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AMNB Reviews the codeRED CR-TAC Headset

Sunday, September 19th, 2021

You may have run across AMNB on Instagram or the Web where he reviews a wide variety of kit, primarily for the Mil-Sim community. We’ve hit the point where the quality of products designed for Mil-Sim are getting up there. I’m not saying for professional users to go this route, but it may have utility for some readers.

CR-TAC from codeRED Headsets is a noise cancelling Dual Muff headset with “hear through” technology using electronic amplification of ambient sounds.

Overall, his impression is very positive, but Chris goes into some detail, which makes it worth your time to go read what he’s got to say.

For the whole review at airsoft-milsim-news.com/codered-cr-tac-headset-amnb-review.

Posted in Comms, Guest Post, International | 1 Comment »

£100m Contract for High Frequency Radio Communications

Friday, September 17th, 2021

• New radio service to boost communications across multiple terrains and domains

• Investment will improve interoperability and enhance emergency communications

• Multi-million-pound contract to support 150 UK industry jobs

A £110 million contract has been awarded to deliver the new Defence Strategic Radio Service (DSRS) to critical military operations.

DSRS uses the Earth’s ionosphere, part of the upper atmosphere, to allow radio signals to be sent and received across thousands of kilometers. This allows communications to be rapidly delivered across a variety of domains to service personnel, regardless of whether they are on land, in the air or at sea.

The new communications service removes the traditional requirement for direct-line-of-sight between the transmitter and user. Members of the Armed Forces will be able to communicate more effectively and quickly in notoriously challenging terrain, such as built-up cities, mountains and jungles.

Awarded to Babcock International Group, the nine-year contract will support around 150 jobs across England, Scotland and three of the UK’s Overseas Bases.

Babcock Chief Executive David Lockwood said:

“Babcock is delighted to be awarded the new Defence Strategic Radio Service contract which builds on our extensive experience and knowledge in this field. In collaboration with both our partners and customer we will work together to deliver a secure, resilient and advanced solution that will ensure DSRS users receive assured services, in support of the critical operations they perform, that are fit for today and ready for tomorrow.

“We are proud to continue our drive to ensure that high frequency (HF) skills and capabilities are maintained in the UK, both now and into the future, through our unique HF Communications BTEC apprenticeship programme.”

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said:

“This multi-million-pound investment in frontline radio communications will provide our Armed Forces with cutting-edge technology that allows them to connect effectively across a range of challenging environments.

“Underpinned by commitments outlined in the Defence Command Paper, industry expertise will be at the core of developing this innovative capability whilst supporting more than 150 jobs in the process.”

Outlined in the recent Defence Command Paper, the MOD is committed to ensuring that innovation and investment are at the forefront of the Armed Forces giving them a cutting-edge advantage whenever and wherever they are deployed. This is further enhanced by the £24 billion increase in Defence spending over the next four years, as announced by the Prime Minister last year.

Commander of Strategic Command General Sir Patrick Sanders said:

“It is vital we have a range of robust communications options available to us, including satellite, internet and high frequency, to offer Commanders and decision-makers in the field the information they need at the speed of relevance.

“As we see a continued rise in threats to our security in the cyber and electromagnetic domain, our network resilience is what will give us the competitive edge against our adversaries.”

The new system will also be critical for flight safety communications to all military aircraft while also supporting the ‘mayday’ fallback facility for the wider UK aviation community.

While used by the UK Armed Forces, the radio system will also support civilian tasks when required, including mountain rescue and civilian aircraft emergency communications.

DSRS works across all single Service capabilities and can be integrated with communication systems of global allies, improving the UK’s ability to command and control its forces worldwide.

www.babcockinternational.com

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Northern Strike 21-2 Leverages Persistent System’s Wave Relay Mobile Ad Hoc Network (MANET)

Wednesday, September 15th, 2021

Joint readiness exercise utilized MANET to connect distributed units in simulated fight against near-peer power.

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Persistent Systems, LLC (“Persistent”), an industry leader in mobile ad hoc networking (MANET) technology, announced today that it successfully supported Northern Strike 21-2, the U.S. National Guard’s largest joint service readiness exercise.

During the exercise, which was hosted at Michigan’s sprawling National All-Domain Warfighting Center (NADWC) earlier this month, Persistent’s Wave Relay® MANET solutions enabled multi-service reserve, Guard, and active-duty U.S. military participants to practice fighting a near-peer adversary in a distributed, small-unit fashion.

“Our technology facilitated the fusion of existing systems and datalinks—such as MQ-9 video, Link-16, P25 digital radio communications equipment, and land mobile radio—into one rapidly deployable all-domain network,” said Adrien Robenhymer, Persistent’s VP for Business Development, for the U.S. Air Force, Intelligence Community and the Department of Energy.

The NADWC network allowed, for example, small-unit teams in austere threat environments to communicate with A-10 aircraft pilots to coordinate close air support missions. Likewise, it enabled Air Force All-Domain Combat Teams landing by C-130 to deliver high bandwidth updates back to a headquarters unit thousands of miles away.

“We’re not in the business of developing technology, but we have this opportunity to collaborate, test and collect data at the National All Domain Warfighting Center. Our training audiences come to NS for their own purposes, and so do these industry partners,” said Brig. Gen. Bryan Teff, assistant adjutant general for air, Michigan Air National Guard. “Whether it’s early development, late maturation, getting warfighter feedback on their capability, or perhaps they’re already being used by the DoD and want to better understand the end user experience, we want all this technology, integrating with the warfighter at NS to improve readiness for the future operating environment.”

Robenhymer said Persistent’s support of Northern Strike 21-2 was a scaled-up version of the roles the company played in other recent demonstrations. For example, in May, Persistent showed how, in the wake of a devastating hurricane, its MANET solutions could help the South Carolina Air National Guard reestablish internet, radio, video, and chat for response units.

Likewise, in March, Persistent supported the U.S. Air Force’s Agile Combat Employment (ACE) concept, which aims to counter the near-peer threat to large air bases by having U.S. forces operate from smaller, rapidly deployable, temporary airstrips manned by skeleton crews.

“We are constantly looking at ways to demonstrate the power and versatility of MANET, how it connects people and improve their situational awareness when normal communication channels fail,” he said.

www.persistentsystems.com

Posted in Comms, Press Release | Comments Off on Northern Strike 21-2 Leverages Persistent System’s Wave Relay Mobile Ad Hoc Network (MANET)

Mystery Ranch – goTenna Pouch

Monday, September 13th, 2021

Offered in Coyote or MultiCam, Mystery Ranch’s pouch for the goTenna Pro and Pro X is PALS compatible.

www.mysteryranch.com/gotenna-pouch

Posted in Advertiser, Comms, Load Carrying | Comments Off on Mystery Ranch – goTenna Pouch

Galvion Releases a New Range of Data Compatible Accessories to Support their Active Systems Concept at DSEi

Friday, September 10th, 2021

Galvion, a world leader in the design and manufacture of military power management solutions, with operationally proven pedigree in NATO countries, has released three new key products as part of their integrated Active Systems capability that facilitates the harvesting, distribution and management of dismounted soldier power, data and software. The announcement coincides with the DSEi exhibition taking place in London, 14-17 September 2021. At the show, Galvion will also be exhibiting their range of next generation head systems and Li-ion platform power solutions on stand H1-424.

To be mission effective, the modern soldier is required to carry, operate and maintain a host of devices that all demand significant power and data capacity – for example radios, NVGs, GPS, smart phones, laptops, drones and other surveillance equipment. Galvion has released three new products that integrate with their existing soldier power systems, to better support the dismounted soldier in managing these increasing technology demands. These products are flexible, scalable and comply with US NettWarrior and NATO STANAG 4695 standards for backward compatibility, ease of integration with other product ranges and improved logistic sustainability on the battlefield.

The Power and Data Hub 4-Port (PDH-4) provides a multi-function power and data connection between the basic soldier-worn architecture, such as hand-held radios and smart devices, and a suitable power source. The PDH-4 enables the soldier to send and receive data through the connection with the soldier worn devices, increasing situational awareness through system integration. When combined with the PWS it maximises the distribution and use of harvested power sources and is ready for the soldier’s future data sharing demands and software updates.

The Personal Worn Power Scavenger (PWS) provides a highly adaptable interface to allow the soldier to harvest power from multiple sources such as solar panels, 12V systems, mains power or other squad or personal power sources such as SoloPackTM. The PWS can be used in isolation or combined with other products, such as the PDH-4, to increase utility and the number of devices that can be charged.

The third new product, the Radio Power Adapter (RPA), easily integrates with most common hand-held radios in use today. This adapter provides power to the main radio battery by connecting to a main soldier-worn power source and keeping it charged and ready for when the radio is disconnected from the soldier-worn architecture. The Radio Power Adapter supports the AN/PRC-148 MBITR, Falcon III AN/PRC-152A and the AN/PRC-161 Link-16. The RPA also reduces the number of radio batteries a user needs to carry and fits into their existing load carrying system.

Kristen Lomastro, President of Active Systems, said: “Galvion has been leading the way for soldier power management and distribution systems with their NervCentr® products and I am extremely pleased to announce the release of these three new products to augment our dismounted soldier capability. With their small form factor, these products easily integrate into existing soldier-worn equipment and are compatible with other soldier systems. They also provide the hardware infrastructure to support our mission-enabling software making them future-ready. Galvion always places the soldier first, and we pride ourselves on designing solutions that help to protect and support those who protect us.”

www.galvion.com

Posted in Comms, DSEi, Power, Press Release | Comments Off on Galvion Releases a New Range of Data Compatible Accessories to Support their Active Systems Concept at DSEi

WiGL Inc. and Cubic Cement Far-Field Wireless Network Collaboration

Tuesday, September 7th, 2021

HAMPTON, VIRGINIA, USA, September 7, 2021 — WiGL, Inc., a smart, touchless, wireless power company, today announced it is partnering with Cubic Defense Applications, Inc., under the Cubic Mission and Performance Solutions (CMPS) Business Unit of Cubic Corporation, a worldwide technology company in transportation and military technology, on a next-generation, ad-hoc IoT mesh network. The new network will be enabled by Energous’ WattUp active energy harvesting transmitter and receiver technology. Cubic, under contract from WiGL Inc. and acting as lead integrator, will bring together mature technology from Energous with mesh-networking enabling a seamless, unbounded, and convenient power capability that works like the data networks we have grown to rely on for daily life. “Utilizing award winning Commercial Off the Shelf solutions is a smart move because of the synergy between existing products and WiGL’s networking solutions”, said Cherif Chibane, WiGL CTO.

Since 2018, the Wireless Electrical Grid LAN company, WiGL Inc., has developed techniques for networking far-field wireless power charging and recharging. In its efforts to develop a mass market capability that makes wireless power transfer as easy to use as wireless data, WiGL creates islands of wireless power supporting unbounded networks of wireless power – thus tipping the balance of convenience for universal applications. WiGL’s patented technologies allow anyone to pick a wireless power network the same way they pick a Wi-Fi provider. WiGL “cuts the cords” and wirelessly powers devices on the move, in the home, in the office, and more.

With this collaboration, the LAN part of WIGL takes a giant leap forward. Robert Rickard, COO of WiGL Inc. commented, “Once people can actually experience a wireless far-field powered network and control the actions of it with their phone, the value proposition for this solution will be clear. Our singular mission is to make WiGL synonymous with convenient wireless power anywhere…”

Bringing these technologies together is Cubic, a technology-driven, market-leading provider of integrated solutions that increase situational understanding for transportation, Defense, C4ISR, and Training to decrease urban congestion and improve military effectiveness and operational readiness. A world leader in public transportation as well as military technologies, Cubic was the natural choice for WiGL to lead this integration effort. Dr. Ahmad Glover, CEO of WiGL commented, “Cubic was the very first company to endorse our solutions and helped us tremendously in our initial efforts – we wouldn’t be here as fast as we are without them. Their market potential in both the private industry and defense industries worldwide positions them as a key early market vendor for networked wireless power.” Michael Knowles, Senior Vice President of Cubic Corporation and President of Cubic Mission and Performance Solutions also commented, “Cubic has a long history of innovation and bringing leading capabilities to market. We are excited about the opportunity to team up with WiGL to address new power solutions that advantage our products and customers.”

Posted in Comms, Industry, Press Release | Comments Off on WiGL Inc. and Cubic Cement Far-Field Wireless Network Collaboration

Air Force Declares TACP Mobile Communications System ‘Combat Ready’

Wednesday, September 1st, 2021

HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. – The U.S. Air Force’s Air Combat Command recently declared the initial operational capability for the tactical air control party mobile communications system block 2 system ‘combat ready’ at the recommendation of the 605th Test and Evaluation Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Florida.

In the spring of 2020, the 605th TES TACP Element, in conjunction with the 14th Air Support Operations Squadron, Pope Army Airfield, North Carolina, conducted the operational utility evaluation, or OUE, of the MCS block 2 on M-1165 armored high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles.

As Air Combat Command’s independent, sole, command and control operational test unit, the 605th TES, tested the system under realistic conditions, using new and experienced Airmen, who will be operating and maintaining the system once fielded.

The OUE validated the operational effectiveness and suitability of MCS block 2, cybersecurity and resiliency, and its impact on TACP and air support operations center tactics, techniques, and procedures.

M1165 HMMWVs, better known as humvees, are integrated with multi-channel communications equipment through the MCS block 2 system which provides voice, data, and video capabilities to TACP Joint Terminal Attack Controllers while “on-the-move” and “at-the-halt”.

“This new system gives TACPs greater mission flexibility by incorporating additional data link, full motion video, and high frequency radio capabilities while out in the field,” said Master Sgt. Jesus Torres, 605th TES senior enlisted leader and TACP.

JTACS will use MCS Block 2 to perform their close air support and command and control missions.

To achieve IOC, the MCS Block 2 system demonstrated the necessary combat capability for voice and video communications and had sufficient required fielding and logistics support.

“Through early involvement and by building relationships across the acquisition process the 605th TES was instrumental in providing early user feedback,” said Torres. “During early DoD [Department of Defense] COVID Guidance, the 605th TES TACPs developed risk mitigation measures enabling regression testing to continue during the pandemic which allowed this vital capability be delivered to the warfighter five months ahead of schedule.”

“As our service takes positive steps to mature Agile Combat Employment concepts, through years of being disaggregated and embracing Mission Command, the TACP community is best positioned to inform the larger enterprise on what technology could be beneficial, said Col. Adam Shelton, 505th Test and Training Group commander. “This IOC declaration will assist in furthering our integration efforts with joint partners in venues such as the Army’s Project Convergence or in tier 1 exercises such as Northern Edge.”

As of August 2021, the 605th TES continues to accelerate change by conducting operational testing on the MCS Block 3, installed on the U.S. Army’s next-generation Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle as a replacement for the M113 Armored Personnel Carrier family of vehicles.

505th Command and Control Wing (ACC) Public Affairs

Posted in AFSW, Air Force, Comms, Guest Post | Comments Off on Air Force Declares TACP Mobile Communications System ‘Combat Ready’

ACR Bivy Stick

Monday, August 30th, 2021

The ACR Bivy Stick connects your cell phone to satellites for off grid communications.

Weighing in at 100 grams, it’s about half the size and weight of a cell phone?. Subscription plan required. You’ll have to set it up before you need it.?. You’ll get two-way text? and location sharing from your phone. Plus, there’s a check-in button on the Stick which sends unlimited free preset messages and your location without using your phone. There’s also an SOS button on the device with emergency service provided by Global Rescue.

www.bivy.com/stick

Posted in Comms | 4 Comments »