Norwegian Armed Forces plan to test sidelink communications as part of 5G by end of 2026
The Norwegian Armed Forces tested Nokia's military coverage extender and private 5G core platform during exercise Cold Response 2026 in Setermoen, Norway. (Janes/Tamara Rozouvan)
The Norwegian Armed Forces is planning on testing 5G sidelink communications by the end of 2026, Staff Sergeant Robér Buyle, Norwegian Cyber Defence Force (Cyberforsvaret) told Janes on 12 March at Setermoen in northern Norway during the Norwegian-led NATO exercise ‘Cold Response 2026'.
5G Sidelink (also known as the PC5 interface) allows cellular devices to communicate directly without relaying data through the network infrastructure, a capability specified in the international 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) standard.
Going beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) is a sidelink capability that will be tested. “The communication device or drone is expected to have the sidelink capability. This will mean that we would be able to fly a drone up to 60 km away and with the sidelink the drone can work as a relay for the second drone. It will then go even further where it is not visible to the base station,” SSgt Buyle said.
During the early testing period, the sidelink will be a separate element that will be attached to an unmanned aircraft system (UAS). According to SSgt Buyle, it is still unknown which sidelink manufacturer the Norwegian Armed Forces will be using for the testing.
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