Through its partnership with Verizon and Qualcomm, Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Miramar in San Diego is the first military base to test and deploy Verizon 5G in the areas of energy management, connected vehicles, drones, and base security. The path to this 5G deployment required a nimble, and highly collaborative approach to bring this innovative communications technology to life.
This collaborative effort helps pave the way for how the Marines will utilize new capabilities and provides a blueprint for other Department of Defense (DoD) agencies to follow suit.
These are the key themes of part two of the two-part MCAS Miramar 5G Podcast Series on Government Technology Insider, where Lt. Col. Brandon Newell, Director, SoCal Tech Bridge for NavalX; Steve Lamb, Director of Network Field Engineering at Verizon; and Paul Guckian, Vice President of Engineering at Qualcomm, all discussed the next phase of 5G for overall mission success.
“We are very excited about what we are exploring in the 5G living lab in the areas of energy communications, connected vehicles, drones, and what we call the digital fortress,” said Lt. Col. Newell. “The 5G living lab is giving us an opportunity to prototype, and better understand what cellular communications does for these capabilities, and how to best develop the appropriate requirements.”
“5G does not really replace 4G, and we have gone through transitions where there is a co-existence since the analog days,” said Lamb. “5G capitalizes on newer technologies. We are seeing mobile/edge-computing taking data processing power closer to the user – where it becomes more powerful and efficient. As we evolve and migrate to the future, you will see more 5G use, but they can co-exist together.”
“We are really looking for the need for high-quality, low latency and high security, and 5G is designed for this,” said Guckian. “This is great for new verticals like managing drone fleets for delivery, autonomous vehicles, and remote surgery. Though, you will see 4G and 5G together for a long time.”
In addition, the National Security Innovation Network (NSIN), in partnership with NavalX SoCal Tech Bridge, is hosting a live pitch competition with ten 5G-enabled startups competing for $200,000 in prizes on October 27th.
Listen to this full episode below. Be sure to listen to part one of the MCAS Miramar 5G Podcast Series here, where these defense and industry leaders discuss how 5G was made possible at the Miramar base.
