EM Solutions achieves WGS certification for King Cobra terminal

EM Solutions' 2.25 m King Cobra tri-band X- and Ka-band maritime satellite communications terminal. (EM Solutions)

Australian satellite communications (satcom) specialist EM Solutions, part of the Cohort group, has recently achieved Wideband Global Satcom (WGS) system certification for its King Cobra X/Ka tri-band maritime satellite terminal, which has been selected for service in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and several European navies.

The WGS system is a US-led satcom capability that provides high-capacity communications for US forces and a number of international partners.

Speaking at a media event in London in June, Jack van der Heijden, EM Solutions' European business development manager, told Janes that the 2.25 m King Cobra terminal has military X- and Ka-bands and commercial Ka-band capability and can operate in both bands simultaneously, with only a single below-deck fibre connection. He observed that this was important as it can halve the number of terminals required on a ship, thus reducing expenditure and the physical footprint of the satcom system, allowing more efficient use of deck space.

The King Cobra is compatible with geostationary, low, and medium Earth orbit (GEO, LEO, and MEO) satellites as well as highly elliptical orbit (HEO) satellites, which provide satcom in high latitudes. Van der Heijden said the terminal is one of the first to be able to utilise all the different types of communications satellites, adding that the terminal has a proprietary monopulse tracking system, which he claimed offers superior link maintenance.