AN/ARC-200 nap-of-Earth HF communications systems and helicopter antenna considerations

Modern HF (2- to 30-MHz) equipment employed by today´s communicator contains many technological applications and breakthroughs relative to communications equipment of the past. Today´s HF communications equipment has many of the characteristics that reflect the dynamic commercial computer industry. The new HF radio used in airborne operational environments, AN/ARC-220, contains many of these technologies applied to the HF near vertical incidence skywave (NVIS) communications network. This paper discusses the considerations necessary for a properly developed network infrastructure for maximum ARC-220 mission performance. This paper also describes the HF propagation characteristics and antenna considerations encountered in typical NVIS missions using the ARC-220, especially in nap-of-earth (very close to ground) flight operations. Available lessons learned and performance characteristics are reviewed