In this latest episode with content from Avalon 2025, Steve Visscher steps out from the edit suite to fly on Honeywell Aerospace's Boeing 757 test bed then afterwards caught up with Tim Roberts, Director of Connected Defense Solutions at Honeywell Aerospace. Meanwhile, Grant McHerron discussed the learnings from ten years of Jericho with GPCAPT Jessie Laroche, the Director of Jericho Disruptive Innovation with the RAAF, and WOFF Lara Cluff, the EDGY Air Force program Warrant Officer.

Tim talks with Steve about Honeywell Aerospace's resilient communications systems capabilities that were being demonstrated on their Boeing 757 flying test bed, including satellite and terrestrial capabilities. They discuss the importance of having both L-band and Ka-band communications along with standard communications to allow high bandwidth transfers of data to & from an aircraft. Tim covers Honeywell's JetWave MCX SATCOM system and notes that it is to be installed on the new RAAF C-130Js. He also describes it operating on aircraft such as tankers and acting as a relay link for gathering information from tactical aircraft, relaying to HQ, and distributing updates back to those aircraft. The discussion wraps up with a look at Honeywell's SmartRunway & SmartLanding systems which are aids for situational awareness of your aircraft's location and the locations of aircraft around it.

Grant's talk with GPCAPT Laroche and WOFF Cluff covers the history of Plan Jericho, how the bottom up component referred to as EDGY, was split out to its own initiative, and the successes Jericho is achieving in the software space including AI/ML, and developing the Delphi in-house fleet management system. The discussion also touches on working with University of Sydney's Jericho Smart Sensing Laboratory in multiple areas from neuromorphic sensors to high altitude platforms such as balloons. GPCAPT Laroche also acknowledges that there have been initiatives that failed but that failures are part of innovation and provide important information. WOFF Cluff discusses one of the bottom-up initiatives that was developed through EDGY and then we wrap by considering the difficulty and importance of being agile within Defence, and look ahead to the next ten years of Plan Jericho.

Links:

Honeywell JetWave MCX

aerospace.honeywell.com/us/en/pages/jetwave-mcx

Honeywell SmartRunway and SmartLanding

aerospace.honeywell.com/us/en/products-and-services/products/cabin-and-cockpit/terrain-and-traffic-awareness/runway-safety/smartrunway-and-smartlanding

10 Years of innovation: Air Force celebrates Jericho

www.defence.gov.au/news-events/news/2025-03-30/10-years-innovation-air-force-celebrates-jericho

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Hosted by Grant McHerron

Producer: Steve Visscher

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