SELEX Elsag, a Finmeccanica company, has been contracted by Korean shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) to supply a package of communication systems to tankers being constructed as part of the UK Royal Navy’s Military Afloat Reach & Sustainability (MARS) programme.
The systems will be installed on four new logistic support vessels to be built in South Korea by DSME and operated by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
The MARS communications system has been designed to make use of commercial and military systems that have already been proven in other defence programmes.
For instance, SELEX says that a number of systems deployed on the Navy’s Type 45 Destroyer will be adapted to meet the needs of the MARS tankers, including the company’s Communications Management System, which provides for central configuration and control of communications assets.
IP communications will form the backbone of the system, developed from the company’s Sentinel technology, which is now deployed on the UK Ministry of Defence’s Falcon land communications system.
The messaging system also uses the company’s MPS2000 technology, deployed on most Royal Navy naval vessels.
In addition, SELEX Elsag will provide topside electromagnetic modelling to optimise the placement of antennas, as well as other key elements like the HF, VHF and UHF radio systems, and tactical data links.
Source: Digital Ship
