BAE Systems has received multiple contracts totalling USD 111 million (EUR 102 million) to provide the Second-generation, Anti-jam, Tactical, Ultra-high Frequency Radio for NATO (SATURN) waveform to South Korea, the company announced on 10 July 2024.

As part of the country’s national communications modernisation strategy, SATURN will facilitate secure and interoperable command-and-control capabilities for the South Korean armed forces’ fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft.

This will come in the form of the ARC-232A: a SATURN-capable software-defined radio (SDR) that is upgradeable, small and lightweight, making jamming more difficult in the increasingly complex threat environment. ARC-232A radios offer optimal receiver sensitivity in severe operating conditions and a broad range of configurations for potential countermeasures, according to BAE Systems.

The radios will be produced at BAE Systems’ facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana, with the company providing the ARC-232As to South Korean manufacturer LIG Nex1 for final build, testing and aircraft integration.

“As the modern-day battlespace becomes more sophisticated, advancements in tactical waveforms are required,” the company stated in a press release. “BAE Systems’ next-generation software-defined radios will leverage SATURN’s fast frequency-hopping waveform. SATURN will deliver new advantages to operators who rely on timely and accurate communications to inform key decisions in the field.”

“In today’s complex and contested battlefields, superiority on the ground, in the air, and at sea is mission critical,” Dave Logan, vice president and general manager of C4ISRS at BAE Systems, was quoted as saying. “This tailored solution for the Republic of Korea will equip its forces with state-of-the-art, secure and modern communications for a variety of tactical missions while allowing them to maintain interoperability with the US and coalition partners.”

BAE Systems stated in its press release that it has more than 100,000 radios deployed globally and that its “battle-proven communications products offer nearly double the reliability of legacy products”. The company’s compact radio sets also offer multi-band, secure anti-jam voice, data imagery transmission and network-capable communications, the company noted.

The South Korean armed forces’ fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft will receive secure and interoperable command-and-control capabilities in the form of BAE Systems’ ARC-232A SATURN-capable software-defined radios. Image BAE Systems)