US Navy boosts Hospital Ships’ Communications for COVID-19

U.S. Navy engineers, some working around the clock, updated the communications and networking capabilities of the two hospital ships dispatched to U.S. ports in the fight against the COVID-19 coronavirus. The USNS Comfort and the USNS Mercy originally deployed to New York City and Los Angeles, respectively, to provide hospital services to non-coronavirus patients in an effort to relieve local hospitals burdened with COVID-19 patients. Engineers with the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR) tapped expertise from throughout the command as well as from counterparts with the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) to improve satellite communications and increase bandwidth.

Michael Winslow, division head for the Tactical Networks Division at Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Pacific, explains that engineers carried out three major upgrades to the ships’ information systems. These were for the pier system, which entails the shore infrastructure that is used to connect each ship into a docking site. This system also backhauls information to sites where services are terminated. The second system worked on was for commercial broadband satellite program (CBSP). This effort increased the throughput for one ship while it transited to its destination. The third system was the automated digital networking system (ADNS).

https://www.afcea.org/content/navy-boosts-hospital-ships’-communications-covid-19