Army relying on new battlefield network technology

It is wartime, and for the first time ever U.S. military commanders and soldiers no longer have to yell coordinates over the radio and then plot maps to pinpoint their exact locations. Instead, the Army fighting in Iraq is equipped with computer-driven networks on the battlefield that automatically show their locations at any time.

The technology, referred to as FBCB2 by the military, is a mobile system of networked computers, radios, satellites, transponders and powerful software. It was developed over several years by TRW, which is now Northrop Grumman Mission Systems in Reston, Va. But its completion was accelerated over the past six months, and 1,000 platforms have been fielded on three continents to the U.S. Army and Marines and to British forces, according to Thomas Plavcan, deputy project manager for FBCB2 at Fort Monmouth, N.J.

The goal of the technology is to make it possible for all levels of combatants, from commanders to soldiers in the field, to know each other's location. "It's worked exceptionally well for them," Plavcan said, adding that it is "a tremendous aid" in preventing friendly fire accidents.

From Truckers To Troops

Many new military technologies began life in the commercial sector, and the FBCB2 technology is no exception. It began as a lowbrow tool used by trucking companies to track the progress of trucks on America's highways in the early 1990s.

After the first Persian Gulf war in 1991, the Army began seeking ways to improve battle-command systems, addressing problems in artillery command and control, supplies, communications and defense in forward areas. The development of systems was farmed out to different contractors, focused on the division level and above.

The focus then turned to the levels below-the brigades, companies, platoons, and squads, which need command centers as well. As a result of that focus, the technology was dubbed Force XXI Battle Command Brigade or Below, or FBCB2.

Development began after a successful test of the system in 1997, at Fort Irwin in the California desert, an industry source said. TRW took the lead on the contract, but production was delayed more than a year when a subcontractor could not make its system communicate with other military systems, an industry source said. The FBCB2 system now can be fully interoperable with joint and coalition forces, and about 7,000 systems were installed through the end of 2002. It is in use in Bosnia and Kosovo.

"The system's software and hardware have evolved over eight years of development, testing and exercises into a key war-fighting capability that is demonstrating its value in current operations," said Michael Springman, director of battlefield digitization business area at Northrop Grumman Mission Systems.

The system is both radio and satellite-based. The radio-based system requires a line of sight between vehicles to relay signals. The receivers of the satellite-based systems were based on a Qualcomm product used by truckers, which gives signals trucking headquarters every 30 minutes to identify a truck's location. Northrop ultimately adopted a similar technology made by CompTech because of availablity of satellite service that has the appropriate bandwidth capacity, according to an industry source.

Research, development and procurement of the technology from fiscal 1997 through fiscal 2003 totaled about $800 million, said Army spokeswoman Maj. Amy Hannah.

Pinpointing Friend And Foe

The technology is a platform for fusing data from various sensors, such as those involving infrared, laser, nuclear, biological and chemical detection and those from unmanned aerial vehicles. It uses a global positioning system and is secured with public-key infrastructure (PKI) to read encrypted data, a source said, adding that the PKI can be destroyed remotely if enemy troops capture computerized vehicles.

The system uses FBCB2 software on Pentium-powered Applique V4 computers, with Solaris operating systems, and acts as a digital battle command. Using a touch screen accessible database that includes the identities of soldiers and their roles, the system identifies the location of its users as well as friendly forces, the enemy and threats or obstacles. It also provides that information to commanders and anyone else on the encrypted, Internet-based network.

"You're able to digitally input that information and update systems, compared with the past where you had a map, a grease pencil and a radio," Hannah said. "This speeds up decision-cycle time and provides a much better common operational picture where the commander can make more informed decisions. It's pretty amazing."

FBCB2 now is installed in more than 40 vehicle types in the U.S. Army alone, including light and heavy-armored vehicles (such as M1 Abrams tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles), Humvees, reconnaissance and logistics vehicles, helicopters and others.

The technology has proved helpful during Iraq's blinding sandstorms, Pentagon officials said. And it could be a step toward the technological goal of seeing inside approaching vehicles to see if they contain weapons or just civilians and thus reduce the killing of innocent people in war, said Michael Lebrun, a deputy director in the Pentagon's office of the undersecretary for acquisition, technology and logistics.

The program still needs to be fully certified under the "initial operational test and evaluation" process, which involves intensive analysis by military officials. An industry source said the use of the technology in actual war might de facto provide the necessary testing to gain that final approval. The company that makes the technology then could increase production.

Some see it as a step toward network-centric warfare. "You can never completely remove the fog of war," Lebrun said, "but with network-centric capability you can roll it back."

Infantry Test Delayed

The Army has provided the technology to the 4th infantry and 1st cavalry from Fort Hood, Texas, and three Stryker interim combat teams. Stryker teams are designed to be lighter and faster than regular brigades, and to be dispatched and ready to fight with 96 hours.

The 4th infantry division, the Army's showcase digital force, originally received the technology. That division had the most training on FBCB2 technology, but its role as the unit to showcase the technology may have been diminished by a delay in getting involved in the war.

According to reports, the 4th infantry, comprised of as many as 30,000 soldiers, began deploying to Iraq last week after weeks of delay following the Turkish parliament's refusal to let U.S. ground troops enter northern Iraq from neighboring Turkey. The 4th infantry's equipment was sent ahead of the troops on ships that remained at sea in the Mediterranean for weeks. Pentagon officials declined to provide specifics on the whereabouts of the 4th infantry.