Small Form Factor SDR for Assured Communications in Contested Environments

As the U.S. sharpens its focus on protecting space-based assets, Anti-Access/Area Denial (A2/AD) threats remain a critical challenge, particularly for Beyond-Line-Of-Sight (BLOS) UAV operations. These threats jeopardize long-range command, control, and communications, especially in contested or satellite-denied environments. Russia and China are both investing heavily in both ground and space-based weapons. Department of the Air Force faces a critical vulnerability: the loss of command and control with forward-deployed assets such as unmanned aircraft, unattended sensors, and expeditionary teams. In many cases, when primary communication fails, there is no backup pathway. This leaves operators blind, disconnected, and unable to respond to rapidly evolving threats. As threats to assets increase and the U.S. increases its focus on protecting assets, rising Anti-Access/Area Denial (A2/AD) threats remain a critical challenge, especially to Beyond-Line-Of-Sight  Unmanned Aerial Vehicle operations.  FlexRadio’s proposed solution fills this critical gap by delivering a Small Form Factor (SFF) High Frequency (HF) Software Defined Radio (SDR) designed specifically for denied environments and SWaP-constrained platforms. By integrating this capability into SWaP-constrained platforms the Air Force can ensure continual, secure communications for mission redirection, re-tasking, and data relay during emergencies or SATCOM outages. Restoring long-range, beyond-line-of-sight connectivity under degraded conditions, this technology ensures mission continuity, improves survivability, supports Joint All-Domain Command and Control objectives, and strengthens U.S. competitive advantage over near-peer adversaries like China and Russia.