Fielding Revolutionary Capabilities
MIT 2011 Volume: 15 Issue: 11 (December)
(Editor’s Note: Colonel Edward Swanson, project manager for Warfighter Information Network-Tactical (PM WIN-T), assigned to the Program Executive Office Command, Control, Communications- Tactical (PEO C3T), recently offered some observations on the status of the program, the linchpin of the Army’s current and future plans for field networks. WIN-T is a mobile satellite communication and terrestrial network able to move voice, video and data across long distances for forces on the move in combat.)
What missions or past experiences have prepared you for your new role as PM for WIN-T?
Before becoming an acquisition officer, I was fortunate to have a variety of assignments in infantry and armor battalions and brigades, both in CONUS with the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colo., and OCONUS with the 1st Infantry Division [Forward] in Germany. From those assignments, I gained valuable experience and firsthand knowledge of the communications requirements and challenges existing in brigade combat teams [BCT] at tactical levels.
Once I became an acquisition officer, I had a number of C4ISRrelated assignments in multiple assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology PEOs, Training and Doctrine Command, the Army staff, and Joint/Department of Defense organizations. As a major in PEO C3T, I was assigned to PM Military Satellite Communications, where I served as the fielding officer for one year, and then became the assistant project manager for Secure, Mobile, Anti-Jam, Reliable, Tactical-Terminals [SMART-T] for a year. While I was in PM MILSATCOM, the organization was merged with PM WIN-T in 2002. As a lieutenant colonel and product manager in PEO Enterprise Information Systems, I was responsible for the voice and data network upgrades of Army installations in CONUS. These assignments gave me a better understanding of both the Army tactical and non-tactical networks.
What do you think will be your biggest challenges?
Based upon my first 90 days in the job, I would say the very broad scope of the program. WIN-T is actually a portfolio of programs containing multiple Acquisition Category [ACAT] ID, ACAT II, ACAT III and non-program-of-record projects. If you look at what the WIN-T program management office manages today, the same programs were managed by three separate O-6 PMs previously. PM MILSATCOM was merged with PM WIN-T in 2002, and PM Tactical Operations Centers/ Command Posts was merged with PM WIN-T in 2010.
Each of the WIN-T increments is a standalone ACAT ID major defense acquisition program, normally managed by an O-6. I am extremely fortunate to have great product managers: Lieutenant Colonel Jason Shepard for WIN-T Increment 1, Lieutenant Colonel Rob Collins for WIN-T Increments 2 and 3, Lieutenant Colonel Greg Coile for the SATCOM programs, and Lieutenant Colonel Carl Hollister for Command Posts Systems and Integration [CPS&I].
What is the importance and significance of the WIN-T network to the Army?
Senior Army leadership understands the importance of the network. The network is the number-one modernization priority for the Army. The network is a critical enabler for military operations spanning the full range of the spectrum from peacekeeping to highend conflict. The current Army tactical network is Increment 1. Increment 1 addressed a capability gap identified during Operation Iraqi Freedom when maneuver units were moving at speeds and distances that could not be supported by the Mobile Subscriber Equipment communications network. Increment 2 is the future tactical network that will begin fielding in fiscal year 2013. While Increment 1 provides high bandwidth communications at the halt and quick halt down to the battalion level, Increments 2 and 3 will provide and initial and full communications on-the-move capabilities and extend the WIN-T network down to the company level.
How will WIN-T Increment 1 continue to serve the Army even after the fielding of WIN-T Increment 2?
Increment 1 is the Army’s current tactical network. It has supported Operation Iraqi Freedom and is supporting Operation New Dawn and Operation Enduring Freedom. Currently, Increment 1a is about 90 percent fielded to the Army. Increment 1a adds Ka-band capability to the satellite-based Increment 1 network, reducing reliance on costly commercial satellite bands. Increment 1b will begin fielding in late fiscal year 2012 and will be a bridge to Increment 2. Increment 1b accelerates a number of Increment 2 capabilities to include the Net Centric Waveform [NCW] and a Colorless Core security architecture. Even when Increment 2 is fielded, some units will remain on the Increment 1b baseline. Shepard and his team are doing a tremendous job fielding Increment 1 capabilities to the current force, while addressing urgent operation needs in support of current operations.
What is the significance to the Army about next year’s fielding of WIN-T Increment 2?
Increment 2 will bring a number of revolutionary capabilities to the Army. Increment 2 will introduce a mobile network infrastructure allowing units to conduct operations while on the move, not having to stop to establish communications to command and control subordinate units. The Increment 2 tactical network will be self-forming and self-healing, bringing a level of flexibility and resiliency not existing today. Increment 2 will also push the WIN-T network from battalion level, where it exists today with Increment 1, down to company level. This will not only add communications-on-the-move capabilities to the company level, but will also allow combat net radio and data networks to be extended beyond line-of-sight [BLOS], which does not exist today. Initial versions of the NCW and High-band Networking Waveform [HNW] will allow WIN-T Increment 2 to provide an integrated LOS and BLOS communications network. Additionally, an initial network operations [NetOps] capability will be fielded to facilitate the planning, initialization, monitoring, management and response of the network. Collins and his team are doing an outstanding job developing the Increment 2 program and preparing for the initial operational test and evaluation [IOT&E] in May 2012.
How will WIN-T Increment 3 change the way the Army operates?
Increment 3 will add another communications layer to the WIN-T network, augmenting the current ground and space architectures with an air tier, to thicken the network. The air tier will not only extend ground networks limited by line of sight, but will also lessen reliance on limited and costly satellite resources. Critical to the air tier will be the WIN-T Communications Payload using the Joint C4ISR radio. Aerial platforms will initially include UAVs and may eventually include aerostats and towers. Increment 3 will also bring objective versions of HNW, NCW and NetOps to realize full networking on the move capabilities for the Army. Collins is also managing Increment 3; his team is meeting all schedule and performance requirements as they move towards a Milestone C decision in 2015.
What is PM WIN-T’s role in the next Network Integration Evaluation [NIE] and how will its participation improve the Army’s network?
WIN-T is the current and future Army tactical network. The NIE has a number of purposes. One is to make sure systems are fully interoperable when integrated into the Army’s tactical network in CONUS before deploying into theater; this prevents imposing unnecessary burdens on commanders and units. The systems are used by soldiers and units in operational scenarios and subjected to realistic environments at Fort Bliss, Texas, and White Sands Missile Range, N.M., training areas to determine their potential in meeting identified capability gaps. The NIE will add agility to the current acquisition process to keep pace with information technology advances and provide the Army with the best capabilities available. During the NIE 12.1 in October-November 2011, soldiers got early exposure and hands-on experience with some of the Increment 2 equipment before the IOT&E in May 2012. This will include three tactical communications nodes, three points of presence and 10 soldier network extensions. PM WIN-T is also providing five upgraded SIPR/NIPR access point satellite [SNAP] terminals and command post support for NIE 12.1.
What are some of the major accomplishments that PdM SATCOM has achieved in improving satellite communications throughout the Army?
PdM SATCOM has played an important role in supporting OIF and OEF requirements. Several non-programs-of-record, the Deployable KU-Band Earth Terminal [DKET] and SNAP, are filling capability gaps and addressing joint urgent operational needs statements [JUONS] by providing critical BLOS communications in Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries in the region. Over 60 DKETs and 600 SNAPs are currently deployed. The DKETs provide high bandwidth intra- and inter-theater communications. The SNAPs support company-andbelow operations at widely dispersed operating bases. Coile and his team also procure and provide satellite equipment to the WIN-T Increment 1 and 2 product managers. Other high-value satellite systems now being fielded or upgraded by PdM SATCOM include Secure, Mobile, Anti-Jam, Reliable, Tactical-Terminals [SMART-T], Phoenix and Global Broadcast Service [GBS]. SMART-T provides protected communications in all environments, while Phoenix provides operational flexibility by supporting C-, X-, Ku- and Ka-band satellite communications. GBS provides a high speed data broadcast and receive capability.
What are some of the most significant developments in PdM CPS&I and how are they supporting the Army?
PdM CPS&I delivers a number of critical products and services to the Army. Hollister and his team provide the command post infrastructure and training to enable mission command at all echelons. The Standardized Integrated Command Post System [SICPS] program has been providing the Army’s CP infrastructure for many years. The five systems comprising SICPS all have full materiel release and standard line item numbers improving supportability for the Army. PdM CPS&I also provides battle command system of systems integrated training to ensure doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leadership, personnel, facilities integration and mission command capabilities are delivered to units. The CPS&I team also just completed 13 weeks of development and test for the Harbormaster Command and Control Center, culminating with an IOT&E in September. Hollister is also supporting a number of priority JUONS efforts as well.
Anything further you would like to add?
It is an exciting time to be in the Army acquisition community. I am extremely fortunate to be part of the PM WIN-T and PEO C3T team, partnering with industry not only to deliver much-needed capabilities to support current operations, but also to be the premier tactical network provider for the Army. The PM WIN-T workforce has impressed me by their dedication to the mission and commitment to excellence. I look forward to working with the WIN-T community in the coming years. ♦
