A NEW ERA IN WORLDWIDE TACTICAL COMMUNICATIONS

Abstract

The Fleet Satellite Communication System (FLEETSATCOM) now under development will provide the first U. S. military satellites designed from the start as operational transponders for tactical communications with and among mobile users. FLEETSATCOM is a logical outgrowth of earlier experimental projects, principally the Tactical Satellite Communication (TACSATCOM) project of the late 1960’s. When the globe-girdling system goes operational in calendar year 1976 it will quite literally revolutionize both Air Force and Navy tactical communications by providing availability and reliability of over-the-horizon communications that can never be matched by conventional high-frequency circuits.