ARNG Aviation airframes are not configured to communicate in the Link 16 Joint environment. Link 16 is a military tactical data exchange radio frequency network used by US, NATO and other coalition nations for air, sea and land. It enhances command and control, safety of flight, and actionable information through sharing real time tracks, imagery and digital voice data. This resolution is intended to provide the ARNG a Joint digital communications capability for the 200 UH-72A Lakota aircraft organic to the Security and Support Battalions that are fielded across the 54 States, Territories and the District of Columbia.
• Command and Control – Link 16 is a Program of Record for all sister service aviation within the Department of Defense except Army Aviation. It provides real time situational awareness by providing actionable information from a variety of digital nets across the Joint environment.

• Safety of Flight – In a Joint environment sister service aircrews have to “step-down” to legacy analog nets to relay information to ARNG aircrews operating on voice nets. This increases margin of error during transmission, diverts attention by forcing crews heads-down in the cockpit; and increases pilot fatigue.

• Existing Capability in the Marketplace - Currently there exists a Commercial Off-the-Shelf federated Link 16 system that piggy-backs off of the Lakota’s existing Mission Equipment Package radio sets. It is lightweight, affordable and easily maintained.
The Link 16 Tactical Data Link for the ARNG UH72 Lakota fleet will allow accurate and timely sharing of digital data in a Joint Domestic Operations environment. It is ideal for the UH-72’s Homeland Defense missions to include Joint Search and Rescue, Damage Assessment, Border Security and Counter-drug operations.