Growing up in a Navy family, Sub-Lieutenant Rhys De Serio knows how precious a call home can be.
As a child, he was lucky to talk to his parents once a fortnight while they were at sea.
Now, as a Navy Information Warfare Officer, he is ensuring that being at sea no longer means being out of touch.
The Enhanced Quality of Life Team, from Navy Intelligence and Information Warfare Branch and Navy Minor Capital Program, is delivering a new internet capability for the fleet.
The system uses Starlink's commercial, low-earth orbit satellite communications to provide an unclassified welfare network, greatly improving ship-to-shore and sailor-to-family connectivity.
"Historically, it was once in a blue moon you'd get to send a text. Now, people can sit their first uni exam or watch their kid's first steps via video call," Sub-Lieutenant De Serio said.
"It's spades above what we've had previously. Having been on both sides of the coin, at sea and ashore with and without the capability, in simple words it's a life changer."
Previously, Navy used geostationary SATCOM systems to enhance ship-to-shore connectivity, but these were costly with limited capacity.
Advances in technology now offer significantly lower costs and greater bandwidth. The old system had a download speed of 4mb/s, while the current trial systems reach 250-300mb/s.
'Historically, it was once in a blue moon you'd get to send a text. Now, people can sit their first uni exam or watch their kid's first steps via video call.'
Director General of Navy Intelligence and Information Warfare Commodore Matthew Doornbos sponsored a 12-month trial of the system starting in July 2023 on HMA Ships Brisbane, Stalwart and Adelaide.
Due to its success, temporary systems were installed on 12 ships and by October 2024, the project was approved, with a permanent system being developed by engineers at Campbell Park offices, ACT.
The baseline system will be finalised by the end of the year, with the rollout starting in early 2025 and the entire fleet expected to be outfitted by the end of 2026.
The Enhanced Quality of Life Team operates out of their lab in Campbell Park offices, where they have a replica of the system that will be on board the ships to conduct whole system testing before installation.
They work with ship maintenance teams to install and maintain systems, aiming to reduce the need for third-party updates or maintenance.
The project is part of the Chief of Navy's Stay on Board - People First campaign, which identified improved ship-to-shore connectivity as crucial for keeping sailors in touch with their families.
It focuses on four pillars of connectivity: family, community, administration and training.
This ensures that sailors can stay in close contact with their families, remain active in their communities, manage administrative tasks and continue their training while at sea.
Project manager Pierre de Vallier said the system was not going to make "haves and have nots" as every Navy vessel will have access, not just major fleets.
"We've seen people recording themselves reading children's books and sending them home so their kids can watch," Mr de Vallier said.
"Reading a book to a child is a wonderful way to maintain that family connection. Sometimes it's more than just a phone call."
