STEVENAGE, U.K. - Airbus has been awarded a series of contracts during the first quarter of 2021 from the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) both as part of its continuing program of upgrading and enhancing services for the Skynet 5 military satcom services contract, and continued work with the MOD’s Defense Digital organization.
Activities in the Maritime domain include introducing further quality of service improvements for Maritime Network Evolution (MNE) services to enable continued Wi-Fi access for deployed personnel while on operations. Airbus has also completed a series of baseband upgrades and improvements for eight SCOT5 FMT ships.
Focusing on the land domain, Airbus has recently had a significant order placed for its Bracer service from the UK MOD. Designed by Airbus partner QinetiQ, the Bracer device and service can operate in the planet’s harshest environments to provide end-to-end encrypted beyond line of sight (BLOS) capabilities. Together with innovative provider Ovzon, Airbus has achieved a first type of sale to deliver the T5 terminal, a compact laptop sized on-the-pause terminal and satellite services to the MOD. Airbus has also recently unveiled team ICELUS, which will focus on the upcoming System Integrator (SI) opportunity for the British Army’s future tactical communication program, LE TacCIS. Airbus is also providing fiber broadband and infrastructure services to the MOD’s Abbey Wood headquarters.
Airbus has agreed a contract to provide Ku-band airtime for the Poseidon P8 maritime patrol aircraft as they enter service, as well as also agreeing renewals to provide continued Ku-band airtime support for the UK Reaper UAV - highlighting Airbus’ continued support to the RAF for future missions.
Focused on a customer partnership approach, Airbus selects the best available solutions to provide the most effective, resilient and cost efficient connectivity to combine commercial off the shelf equipment, airtime and support services to the front line commands and end users. SMEs continue to be a strong part of the Airbus ecosystem, together with partner GRC Ltd, Airbus has contracted, delivered, trained and deployed an extensive range of terminal services to the end-user. Airbus also continues to work with GRC Ltd, to deliver a tactical satcom solution that provides end–to-end communications in any eventuality in a single logical network.
