block 40 F-16s of the 31st TFW, Aviano AB, Italy. This capability was used to support close air support (CAS) targeting in Bosnia by permitting a ground forward air controller (FAC) to digitally transmit an identified, accurately-located target via the Improved Data Modem (IDM) to an airborne Fast FAC in an F-16 Block 40 aircraft.
Sure Strike is a fielded example of providing real-time intelligence support to the fighter aircraft. It also was an important force in the recent Kosovo conflict. According to Chris Mengis, the LMTAS chief engineer of this effort, "This project is not about proving the utility of RTIC to the fighter pilot. We are already believers in RTIC and we understand the value of real-time intelligence to the tactical fighter pilot. The goal of this project is to demonstrate the capability to deliver intelligence products to the fighter pilot in near-real-time from sources located virtually anywhere in the world in a very affordable way. To date, our communications links have been limited to line-of-sight operations, so the addition of an inexpensive commercial satellite communication link has the potential to add a tremendous leap in capability.
"This project is the first step in preparing the F-16 to interoperate with the future network centric environment described by the JCS Joint Vision 2010. Lessons learned in this effort will also be of great value to the LM Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) team. Commercial communications are very likely to serve a role in the C4I architecture of the future. The Iridium telecommunications system is a space-based, wireless personal communications network developed by Motorola for system owner and operator, Iridium LLC. The individual spacecraft are interconnected via crosslink antennas that allow satellites to communicate among themselves without the use of ground stations to provide continuous global telephone service. The system will provide users with instantaneous global telephone services of all types, including voice, data, fax and paging.
The Iridium constellation was activated and began providing service Nov. 1, 1998. Under contract to Motorola, Commercial Space Systems, an operating unit of Lockheed Martin Missiles & Space, builds the satellite bus used by Iridium LLC. The launch campaign carried more than 80 spacecraft into low-Earth-orbit over an 18 month period, using three different boosters launched from three continents.
LMTAS has been a leader in developing capabilities to provide Real-Time Intelligence to the Cockpit (RTIC) since the late 1980s when a pioneering project called Fastball was first conceived. Since Project Fastball, LMTAS has continued to advance the state-of-the-art in RTIC technologies. One example is Project Sure Strike -- an initiative originated by COMAIRSOUTH in 1995. Under Project Sure Strike the F-16 SPO directed LMTAS to perform a Class II modification to 38 block 40 F-16s of the 31st TFW, Aviano AB, Italy. This capability was used to support close air support (CAS) targeting in Bosnia by permitting a ground forward air controller (FAC) to digitally transmit an identified, accurately-located target via the Improved Data Modem (IDM) to an airborne Fast FAC in an F-16 Block 40 aircraft.
Sure Strike is a fielded example of providing real-time intelligence support to the fighter aircraft. It also was an important force in the recent Kosovo conflict. According to Chris Mengis, the LMTAS chief engineer of this effort, "This project is not about proving the utility of RTIC to the fighter pilot. We are already believers in RTIC and we understand the value of real-time intelligence to the tactical fighter pilot. The goal of this project is to demonstrate the capability to deliver intelligence products to the fighter pilot in near-real-time from sources located virtually anywhere in the world in a very affordable way. To date, our communications links have been limited to line-of-sight operations, so the addition of an inexpensive commercial satellite communication link has the potential to add a tremendous leap in capability.
"This project is the first step in preparing the F-16 to interoperate with the future network centric environment described by the JCS Joint Vision 2010. Lessons learned in this effort will also be of great value to the LM Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) team. Commercial communications are very likely to serve a role in the C4I architecture of the future. The Iridium telecommunications system is a space-based, wireless personal communications network developed by Motorola for system owner and operator, Iridium LLC. The individual spacecraft are interconnected via crosslink antennas that allow satellites to communicate among themselves without the use of ground stations to provide continuous global telephone service. The system will provide users with instantaneous global telephone services of all types, including voice, data, fax and paging.
The Iridium constellation was activated and began providing service Nov. 1, 1998. Under contract to Motorola, Commercial Space Systems, an operating unit of Lockheed Martin Missiles & Space, builds the satellite bus used by Iridium LLC. The launch campaign carried more than 80 spacecraft into low-Earth-orbit over an 18 month period, using three different boosters launched from three continents.
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