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USA ITT GD JTRS →
US Combat Radio Network
The Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System, abbreviated SINCGARS,
is a Combat Radio Network (CRN) used by the US Armed Forces and some
of their allies. It comprises a wide variety of radio sets ranging from
hand-held devices (portable radios) to vehicle mounted units. The radios can
handle voice and data communication, both secure (encrypted) and non-secure.
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SINCGARS radios work in the lower VHF radio band (30 to 88 MHz),
and have a 25 kHz channel spacing. They can operate on a single channel
as wel as in Frequency Hopping mode (FH). In FH-mode, the radio uses
a low hopping-rate.
Early SINCGARS sets, such as the RT-1439/VRC shown here,
were only suitable for non-secure communication and required an external
crypto device
such as the KY-57 (VINSON) or the newer KY-99 (ANDVT).
ICOM versions of SINCGARS, such as RT-1523, had built-in
COMSEC, so that an external encryptor was no longer required.
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The bidding contest for SINCGARS equipment started in 1983 and was
eventually won in November of that year by ITT.
After the contract had been awarded to them, production started in 1984.
SINCGARS replaced the synthesized single-frequency radios from the
Vietnam-era, such as the AN/PRC-77 and AN/VRC-12,
but were still backward compatible with them.
In total, more than 750,000 SINCGARS radios were produced,
many of which were upgraded or modified over the years [1].
The typical replacement price for a single SINCGARS radio was
around US$ 6,500.
Since 2008, SINCGARS is superseded by a Software Defined Radio (SDR)
solution known as Joint Tactical Radio System or JTRS,
(pronounced jitters),
that is backward compatible with HAVEQUICK
and SINCGARS.
Due to budget overruns, technical problems, specification changes
and program restructurings,
introduction of JTRS was postphoned several times.
The SINCGARS product line was completed in 2010 with the RT-1523G,
which is JTRS SCA compliant.
In 2011, ITT's defense business was spun-off as Exellis, after which
it was taken over by Harris in 2015.
in 2019, Harris was merged with L3 Technologies
to form L3Harris, who continued to sell the RT-1523G [D].
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SINCGARS equipment on this website
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Related equipment on this website
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| Model | Year | Qty | ICOM | SIP | ASIP | Remark |
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RT-1439
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1988
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16,475
|  | | | non-ICOM, external crypto. ITT
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| RT-1523 | 1990 | 39,375 |  | | | Built-in KY-57 compatible COMSEC |
| RT-1523A | | | | | | Manufactured by General Dynamics |
| RT-1523B | 1994 | 37,363 | | | | Improved COSITE, increased battety life |
| RT-1523C | 1996 | 35,152 | | | | Embedded RAILMAN COMSEC device |
| RT-1523D | | | | | | Manufactured by General Dynamics |
| RT-1523E | 1998 | 136,027 | | | | Half size/weight |
| RT-1523F | 2006 | 273,037 | | | | SideHat, 2-channel version (aux), RBCI |
| RT-1523G | 2010 | 12,029 | | | | Modernised crypto, JTRS SCA compliance |
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Special versions
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| RT-1730C | 1996 | ? | | | | Modified RT-1523C for Naval applications |
| RT-1730E | 1998 | ? | | | | Modified RT-1523E for Naval applications |
| RT-1702E | 1998 | ? | | | | Export version RT-1523E |
| RT-1702F | 2006 | ? | | | | Export version RT-1523F |
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| Configuration | Description |
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| AN/VRC-87 | Vehicular 5W short range |
| AN/VRC-145 | Vehicular 50W, 2 × RT-1523, HMMWV |
| AN/VRC-88 | Vehicular 5W dismountable (with manpack accessories) |
| AN/VRC-89 | Vehicular 50W short/long-range |
| AN/VRC-90 | Vehicular 50W long-range |
| AN/VRC-91 | Vehicular 50W long-range, dismountable (manpack acc.) |
| AN/VRC-92 | Vehicular 50W dual long-range (retransmit) |
| AN/PRC-119 | 5W manpack |
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Over the years, there were various improvement programs:
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- ICOM
From 1990 onwards, starting wit the RT-1523, all models had built-in
voice encryption based on the KY-57 (VINSON)
standard. This is known as Integrated COMSEC (ICOM).
- SIP
In 1996, starting with the RT-1523C, a so-called System Improvement Program
(SIP) was launched. Radios manufactured under the SIP, are capable of
sending data with Forward Error Correction (FEC), at higher baudrates,
with better accuracy and over a longer range.
- ASIP
In 1998, starting with the RT-1523E, the so-called Advanced System Improvement
Program (ASIP) was launched, in which the size and weight of the equipment
were more than halved. In addition, new data modes were added, enhanced FEC,
RS232 asynchronous data, packet data and direct interfacing to Precision
Lightweight GPS Receiver (PLGR).
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Wednesday 21 March 2012. Last changed: Friday, 30 May 2025 - 13:01 CET.
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