GD delivers new CM-300/350 VHF-UHF V2 radio for FAA’s Nexcom 2 programme

General Dynamics (GD) Mission Systems has delivered a 5,000^th CM-300/350 VHF-UHF V2 radio to the US Federal Aviation Administration.

The radio is for FAA’s Nexcom 2 modernisation programme. More than 2,000 FAA locations and US military installations, including Andrews Air Force Base, which is the home of Air Force One, are equipped with the radio.

The new radios, with digital, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), will ensure clear communication among air traffic controllers and pilots flying in the National Airspace System (NAS).

The digital radios can be updated using software to further improve communications capability within the FAA’s operational radio spectrum and ground infrastructure.

General Dynamics Mission Systems Radio Programs and Products vice-president Paul Parent said: "The CM-300/350 V2 radios meet the dynamic communications requirements of air traffic control centres, commercial airports, military air stations and range installations.

"These digital radios can be updated by software and managed remotely to support system interoperability and reliable performance in an increasingly crowded national airspace."

General Dynamics Mission Systems received the NEXCOM 2 contract in 2012, and the latest radios are built at its Scottsdale facility in Arizona, US.

It provides certified CM-300/350 V2 VHF and UHF radios to replace air traffic control radios that are currently outdated.

In 2014, the company delivered the first FAA-certified CM-300/350 V2 radios.