Several sources of randomness can change the radio link data rate at the edge of tactical networks. Simulations and field experiments define these sources of randomness indirectly by choosing the mobility pattern, communication technology, number of nodes, terrain, obstacles, and so on. Therefore, the distribution of change in the network conditions is unknown until the experiment is executed. We start with the hypothesis that a model can quantize the network conditions, using a set of states updated within a time window, to define and control the distribution of change in the link data rate before the experiment is executed. The goal is to quantify how much variation in the link data rate a tactical system can handle and how long it takes to resume IP data-flows after link disconnections.
The adaptation of tactical systems to either message outbursts of user behavior or unpredictable network changes is a necessary condition to guarantee the robustness of the system. However, both events are likely to occur simultaneously in military scenarios. This investigation aims to evaluate the robustness and solve the related issues of tactical systems.