Friday fragments - comms news from around the web for 27 September 2013

A weekly round-up of critical communications and public safety radio news from around the internet for Friday, 27 September 2013.

US Army's new radios. US land forces are to receive 232 high-bandwidth radios to provide high-speed, mobile comms. The mid-tier networking vehicular radio (MNVR) supersedes another system that was terminated in 2011 due to cost overruns. The US$120 million tender has attracted a number of competitors, including BAE Systems, General Dynamics, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman and Harris RF Communications.

Out of touch. First responders who attended the scene of the shooting at a naval yard in the USA say they had trouble communicating with each other. Some firefighters and police officers say they had communications difficulties inside one of the buildings, with some saying they had to resort to using mobile phones. And a lack of interoperability between different fire departments, and police, meant some officers had to resort to using runners to effect communications.

Fishermen rescued. Three Mexican fishermen were rescued from a severe storm after sending a distress signal via the emergency button on their GPS-equipped DMR radio. A hundred of the radios were issued by Mexican authorities after several other fisherman were lost at sea last year. Mexico's Risk Management Secretary plans to acquire even more of the radios.

Broadband for billions. Canny inventors are coming up with ways to provide broadband communications to remote areas using a variety of novel techniques, which include low-flying satellites; high-altitude balloons to form a mesh grid; solar-powered drone aircraft; and using 'white space' in the TV spectrum