L16 Satellite Connectivity

[ORAC]

Interesting, but leaves me with several questions.

The point about not being able to test over the USA because of FAA requirements raises the same issue for Europe and the issue of NAVAID interference, nets not being able to overlap etc, so how will this work in peacetime conditions? (I will make a wild guess and presume Australia was the 5 Eyes participant)

Secondly the is the distances involved. Notwithstanding JREAP, this seems to be describing using nets, within which packets are lifted to time-out for the reasons above, does this mean a further change to the protocol?

Third is spectrum, is this using frequency hopping, if so, what range and has this been agreed internationally? Systems such as Starlink are using laser interlinks both because of this issue , security and bandwidth.

https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2023/11/28/space-development-agency-demonstrates-link-16-satellite-connectivity/

Space Development Agency demonstrates Link 16 satellite connectivity

WASHINGTON — The Space Development Agency demonstrated the ability to connect its satellites to radios on the ground through… Link 16, showing the potential for in-orbit sensors to network with military systems operating in multiple domains.

The agency conducted demonstrations from Nov. 21 to 27, transmitting signals from its satellites in Low Earth orbit — about 1,200 miles above Earth — to a test site on the ground, SDA said in a Nov. 28 statement.

According to SDA Director Derek Tournear, the demonstrations are a significant milestone for the agency, which is developing a space-based Transport Layer made up of small satellites and sensors designed to provide global connectivity for military users (https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2022/12/05/how-the-space-development-agency-could-have-died-any-number-of-ways/).…

During the demonstration, SDA used three satellites from its Transport Layer, all built by Denver-based York Space Systems (https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2023/10/20/space-development-agency-orders-62-satellites-from-york-space-systems/). The Air Force’s 46th Test Squadron at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., supported the mission from the ground.

The satellites used on-board radios to send signals to a test site located “within the territory of a Five Eyes nation,” SDA said, declining to disclose which country it partnered with for the effort. Besides the U.S., other members of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance include Australia, the U.K., Canada and New Zealand.

SDA’s goal had been to conduct the demonstration over U.S. air space. However, the Federal Aviation Administration requires certification to use Link 16 to broadcast signals from space through the U.S. National Airspace System, and has not yet granted approval for SDA’s systems. So, the agency opted to perform the test over international waters.…

[typerated]

The satellites used on-board radios to send signals to a test site located “within the territory of a Five Eyes nation,” SDA said, declining to disclose which country it partnered with for the effort. Besides the U.S., other members of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance include Australia, the U.K., Canada and New Zealand.

…

I was thinking it's unlikely to be NZ - but the new RNZAF P-8s have link 16.

[tucumseh]

The point about not being able to test over the USA because of FAA requirements raises the same issue for Europe and the issue of NAVAID interference,


I remember some choice language over JTIDS/NavAid interference 25 years ago. I'd wager the engineer from GEC-Marconi who cracked it remembers the admin **** who told him he was talking rubbish and cancelled the contract. And then MoD got a complaint from the CAA when the trials aircraft flew past Heathrow.

[rattman]

I was thinking it's unlikely to be NZ - but the new RNZAF P-8s have link 16.



it was sat to ground station, not aircraft.

It was australia. Low earth orbit sats. You can start transmitting over australian land turn it off before signal hits another country or international waters so cant be captured by foreign powers

[ORAC]

https://breakingdefense.com/2023/11/sda-demos-first-ever-space-to-ground-link-16-connection/

….While Link 16 connectivity is line-of-sight, Tournear explained that the next iteration of Transport Layer satellites, called Tranche 1, will include 126 satellites and thus ensure that at least two satellites will be over the horizon 90 percent of the time. Furthermore, he said, most of the antennas used by military Link 16 radios are nearly omnidirectional, so they don’t have to be directly pointed at a signal source to connect.

He noted that the “stressing case” for the satellite’s Link 16 terminals will be connecting to a handheld AN/PRC-161 Link16 Battlefield Awareness and Targeting System – Dismounted (BATS-D) radio, because of all the radios used by military forces, it has the “lowest gain antenna.”

The AN/PRC-161 was designed to provide machine-to-machine linkages between handheld radios being used by troops on the ground and those on aircraft providing close air support. It is expected to be used by US and Five Eyes forces alike. The Air Force in 2019 (https://www.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract/Article/2041268/) granted a contract worth up to $93 million to Viasat for production of radios for special operations and expeditionary forces, with work set to be completed by the end of the year.