scope:

This standard is mandatory within the DoD and will be invoked by CC specifications for all future CCs that implement the capability required to permit UHF SATCOM terminals to communicate on multiple-access 5- and 25-kHz UHF SATCOM channels. Existing CCs undergoing major modification, and CCs under development, will conform to this standard if they control access to multiple-access channels over UHF SATCOM channels.

Purpose. This standard establishes mandatory requirements applicable to the channel controller (CC) to provide the capability for terminals to access pre-assigned (PA) or demand-assigned (DA) user-to-user communications (UCOM) services that operate on either 5-kHz or 25-kHz ultra high frequency (UHF) satellite communications (SATCOM) channels and represent the minimum requirements that must be implemented. Requirements in this standard may be exceeded by the CC to satisfy specific Department of Defense (DoD) requirements, provided interoperability is maintained. For example, the incorporation of additional standard and nonstandard interfaces is not precluded. MIL-STD-188-181 defines the modulation types and rates, forward error correction (FEC), interleaving, usertraffic communications security (COMSEC), and performance parameters that apply to the bursts employed for each transmission employed in this standard.