FORT HOOD, Texas - The U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command’s Central Technical Support Facility served as host in support of the Army Futures Command’s Network Cross Functional Team during its Cooperative Vulnerability and Penetration Assessment (CVPA) event here, Oct. 26 to Nov 20.
Network modernization and the development of the Integrated Tactical Network continue to be one of the Army’s top priorities, and radio waveform security assessments like this are key to the success of Army interoperability.
The event assisted the Hand-Held, Manpack, and Small Form Fit (HMS) Product Manager by assessing and verifying vulnerabilities of its newest tactical radio waveforms. These new software defined waveforms will provide added capabilities to transmit voice, position location information, and video over a mesh network in environments where RF signals are impeded.
Radios from two vendors were part of the CVPA event which included Soldier operators from Fort Hood’s 1st Cavalry Division and the 3rd Security Force Assistance Brigade. The CTSF’s unique blend of facilities, resources, and skilled personnel provided an excellent venue for assessing the Army’s latest digital and communications warfighting capabilities. As the Army’s strategic facility for interoperability certification of Army tactical software, the CTSF remains poised to assist programs and developers with future assessments and to be a major contributor to the Network Cross Functional Team going forward.
HMS DESCRIPTION
The Product Manager for HMS is the total lifecycle manager for tactical radio communication systems that meet Army needs while meeting joint interest requirements from other services, including Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and Special Operations Command. Paramount to the HMS mission is providing joint service interoperable communications to the tactical edge Warfighter with an on-the-move, at-the-halt and stationary Line of Sight/Beyond the Line of Sight capability for both dismounted personnel and platforms.
The HMS radios provide voice communications as well as support for data services such as text, control graphics, imagery, and video to the tactical edge Warfighter through interoperability with tactical end user devices including handheld, embedded and larger computing devices such as unmanned systems.
The HMS products enable net-centric operations; operate in multiple bands and multiple modes; and deliver reliable, secure tactical communications. They are network scalable to meet operational needs and are developed based on reprogrammable modular software communications architecture, allowing field and depot service to upgrade such features as security and waveforms.
BENEFIT TO THE SOLDIER
The HMS provides joint interoperable connectivity to the tactical edge and disadvantaged Warfighters with an on-the-move, at-the-halt, and stationary line-of-sight and beyond-line-of-sight capability for both dismounted personnel and platforms. The radios are scalable and compliant with modular software communications architecture; enable net-centric operations; operate multi-band and multi-mode; and deliver reliable, secure tactical communications.
HMS Training at CTSF
PdM HMS delivered and setup their systems at the CTSF from 26-30 October 2020. CTSF provided facilities for training, testing, and assessing cyber vulnerabilities.
HMS Testing at CTSF
The HMS conducted their test at the CTSF from 16-20 November 2020. The CTSF received Soldier support from 1st Cavalry Division (1CD) and 3rd Security Force Assistance Brigade (3SFAB) to assist with the conduct of various interoperability integration and engineering assessments; field tests of digital equipment; and other mission command systems fielding for HMS.
The Central Technical Support Facility, a major subordinate command of the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command, is the Army’s only strategic facility responsible for executing interoperability certification testing, configuration management of the Army’s tactical software baselines, and supporting net-enabled cross-program integration. This integration and testing focuses on delivering an integrated system-of-systems (SoS) mission command capability to the warfighter.
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