SoftBank completes trans-Pacific HAPS trial and tests services
SoftBank said it completed Japan's first HAPS trial service by flying an Sceye lighter-than-air vehicle about 15,000 km from Roswell, New Mexico to Japan, arriving after a 13-day flight and operating over a target area off Cape Muroto. The HAPS maintained position within a 5 km radius despite stratospheric weather and hosted a 4G LTE-equivalent base station linked to SoftBank's core network via a ground gateway. Tests confirmed voice and text including emergency calls, video streaming, video calling and emergency alert messaging, and SoftBank said data performance matched terrestrial networks while performance verification continues ahead of commercialisation plans.
SoftBank demonstrated stable 4G-equivalent HAPS communications over Japan
Context
SoftBank previously pledged a pre-commercial offering and partnered with Sceye. The companies flew an LTA HAPS from the United States to Japan and ran extended tests. Next steps could include finishing verification and moving toward…
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