Sierra Nevada chooses R-COTS Ethernet switches from Curtiss-Wright for surveillance aircraft
ASHBURN, Va., 30 April 2014. Surveillance experts at Sierra Nevada Corp. in Sparks, Nev., needed rugged commercial off-the-shelf (R-COTS) Ethernet switcher and router technology for use aboard Pilatus PC-12 Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) equipped aircraft. They found their solution from the Curtiss-Wright Corp. Defense Solutions division in Ashburn, Va.
Sierra Nevada awarded a $530,000 to Curtiss-Wright to supply the Parvus DuraMAR 5915 router and Parvus DuraNET 3000 Ethernet switch products. Sierra Nevada will use the rugged Ethernet switches in the Knight Ryder program that involves the PC-12 ISR aircraft.
The Parvus DuraMAR 5915 is an R-COTS Cisco IOS-managed mobile router integrated with Cisco's 5915 embedded services router card in a rugged chassis optimized for harsh military and civil vehicle and aircraft installations.
The Parvus DuraNET 3000 is a ruggedized version of the Cisco Systems IE-3000 industrial Ethernet switch that is hardened for demanding military and civil IP networking technology refresh applications.
Designed with mechanical enhancements to support deployment of data, video, and voice services in extreme temperatures, shock, vibration, humidity, as well as exposure to dust, water, and EMI/EMC environments, the unit requires no active cooling, is sealed, and provides interfaces over MIL-C-38999 style connectors.
Curtiss-Wright will manufacture the products at the company's Parvus facility in Salt Lake City, and ship the products to Sierra Nevada in Centennial, Colo. Shipments will continue until this year.
The Curtiss-Wright router and switch products will contribute to an ISR suite used on Pilatus PC-12 aircraft, and will be used to communicate intelligence sensor and video data internal to the aircraft, as well as to ground forces and command and control centers, Curtiss-Wright officials say.
For more information contact Curtiss-Wright Defense Solutions online at www.cwcdefense.com.
John Keller | Editor
John Keller is editor-in-chief of Military & Aerospace Electronics magazine, which provides extensive coverage and analysis of enabling electronic and optoelectronic technologies in military, space, and commercial aviation applications. A member of the Military & Aerospace Electronics staff since the magazine's founding in 1989, Mr. Keller took over as chief editor in 1995.
