Air France Industries chooses Diginext to provide Tactical Data Links (TDL) exchange capabilities, via satellite link, for the French Air Force's Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS)
Diginext, a subsidiary of the CS Group, has been selected by Air France Industries to provide the French Air Force with a system to control operations outside of visual range in theatres of operation in which France is engaged.
The use of satellite links supporting "reflex time" (under one minute) tactical information exchange between the theatre of operations and the command centre has become a considerable asset for force coordination and effectiveness during overseas operations involving the French chain of command, such as HARMATTAN (Libya), SERVAL (Mali), and currently BARKHANE (Sahelo-Saharan region). The deployment of these secure and reliable links, which accelerate decision-making, was therefore requested by the forces and taken into account by the French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA) to equip Airborne Warning and Control Systems on four of the French Air Force's E-3F "AWACS" aircraft. As part of this increase in capability, Air France Industries selected DIGINEXT, a subsidiary of the CS Group, to provide this tactical data link exchange capability through its C2 STARLINX solution via the JREAP (Joint Range Extension Application Protocol). This protocol is a NATO standard and has no distance constraints. It will offer the French National Air Operations Centre (Lyon Mont Verdun) a new tool to control and supervise operations via a secure IP connection to the INMARSAT4 satellite network. This new capability, based on standardised protocol exchanges, is fully inter-operable with France's allies. The French Airborne Early Warning (AEW) component can be fully integrated in a coalition system. Data flow visualisation and management are provided by DIGINEXT's C2 STARLINX system which, in operation with the E-3F AWACS mission system, will inform all levels of the French or coalition decision-making chain. "After having provided an equivalent system to the French Army in 2013 for operation SERVAL in Mali, DIGINEXT confirms its ability to provide operational solutions to be deployed for overseas operations by the French forces", noted Thomas FOURQUET, CEO of DIGINEXT.