On the road and during tactical maneuvers, the Blue Force must maintain situational awareness to effectively react and respond. The Tactical Network, or TacNet, is a mobile ad hoc communications network developed by Sandia National Laboratories to provide Blue Force personnel with secure access to critical data, such as real-time maps of resource positions. During development of the system, the Sandia team addressed a variety of issues, including the need for (a) mobile communications without fixed infrastructure and (b) security features, e.g., an access control list. The team considered commercial-off-the-shelf products, but determined that a semi-customized system would better suit its requirements. The final product, TacNet, a field-tested and proven mobile network, incorporates two major systems: (1) an In-Vehicle System, including a graphical user interface, and (2) a Dismounted Solution, also known as Tracker. TacNet employs a line-of-sight mesh radio network, which is self-forming, self-healing, and multi-hopping. Both the In- Vehicle and Tracker systems can be applied in combination or separately to a variety of purposes, including real-time training analysis, targeting capability, and friend or foe identification. This paper describes the development process for TacNet and its future potential, such as extending line-of-sight through unmanned aerial vehicles.