WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS AND MOBILE COMPUTING Wirel. Commun. Mob. Comput. (2013) Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI: 10.1002/wcm.2320 RESEARCH ARTICLE Network properties of mobile tactical scenarios

The mobile tactical network is a practical implementation of the mobile ad hoc network. Formed across tactical radios operating in the military very high frequency and low ultrahigh frequency bands, the mobile tactical network has distinctive characteristics when compared with generic mobile ad hoc networks, in particular with respect to its network topological behaviors and connectivity attributes. These characteristics must be understood and considered when selecting suitable network protocols. To this end, in this paper, a network science-based systematic modeling approach is applied to analyze typical deployment scenarios and identify fundamental tactical network properties. The novel framework employs realistic scenario models as well as radio physical layer performance parameters and channel models to effectively capture the dynamic network behavior that needs to be considered for protocol design. The results provide critical insights and guidance to the development of tactical network solutions. © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada 201