Viasat Link 16 network visualization. Photo: Viasat

L3Harris Technologies on Tuesday said it has received all U.S. and international regulatory approvals for its pending acquisition of the tactical data link product line from Viasat, with the deal now expected to close by Jan. 3, 2023, months earlier than expected.

When L3Harris announced it would acquire the Link 16 network in October for nearly $2 billion, it said the deal was expected to close in the first half of 2023.

“We are in position to close this acquisition much earlier than expected, which means we can welcome our new employees and begin work even earlier on this important modernization effort,” Christopher Kubasik, chairman and CEO of L3Harris, said in a statement. “The team is excited to deliver advanced tactical data links for this broadly used network, which will give our warfighters distinct advantages in multiple domains.”

Viasat’s tactical data link product line has about $400 million in annual sales and nearly 450 employees. The products are installed in more than 20,000 U.S. and allied platforms to enable warfighters to securely share voice and data communications across multiple platforms and domains.

L3Harris said in October it will expand the advanced tactical data links to the existing Link 16 network to a larger user base and improve the technology to achieve resiliency for evolving electronic warfare environments and joint all domain command and control requirements.

This article was first published by Via Satellite sister publication Defense Daily.