VIAVI Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAV) has been selected by the U.S. Army’s Threat Systems Management Office to supply a software-defined transceiver system for newly opened Army test ranges. The choice gives range operators a way to build realistic, contested electromagnetic-spectrum conditions before drone, counter-drone and interceptor technologies move closer to operational use.
The work is part of the Army’s Test Range Private Industry Initiative, which opens designated ranges to commercial developers. For government technology leaders, the consequential change is not simply another piece of radio-frequency equipment: it is more capacity to test systems against a controlled but complex electronic environment rather than relying on benign conditions that can conceal weaknesses.
VIAVI said its T/Rx system will provide electromagnetic-spectrum environments for the ranges. The compact, rugged system can monitor, record, analyze and transmit radio-frequency signals; it combines signal generation and collection in one field-deployable unit. According to the company, operators can use it to create representative waveforms, frequency-agile emitters and multiple-signal scenarios that resemble a contested spectrum.
That matters because unmanned aircraft and the counter-drone systems meant to detect or defeat them depend on communications, navigation and sensing that can be disrupted or deceived. A test event that does not account for electronic interference can produce a misleading view of how a platform will perform once other emitters, jamming or competing signals are present. Range instrumentation that can replay recorded signals or generate synthetic ones gives developers a repeatable way to assess those risks.
The company said the system will support drones, counter-drones and interceptor development. Camp Grayling, one of the initiative’s designated sites, hosted a recurring electromagnetic-unreliability test in September in which the T/Rx delivered on-demand spectrum complexity intended to reproduce contested electronic-warfare conditions observed in Ukraine. VIAVI did not disclose the value or duration of the Army selection, how many systems will be supplied, or which additional ranges will receive them.
The platform’s architecture is also relevant to range operations. VIAVI says the network-enabled units can be controlled from devices on the network and work together across a distributed test environment. Its T/Rx and Ranger platforms share waveform files, allowing recordings gathered remotely to be transferred for analysis and synthetic waveforms to be sent back for playback. The company also says its EMS Sequencer software can automate transmit-and-receive scenarios remotely; those capabilities still require agencies to validate configuration, safety controls and measurement methods for each event.
One potential government use case would be a state or federal test facility evaluating a new counter-drone sensor near airport, base or critical-infrastructure communications. Range staff could introduce selected radio-frequency conditions, observe whether the sensor continues to detect and classify an aircraft, then repeat the scenario after a software change. That is an illustrative application, not a deployment detail disclosed by the Army or VIAVI.
The selection illustrates a shift in defense test infrastructure toward more adaptable spectrum simulation as autonomous systems proliferate. The practical value will depend on whether the ranges can give developers credible, repeatable evidence of performance under interference—not merely a more elaborate demonstration environment. For procurement and mission teams, that makes the quality of test design, data collection and independent evaluation as important as the transceiver itself.