Civilian and military aircraft must function reliably and meet strict requirements all while operating in challenging environments. For example, traveling at fast speeds increases susceptibility to Doppler shift, varying altitudes causes dynamic delays and fluctuations in signal strength, and interference and various atmospheric effects can degrade signal quality. These conditions can significantly affect the transfer of critical, real-time data, including flight path management details, navigational instructions, immediate updates on aircraft positioning and weather, and air traffic control (ATC) information. The ACE9600 provides valuable insight into the effectiveness of aircraft communications by emulating various link impairments, such as time-varying propagation delay, Doppler shift, path loss, multipath fading, and atmospheric disturbances (i.e., ionospheric scintillation and troposcatter effects). Through aircraft link emulation, the ACE9600 ensures civilian and military aircraft meet required reliability, safety, and performance standards.