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Frequency Hopping System
HAVE QUICK is the codename of an American Frequency Hopping system.
It is used for the protection of military UHF radio traffic, such as
air-to-air and ground-to-air communications in the 225-400 MHz band.
It was introduced in 1980
as an Electronic Counter Counter-Measure (ECCM)
after it became clear in the 1970s that aircraft communication could easily
be intercepted and jammed by a third party with inexpensive means.
As most of the radios used in aircraft communication were already
synthesizer-based, it was relatively easy to add frequency hopping to it.
As of 2007, nearly all US military aircraft use HAVE QUICK frequency hopping.
HAVE QUICK was later improved to HAVE QUICK II and is now in use by both
the US and the UK.
HAVE QUICK II is also used by the Second generation Anti-jamming Tactical
UHF Radio for Nato (SATURN).
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Please note that HAVE QUICK is not an integrated radio system like
SINCGARS and that the method used for frequency
hopping is not compatible with SINCGARS
frequency hopping either.
The SINCGARS radios work on a different radio band and use a different
frequency hopping method. There are, however, radios that have both methods
implemented.
The new Joint Tactical Radio System or JTRS
(pronounced jitters)
is based on Software Defined Radio (SDR) and supports both
SINCGARS and HAVE QUICK frequency hopping.
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HAVE QUICK radios use a very complex frequency hopping scheme that is
extermely difficult to predict. It is linked to the actual time of day (TOD)
and requires a very accurate clock. Usually, a GPS receiver is used for this.
At the heart of the system is a microprocessor-based
cryptogpaphic pseudo-random number generator
that is initiated with:
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TOD Time of Day WOD Word of Day NET Net number
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The WOD is used as a key and
the NET number allows multiple nets to use the same WOD.
Together, TOD, WOD and NET are used as input (seed) to the pseudo-random
number generator that controls the frequency changes.
Please note that HAVE QUICK itself is not an encryption system,
but an ECCM (electronic counter counter-measure).
It can, however, be used in combination with encryption systems, such as
the KY-57 (Vinson),
the KY-58 (Vinson),
the KY-99 (MINTERM)
or the KY-100 (AIRTERM).
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Wednesday 31 March 2010. Last changed: Friday, 03 May 2024 - 07:51 CET.
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