{"id":22651,"date":"2021-07-22T19:51:57","date_gmt":"2021-07-22T19:51:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2021\/07\/22\/space-force-delivers-software-upgrades-to-satellite-communications-system\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T18:05:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T18:05:03","slug":"space-force-delivers-software-upgrades-to-satellite-communications-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/space\/2021\/07\/22\/space-force-delivers-software-upgrades-to-satellite-communications-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Space Force delivers software upgrades to satellite communications system"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 The U.S. Space Force successfully delivered the fourth of five planned software updates to its protected satellite communications system, enabling international partners to access new features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Advanced Extremely High Frequency system provides a survivable, protected, anti-jam signal for high-priority military communications. As the successor to MILSTAR, the constellation is designed to enable high-level military leaders such as the president, the National Security Council and unified combatant commanders to control strategic and tactical forces, even in the midst of a nuclear war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sixth and final AEHF satellite was launched in March 2020<\/a>. Four international partners \u2014 Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Australia \u2014 also use AEHF.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After achieving initial operational capability in 2015, the program\u2019s Mission Planning Element contracted with Lockheed Martin Space to develop five software capability insertion increments to provide the additional bandwidth and system efficiencies for the growing number of users. The first three increments were operationally accepted in 2017, 2018 and 2019, respectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\t