British to upgrade Bowman communications

LONDON, May 15 (UPI) -- The British Ministry of Defense has announced plans to upgrade the military's Bowman tactical communications technologies.

The Bowman communications system, developed by General Dynamics United Kingdom, will undergo a series of upgrades. British defense officials said the upgrades are part of an effort to improve situational awareness for military units during operations and also improve on the technology's ease of use, the British Ministry of Defense reported.

The Bowman tactical communications and data system is used with British tactical vehicles, naval vessels and helicopters, which connect together with headquarters.

According to a news release, the British Defense Ministry is also planning to order an additional 3,400 radios to meet operational and training requirements.

"Bowman is a step change from the old days of analog radios and manual code books," Quentin Davies, minister for defense equipment and support, said in a statement.

"It has been used successfully in Iraq and Afghanistan, where secure, faster communications and simple data exchange is saving lives on the front line."