Isolated Personnel Survivability and Recovery

The Next Generation Survivor Radio (NGSR) program is an Air Force led effort to replace the aging Combat Survivor Evader Locator (CSEL) Radio supporting the entire Joint force. The Department of Defense (DoD) plans for the NGSR Handheld Radio (HHR) system and support equipment to serve as the primary communications link for all DoD aircrew who become isolated personnel (IP). NGSR will replace legacy satellite communication and encryption methods to deliver communication capability in support of the Joint Personnel Recovery Agency (JPRA) Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) mission to locate, authenticate, and communicate with Joint forces who become IPs. NGSR provides secure, over-the-horizon, two-way data communications and precise geo-positioning information to rescue forces. Additionally, NGSR is able to operate in anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) environments by providing a National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) approved low probability of intercept/low probability of detection communication pathway for IPs. NGSR is one node of an overall personnel recovery network which includes multiple on-orbit satellite constellations, geographically dispersed satellite ground stations, joint service CSAR communication devices, and a Joint Personnel Recovery Center (JPRC) cloud-based web application. NGSR plans to incorporate modern encryption technology to comply with current National Security Agency (NSA) cryptographic standards. The Air Force will meet system objectives by executing a competitive Rapid Prototyping effort to design and build a production-ready NGSR artifact. Once prototyped, the Air Force, Army, Navy, and Marine Corps will field the NGSR prototype to their respective services via a follow-on sole-source Rapid Fielding production contract. FY 2027 efforts include completing testing and integration for the Beyond Line of Sight (BLOS) and Hand Held radio hardware, as well as, completing integration of cloud-based data processing, web application and national encryption assets. The program will also complete the National Security Agency (NSA) certification of the hand held radio. Finally the program will complete development of all support equipment.

The Isolated Personnel Survival and Flight Equipment program develops, tests, and fields equipment designed to increase the survivability of the Isolated Person (IP), to support their evasion, resistance, and escape, and to signal their location to friendly rescue forces. To this end, IPSAFE includes the following component efforts: seat survival kits, single-seat life rafts, signaling communication, and other similar activities. These component efforts address on-going mission needs and provide for biome-specific equipment as requirements and the operational environment dictate. No FY 2027 funding requested.