SatCom For Net-Centric Warfare January/February 2011 MilsatMagazine Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance Image: AEHF courtesy of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman Ka-band Mounted Battle Command On-The-Move Photo courtesy of EM Solutions milsatmagazine pAYLOAD — Jan/feb 2011 Analysis: Military Communications — ..........04 About the cover image A Key Target For Satellite Services The U.S. Air Force’s Advanced Extremely High by Dustin Kaiser, Futron Frequency (AEHF) system is the nation’s nexgen INTEL: GEOINT + Satellite Data: ...................12 military strategic and tactical relay system, which Timely + Actionable will deliver survivable, protected communications by Marv Gordner, MorganFranklin to U.S. forces and selected allies worldwide. When fully operational, the system will consist of four Command Center: Joseph W. Trench............18 Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company crosslinked satellites, a ground mission control the editors center, and user terminals. The AEHF system provides joint, interoperable, assured connectivity Focus: A Software-Based Approach To ........28 for warfighters in operations in all levels of Airborne COTM Networking by Peter Carides, Tachyon Networks conflict — a capability not available through other planned military communication networks. Focus: Field Trials Of Mounted Battle ..........38 AEHF provides greater capacity and more Command Ka-Band SATCOM “On-The-Move” flexible coverage than its predecessor, Milstar, by Peter Woodhead, EM Solutions while assuring operational continuity through Chronicles: The Atlas Heritage ....................52 compatibility with the Milstar constellation. by Jos Heyman, Tiros Space Information Under contract to Lockheed Martin, the AEHF prime Focus: Long Distance Force Protection ........66 contractor and overall space system manager, by Rodger Von Kries, Tachyon Networks Northrop Grumman, builds and integrates the AEHF payload that consists of processors, antennas, radio frequency subsystems and crosslinks. The Command Center: Philip Harlow ..................72 XTAR, LLC payload delivers the new XDR (Extreme Data Rate) the editors communications services, providing data rates up to 8.192 Mbps per user, Milstar LDR (Low Data Dispatches .................................................80 Rate) services (75-2,400 bits per second), and the editors Milstar MDR (Medium Data Rate) services (4.8 Kbps-1.544 Mbps). AEHF delivers the flexible OPS: Adapting & Understanding ..................90 connectivity-on-demand needed to achieve 21st The Future Of War century objectives — swift, decisive outcomes by Col. Bruce Smith based on information dominance. On-orbit processing provides the flexibility needed to rapidly establish and reconfigure networks to meet dynamic command and control requirements. Electronically steerable antenna beams and flexible channel-to-beam mapping allow the delivery of capacity when it’s needed, where it’s needed. EHF frequencies, onboard digital processing, and highly directional antennas reduce the probability of jamming and intercept, assuring secure, reliable communications. Satellite crosslinks enable flexible global communications without the need for fixed site ground gateways. ANALYSIS Military Communications A Key Target For Satellite Services author: Dustin Kaiser, Senior Space Analyst, Futron Key Military Marketing Trends deployments, primarily by U.S. The strongest trends impacting defense forces, as well as use of military demand for commercial satellites to support Intelligence, satellite capacity over the next Surveillance and Reconnaissance decade include growing use of (ISR) activities, in particular those satellite capacity to support new carried out using a variety of types of warfighting, which are Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or increasingly dependent on broadband Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPAs). communications. Key among these are the expanded global troop 4 MILSATMAGAZINE — JANuAry/FEbruAry 2011 While commercial satellites have Futron’s forecast includes a full increasingly been used to meet these alternate view representing conversion requirements, there is still a bias in of demand into Mbps, with military ANALYSIS the military for specialized, proprietary demand in 2009 estimated at almost 16 capabilities, using military satellites. Gbps, growing to over 28Gbps in 2019. Given the range of uncertainty While the United States military and regarding development and deployment security forces represent the largest of new technologies, new regulations, buyer, demand from international security and new market solutions, Futron’s forces is anticipated to grow in aggregate forecasting includes projection of a terms as well as an overall percentage of series of possible future states, not demand. Fast followers, such as NATO just a single demand scenario, with allies and Israel, will continue to require the key variables summarized below. increased supply of commercial capacity. Other governments in the Middle East, Japan, Australia, and India will also likely require international commercial capacity. The geographic Futron’s assessment of demand demand requirements will include for commercial military satellite in-theater operations as military communications suggests that the communications are pushed lower into market is significantly larger than the warfighter ranks, as well as “home generally perceived, due to sizable country” demand tied to training, demand for classified operations backhaul, and redistribution of data. and agencies, as well as a rapidly Assumptions/Methodology increasing international customer base. While Futron’s forecast covers global Futron estimates the 2009 market military demand for commercial size for the military segment at 390 satellite communications capacity, TPEs for C-, Ku-, and Ka-bands, with it is estimated that U.S. military a baseline forecast for the addition of demand accounts for approximately almost 300 units through 2019, or 5.6 90 percent of global military demand percent annual growth over ten years. for commercial satellite services. MILSATMAGAZINE — JANuAry/FEbruAry 2011 5 The rate of growth in demand assessed across all frequency bands. for non-U.S. defense agencies is The results of this analysis are shown ANALYSIS expected to grow at a rate similar in the regional break-out below. to that of the U.S. military. While this year’s military forecast does The 2010 Futron ten year forecast not model demand for secure military of military demand for commercial communications such as those provided satellite communications is developed by the Paradigm/Skynet system, the based on a bottom up terminal forecast United States Advanced Extremely model. Within the model, demand High Frequency (AEHF) spacecraft, is analyzed separately amongst or military demand for commercial aerial, maritime, land mobile, and narrowband satellite communications, land fixed terminal programs. Futron has developed extensive data on this market, and it will be included Terminal demand is analyzed for in future forecasts. This forecast does, growth in total number of terminals, however, include X-Band capacity terminal throughput, terminal provided on a commercial basis, in spectrum usage, and overall terminal addition to C-, Ku-, and Ka-band. utilization levels within ten regions and the oceans. Demand is then Military Services Capacity: Baseline Demand Forecast by region 6 MILSATMAGAZINE — JANuAry/FEbruAry 2011 Drivers/Trends soldiers within the armed forces during repeated overseas deployments. Morale —U.S. + Allied Deployments support will likely become increasingly ANALYSIS important as the hyper connected The U.S. DoD’s FY 2011 budget outlines millennial generation constitutes an key structural changes that will increase increasingly larger percentage of demand for satellite communications the military. To help enable access through increases in targeted personnel to commercial bandwidth, the U.S. (e.g., Special Forces) as well the military is pushing for new military conversion of Army Multi-functional and Functional Support (MFF) brigades to a modular design with satellite capability driven down through the brigade to the company level. These are examples of strategic decisions driving military demand throughout the globe. In addition to satellite communications providing the medium for tactical and strategic force projection, satellite communications supports troop morale. Access to the Internet and the ability to stay in touch with friends and family is a capability that helps retain professional MILSATMAGAZINE — JANuAry/FEbruAry 2011 7 broadband terminals to be compatible systems are under development in the with commercial satellites. majority of militaries around the globe. ANALYSIS Naval forces are deployed for long In this connection, the U.S. military periods of time. The U.S. Navy in has indicated its intention to migrate particular projects military force from the current Ku-band to the use through the deployment of ships in of Ka-band to support its fleet of locations around the globe. These Global Hawk vehicles, and plans to ships currently have an average of deploy an upgraded Predator drone, 12 Mbps. U.S. Naval planners plan to designated the Gray Eagle, with increase through put to ship to 20-100 advanced communications capabilities Mbps during the forecast period. that will require up to 50 Mbps satellite communications throughput. —ISR Platforms —Wideband Global SATCOM Deployment Strong growth in UAV/RPA deployments, with associated growth The WGS constellation