FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (April 28, 2015) -- To win in a complex world, the Army needs to equip commanders with expeditionary mission command capabilities, giving Soldiers "the power of America behind them" through continuous connectivity anytime and anywhere they need it, senior leaders said at last week's TechNet Fort Bragg symposium.
During the event, Col. Ed Swanson, project manager for Warfighter Information Network-Tactical (PM WIN-T), the Army's tactical communications network backbone program, stressed that "the key to supporting continuous expeditionary communications is reach back."
"That will be supported by new and legacy WIN-T capabilities at every stage of operations -- from wheels up on the airfield at home station, to early entry operations, to the tactical edge of mature battlefield maneuvers," Swanson said.
The TechNet Fort Bragg Symposium and Exposition 2015, sponsored by the North Carolina Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA), took place in Fayetteville, N.C. on April 21 and 22. Participants included XVIII Airborne Corps, 101st Airborne Corps, Army Reserve, Army Forces Command, Program Executive Office for Command, Control, Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T) and industry. In an effort to leverage commercial technology to enable mission command and maximize cost effectiveness, Army leaders and industry experts discussed current solutions and future requirements to help prepare the network for Force 2025 and Beyond.
"One way the Army is increasing the expeditionary nature of its forces is by innovatively and cost effectively taking commercial technologies found in the average American home today and providing them to the Soldier on the battlefield," said Lt. Col. Joel Babbitt, product manager (PdM) for WIN-T Increment 1.
Solutions like Wi-Fi and 4G LTE have been secured for military use at the command post and outlying areas to untether Soldiers from workstations and reduce the numerous cables previously required to network a command post, he said.
Those technologies are part of the Army's initiative to prepare for Force 2025 and Beyond by designing right-sized, scalable and expeditionary command posts that enable mission command at every point of an operation.
As soon as they step onto an airplane, Soldiers and commanders of the rapidly deployable Global Response Force (GRF) can now connect to the WIN-T network through the new Enroute Mission Command Capability (EMC2). This effort integrates antennas onto C-17 aircraft and provides onboard network equipment that enables commanders to leverage mission command capabilities so they can "plan for the fight in flight," Babbitt said. Their Soldiers also receive operational updates and can view the drop zone on large monitors so they can be effective the moment boots hit the ground.
When the aircraft is over the objective, the GRF can parachute out with small "jumpable" satellite dishes, such as the suitcase sized- Global Rapid Response Information Package (GRRIP), which provides early entry network communications. Once the air field is secure, slightly larger Secure Internet Protocol Router/Non-secure Internet Protocol Router (SIPR/NIPR) Access Point (SNAP) terminals are flown in to support early entry command posts. The Army is looking at new, similarly sized commercial terminals to increase throughput and capability, but until those capabilities are selected and fielded, legacy GRRIPs and SNAPs will be used as a bridge to fulfill that early entry requirement, explained Lt. Col. Leonard Newman, PdM for WIN-T's Satellite Communications office.
During the symposium, leaders continually stressed the importance of reducing size, weight and power (SWaP) requirements for communications equipment to increase the expeditionary nature of U.S. forces. For example, recent efforts decreased the number of transit cases for each SNAP terminal from nine to five, and reduced the weight of remaining transit cases by 64 percent.
"Whatever the Army and its industry partners can do to reduce SWaP is a plus for our Soldiers and their ability to rapidly respond to complex missions," Newman said.
The WIN-T Increment 1 program is also reducing SWaP by virtualizing equipment through an upgraded server infrastructure that replaces hardware with software and prepares for future server consolidation. Babbitt jokingly referred to this virtualization effort as the network's "Slim Fast" program, since it sheds 1,000 transit cases across the Army and reduces the size of the remaining transit cases by 20 percent.
In support of early entry operations, the Army is also streamlining its mobile WIN-T Increment 2 network by integrating network nodes onto lighter tactical vehicles that are C-130 air-transportable and CH-47 sling-loadable. WIN-T Increment 2 Point of Presence and Soldier Network Extension nodes have already been integrated onto High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (Humvees) to fill rapid response force requirements, and now the Tactical Communications Node (TCN), which is usually integrated onto the much larger Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles, will be installed on lighter platforms as well. The TCN Lite supports the requirement for quick command post network connectivity for early entry units.
To further improve unit agility the Army has simplified the WIN-T Increment 2 network, including drastically reducing startup and shutdown times; adding a new, easy to use graphical interface; improving and simplifying troubleshooting tools; and enabling faster, easier calls to extend radio networks.
"The Soldier feedback on these enhancements is that we can't field them fast enough," said Lt. Col. LaMont Hall, PdM for WIN-T Increment 2. "They don't want to fight the network, they want to fight the battle, and the new simplicity upgrades help them to do that."
The Army is also simplifying the Network Operations (NetOps) tools that enable communications officers (S6s) to more easily plan and manage the network. Converging NetOps and providing integrated tools will help the S6 to manage the network in a holistic manner and react to ongoing mission changes.
These changes will help standardize the framework of the network, so software can be added or changed with no operational difference seen by the Soldier, explained Lt. Col. Joseph Roberts, PdM for WIN-T Increment 3.
"We want to keep it easy for Soldiers, to provide the same look and feel across systems," he said.
During the symposium, Swanson challenged industry to continue to provide capabilities that reduce SwaP for increased agility and to reduce complexity so they are easier to install, operate, maintain and train. Since commercial solutions are typically not designed for the tactical environment, he also noted that industry needs to provide solutions that improve reliability by taking environmental factors into consideration.
"We must work together to deliver the best solutions to provide expeditionary mission command capabilities and to increase unit agility," Swanson said. "Those solutions have to be cost effective and of best value to the taxpayer."
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