Lockheed Martin has announced that it is nearing readiness to field test its innovative “regenerative” 5G satellites in orbit in 2024. Called 5G.MIL, the entirely self-funded program will demonstrate 5G connectivity entirely using space-based infrastructure with an eye to giving the military high-speed wireless communications. Started in 2020, Lockheed Martin’s ambition for the project is to provide what it calls an “all-domain network” — or a seamless communications web between space assets, aircraft, ships, and ground forces.
5G in space
Dan Rice, Vice President of Lockheed Martin’s 5G.MIL program, announced that the company had completed a successful hardware-in-the-loop test of a 5G non-terrestrial network payload in October of this year (2023). Building on this test, Lockheed Martin plans to launch a satellite to low Earth orbit in 2024 for a space demonstration.
