News from the Australasian region

Gareth Owen, nominated and sponsored by the UK Home Office and representing Great Britain’s Emergency Services Network (ESN), has been elected as the new chair of  TCCA’s Critical Communications Broadband Group (CCBG). Gareth takes over from Tero Pesonen, who was elected chair of TCCA’s Board in June this year.

Read more here

TCCA has announced the appointment a new Board chair and vice-chair, following the retirement of Mladen Vratonjić, who has led the association since 2015. The new chair is Erillisverkot’s Tero Pesonen while Nina Myren of the Norwegian Communications Authority (Nkom) has been appointed as vice-chair.

Read https://www.criticalcomms.com/content/news/tcca-appoints-new-chair-and-vice-chair

23 April 2026 – Caltta Technologies, a global provider of professional wireless communication solutions, showcased its latest Mission Critical Services (MCX) suite and integrated emergency communication solutions at Critical Communications Asia 2026, the inaugural regional event organized by TCCA.

Live demos from the company drew a lot of attention from professionals in the field, system integrators, and public safety stakeholders in the Asia-Pacific region. Read more https://www.criticalcommunicationsreview.com/ccr/news/118531/caltta-demonstrates-mcx-suite-and-emergency-communication-technologies-at-critical-communications-asia-2026

Tait Communications is excited to announce the Tait OpenTrunk shared control channel solution for industries including education, private security, transportation, manufacturing, logistics, hospitality and others. The portfolio includes portable and mobile radios, infrastructure, accessories, and monitoring and services tools.

Read more: https://www.taitcommunications.com/en/about-us/news/tait-announces-shared-control-channel-solution-based-on-open-standards

Mission critical communications have, over many decades, been built on the bedrock of mobile radio; be that DMR or P25 or TETRA. It’s a familiar user experience with few frills but with solid voice communication, where getting the message through is paramount. And for that reason, it continues to play a vital role to this day in sectors like emergency services, transportation and utilities.

Read more here: https://simoco.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Out-of-Area-Always-Connected-with-ROAM-from-Simoco.pdf

Darwin, Northern Territory – AALTO HAPS Ltd, (“AALTO” or “the Company”), an Airbus subsidiary that manufactures, operates, and will deliver services using Zephyr, is targeting its second launch and landing site to be built in northern Australia. Today’s announcement comes alongside AALTO’s call to Australian industry R&D and education bodies as it seeks to cultivate a national Stratospace technology ecosystem that will help create and deliver dual-use services for commercial and government customers in areas such as communications relay and earth observation.

Read more: https://www.aaltohaps.com/AALTO-targets-Australia-for-Zephyrs-next-operating-site-launching-call-to-national-payload-industry/ 

28 November 2025: Hundreds of public safety and emergency management organisations will now have access to the emergency grade Public Safety Network (PSN) Cellular Services following an announcement by government today to increase NGCC’s mandate – NGCC’s Director, Steve Ferguson says it’s good news for the sector with benefits flowing on to community safety and New Zealand’s socio-economic wellbeing.

Read more https://tcca.info/ngcc-to-offer-psn-cellular-services-to-wider-public-safety-and-emergency-management-sector/

11 November 2025, Sydney, Australia: The UK Home Office has awarded a critical communications contract to Etherstack as part of its plan to transition UK public safety communications to its next generation 5G network known as the ESN (Emergency Services Network).Etherstack will deploy its world-leading 3GPP LMR-IWF (InterWorking Function). See more https://www.mcxtend.com/news/uk-home-office-signs-17m-deal-to-enable-comms-between-airwave-and-esn-devices-during-migration

October 2025 – Airbus Public Safety and Security (PSS) and Omnitronics have signed a MoU, at the Comms Connect conference & exhibition in Melbourne, to explore collaboration in the development of interoperable critical communication gateways to facilitate the transition from narrowband to broadband for end users.

Under the MoU, the two parties will investigate the feasibility of developing gateways that facilitate interoperability between Agnet, Airbus’ broadband communication platform, and Airbus TETRA with narrowband critical communication standards such as P25 and Digital Mobile Radios (DMR), and Omnitronics’ radio dispatch management systems, Australian designed, engineered and manufactured products that is exported globally.

It will certainly make migration from P25 or DMR to the Airbus Agnet broadband communication platforms much easier enabling users to communicate between both Narrow Band and Wideband technologies.

Zetron, a division of Codan Limited and a global leader in integrated mission critical solutions, today announced SALUS, the first end-to-end critical communications technology and services platform that provides complete customer choice, interoperability, standards-based architecture, and flexible deployment options. SALUS brings radio, telephony, MCX and data from across the entire communications continuum together onto a single platform, enabling customers in emergency response and critical services to easily scale capacity, capability and interoperability according to their current and future requirements.

Some market-leading functionality of the SALUS platform is now available, including the newest release of Zetron’s ACOM Command and Control, being utilized by the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia to deliver the first fully MCX-capable railway communications network in Australia, with highly reliable mission critical voice, data and video services.

For more information visit http://www.zetron.com/

The panel, which will feature prominent female professionals, aims to discuss the evolving pathways, challenges, and opportunities for women entering the traditionally male-dominated public safety and critical communications sectors and ACCF Chair Bidar Homsey will be part of this panel.

Panel Moderator: Natalie Kolodziej, Telstra’s Head of Enterprise & Radio Networks

Panellists:

• Louise Hyland, CEO of Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (AMTA)
• Cheryl Giggetts, P25 Technology Interest Group board member
• Bidar Homsey, Chair of the Australasian Critical Communications Forum (ACCF), chapter of TCCA
• Rania Wannous, Executive Director of Emergency Management at the NSW Telco Authority
• Genie Tan, COO of Connectivity Innovation Network

Topic: The session will explore the increasing presence of women in the critical communications industry and provide insights into the career paths, hurdles, and potential advancements within these vital sectors.

The Comms Connect Melbourne conference will also feature Prospecta Utilities Executive Director Carly Irving-Dolan; NSW Telco General Manager Kylie De Courteney; and Sara Olsson, Project Manager at MSB (Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency)..

View the article here.

Australian Critical Communications Forum (ACCF) member organisations highly commended and winning awards at International Communications Awards (ICCA) during the Brussels CCW2025

• The winner of Best use of critical communications in utilities: Vertel with Icon Water TMR Replacement.
• The winner of Best MCX product or solution of the year: Frequentis AG with MissionX Android SDK, first MCS client platform, certified by GCF
• Highly Commended for Best TETRA product or solution of the year: Airbus Defence and Space with Taira – Secured Virtual Core for TETRA and hybrid TETRA
• The winner of Best TETRA product or solution of the year: Sepura Limited with Sepura SC28 Module
• The Phil Kidner Award for an Individual Outstanding Contribution to critical communications went to Mark Wealleans, Motorola Solutions
• The winner of TCCA young engineer of the year went to Adam Howe of Sepura Limited

During Critical Communications World 2025 in Bussels, the ICCA judges highly commended Tait Communications for its “Best use of critical communications in industrial, manufacturing, mining resources, oil & gas exploration” its Swedish Zinkgruvan Mining AB project, a 6 site DMR Tier 3 minesite system for 750 users, interconnected with 4G LTE via Tait PTToX” a real example of  Interconnecting a PMR Network with a Private LTE Network.

https://www.critical-communications-world.com/2025-icca-winners

https://www.taitcommunications.com/clients/zinkgruvan-mining-ab-sweden

The Global Village at the Critical Communications World event 2025 at Brussels provided for a dedicated space for 25 representatives of national critical communications projects from around the world to come together to discuss ideas, challenges and best practice and Australia was represented by the New South Wales Telecoms Authority (NSWTA).

The Global Village facilitates knowledge sharing and benchmarking, while at the same time, enabling organisations to share the great work that they have carried out so far. With each international authority at different phases in its programme developments, this is the perfect platform for stakeholders to collaborate and move forward together. Uniting governments and operators and fostering a spirit of collaboration across international borders. See more https://www.critical-communications-world.com/global-village

19/06/2025 The winner of “Best use of Critical Communications in Utilities” at the International Critical Communications Awards at Brussels CCW2025:  Australian Vertel for its Icon Water TMR Replacement in partnership with Airbus

The Vertel Icon Water project demonstrated clear end user benefits and is the 2025 winner of the prestigious international critical communications solutions award in the utility sector. This award category evaluates use cases from utility customers (electric, water, gas, renewables and energy companies) from around the world that demonstrate good utilisation of critical communications solutions in real world operational systems and Vertel was a clear winner.

https://www.critical-communications-world.com/2025-icca-winners

Vertel is an Australian wholly-owned mission, business, and life-critical information communications and technology company with over 40 years of experience. Vertel takes the best of what is available in the broader telecommunications, ICT and cloud services market and integrate this with own network infrastructure to deliver the highest-performing services in Australia with a vision to enable smarter, healthier and safer Australian communities through excellence in innovation, delivery and support of our service. https://vertel.com.au/

The International Critical Communications Awards (ICCAs), presented by TCCA, are the most prestigious awards in critical communications. Celebrating excellence in the sector, the highly anticipated annual programme recognises the success of products, organisations and individuals that have pushed boundaries and capabilities within the field. Each year the awards are open to any organisation or individual with a compelling story to tell that has a positive impact on the critical communications world.

The Global Certification Forum and TCCA have announced “increasing industry support” for the GCF Certification Programme for Broadband Mission Critical Services that will ultimately result in conformance and interoperability testing covered in GCF MCX product certification as Belgian operator ASTRID has recently joined the GCF, alongside Erillisverkot from Finland. This follows Sweden’s Myndigheten för Samhällsskydd och Beredskap (MSB) becoming the first public safety organisation to join as mission critical communications operators. Other European organisations are also in the process of joining the initiative. Keysight Technologies announced being first in the market to validate at GCF 3GPP EUTRA mission critical test cases, using ETSI MCX EUTRA TTCN. These achievements facilitate conformance testing being adopted to guarantee standards compliance and ensure high reliability, performance and interworking, mandated by mission-critical communications.”The GCF certification programme assures device-network and client-server compliance to 3GPP standards for mission critical devices and services, as well as contributing to reducing testing cost and accelerating time-to-market.”

See more https://www.criticalcomms.com/content/news/gcf-mission-critical-services-certification-gains-momentum

There’s no secret that Ai has immense transformational abilities, so we are proud to announce our partnership with Ipsotek, an Eviden business, a global leader in Computer Vision and pioneer in the field of artificial intelligence powered video analytics solutions for mission critical applications.

Customers will be able to select from to enable real-time alerts, or track trends via custom dashboard to support training or accelerate process improvements. This is a fantastic addition for Aqura customers to extract more value from already in place network enabled video infrastructure to reduce risk, enhance worker safety and drive productivity.

We’re thrilled to offer this new capability which is leveraged globally by leading enterprise and public sector organisations. https://aqura.com.au/contact-us/

With its heritage in mobile radio and extensive experience in the Australian mining sector Simoco is rising to the challenge of delivering the benefits of digital transformation in mining. We take a look at how Simoco’s Velocity platform can harness the safety and efficiency benefits of Mining 4.0.

Visit – Simoco Company Insight – Mine Australia | Issue 54 | April 2025

Presentation at ARCIA event in Perth, 2nd April, by Faz Moradi, director of the Australasian Critical Communications Forum, and Director, Client Solutions and Strategic Partnerships, Motorola Solutions Australia and New Zealand

Faz Moradi, director of the Australasian Critical Communications Forum, and Director, Client Solutions and Strategic Partnerships, Motorola Solutions Australia and New Zealand presented at the ARCIA conference at Perth on 2nd of April covering “Pathways to Deploy 3GPP Mission Critical Broadband Services (MCX), with various case studies.  For more information visit ARCIA_3GPP Mission Critical Broadband Services (MCX)

MELBOURNE, Australia – February 14, 2025 — The Victorian government has signed a 10-year, AUD $500 million (USD ~$330 million) contract with Motorola Solutions to maintain and enhance the Metropolitan Mobile Radio network (MMR) relied upon by the state’s emergency services – the contract with the Department of Justice and Community Safety will extend MMR’s operation until 2035, providing secure and trusted radio communications for the state’s public safety agencies, including Victoria Police, Ambulance Victoria. For more information visit https://tcca.info/victorian-government-extends-investment-in-resilient-land-mobile-radio-communications-with-motorola-solutions/

Telstra, Australia’s leading telecommunications company, has become the latest organisation to join TCCA, the global member-led organisation for all stakeholders in the critical communications ecosystem.

Specifically for mission critical communications, Telstra supports public safety and emergency services, mining, oil and gas operations, transportation and logistics. Telstra’s Land Mobile Radio network is essential in many government radio networks, and Telstra’s private mobile broadband networks are deployed extensively across logistics, fleet management, supply chain infrastructure and in the public sector. Satellite connectivity is delivered through partnerships with multiple satellite providers. For more information go to https://tcca.info/telstra-australia%e2%80%99s-leading-telecommunications-company-joins-tcca/

New Zealand-based Tait Communications announces its acquisition of m-View, with a portfolio of video offerings for critical-communications users, including body-worn cameras, in-car video technology and a digital-evidence management platform. For more information go to https://urgentcomm.com/tracking-monitoring-control/tait-communications-buys-m-view-critical-video-company

Stay ahead of the digital transformation curve by learning why and how Private broadband networks are rapidly evolving  globally and being employed. Engineering Education Australia (EEA) In partnership with Wray Castle are organising a Live Webinar, on 25 Feb, 2025, 5–6pm AEDT, and endorsed by the Australasian Critical Communications Forum (ACCF), chapter of TCCA.

Private networks are also becoming particularly important in industry, where digital transformation is increasing the demand for smart factories, industrial robotics, AI, IoT, and autonomous vehicles. It will also get you up-to-speed on the key underlying technologies, such as 4G, 5G, and Wi-Fi.

Register here:

https://eea.org.au/courses/understanding-private-broadband-networks

or https://wraycastle.com/blogs/webinar/understanding-private-broadband-networks

Registrations close three business days before the event.

About Engineering Education Australia (EEA) https://eea.org.au/about-us

EEA is at the forefront of professional development for engineers. Working in collaboration with Engineers Australia, as well as leading experts in education and business, we help our clients maintain their professional standards and remain competitive throughout their careers. As Engineers Australia’s training provider, we are deeply embedded in the world of engineering. We keep a constant watch on industry trends and emerging technologies, and we respond to these, ensuring all our training courses, workshops and programs are designed around today’s engineers.

About Wray Castle https://wraycastle.com/, a preferred training provider and valuable member of TCCA https://tcca.info/about-tcca/tcca-resources/training/. Wray Castle empower the telecoms world by developing the specialist knowledge organisations need to build, optimise and operate the cutting-edge communications networks of today and tomorrow. Trusted by the industry since 1958, our telecoms training solutions helped upskill over 300,000 professionals from mobile and fixed operators, vendors, regulators, consultants, rail operators, energy suppliers and government organisations worldwide.

TCCA, the global member-led organisation for all stakeholders in the critical communications ecosystem of which the Australasian Critical Communications Forum (ACCF) is its regional chapter, has announced that the US National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) Division has become a member. See more https://tcca.info/category/tcca-news/

TCCA also collaborates with standardisations organisation ETSI and 3GPP and the Global Certification Forum (GCF).

In September the Australasian Critical Communications Forum (ACCF), regional chapter of the TCCA, organised a workshop in Melbourne with the leadership of ETSI, 3GPP and TCCA/CCBG following the 3GPP Plenary meetings (TSGs#105) hosted by Telstra. Workshop was attended by Government Ministries, Regulators and the Critical Communications industry. Topics ranged from latest 3GPP release timelines and key drivers for 6G. (Ref September news item).

NIST PSCR supported ACCF Workshops at the Critical Comms event in Melbourne.

Founded in 2004, Frequentis Australasia is marking 20 years of delivering innovative, safety critical solutions for air, land, and sea across Australia, New Zealand, and the wider region – a special reception was held at the Austrian Embassy in Canberra to celebrate this milestone. View the full news article here.

9/11/2024

The ACCF, regional chapter of TCCA in Australasia and Oceania is proud to be part of TCCA’s 30 years of mission critical innovations and its focus of promoting the use of standardised technologies to deliver mission-critical communication systems that are secure, available, resilient, interoperable and, ultimately, trusted that include M/C digital LMR and the development of M/C broadband solutions such as MCX, broadband callout, spectrum, and security.

As 3GPP’s Market Representation Partner, TCCA has integrated the unique needs of mission-critical users into 3GPP releases, that are the foundation of standardised critical broadband solutions further supported by ETSI Plugtest interoperability testing and strengthened by Global Certification Forum’s (GCF) certification programme.

TCCA engages and its participation in various international and regional events ranging from its own annual Critical Communications World (CCW) event and CommsConnect conference and workshops here in our Australasia region has significantly contributed to its awareness and growth.

With TCCA emphasis through it regional chapter, the ACCF, for secure and standardised technologies for a safer world, we encourage participation from stakeholders interested in shaping the future of critical communications in the Australasian and Oceania region.

Bidar Homsey,

Chairman

Australasian Critical Communications Forum Ltd

Chapter of The Critical Communications Association (TCCA)

Email: admin@criticalcommsforum.com.au

Website: Australasian Critical Communications Forum – TCCA

The Simoco tour will also travel to Sydney, Brisbane (Bidar Homsey, ACCF Chair will present there) and Alan Seery (former ACCF Chair) will present in  Perth.

The Australian Critical Communications Forum (ACCF), chapter of TCCA successfully organised 2 workshops for Governments and Industry as part of the CommsConnect event on 15th of October,

The 2 ACCF workshops focussed on “From Narrowband to broadband critical networks –How do we make this journey work?” and “Learning from Mission Critical LMR/Broadband Deployments and Roll-out of Networks”

The first workshop included presentations and case studies on MC digital LMR and LMR/LTE interworking solutions by technology suppliers Motorola Australia, Airbus & VERTEL Australia, Radlink Australia, Tait New Zealand and Sepura UK.

The second workshop focused on roll-out and status of national Public Safety broadband networks by FirstNet USA, Hourua/HGCC New Zealand and the PSMB Taskforce National Emergency Management Agency Australia. GSMA 5G Industry APAC gave an overview of its activities in Asia Pacific and its role in Public Safety. Both Kevin Graham and Tero Pesonen of TCCA were active in both presentations and panel discussions.

ACCF AGM

The ACCF’s AGM on 15^th of October was attended by its members, as well as two of the Board Directors of TCCA-Critical Communications; Tero Pesonen Board, TCCA Vice Chair/CCBG Chair and Kevin Graham, CEO of TCCA.  ACCF is the Australasian Chapter of TCCA with memberships from end users, operators and industry across our region. With Alan Seery standing down as ACCF chairman Bidar Homsey of Frequentis was elected as the new ACCF chairman with Jim Reid of Radlink as Co-Chair.

Meanwhile ACCF Board wish to congratulate Kevin Graham, the winner of ARCIA’s  (Australia’s Radio Communications Industry Association) prestigious Jonathan Livingstone Award 2024 presented at the CommConnect gala night on 16th of October. This award is given to an individual ‘who has risen above the flock – learned more and achieved greatness, and has taken the knowledge back to the community to help others better themselves. Also Jim Reid, ACCF director and MD of Radlink received an ARCIA award.

For more information on the Australian Critical Communications Forum, please contact admin@criticalcommsforum.com.au

Kevin Graham, TCCA CEO highlighted the need for finding consensus on the prioritization of features. He called for actors to resist the temptation to go-it-alone, he said “Our industry needs to get involved at the standards level. If we want features for our space, we need to follow their progress through all stages of the 3GPP process.”

For more on the workshop see 3GPP news article here.

TCCA and GSMA delve into how 4G/5G & 3GPP MCX can significantly enhance operational capability in public safety & critical industry sectors operating narrowband standard networks like TETRA & P25. The goal is to propel MCC networks toward a future where heavy data-based use cases are seamlessly supported.

Key topics include:

• Importance of Unlocking Data-Driven Public Safety Communication
• Bridging LMR and 3GPP LTE/5G – Role of 5G
• LTE/5G Public Safety Network Deployment Models
• Implementation requirement and consideration for Critical Communication,

Watch the event recording here 

This webinar took place on the 1st August 2024.

The slides and recording are now available here

Ensuring that mission critical services over broadband networks are actually mission critical is a complex process – first responders and other users of critical communications services need to have full trust in their voice, video and data applications in what could be life-threatening situations. To ensure this trust, the Global Certification Forum (GCF) is working together with TCCA to develop an industry certification program for mission critical products and solutions where conformance to 3GPP standards will be checked and verified and thus ensure interoperability between different solution providers. Read the article from page 23 here

Discover how Rio Tinto, a global leader in mining and metals, overcame communication challenges across their extensive operations with Simoco’s innovative solutions. Faced with scalability issues, frequency exhaustion, and maintenance complexity, Rio Tinto needed a robust communication system to support their 15 expansive mine sites. The strategic decision to upgrade the communication infrastructure to P25 Phase 1 trunked technology by Rio Tinto not only addressed the challenges posed by scalability and frequency exhaustion but also provided the client with a robust, efficient, and future-proofed solution tailored to their specific operational requirements. 👉 Read the full case study here: https://bit.ly/4bgCkyY.

Our CEO Kevin Graham attended Comms Connect New Zealand, meeting TCCA and ACCF members and presenting an update on the work of TCCA and our members, a successful conference and exhibition exceeding the attendance in 2023. Great to meet with our New Zealand, international members and local industry, and network with peer industry associations RFUANZ and ARCIA. Looking forward to the Comms-Connect Melbourne vent on 17-19 October.

ACCF Directors Bidar Homsey of  Frequentis, Gary Botley of Zetron and Mark Wood of DAMM Australia with Kevin Graham,TCCA CEO, on the ACCF stand at Comms Connect New Zealand, 26^th of June 2024.

For the fourth year running, the Australasian Critical Communications Forum (ACCF), invites you to its CCBitesize Webinar bringing mission critical and business critical end users in Australasia/Oceania the latest in Critical Communications deployments, trends and innovations impacting the sector.

Click here for more information and to register

The Global Certification Forum (GCF) has announced that it is adding 3GPP-based mission-critical services, also known as MCS or MCX, to its certification program. Read more here

Great news! The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has advised that Area-Wide Licence (AWL) applications for metro and regional areas are still open for mid-band 5G use. If you’re on the fence, now is the time to act to secure spectrum for a future 5G upgrade, or to de-risk a future new Private 5G deployment. Chat with the Aqura team about how they can help you navigate the process to secure sufficient spectrum for your requirements. https://aqura.com.au/spectrum-advisory/

Globally 5G technology will significantly impact industrial IoT (IIoT) by enabling ultra-fast speeds, low latency, enhanced capacity, and improved security. This transformation will unlock unprecedented possibilities, driving smart cities, advanced industrial automation, and supporting billions of connected devices.

SmartConnect will enable NSW VRA to securely access New South Wales’ public safety network. The system maintains reliable communications connectivity by automatically switching channels between LMR, broadband, Wi-Fi and satellite networks. Using Motorola APX NEXT broadband-enabled radios and SmartConnect, responders can take resilient voice communication even further by automatically switching from LMR to broadband networks when users travel outside of radio coverage areas. Read more here.

There are only a few weeks let to enter the International Critical Communications Awards. With a full range of categories covering innovation, implementation, emerging technologies and more, as well as the opportunity for ACCF members and associates to nominate individuals who have made major contributions in our sector, there is something for everyone. An expert panel of independent judges take all aspects of entries into consideration and are looking to recognise the best in our sector. https://www.critical-communications-world.com/iccas.

Serving the sector for more than 20 years. Critical Communications World (CCW) unites mission-critical and business-critical end-users with manufacturers and suppliers for three days of inspiration, knowledge and connections.

CCW returns 14th – 16th May 2024 at Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Dubai Government’s Secure network provider Nedaa will support CCW 2024 as Host Operator in collaboration with the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism. https://www.critical-communications-world.com/

The Board of the Australasian Critical Communications Forum (ACCF) expresses gratitude to Jonathan Brine for his dedication to the Australasian Critical Communications Forum. Jonathan has resigned from the Board, and Alan Seery, who previously served as co-chair with Jonathan, will assume the chairman role. Additionally, Adrian Hill, Nokia Oceania, has joined the Board, and we extend a warm welcome, anticipating productive collaboration ahead.