Harris has secured a contract to supply its Falcon III radio communication systems, which enable enhanced command and control and real-time situational awareness, to an undisclosed international customer.
Under the terms of the $82m contract, the company will provide Falcon III RF-7800H wideband high-frequency (HF) and RF-7800V very-high-frequency (VHF) radios in handheld, man-portable, vehicular and tactical-base station configurations to the nation’s armed forces.
Designed to provide wideband tactical networking to the edge of the battlefield, as well as interoperable line-of-sight and beyond-line-of-sight voice and data communications, the systems are expected to enable forces to securely and immediately communicate with their command structure, which could mean more informed decisions.
Harris RF Communications International business president Brendan O’Connell said the company’s secure tactical communication products and system solutions give armed forces the ability to quickly deploy and manage missions in real time.
"The Harris solution allows headquarters staff to monitor and coordinate forward operating units, dismounted troops, vehicles and airborne assets," O’Connell said.
"These systems have applications in a wide variety of scenarios, including corps-sized manoeuvres, border control and disaster relief."
Weighing less than 4kg, the RF-7800H is designed to help soldiers transmit video clips, images, maps and other large data files at ten times the data rates compared with existing HF radios in obstructed line-of-sight mission environments, including mountains and urban terrain.
The radio can offer a persistent coverage in the 1.5MHz to 60MHz frequency range, and serves as the first highly reliable alternative to satellite communications for beyond line-of-sight (BLOS) data exchange.
Fully interoperable with the Falcon II radio family, the lightweight RF-7800V is specifically suited for time critical battle management systems (BMS) reporting, and allows forces to operate effortlessly across the network-centric battlefield.
In addition to an integrated GPS receiver and Harris’s new BMS waveform architecture, the radio also features simultaneous voice and data capabilities, true dual-net communications through intuitive dual push-to-talk capability, and a free channel search (FCS) that provides frequency agility in high-noise or radio-jamming environments.
