International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 28-31, 1996 / Town and Country Hotel and Convention Center, San Diego, California / The objective of the FIRST project is to define a modern DoD Standard Datalink capability. This defined capability or standard is to provide a solution to wide variety of test and training range digital data radio communications problems with a common set of components, flexible to fit a broad range of applications, yet be affordable in all of them. This capability is to be specially designed to meet the expanding range distances and data transmissions rates needed to test modern weapon systems. Presently, the primary focus of the project is more on software, protocols, design techniques and standards, than on hardware development. Existing capabilities, on going developments and emerging technologies are being investigated and will be utilized as appropriate. Modern processingintensive communications technology can perform many complex range data communications tasks effectively, but a large-scale development effort is usually necessary to exploit it to its full potential. Yet, range communications problems are generally of limited scope, so different from one another that a communication system applicable to all of them is not likely to solve any of them well. FIRST will resolve that dilemma by capitalizing on another feature of modern communications technology: its high degree of programmability. This can enable custom-tailoring of datalink operation to particular applications, just as a PC can be tailored to perform a multitude of diverse tasks, through appropriate selection of software and hardware components.