on the topic of net work warfare
Net-Centric Operations Find New Focus in Cruise Missile
Defense
By David A. Fulghum
05/30/2004 08:22:33 PM
NEW THREAT, NEW DEFENSE
What some Pentagon planners regard as the U.S.' most compelling
future threat--an attack by cruise missiles carrying chemical or
biological warheads--is pushing development of a true
"network-centric" warfare system.
The scenario--closely held and virtually undiscussed in public--is
intriguing. New electronically scanned, multi-frequency radars pick
low-flying, stealthy cruise missiles out of ground clutter. The
electronic babble produced by signals ricocheting from buildings
and broken terrain has traditionally helped protect low-flying
missiles and aircraft from radar detection. F/A-22 and F-35
fighters cruise the intercept area at supersonic speeds to loose
two or three shots at these elusive targets before they speed past.
And AIM-120 advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles with advanced
sensors pick out the enemy weapons from decoys for precise
interceptions.
What really makes cruise missile defense possible is the staple of
net-centric operations and warfare: automated decision-making aids,
machine-to-machine links, automatic target recognition, open
electronics architectures, multi-frequency sensors and advanced
horizontal communications--all of which break down barriers. In
particular, net-centric operations assault those ancient walls
between intelligence analysts and warfighters.
Not everyone shares the vision, however. Critics contend the cruise
missile threat is inflated to justify a larger F/A-22 force that,
without support, might shrink to 100-150 aircraft. Moreover, the
Air Force is slashing the post-2005 funding that's needed to equip
more fighters with the advanced, electronically scanned radars
(AW&ST May 10, p. 35).
Nonetheless, a team of Raytheon and Lockheed Martin researchers is
plunging into the task of making cruise missile defense a
functional net-centric operation. Among those leading the charge is
J. Michael Borky. He is the team's chief architect for battle
management, command and control (BMC2) capability being designed
for the next-generation E-10A ground surveillance aircraft. The
Pentagon says the E-10 will be the centerpiece of cruise missile
defense, particularly when U.S. forces are operating on a remote
foreign battlefield.
Fundamentally, the mission won't be much different from what's done
on board today's E-3 AWACS and E-8 Joint-STARS aircraft that were
designed for long-range surveillance. However, it's to be far less
manual. Operators now have to make the association between targets
and intelligence reports, and make rapid calculations in matching
the fuel, munitions and speed of strike aircraft to targeting
priorities.
"We believe the technology exists to substantially automate and
improve the quality of those decisions," Borky says. What U.S. Air
Force Chief of Staff Gen. John Jumper doesn't need, Borky asserts,
is for "the guy in the back of his [E-3] AWACS or [E-8] Joint-STARS
or [E-10] multisensor command-and-control aircraft to be a clerk
typist. He doesn't need them making six queries to get a target's
identification. [Jumper] wants the process to be intuitive. I put a
cursor over a target, and down the sides of my head-up display
comes everything I wanted to know."
Two important needs for cruise missile defense, or any other
net-centric operation, would be a common picture of the battlefield
for everyone involved and rapid data flow.
In a startling claim, Raytheon and Lockheed Martin officials
contend they could nearly halve the Air Force's required time to
destroy a target. "We think it's possible to [reduce the kill chain
to] under 5 min.," says Greg Hinchman, chief engineer for Lockheed
Martin's BMC2 effort. "But most situations will take 5-10 min., as
we currently see the problem--to exploit the target, understand it,
get the authority to engage and understand the consequences. The
limiting factor will be human decision times."
There are other variables that will affect the equation.
THE 5-10-MIN. timeline is possible, "if I can have [interceptor
aircraft] forward and get my first shot 10 naut. mi. or more before
they reach the forward edge of the battle area; and if I have
cueing that can tell me there has been a cruise missile [launch]
and tell me where to focus my search," Borky says. That information
would allow an E-10 controller to position the defendi..........
too long to post, go read yourself
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