A Sevice-Oriented Architecture for remote management of Airborne Network transmission systems

The platforms and gateways that compose the Airborne Network (AN) exhibit a high degree of heterogeneity, with a variety of IP and non-IP data links hosted on various terminals produced by multiple manufacturers. The lack of an accepted, mature network management architecture for the AN contributes to the risk that there will be a proliferation of separate, stovepiped tools deployed to monitor and configure each component. This level of management complexity, when applied to a complex underlying network environment, will be unacceptable for the operators that must control the AN enterprise. Rather than a collection of point solutions to manage each terminal, this whitepaper characterizes a Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) approach built upon open standards-based web services, which makes consistent status and control of transmission elements into a networked service. We present insights gained during our analysis activities, as well as the subsequent development of prototype remote management services for key AN waveforms, and experiences when employing the technology at multiple live-fly exercises and events. This paper describes the activities executed under a Collaborative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) Technical Execution Plan (TEP) between General Dynamics C4 Systems and the Air Force Electronic Systems Command (ESC) known as Web Based Transmission Element Management (WebTEM).