MUOS connects Manpack radios 2,000 miles apart

A General Dynamic C4 Systems demonstration has shown that two AN/PRC-155 two-channel Manpack radios located 2,000 miles apart were able to successfully connect via Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) satellites.

The 2,000-mile transmission of the PRC-155 Manpack radio channels bridged the Line of Sight Rifleman Radio and Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System (SINCGARS) radio communications to orbiting MUOS satellites.

The demonstration saw radio operators equipped with PRC-154A Rifleman radios in Taunton, Massachusetts, form a local network using the Soldier Radio Waveform (SRW). A two-channel PRC-155 Manpack radio, which was located nearby, was a member of this network.  The PRC-155 Manpack radio seamlessly bridged the SRW communications on one channel to the MUOS frequency needed to connect with the on-orbit MUOS satellites, using the second PRC-155 Manpack radio channel.

The voice and data communications hopped from the Manpack radio on the ground in Taunton to satellite and back to the ground in Phoenix, Arizona, connecting to a second PRC-155 two-channel Manpack radio. 

The second PRC-155 Manpack radio then seamlessly bridged the MUOS communications on one channel to the SINCGARS frequency needed to connect with the second dismounted talk group of users communicating using SINGCARS radios, creating a real-time satellite communications ‘radio check’ voice conversation that was loud and clear among the radio operators in both Taunton and Phoenix.

Chris Marzilli, president, General Dynamics C4 Systems, said: With the success of this demonstration, General Dynamics successfully demonstrated the promise of the MUOS satellite communications system using PRC-155 Manpack radios. The demonstration also successfully showed how dismounted Soldiers, separated by thousands of miles, can use the PRC-154A Rifleman handheld radios and connect through PRC-155 Manpack radios at the platoon level and below. The soldiers can talk to another and share data with the ease of civilians who enjoy using their cell phones to call friends and family anywhere in the world.’

MUOS is a narrowband tactical satellite communications system designed to significantly improve ground-to-satellite-to-ground communications for all US military and government personnel located anywhere on earth. Using a ten-digit phone number similar in function to those used by civilians with smartphones, the MUOS satellite communications network will provide a 16-fold increase in transmission throughput over the current Ultra High Frequency (UHF) satellite system.