Page 20 - Australian Defence Magazine April 2023

20 DEFENCE BUSINESS AVALON 2023
APRIL 2023 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
HONEYWELL, INMARSAT TEAM FOR FUTURE RAAF SATCOM REQUIREMENT
Honeywell and Inmarsat have joined forces to propose the former’s JetWave MCX Ka-Band Satellite Communications (SATCOM) system for the RAAF’s 24 new C-130J-30 Her- cules aircraft being acquired under Air 7404 Phase 1, as well as applications on a range of other aircraft, such as KC-30A and Wedgetail.
Honeywell’s Technical Sales Director for Military SAT- COM Solutions Paul Page revealed the discussions between the two companies and the RAAF during a demonstration flight aboard Honeywell’s Boeing 757 flying test bed from Avalon on 28 February. The 757 visited Avalon as the last stop of a regional tour to demonstrate its military and gov- ernment SATCOM connectivity solutions. Prior to arriving in Australia, demonstrations had been performed in Japan, Korea, the Philippines and Singapore and two days were set aside at Avalon for customer demonstrations with Defence.
Page said the discussions with Defence included a range of connectivity solutions offered by Honeywell utilising In- marsat’s satellite network, as demonstrated during the flight.
During the media demonstration flight Honeywell and Inmarsat demonstrated constant connectivity regardless of the phase of flight, including a Maximum Information Rate (download) of up to 40 megabits per second and a 2.5 megabit per second Committed Information Rate (uplink).
The two companies have previously been successful with the integration of Honeywell’s earlier JetWave One Ka- Band system on some of the RAAF’s current C-130J-30 Hercules fleet, which replaced an earlier L-Band system, and this has already proven its worth in recent flood relief and natural disaster operations around the Pacific.
“Comms is very cheap: a C-130J Hercules is a $100 mil- lion aircraft, so you derive huge benefit from giving it con- nectivity if you can do three jobs with the one aircraft.”
SA START-UP AIMS TO REVOLUTIONISE
SPACE PROPULSION
Neumann Space, an Adelaide-based start-up, is aiming to revolutionise space propulsion systems using solid metal.
The company’s propulsion system – a solar-electric ion thruster – turns any solid conductive metal or alloy into a plasma using its patented Centre-Triggered Pulsed Cathot- ic Arc Thruster, propelling small satellites in space.
The cathotic arc discharge – described by CEO Herve Astier as a “camera flash married to an arc welder” – is powered by a capacitor bank. It sends short, strong cur- rent pulses to erode the metal and create extreme exhaust velocities to move spacecraft.
Astier told ADM that the company sees demand increasing as the number of satellites in low-Earth orbit (LEO) grows, particularly given new requirements from the US Federal Communications Commission requiring LEO satellites to self-dispose within five years of the end of their service life.
The new FCC regulation – aimed at reducing space junk – means new satellites will need to carry enough fuel on- board to lower themselves back into the atmosphere at the end of their mission. Where conventional pressurised fuels add weight and complexity, Neumann Space says its system offers vastly improved stability and fuel density.
Another application, Astier says, is the growing need for military satellites to become more mobile in space to avoid space debris, to hide from hostile satellites, or potentially to conduct more offensive operations. A solid metal propellant with great fuel density and mileage would allow military
“The RAAF is one of the early adopters, they've taken the commercial Jetwave One solu- tion and they’re receiving fantastic results,” Page told ADM. “They are using it to essentially increase the flexibility of the mission in their C-130s. Recently in Tonga a C-130 went out on a transport mission but they were re-tasked halfway through to go and take real time live video (using the Litening AT pod under the wing). Be- cause they had a camera onboard, a crew station and the SATCOM they were able to feed real time, high-definition video to emergency relief services and commanders on the ground. The RAAF is really well advanced in their commu-
nications capability.”
The JetWave MCX system is designed to operate in the
MilGov spectrum of the Ka-Band (29 – 31 GHz transmit, and 19.2 – 21.2 GHz receive), but also retains the civil Ka- Band capabilities of the JetWave One system.
“One of the big things that's really changing how govern- ments see SATCOM is being able to use one aircraft to do multiple jobs. The C-130 used to just be a battlefield air- lifter, a transport plane, but they are now being used more for enroute ISR. For a government that means they can buy one aircraft to do three jobs,” explained Todd McDonell, President of Global Development at Inmarsat.
“THE RAAF IS REALLY WELL ADVANCED IN THEIR COMMUNICATIONS CAPABILITY”