21 May 2020

2nd CWSS narrows Air Force Weather’s first-in communications gap

Members from Air Force Weather and Special Operations communities gathered at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, Feb. 20, to test a first-in communications capability with potential for the global Air Force mission. Joint Special Operations Command, 2nd Combat Weather Systems Squadron, 18th Weather Squadron and 16th Weather Squadron verified the ability of Defense Department satellite communication networks to operate with Project Bat Phone, a first-in communications system that pairs innovative information delivery software with off-the-shelf computers and military radios to deliver key advantages in first-in and contested, degraded and operationally-limited environments, known as CDO environments. Initial efforts had employed the PRC-117G tactical radio to do line-of-sight tests using high frequency radio transmission, validating the software’s capabilities to transmit environmental intelligence while overcoming issues inherent to wireless communication, including latency and data packet loss.