Nichols Martin
Northrop Grumman has tested an in-flight connectivity designed to enable long range command and control for aircraft in highly contested environments.
The demonstration exhibited how an advanced line-of-sight data link can support multi-domain battle management by connecting aircraft through an open-architecture network, Northrop said Wednesday.
The company integrated a new mission-specific military transceiver, open architecture networking and multi-level security data switches to facilitate decision making for threat engagements.
After establishing a link with the Firebird unmanned aerial vehicle, the Scaled Composites Proteus test aircraft simulated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations and connected with a cloud-based 5G network.
Tom Pieronek, chief technology officer and vice president for research and technology at Northrop Grumman, said the company’s technologies are designed to deliver secure, multi-domain communications in line with the Department of Defense’s Joint All-Domain Command and Control strategy.
JADC2 aims to establish an integrated network of sensors that provide situational awareness across all battlefield domains.
