Selex Elsag to provide wide band datalink system for NATO AGS

Selex Elsag will provide its Wide Band Data Link Line-of-Sight (WBDLLOS) subsystem for the NATO Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) programme.

Elsag is subcontracted under Selex Galileo, which acts as the major subcontractor to Northrop Grumman, and adds its ‘strong background and expertise’ in the design and production of ‘state-of-the-art’ communication systems and equipment, a statement from the company said on 17 July.

The NATO AGS programme is the new major NATO-owned and operated asset for ISR, providing a step forward in ensuring alliance-wide security.

The system consists of an air segment based on the Global Hawk HALE UAS, and a ground segment that provides mission control, data exploitation as well as dissemination and storage, serving as the interface between the NATO AGS capability and other NATO-wide C2ISR capabilities. The WBDL-LOS will provide broadband, bidirectional data transfer among these components.

‘In multinational, complex wide-area surveillance systems like NATO AGS, interoperability and connectivity are imperative requirements,’ Selex said in the statement. ‘Selex Elsag’s WBDL-LOS solution is fully compliant with the recently promulgated STANAG 7085 Edition 3 and will include specific features fulfilling NATO AGS operational requirements.’

‘Selex ELSAG plays a leading role in the worldwide market of Communication, Navigation and Identification (CNI) integrated avionic systems, and the WBDL-LOS is one of the key products to maintain and improve this status,’ Paolo Piccini, Selex Elsag Chief Operating Officer said in the statement. ‘We are extremely proud to be part of the NATO AGS programme and are absolutely committed to contribute to its success.’

The AGS main operating base is located at Sigonella, Italy.