Cobham and Inmarsat launch helicopter satcom solution

By March 13, 2019 May 4th, 2020 Featured, IFEC

Cobham Aerospace Communications and Inmarsat have launched the SB-Helo X-Stream helicopter satcom solution for Cobham AVIATOR SP systems. The new system promises to improve communications through rotor blades by reducing packet loss by up to 40%.

After extensive testing, Inmarsat and Cobham have developed a protocol in network Quality of Service (QoS) selection, as an enhancement of the Swiftbroadband X-Stream service; one of Inmarsat’s streaming services offering guaranteed on-demand high-streaming data rates over its L-band network.

This allows data from rotary wing aircraft to be transmitted to the Inmarsat satellite network, via dedicated modulation schemes. The increased resilience of the data pipeline passing through the rotors means that the transmission of high intensity data, like video, will see an improvement in throughput of around 37%. The free of charge software update will allow a helicopter operating from a remote location to transmit a significantly improved video or data stream. This capability is crucial for organisations operating rotary wing aircraft in specialised roles such as search and rescue, medical evacuation and military forces.

Willem Kasselman, VP Sales, Marketing and Support at Cobham Aerospace Communications, commented: “The launch of this new system represents a breakthrough for Cobham, solving a long-standing problem in helicopter satcom communications. The partnership between Cobham Aerospace Communications and Inmarsat is an important one for us and we look forward to building on this announcement and expanding and improving other related services over the coming months.”

 

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