The Swedish Defence Materiel Administration has signed an agreement with Airbus DS on Tetra upgrades

Airbus Defence and Space has signed a three-year Care Agreement with the Swedish Defence Materiel Administation (FMV). The contract includes the upgrade of the Armed Forces existing Tetra network called FM Tetra to Release 6 and an additional software upgrade with the user management system Tactilon, a number of new TB3hp base stations and training for users and administrators.

The FM Tetra has the same architecture as the Swedish nationwide radio communication network, Rakel, implemented by Airbus Defence and Space and operated by the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency. The FM Tetra is used as a reference network and is dedicated for educations as well as verification and validation of new software and hardware.

The user management tool Tactilon of Airbus Defence and Space can handle a high number of radio users. This encompasses for instance the management of user rights, the definition of call groups and their regions, and the movement of task forces beyond organisational boundaries. Thus, different task forces can, for example, be integrated on short notice into the communication structure at the relevant location during major events such as world championships and summits where security is a factor.

The high-power mini Tetra base station TB3hp of Airbus Defence and Space provides up to 15 W of radio frequency (RF) power with a very low power consumption of only 100 W. This enables a larger area to be covered with mission-critical communications in a more cost efficient way compared to other mini base stations. This could be particularly beneficial for filling coverage gaps or providing hotspot coverage in places where the normal network may not reach, such as underground car parks or tunnels.