AEHF satellite terminals from Raytheon to be used for nuclear missions
NewsDecember 27, 2013
MARLBOROUGH, MA. U.S. Air Force officials selected Raytheon to develop an Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite terminal that transmits emergency messages to aircrews during non-nuclear and nuclear missions under a $134,399,631 contract. The Air Force Global Aircrew Strategic Network Terminal (Global ASNT) is a key part of the nuclear command and control system that enables the President of the United States to direct and manage U.S. forces.
The new terminals will be installed at fixed sites, such as nuclear task forces and munitions support squadrons, wing command posts, and forward deployed mobile support teams. Fielding is slated to start in fiscal year 2017.
Raytheon currently produces AEHF terminals for the U.S. Navy, Army, and Air Force. The terminals use the AEHF satellite's Extended Data Rate (XDR) anti-jam waveform. It moves data more than five times faster than older satellite systems.
