Flight testing validates waveform capability
The Air Force is moving forward to demonstrate the capabilities of the protected tactical waveform through recent flight tests.
The PTW is a government-owned waveform that provides resilient, anti-jam satellite communications. Although the Air Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center, SMC, leads the PTW effort, Hanscom, in collaboration with MIT Lincoln Laboratory and the MITRE Corp., is leading the Air Force ground and airborne terminal work.
On Oct. 5, researchers from MIT Lincoln Laboratory used their Boeing 707 test aircraft, the Paul Revere, to demonstrate the waveform performs as planned in flight. During a 2.5-hour flight using a commercial satellite and a reference implementation of the waveform, various aspects of the waveform were tested. The team also gathered additional data to ensure the waveform could operate under more realistic flight conditions.