Next-Stage C4ISR Bandwidth: The US Military’s AEHF Program (updated)
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Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellites will support twice as many tactical networks, while providing 10-12 times the capacity and 6 times higher data rate transfer than that of the current Milstar II satellites. They will form the secure backbone of the Pentagon’s intermediate term Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM) architecture, until the larger capacity Transformational Communications Satellite System or its equivalent enters service. Its companion Family of Advanced Beyond-line-of-sight Terminals (FAB-T) program, meanwhile, will give the US military modern capabilities and more flexibility on the receiving end.
Like a number of current US satellite development programs, the AEHF program has been cited for cost overruns and schedule slips, in part as a result of failures by the US National Security Agency to furnish key cryptography requirements and specifications in the most timely manner.
In this focus article, DID offers an updated timeline covering over $5 billion worth of AEHF-related contracts, as well as contracts for its FAB-T transmit/receive terminals. Reading it clearly shows many of the issues the program has faced and their financial impacts, as well as some of the new system’s capabilities. The latest news involves another FAB-T change…
- The AEHF Program (i.e. “Continue reading…”)
- FAB-T Terminals and Ground Control
- FAB-T: Contracts [updated]
- The AEHF Satellites
- The AEHF Satellites: Contracts & Key Events
- Additional Readings
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