Honeywell showcases latest military satcom solution at Northern Edge 2023

Honeywell has successfully demonstrated how JetWave MCX improves connectivity and mission effectiveness for the modern warfighter when coupled with anti-jamming technology. The demonstration took place via flights on Honeywell’s Boeing 757 testbed in a remote area of Alaska during Northern Edge 2023, where more than 150 military aircraft gathered in May for one of the U.S. military’s largest training exercises. During Northern Edge, the U.S. Air Force and Space Force tested their new Protected Tactical Waveform (PTW) technology with modems that L3Harris developed for both airborne and ground applications. The demonstration flights showed how L3Harris’s PTW modem, called Half ATR Airborne Modem – Resilient (HAAM-R), worked with Honeywell’s JetWave MCX satellite communications (SATCOM) terminal to provide warfighters with secure wideband anti-jam capabilities. During Northern Edge, tactical communications were enabled in denied, degraded and contested environments. “We live in an era where having seamless and uninterrupted connectivity is an absolute necessity. Honeywell’s JetWave MCX and L3Harris’ HAAM-R both embody the combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control concept by demonstrating how a military aircraft can access the high-grade SATCOM network during multinational and multi-domain operations,” said Matt Milas, president, Defense and Space, Honeywell Aerospace. “The results of losing SATCOM access during a military mission could be disastrous. To maintain the safety and security of any mission, it is extremely important the SATCOM solution can quickly move to an alternate network when facing interruptions, so that the aircraft remains connected to the command base. This is the value Honeywell’s JetWave MCX system provides.” JetWave MCX meets the needs of military operators for secure, high-speed and resilient beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) communications. JetWave MCX is network-agnostic and can operate equally well on military or commercial Ka-band SATCOM networks such as Inmarsat and SES. JetWave MCX is also certified to operate on the Wideband Global Satcom network. “Boeing Commercial Satellite Services provided the high-capacity bandwidth, which allowed the government to test new technologies for protected tactical communications in an operational environment.,” said Jeof McAllister, vice president, Boeing Commercial Satellite Services. “The successful demonstration validated that the government can use commercial resources to provide greater resiliency within challenging mission parameters.” “Private companies seldom take part in a military exercise like Northern Edge,” said Tom Konicki, director, Business Development, Honeywell Aerospace. “The U.S. military wanted to test the capabilities of Honeywell’s JetWave MCX SATCOM system together with anti-jam technology in a warlike training environment. The JetWave MCX hardware and software enables military commanders to connect and stay connected to battlefield assets through every phase of operations. Northern Edge flights demonstrated to the warfighters and Pentagon officials how JetWave MCX enables success in future near-peer conflicts.” “During the Northern Edge exercise, the importance of a secure and reliable ground SATCOM solution was clearly demonstrated,” said Kevin McMahon, senior director, Global Tracker Sales, Cobham SATCOM. “Cobham SATCOM is a leader in tracking antenna systems for mission- and business-critical satellite communication, and together with Honeywell’s solution we clearly demonstrated how the advanced system enabled robust anti-jam capabilities through encrypted and frequency-hopping communications.” More than 3,000 U.S. service members took part in Northern Edge 2023. They were joined by service members from the United Kingdom and Australia for the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command exercise, which officially began on 8 May. Northern Edge provides an opportunity for joint, multinational and multi-domain operations that provide realistic warfighter training and improve joint operability. For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Kym Bergmann at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Director of Sales Graham Joss at [email protected]