“…Mynaric and H3 HATS  announced the successful start of a joint demonstration campaign to showcase laser communication capabilities for high-altitude long endurance aircraft using industrialized optical communications terminals. Initial flights of the campaign demonstrated key performance criteria of Mynaric’s HAWK product currently in pre-series production onboard one of H3 HATS’ aircraft. Where previous tests of this nature have used one-off prototypes or technology demonstrators, the announcement marks the world’s first demonstration of an industrialized optical communications terminal for airborne applications.

Initial flights of the campaign utilized a setup of two of Mynaric’s manufactured HAWK products for airborne laser communication on the ground and mounted in the fuselage payload bay of a G520NG aircraft, respectively, to demonstrate air-to-ground links. The setup was recently cleared for flight by all relevant regulatory aviation authorities. The first flights of the campaign demonstrated stable bidirectional laser links with 10 Gbps speed between the aircraft and the terminal on the ground during various flight patterns.

“Closing laser communication links in the air is in many dimensions a lot harder than in space given the aircrafts’ movements and atmospheric conditions,” said Bulent Altan, CEO of Mynaric. “Having overcome these challenges HAWK offers connectivity with unprecedented security and bandwidth to airborne platforms. As the world’s first industrialized optical communications terminal for airborne applications, it enables aeronautical communication capabilities previously unimaginable. We are proud to have yet again advanced the industrial frontier of laser communications and look forward to expanding HAWK’s mission envelope further as the flight campaign with H3 HATS progresses…”