Lockheed Martin
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DoD Exercises 5G for Future Aircraft Use

May 17, 2023
Lockheed Martin successfully showed U.S. Army and Air Force officials how secure wireless cellular technology and the Network-enabled Analytics for Readiness 5G initiative (NeAR) can provide mission-critical information for tactical aircraft.

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has much in store for 5G wireless cellular networks, whether considered commercial or military arms. This was underscored recently by a demonstration of 5G for providing critical information to aircraft personnel for the DoD’s flight-light ecosystem.

During the demonstration, Lockheed Martin successfully showed U.S. Army and Air Force officials how secure wireless cellular technology and the Network-enabled Analytics for Readiness 5G initiative (NeAR) can provide mission-critical information for tactical aircraft while also reducing operating costs.

Following the landing of an aircraft and with the aid of technical experts, the NeAR application performs data recordings for analysis and predictive maintenance based on artificial-intelligence (AI) procedures. The AI is capable of extensive searches throughout an aircraft (see image above) to detect small performance problems that could grow into bigger problems in the field.

Reeves Valentine, vice-president of Land and Maritime Solutions at Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems (Bethesda, Md.) explained the use of 5G to communicate details about maintenance applications for fighter aircraft, “This proof of concept demonstrated that our analytics tools are scalable and portable across multiple platforms to improve maintenance at the speed of relevance.” He added, “These intelligent troubleshooting applications are compatible with the future-state 5G.MIL ecosystem and in line with our 21st-century security efforts to keep our customers ahead of ready.”

Deb Stanislawski, Lockheed Martin’s director of Accelerate Use Prototyping and Experimentation in the OUSD (R&E) FutureG & 5G office, pointed to the importance of 5G and this demonstration to future military efforts: “Success of NeAR as part of a broader OUSD (R&E) 5G capability will demonstrate 5G enhancements for the Warfighter while simultaneously enabling experimentation that will identify areas at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam suitable for further research and development in 5G and beyond.”

About the Author

Jack Browne | Technical Contributor

Jack Browne, Technical Contributor, has worked in technical publishing for over 30 years. He managed the content and production of three technical journals while at the American Institute of Physics, including Medical Physics and the Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology. He has been a Publisher and Editor for Penton Media, started the firm’s Wireless Symposium & Exhibition trade show in 1993, and currently serves as Technical Contributor for that company's Microwaves & RF magazine. Browne, who holds a BS in Mathematics from City College of New York and BA degrees in English and Philosophy from Fordham University, is a member of the IEEE.

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