Photo By 1st Lt. Marcelo Marta | From left, Rugged Applications Platform-Tactical Radios Technical Operations (RAP-TR)...... read more read more
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FORT BLISS, Texas - U.S. Soldiers with the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, are enhancing border communication capabilities through training on the Ruggedized Applications Platform-Tactical Radios Network, or RAP-TR Net.
The new system, first introduced in 2021, enables secure, reliable communications across rugged terrain along the 2,000-mile southern U.S. border. U.S. Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment; 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment; and 704th Brigade Support Battalion are currently receiving hands-on instruction.
”It allows Soldiers to quickly and efficiently program radios, cutting man-hours as they move towards the future of communications.” said JaShon Hunter, a civilian RAP-TR Net Technical Instructor who teaches U.S. Soldiers at Fort Bliss the new system. “A big thing here on the border is ‘MUOS’, Mobile User Objective System- it's a waveform that allows you to connect from any distance in the world…they can even be in the Pentagon talking straight to a unit on the border. Instant and secure communication.”
Since the deployment of the Joint Task Force–Southern Border (JTF-SB) earlier this year, one of the most significant operational challenges has been maintaining secure communication among units from different brigades, divisions, and branches operating along the 2,000-mile border. RAP-TR Net helps address this by replacing older models like the Integrated Waveform and Tactical Satellite networks. MUOS replaces this system with a classified and unclassified system.
RAP-TR Net replaces older communication platforms by supporting up to 250 radios on a classified network using dynamic IP discovery. An unclassified version supports up to 100 radios. The system allows for “voice bridges” to facilitate direct and group calls across units, improving coordination.
U.S. Army Cpl. Eric Bowen, an intelligence analyst for the 704th Brigade Support Battalion, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, who attended the training, spoke on his experience in the course, “I worked as a company RTO in field exercises in the past where I used the older systems, the RT-1523s…the radios we trained with [here] are night and day.” While they haven’t had the chance to use this new equipment in the field, Cpl. Bowen said that this new system will make the patrol along the border easier, “every radio can function as a repeater increasing its range, these new radios fit on your gear, and you can look down and troubleshoot from right there. It’s more practical for dismounted operations; it's a night and day difference.”
Training on RAP-TR Net takes less than one-third of the time required for legacy systems around 60 hours freeing up personnel and improving operational efficiency for Joint Task Force–Southern Border.
| Date Taken: | 06.07.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.23.2025 14:33 |
| Story ID: | 500761 |
| Location: | FORT BLISS, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 80 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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