Disclosed herein are systems and methods for private communications networks. In various embodiments, a communication system in accordance with the disclosed technology includes a private communications network that has earth stations configured to communicate with a multi-spot beam satellite. The earth stations are communicatively unreachable by communication sources that are remote from the earth stations and that are outside the private communications network, and the earth stations are distributed across geographies covered by different spot beams of the multi-spot beam satellite.

The terrestrial-based satellite telephone monitoring system may be used for, among other things, intelligence gathering purposes that intercept communications to or from target satellite handsets or terminals. The exemplary signal processing units receive wireless signals and extend the line-of-sight range of a terrestrial-based satellite telephone monitoring system. The exemplary signal processing unit may be installed in or on an aerial vehicle, such as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), or a satellite, such as a CubeSat, or other vehicle.

Authenticating a mobile user device with a mobile network operator in advance of an MNO authentication request from the mobile user device can be done by a satellite network sending an authentication request to the MNO system, obtaining a set of authentication vectors related to the mobile user device, storing them into a proxy home location register, receiving the MNO authentication request from the mobile user device, generating an authentication request response based on the authentication vectors, sending the authentication request response to the mobile user device, receiving an authentication response including a received signed response, comparing the received signed response with the stored signed response, and if the received signed response and stored signed response match, deem that to be a successful authentication, add an MNO location update message to a request queue and forward the MNO location update message to the MNO system over the channel when available.

Systems, methods, and apparatus for a virtual transponder utilizing inband commanding are disclosed. A disclosed method comprises transmitting, by a hosted payload (HoP) operation center (HOC), encrypted hosted commands to a hosted receiving antenna. The method further comprises transmitting, by the hosted receiving antenna, the encrypted hosted commands to a payload antenna on a vehicle. Also, the method comprises transmitting, by a host spacecraft operations center (SOC), encrypted host commands to the vehicle. Additionally, the method comprises reconfiguring a payload on the vehicle according to unencrypted host commands and/or unencrypted hosted commands. In addition, the method comprises transmitting, by the payload antenna, payload data to a host receiving antenna and/or hosted receiving antenna. Also, the method comprises transmitting encrypted host telemetry to the host SOC, and transmitting encrypted hosted telemetry to the host SOC. Further, the method comprises transmitting, by the host SOC, the encrypted hosted telemetry to the HOC.

A disclosed method for secured multi-payload antennas operators operations comprises generating, by an antenna operations center (AOC), AOC commands using an antenna location pointing request for each of at least one antenna associated with each of at least one customer. The method further comprises transmitting, by a satellite operation center (SOC), the AOC commands and SOC commands to a vehicle via a ground antenna, where the SOC commands are related to at least one antenna associated with a host. Also, the method comprises generating customer antenna gimballing commands by using the AOC commands, and generating host antenna gimballing commands by using the SOC commands. Further, the method comprises gimballing respectively each of the antenna(s) associated with each of the customer(s) by using the customer antenna gimballing commands, and gimballing respectively each of the antenna(s) associated with the host by using the host antenna gimballing commands.

The disclosure relates in some aspects to managing paging area information for a user terminal (UT) and connection signaling. In some aspects, paging area information is provided for an idle UT by defining a default paging area code (PAC) that is known by the network and the UT. In some aspects, paging area information is communicated via connection signaling. In some aspects, connection signaling may be used to force a UT to invoke an update procedure (e.g., a reconnection).

A method and system for providing GTP acceleration for secure cellular backhaul over satellite (CBoS). A satellite terminal receives request from a first entity to establish a security association with a second entity, and establishes a first secure tunnel to a gateway. A second secure tunnel is then established between the gateway and the second entity based on a certificate belonging to the first entity. A third secure tunnel is established between the satellite terminal and the first entity based on a certificate belonging to the second entity. The contents of encrypted traffic between the first entity and the second entity are examined so that GTP acceleration may be applied to eligible traffic transmitted over the first secure tunnel.

With satellite wireless access, a network node (e.g. AMF) may receive a NAS request from a UE, forwarded by a RAN node (e.g. gNB), where the NAS request includes a tracking area (TA) identity (TAI) indicating a TA in which the UE is located. The network node may then determine that the TAI is not part of a registration area for the UE, although the NAS request is not a NAS Registration. The network node may then instigate an immediate Registration of the UE, e.g., by rejecting the NAS request and sending an indication to the UE to Register, or a deferred Registration, e.g., by performing a NAS procedure for the NAS request and sending an indication to the UE to Register. The AMF may alternatively perform an implicit Registration of the UE, where the AMF performs Registration without receiving a Registration Request from the UE.

This disclosure describes techniques for complying with a data sovereignty policy of data routed through a satellite network. An example method includes identifying data comprising a data sovereignty label indicating a first geographical region; determining that a coverage region of a satellite includes a first ground station in the first geographical region; determining that coverage region excludes a second ground station in a second geographical region; and based on determining that the coverage area includes the first ground station and excludes the second ground station, transmitting the data to the satellite.

A disclosed method for secured multi-payload antennas operators operations comprises generating, by an antenna operations center (AOC), AOC commands using an antenna location pointing request for each of at least one antenna associated with each of at least one customer. The method further comprises transmitting, by a satellite operation center (SOC), the AOC commands and SOC commands to a vehicle via a ground antenna, where the SOC commands are related to at least one antenna associated with a host. Also, the method comprises generating customer antenna gimballing commands by using the AOC commands, and generating host antenna gimballing commands by using the SOC commands. Further, the method comprises gimballing respectively each of the antenna(s) associated with each of the customer(s) by using the customer antenna gimballing commands, and gimballing respectively each of the antenna(s) associated with the host by using the host antenna gimballing commands.