What Is P25 in Two-Way Radio?

P25 explained

P25 (also known as APCO-25 or Project 25) is a suite of open digital radio standards developed for public safety communications in North America. It is the dominant digital radio standard for police, fire, ambulance and emergency management agencies across the United States and is also used in Australia, New Zealand and other countries with US-influenced public safety infrastructure.

P25 in the UK

P25 has minimal presence in UK commercial or public safety radio. The dominant trunked radio standard in UK public safety is TETRA (used by the Airwave and ESN networks), while UK commercial operations typically use DMR or NXDN. P25 equipment is available and can be licenced in the UK, but is typically encountered only in organisations with North American connections or specific interoperability requirements.

P25 technical overview

P25 Phase 1 uses FDMA with 12.5 kHz channel spacing. P25 Phase 2 uses TDMA with two slots per 12.5 kHz channel, doubling spectral efficiency. P25 supports conventional and trunked operation, AES and DES encryption, and a wide ecosystem of interoperable equipment from multiple manufacturers including Motorola, Harris (L3Harris), Kenwood and others.

P25 features relevant to UK operations

For UK operations, P25 is most relevant as a background standard to understand when dealing with international partners, NATO-aligned organisations, or procurement specifications originating in North America or Australia. Yesway can advise on P25 interoperability requirements for UK-based organisations with international communications needs.

Talk to Yesway about digital radio standards for your operation