57 channels and everything's on

Radios handle more frequencies as well as visual inputs, forcing developers to employ many design strategies.

The military's growing focus on network-centric warfare is helping drive an expansion in communications. Pilots and crew members must communicate with a range of inputs, from terrestrial to UAVs to satellites, making it more challenging to handle the many frequencies.

The frequency range for aircraft has expanded dramatically since the 1980s, when it was expanded from military UHF to include military VHF and UHF (30-400 MHz). Radio suppliers are using a range of techniques to handle this growth.