US Army Approves Gatr Antenna for Full Rate Production

The Gatr 2.4m inflatable satellite antenna system. Photo: Cubic.

Cubic Corporation announced its GATR satellite antenna systems will proceed to Full Rate Production (FRP) for the U.S. Army’s Transportable Tactical Command Communications (T2C2) program. The FRP decision will enable the Army’s program office to procure and field Cubic’s Gatr satellite antenna systems to Army units.

The Gatr 1.2-meter and 2.4-meter inflatable satellite terminals provide high-bandwidth network communications and mission command for initial entry and sustained forward operations. Its compact size and innovative design improves transportability, bandwidth and set up speed, and its inflatable feature allows it to provide a larger dish size in similar transit volume and weight compared to a traditional rigid dish, with increased capability and bandwidth efficiency.

Soldiers from the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, U.S. Army Alaska supported the successful T2C2 operational test in March 2017 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska. The Army plans to begin fielding T2C2 immediately, with a brigade from the 82nd Airborne Division to be the first unit equipped.