Abstract: Military systems in particular face two specific problems: field casualties typically increase as unit visibility decreases and it is often difficult for ground stations and/or headquarters to maintain control and visibility of geographically dispersed assets. The system provides satellite communications such as two-way messaging, Voice over Packet, and global positioning information and reporting for fixed and rotary wing aircrafts where traditional methods of communications are not otherwise practical. The system provides communications between remote users and other remote users as well as between remote users and control stations. In some embodiments there is an in-flight transceiver system that includes an antenna, an aviation box, and a switch. The aviation box conforms to a one-half, ½ short Air Transport Rack (ATR) form factor and includes a transceiver, an interface card, and a global positioning system (GPS) unit.