Advances Still Needed and Predicted
Clearly a lot of progress has been made in helicopter communications, and aviation communications in general. We’ve come a long way from ground crews communicating with waves, hand paddles, and signal flares. Before airborne radio, pilots would place handwritten communications into “message bags” attached to multicolored streamers and throw them to the ground.
So what’s coming next? “As technology advances, we’re going to see helicopter communication continue to become more intuitive and focused on increasing safety levels while decreasing the workload,” answers Weller. “With flexibility to build the communications around unique use cases, operators can focus more on their mission and less on switching or muting unnecessary audio interruptions.” Mace expects to see new comms technologies such as dedicated air-to-ground cellular networks and higher bandwidth satellite networks. Meanwhile, Schmitz
says
Axnes is working on ways to boost the capabilities of
existing technologies to
provide enhanced voice, text, and video communications in flight, but the details of its work is currently under wraps.
Incorporating radios into existing technologies (such as mapping systems, iPads and other stand-alone devices) is also on the horizon, predicts Huddock. “Such devices and their use continue to gain popularity and offer possibilities beyond a radio’s core capabilities by offering integrated data- and voice-driven communications,” he explains.
“Such
integration can seem like a major jump forward, though, and careful assessment is needed as the prospect of unintended consequences becomes a greater possibility. As such, support structures, software update compatibility, ongoing maintenance, and the overall responsibility of such an integrated system need to be well-defined prior to fielding.”
As for challenges that have yet to be resolved by helicopter communications systems? High on Benson’s list are integration of
drones into helicopter
airspace and 5G interference. Weller adds that airborne systems’ weight, size and audio clarity can always be improved.
“Keeping pace with developments in other mission equipment will continue to be a challenge, as updates in technology are not always well coordinated with platforms that might be affected,” he says. “The key
rotorpro.com 79
to success will be the ability to remain flexible in architecture and integration.”
Mace says there’s still a need for faster data speeds at lower cost, while Huddock says one of the biggest challenges today is limited space in the cockpit and the overall airframe. “As more and more mapping, data, and communication technology is installed in helicopters and as these technologies grow in scope and capability, the need to facilitate those signals grows, and unfortunately not always in a proportionate way,” he observes. “Limited antenna and pedestal space is already causing operators to pick and choose what is truly needed, as quite simply space won’t allow for another antenna without then possibly introducing crosstalk and interference issues with another system. Going forward, this seems to be becoming the biggest challenge for helicopter comms – not the technology, but the infrastructure and real estate needed to support it.”
All of these challenges have one thing in common: none of them are insurmountable. Figuring them out is just a matter of dedicated research and development, testing, innovative design, and human will.
So it seems reasonable to assume the advances in helicopter communications will continue unabated, perhaps moving to a future of holograms and augmented reality/virtual reality interactions – all made possible by the same radio frequency spectrum that allowed Captain Prince to tell “Furnie” to waggle his wings 107 years ago.
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