Aerospace & Defense Technology - February 2023 - 6

From the Editor
New Year, New Editor
W
elcome to the February 2023 edition of Aerospace &
Defense Technology (A&DT), the first issue that I have
taken over as the editor from Bruce Bennett. I join SAE Media
Group after spending 10 years with Avionics International Magazine,
where I traveled all over the world covering the latest
advancements in commercial and military aircraft communications,
navigation and surveillance systems. I know that
Bruce leaves behind some huge shoes to fill, and in this role,
I will stand on the shoulders of giants while looking to introduce
some new digital content elements well.
Immediately in this new role I want to get as much feedback
from our readers about what new and exciting aerospace and
defense technologies, topics and industry trends you're most
interested in seeing featured in our publication this year. This
is an exciting time to be taking the editorial lead of this historic
publication, working with brands in SAE Media Group,
SAE International and Tech Briefs that I have been reading and
engaging with through industry events for many years now.
In this issue, I want to highlight an interesting two-sided
perspective of a topic that has been growing in aerospace and
defense industry interest in recent years: Modular Open Systems
Architecture (MOSA). As most of you already know, In
January 2019, U.S. Air Force, Army and Navy officials signed
the MOSA memorandum to outline a standard new embedded
computing design approach to developing and upgrading
electronic warfare, signals intelligence, radar and communications
applications for U.S. Navy, Army, and Air Force airborne
and ground-based systems in the future.
Since then, most major aerospace and defense OEMs and
their embedded suppliers have been developing prototype
electronics that incorporate open systems architectures. One
such example is the U.S. Army's CMOSS Mounted Form Factor
(CMFF), a standard " plug-and-play " approach explained in a
July 2021 post by the Army Program Executive Office (PEO).
CMFF uses the C5ISR/EW Modular Open Suite of Standards
(CMOSS) that gives the Army the ability to " insert cards, each
embedded with networked capabilities such as Positioning,
Navigation and Timing (PNT), mission command applications,
or radio waveforms, into a common ruggedized chassis "
inside a tactical aircraft or vehicle, according to Army PEO.
In recent years, I have interviewed many different industry
and government officials about the adoption of open systems
architectures and even recently visited a site operated
by Collins Aerospace in Alabama where several ready-to-fly
The Genesys avionics system featured in a TH-73 helicopter. (Image: Genesys
Aerosystems)
MOSA prototypes are in various stages of development. The
majority of news and technical literature that I have seen
around the Department of Defense's (DOD) adoption of open
systems architecture in aircraft has focused on the re-use and
flexible upgrade benefits that such an approach can yield for
operators. Now, as new MOSA technologies start to transition
from prototype to testing and becoming operational, A&DT
provides two articles that look at the positives and negatives
of MOSA.
The cover story for this issue gives an example of how an
integrated flight deck developed by Genesys Aerosystems is
already demonstrating MOSA adoption inside some upgraded
Army Blackhawk cockpits, among other aircraft operated
by other DOD agencies and several of its international allies.
Another article provided by General Micro Systems presents
a different perspective on MOSA. While acknowledging the
re-use benefits of open systems architectures such as CMOSS
and CMFF, the article questions whether such an industry-standard
plug-and-play slot-card form factor could stifle
innovation among embedded electronics suppliers.
What would you like to see covered in A&DT this year? Drop
me an email and let me know. I hope to meet some of you at
the events I'll be attending this year. Thanks for reading!
Woodrow Bellamy
6
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Aerospace & Defense Technology, February 2023
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Aerospace & Defense Technology - February 2023

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