Programmable radio benefits for the military

Programmable radios promise many benefits to the military community, some are obvious and some are more subtle. This paper addresses the benefits of programmable radios to the military. The emphasis is on the flexibility afforded by programmable radio systems as contrasted with the inflexibility of most previous military radio systems. The flexibility that programmable radios provide will become more important as time goes on for several reasons. Because the force structure is shrinking, fewer people are called upon to accomplish more, requiring tools with greater flexibility. The volume of support equipment that can be rapidly deployed is also shrinking, however capability need not be sacrificed if flexible multifunction programmable radios are available.