The military satellite super highway

The growth of data services within the military communications environment means that the type of services required by a modern fighting force map more closely onto services available in the civil sector. In particular, the high speed delivery achieved by satellite based superhighway services being developed for a range of civil applications are directly applicable, offering timely delivery, multi-level access and a long term evolution path whilst at the same time based almost entirely on off the shelf hardware and software. The Global Broadcast System (GBS) piloted by the US DoD and studied by the MOD is an attempt to harness civil technology development to meet a military requirement. This paper examines how military requirements map on to such a GBS system, and how developments in the satellite delivery of Internet services has a led to a similar architecture, enabling the military user to benefit directly from low cost commercial satcom technology and direct, off the Web, application software