Rockwell Collins provides TTNT for X-47B deck handling trials

Rockwell Collins has supplied its Tactical Targeting Network Technology (TTNT) for use in a series of deck handling trials of the X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) aboard the aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman. The trials were conducted by Northrop Grumman and the US Navy to demonstrate the ability to manoeuvre the X-47B on deck using a wireless handheld controller. 

The tests are the latest in a series of activities leading up to the first carrier landings of the tailless, strike-fighter-sized X-47B, which are planned for mid-2013.

TTNT provides high data rate, long-range communication links for airborne platforms. As a complement to existing tactical data link networks, TTNT adds significant airborne network capacity while providing rapid, low latency message delivery. The minimal network planning requirements of TTNT will enable participants to enter and exit the network without extensive preplanning.

Bob Haag, vice president and general manager of Communication and Navigation Products for Rockwell Collins, said: ‘TTNT is part of the overall command and control architecture for the X-47B, and it plays an essential role in helping the aircraft perform vital functions. We’re pleased that our technology is helping Northrop Grumman and the navy successfully prepare for the introduction of unmanned aircraft to carrier operations.’

TTNT has been used in demonstrations of aircraft platforms, including the F-16, F-22, F-15, F/A-18, B-2, B-52, Airborne Warning and Control System, Battlefield Airborne Communications Node and E-2C Hawkeye.