As such,
'Military assets distributed across the modern battlespace are moving faster and becoming more interconnected and interdependent as technology evolves,' said
To address this, the
Under AGNR, AN/PRC-158-equipped aircraft will be able to leverage all waveforms satisfying the Army's Handheld, Manpack & Small Form Factor (HMS) requirements, further increasing the service's air-to-ground interoperability, while simultaneously integrating voice and data communications, network routing and gateway functions. The AN/PRC-158's software-defined flexible architecture and interoperability also lends to reduced integration costs for sister services for future Modification Work Order integration activities.
Deliveries of the AN/PRC-158 are part of the service's HMS program, according to Minaschek.
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The Army's concerted effort to provide commonality between ground and aviation forces stemmed from a 2019 intraservice memo by then-Army acquisition executive
The same year, speaking more broadly about interoperability requirements in an open missive entitled 'Modernization through unity of effort,' Jette stated: 'Getting the right equipment and systems to Soldiers at the right time is not only essential to supporting our force today, but will also be essential in supporting the future force. ... To effectively modernize the Army over the next decade and a half, the enterprise needs to develop future concepts that drive our materiel requirements, with a supporting architecture that ensures interoperability.'
Since that time, according to Minaschek, the
Falcon IV AN/PRC-158 Multi-channel Manpack
For the Chinook fleet specifically, the AN/PRC-158 will replace the legacy L3Harris AN/ARC-201D Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System (SINCGARS). Replacing the 20-plus-year-old radio will add an extra channel to the CH-47's inventory, expanding PACE (Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency) planning as well as flexibility for future software upgrades as requirements emerge, according to Minaschek.
'We're providing HMS capabilities that the ground forces have in the aviation platform with a software-defined radio,' he said. 'The PRC-158 continues to deliver the performance and air-to-ground interoperability for the Army to operate and win in large-scale combat operations and multi-domain environments. It also sets the stage for Modular Open Systems Approaches interoperability with multiple interfaces.'
The Sky's the Limit
The Army has selected three of six platform-specific AGNR solutions thus far in the program. The service will also choose the radio platforms for the MQ-1C
The L3Harris AIB mounts have been purpose-built, incorporating inputs from the Army, to meet Size, Weight and Power requirements for each of these airframes; they support both AN/PRC-158 and AN/PRC-167 platform integration, Minaschek added.
'The L3Harris AN/PRC-158 will deliver interoperable, resilient comms between all platforms equipped with it,' Minaschek said. 'Ground and air forces leveraging the manpack radio and
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