Armada’s monthly round-up of all the latest electronic warfare news in the product, programme and operational domains.
ATDI secures COMCYBER acquisition
ATDI’s ICS Monitoring spectrum monitoring and analysis system was deployed during the recent multinational Orion-26 military exercise which commenced in France in late February. Orion-26 will run for three months. According to a company press release, the ICS Monitoring system, which has been deployed to support the Ukrainian military in that country’s ongoing war, “enabled continuous spectrum surveillance, detected signals of interest and provided commanders with real-time spectrum data”. Signals intelligence provided by the system “supported rapid decision-making, protected operational integrity, and ensured a resilient communications environment in a contested, EW-heavy battlespace”. The exercise saw the ICS Monitoring capability connected to direction finders and broadband receivers. ATDI told Armada, via a written statement, that the system processed signals detected across a waveband of 30 megahertz to eight gigahertz. During the exercise, the ICS Monitoring capabilities were demonstrated to France’s joint COMCYBER cyber command which is responsible for cyber defence across the French military. The company continued that “ATDI was the only partner invited to showcase a spectrum monitoring capability during this demonstration”. COMCYBER has since acquired the company’s offerings, and ATDI is “proud that this technology has been selected and are honoured to support the command with tools designed to enhance spectrum monitoring and electromagnetic situational awareness”.
SNC to work on National Reconnaissance Office study
Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) announced in early March that the company had been selected for the United States’ National Reconnaissance Office’s (NRO) Commercial Radio Frequencies study. A press release revealing the news said the company will provide its Vindlér radio frequency sensing low earth orbit satellite constellation to support this work. These satellites will “detect and produce valuable signal and geolocation products that support US intelligence and defence communities” the press release continued. SNC told Armada in a written statement that the Vindlér constellation detects emissions across a waveband of 30 megahertz to 18 gigahertz. Additional signals collection will be performed by SNC’s forthcoming Vindlér-2.0 constellation which comprises three Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA) satellites. These satellites are due to reach the cosmos by the middle of this year. ESPA satellites are typically launched using unoccupied space on large rockets. Although the company’s work with the National Reconnaissance Office on this study should last 30 months, SNC “aims to build a long-term partnership with the NRO”, the statement concluded.
Doodle Labs launches Sense EW
Doodle Labs revealed the launch of its Sense EW product in a press release published in mid-March. Sense EW is a capability designed to improve the resilience of Uninhabited Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in heavily electromagnetically contested environments. The company articulated in the press release that Sense EW “delivers integrated software and hardware capabilities that strengthen communications links”. The Sense EW architecture includes radios “with adaptive link intelligence” which adjust routing priorities and network behaviour according to prevailing local electromagnetic conditions. The architecture works to reduce the likelihood that the radio communications a UAV relies on are as discreet as possible. When any jamming does occur, the architecture will adjust radio communications accordingly to ensure the link between the aircraft and pilot is maintained. Amol Parikh, Doodle Labs’ co-chief executive officer told Armada that Sense EW is primarily designed for “small, lightweight (UAV) platforms used for ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance), tactical reconnaissance, loitering munitions and distributed operations”. The architecture “has completed development for its current release and is ready for operational use” Mr. Parikh continued. Moreover, Sense EW “is not a standalone, net-new system, but an evolution of Doodle Labs’ existing, fielded radio platform, which has been deployed in real-world contested environments for several years”.
by Dr. Thomas Withington
