AN/PRC-154 Rifleman Radio


		Co-developed with General Dynamics C4 Systems under the JTRS HMS Program Low-cost, lightweight, rugged, networking handheld radio with SRW Embedded encryption and GPS

Description

Feburary 2012 COL John Zavarelli, JTRS HMS Program Manager, discusses the Rifleman Radio and HMS Manpack in a videotaped interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoidnmS3Q34 Referring to the dismounted soldier, he says, "...a game-changing capability that will allow him to conduct his mission more effectively, he will have more survivability, and likely be able to be more lethal because of what the radio allows him to do with either voice or data communications." January 2012 The AN/PRC-154 Rifleman Radio, the "soldier radio of the future", completed an operational assessment by the US Army's 75th Ranger Regiment in Afghanistan. In what was its first combat use, the radio successfully demonstrated how networked communications and situational awareness can improve mission effectiveness. Brigadier General Michael Williamson, Joint Program Executive Office, Joint Tactical Radio System (JPEO JTRS), indicated that the Rangers spent a lot of time using the radios and "clearly had a significant level of confidence" in the system. Soldiers of the 75th Ranger Regiment liked the size, weight, and transmit range of the Rifleman Radio, which typically provided a battery life of up to 10 hours and increased the units' ability to communicate despite obstacles such as buildings and rugged terrain. The Army has also ordered Thales's Modular Universal Battery Charger (MUBC) for future co-deployment with its AN/PRC-154 Rifleman Radios. The Thales MUBC is a multi-bay, scalable, portable (mounted and dismounted) system designed for use in forward operating base environments. It charges a wide range of military and commercial batteries, including the AN/PRC-154 Rifleman Radio and the Thales AN/PRC-148 JTRS Enhanced Multiband Inter/Intra Team Radio (JEM). See the MUBC page on this website for more information. August 2011 On August 3, 2011, Thales announced the award by prime contractor General Dynamics C4 Systems for Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) of the AN/PRC-154 Rifleman Radio. Developed as part of the Joint Tactical Radio System Handheld, Manpack, and Small Form Fit (JTRS HMS) program with General Dynamics, the Rifleman Radio is a lightweight, networking, body-worn radio designed to extend the tactical network down to the lowest echelons--the dismounted individual soldier. In June, the JTRS HMS program received a Milestone C decision from the U.S. Department of Defense, which authorized the Army to procure up to 6,250 Rifleman Radios. Following that decision, General Dynamics received an LRIP contract for 6,250 Rifleman Radios, which will be manufactured by both Thales Communications and General Dynamics. By design, the JTRS HMS System Design and Development and LRIP contract efforts will yield two qualified production sources. This provides the Government with robust competition from multiple qualified sources for full rate production. A core component of the Army's soldier modernization program, the Rifleman Radio transmits voice and data simultaneously utilizing the Soldier Radio Waveform. The radio is designed to bring secure (Type 2) inter-squad communications to any warfighter on the tactical edge of the battlefield. It creates self-forming, ad hoc, voice, and data networks in any battlefield scenario and enables Team Leaders to track individual soldier position location information, giving dismounted soldiers a much-needed situational awareness capability on the battlefield. "The Rifleman Radio represents the very latest technology, benefiting from close collaboration with users and rigorous Government testing," said Michael Sheehan, President and CEO of Thales Communications, Inc. The Rifleman Radio has undergone an extensive series of formal Government tests, including various operational network integration exercises, one of which was an exercise conducted by the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg. In a follow-up report by the unit's commanding officer, Maj. Gen. James L. Huggins said that the radios performed in "remarkable fashion," effectively filling critical communications gaps that are unmet by current tactical communication systems.
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