RTX (NYSE: RTX) demo’d advanced and foundational Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) capabilities in the first of two tests conducted during the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command‘s Northern Edge 2023 exercise (May 11th) at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson and Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska.
[Note: Raytheon Technologies, as of July 1st, will be RTX — three, market-leading businesses – Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney and Raytheon – will be working as one to answer the biggest questions and solve the hardest problems in defense and aerospace.]
RTX contributed a suite of technologies from its intelligent sensing, resilient networking, and battle management command and control portfolios. The company supported seamless and rapid data connectivity and synchronization across the joint force and with coalition partners to shorten decision-making timelines from hours to minutes for military commanders and operators.
The Collins Aerospace team demonstrated a highly mature, resilient networking gateway enhanced with autonomous routing technologies that bridged disparate line-of-sight (DLOS) and beyond-line-of-sight (BLOS) networks across multiple security levels. The multi-level security networking allowed coalition partners to access data from U.S. networks and vice versa, enabling joint force commanders to direct coordinated operations in real-time interoperability.
Growing these networking capabilities also included a successful demonstration of directional communications for disadvantaged platforms to test how assets within threat areas can receive updated tasking and provide actionable information.
Integrated into the resilient gateway was RTX’s Battlespace Command and Control Center (BC3) capability. The integration of the software system demonstrated a deployable Airborne C2 capability aboard a KC-135 tanker and provided U.S. Air Force operators with the capability to conduct battle management and dynamic targeting over multiple links, providing combined and joint force command and control. Collins Aerospace partnered with the Utah Air National Guard 151st Air Refueling Wing through an ongoing Cooperative Research and Development Agreement.
The coordinated team from the company’s Raytheon business unit unveiled rapid data synchronization capabilities, including automated machine-to-machine (M2M) communications and artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) software.
More than 60 RTX employees supported Northern Edge alongside the U.S. military departments and coalition partners. RTX will participate in the second test of the Northern Edge exercise in the Indo-Pacific region in July.
“We’re working across our company to mature and demonstrate comprehensive capabilities at exercises like Northern Edge that will underpin JADC2 operations in highly contested environments. We showed how enabling these capabilities at the tactical edge allows commanders to rapidly process disparate data and provide real-time communications from sensors to weapons systems. Our systems provided an airborne, platform-agnostic hotspot for critical information sharing at the edge, creating a robust communications network among U.S. joint forces and allied forces.” — Elaine Bitonti, vice president, Connected Battlespace & Emerging Capabilities, Collins Aerospace, a RTX business.
“We’re proving that our survivable data orchestration solutions, such as Nimbus Rush, can rapidly speed up the decision-making process to give the Joint Force and coalition partners a decision advantage. The company’s effort to test and mature these technologies together in DoD pathfinder programs aim to provide a full capability offering that enable contested and distributed operations relevant to the current threat environment. Integrating our solutions and government cross-service investments has enabled more interoperability quickly and in a cost-effective manner.” — Conn Doherty, Vice President of strategic campaigns, Raytheon.
RTX is the world’s largest aerospace and defense company. Our global team of 180,000 employees pushes the limits of known science and redefines how we connect and protect our world. We are advancing aviation, building smarter defense systems and creating innovations to take us deeper into space. Effective July 1, the company will complete its realignment into three customer-focused business units — Collins Aerospace, Raytheon and Pratt & Whitney. The company, with 2022 sales of $67 billion, is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.
