Success was the verdict after ViaSat Inc. [Nasdaq: VSAT] and the U.S. Army extended the Vehicular Blue Force Tracking 2 (BFT2) demonstration of Army Aviation BFT2 demonstrations aboard a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter. The new ViaSat ArcLight® BFT2 satellite communication network delivered 122 kilobits per second of Internet Protocol (IP) traffic to ground terminals over an Inmarsat I4 satellite channel, compared to the 5.2 kilobits per second performance of the current BFT system.

Days later at Ft. Eustis, Virginia, ViaSat completed a number of successful demonstrations of the aviation version of the BFT2 terminal on a Blackhawk helicopter maneuvering at speeds up to 150 knots. The ability to achieve both higher data throughput and support helicopter flight dynamics improves the mission utility of the BFT2 system.

Armed forces use Blue Force Tracking to view regularly updated troop positions on screens in their vehicles and aircraft to differentiate between friendly and enemy forces. Because missions like those in Iraq and Afghanistan require units to operate in dispersed locations, the range of terrestrial radio-based systems can be insufficient. The next-generation ViaSat BFT2 satellite network, developed for the U.S. Army under contract with Northrop Grumman Mission Systems, provides IP data delivery that is faster than the current BFT system allowing a higher position refresh rate that can update as often as once every two seconds.

“The Army Aviation BFT2 prototype system shows strong potential for a much needed upgrade to the satellite communication network”, said Don Morgan, who supported the demonstration for Army Aviation from the MITRE Corporation. “The demonstration showed the flexibility of ArcLight® technology and the innovative antenna design of the BFT2 terminal, which enables vehicles and aircraft to connect with higher bandwidth capacity even at low satellite elevation angles,” said Frank Ganaden, chief engineer of BFT2 at ViaSat.