Rockwell Collins tactical targeting network technology (TTNT) was used by Northrop Grumman Corporation and the US Navy as they successfully completed a series of deck handling trials of the X-47B unmanned combat air system aboard the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75).

The exercises demonstrated the ability to manoeuvre the tailless, strike-fighter-sized aircraft quickly and precisely on the flight deck using a wireless handheld controller. The tests are the latest in a series of activities leading up to the first carrier landings of the X-47B, which are planned for mid-2013.

“TTNT is part of the overall command and control architecture for the X-47B, and it plays an essential role in helping the aircraft perform vital functions,” said Bob Haag, Vice President and General Manager of Communication and Navigation Products for Rockwell Collins. “We’re pleased that our technology is helping Northrop Grumman and the Navy successfully prepare for the introduction of unmanned aircraft to carrier operations.”

TTNT provides high data rate, long-range communication links for airborne platforms. As a complement to existing tactical data link networks, TTNT adds significant airborne network capacity while providing rapid, low latency message delivery. The minimal network planning requirements of TTNT will enable participants to enter and exit the network without extensive preplanning.

It has been used in demonstrations on more than a dozen airborne platforms, including the F-16, F-22, F-15, F/A-18, B-2, B-52, Airborne Warning and Control System, Battlefield Airborne Communications Node and E-2C Hawkeye.