Satellite communications (SATCOM) complexity knows no bounds, but a little knowledge will go a long way to helping you select the solution to best meet your needs.
In this blog series, we are exploring the airborne Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) SATCOM market and highlighting the key factors you should consider when making connectivity decisions. You'll learn the right questions to ask - both of yourself and of your integrator - before adding new connectivity to your aircraft. As you’ll soon discover, the interconnectedness of the many decisions required can make the process feel quite opaque. That’s why we’re here to help.
The Evolving Military Airborne Connectivity Market
Aviation connectivity is currently undergoing a revolution. Government and military operators now have unprecedented opportunities to expand their communications toolkit. With greater bandwidth and more services coming online, the potential to boost ISR mission productivity is higher than ever. Here’s why:
New Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellations - such as OneWeb, Amazon LEO, Starlink, and Telesat - are promising high data rates, low latency, and global coverage. As regulatory approvals advance, the potential for these technologies to transform airborne connectivity is enormous.
Traditional constellations - Viasat (Inmarsat) - will join the LEO family through a partnership with Telesat. Until then, it is adding enhanced features to its Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) offerings. SES already has a multi-orbit offering with its Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) service, which started in 2024 and the original LEO constellation. Iridium,the original LEO service, renewed its place in the market in 2019 with its Certus service and is continually adding new features until its 3rd generation is announced.
A key takeaway is that while LEO performance is top-notch, there are still some hurdles, and legacy L-band connectivity is still a highly effective option.
In Part 2 of this guide, we’ll cover the high-level factors for success. Want to discuss your options right away? Contact us!
