WiMAX at traffic-demanding electronic warfare air exercise ELITE 2008

The Hybrid Extension Module (HEM) Prototype implements a NATO C3 Agency (NC3A) concept for future Deployable Headquarter communications infrastructure in support of NATO Response Force (NRF) and Expeditionary Operations. It makes use of a hybrid transmission system composed of IP-converged wireless (WiMAX) and wired (fiber optics) solutions. In 2008, NC3A improved many aspects of the HEM Prototype and deployed it to the international electronic warfare air exercise ELITE 2008. This exercise posed a particularly demanding scenario involving significant asymmetric real-time traffic, long-range obstructed radio links, and a polluted radio frequency environment, for which the HEM Prototype was not initially tailored. The focus of the experiment was on WiMAX performance from different angles: radio performance, interference susceptibility, broadband capacity, and configuration and deployment flexibility. This paper introduces the scenario and challenges posed by ELITE 2008. It addresses the improvements performed to the HEM Prototype to match the operational requirements. It then describes the actual deployment to the ELITE exercise area and focuses on the most relevant tests performed to the WiMAX system. Results obtained put in evidence the validity of WiMAX as a wireless transmission technology for deployable headquarter communications, due to its flexibility in adapting to demanding military scenarios, its resistance to interference, and its remarkable radio performance under sub-optimal conditions.