WALLINGFORD, Connecticut – On Thursday, March 5, Times Microwave Systems, an Amphenol brand, announced the launch of its Levitate™ cable assembly line. The new series is engineered specifically to address the stringent weight-to-loss ratios required by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and advanced avionics, supporting military and commercial platforms from Group 1 (micro-UAVs) through Group 5 (high-altitude, long-endurance platforms).
Strategic Context for the UAV Market
The launch of Levitate™ comes as defense and commercial airframe manufacturers face increasing pressure to maximize flight endurance by reducing parasitic mass. As electronic payloads for surveillance and electronic warfare (EW) become more complex, the density of RF interconnects has increased. Times Microwave’s move to provide a “budget-friendly” and readily available lightweight line reflects a shift toward industrialized, scalable solutions for the rapidly expanding drone economy.
This development follows the 2024 acquisition of Carlisle Interconnect Technologies (CIT) by parent company Amphenol, which bolstered the group’s aviation-grade materials science and manufacturing footprint.
Technical Specifications and Application Variants
The Levitate family is designed to deliver the lowest weight per unit of signal loss currently available in the commercial RF market. The product line is bifurcated into two primary application categories:
| Model Series | Size Designations | Primary Application | Characteristics |
| In-the-Box | LVT047, LVT086, LVT141 | Internal RF routing | Extreme flexibility for tight Line Replaceable Unit (LRU) integration. |
| Airframe Runs | LVT157, LVT196 | Antenna-to-LRU links | Optimized for long, low-loss runs across the airframe. |
Executive Perspective
“The Levitate product line fills a real gap in the airframe and avionics community, specifically in the UAV market,” said Matthew Radicchi, Director of Market Intelligence for Times Microwave Systems. “This new line exhibits the perfect blend of cost, performance, and availability, providing customers with a lightweight solution that supports the aggressive needs of today’s demands.”
2026 Distribution and Showcase
Times Microwave has confirmed that the Levitate line is immediately available through authorized global distribution partners to support rapid prototyping and production scaling. The company will showcase the new assemblies throughout 2026, with major technical demonstrations planned for the AUVSI XPONENTIAL and SATELLITE 2026 conferences, where engineers can evaluate the weight-savings data for specific high-frequency missions.
