1. SYSTEM INTRODUCTION
1.1. Mission Description
The SMU aircraft amalgamates real-time surveillance, intelligence gathering and armed response in one purposeful unit. ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance) systems are fixed in manned aircraft and UAVs (Unmanned Aircraft Vehicles). Imagery is transmitted to field units via OSRVT (One System Remote Video Transceiver). The intent is to ascertain and assail any insurgents placing IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices). When and if identified, IED teams are usually dispatched by helicopters.
As a standard altitude manned vehicle, the aircraft is established on the Hawker Beechcraft King Air 350 and King Air 350ER models, which are versions of the C-12 series. The aircraft is an improvement of the two King Air models to include Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance capabilities.
The aircraft has been acquired as it can abutment all the Air Force’s aberrant warfare mission devoir.
1.2. System Description
The MC-12W is devised to accentuate data collection operations through intelligence-collection capabilities executing in-theatre, conceding instantaneous full-motion video and beams intelligence for battlefield adjudication of military troop leaders.
A fully functional MC-12W would include sensors, a ground exploitation cell, line-of-sight and SATCOM data links, as well as a boisterous voice communications array. It would have manpower commensurable for 24 hour deployment missions.
The aircraft has an MX-15D system with an infra-red pointer, which would acquiesce the aircraft to semaphore an object or building to a soldier adorn in special goggles on the battlefield. Further upgrades would outfit the aircraft with state-of-the-art laser designator to angle a positio...
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...A(ALT)) – Acquisition
Logistician
The Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army (Integrated Logistics Support (ILS)) will review and analyze test and evaluation plans to ensure safety, acquisition logistics and supportability factors are adequately addressed in TEMP and detailed test plans. The USAEC ILS will review the Supportability Strategy, TEMP, Material Fielding Plans and other LMI from an ILS perspective, attend Supportability IPT (SIPT) and other working group meetings and provide information, comments and analysis as appropriate in support of the OASA (ALT).
2.1.1.3. Program Sponsor Representative
U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command (AMCOM) Intelligence and Security Directorate (ISD)
The Foreign Intelligence Division of the ISD represents the threat community and is responsible for preparation of the STAR and threat portions of the TEMP.
In 2008 I served as an AH-64D Maintenance Test Pilot /Battalion Maintenance Officer in Delta Company 4-227TH Aviation Regiment in Camp Taji, Iraq. Delta Company was responsible for supervising Dyna Corp. Contractors at Camp Taji were conducting all AH-64 scheduled phase maintenance in theater. While there, the company ran into challenges meeting phase deadlines assigned by the Brigade Aviation Maintenance Officer due to the amount of flight time being flown and manpower assigned to complete phases.
The Mission of the Army Logistics Management College (ALMC), now referred to as the Army Logistics University (ALU) at Fort Lee, VA is to enhance the readiness and sustainability of United States Forces through training, education, consulting and research in Logistics, Acquisition and Operations Research Systems Analysis. In joint with the ALU, the Sustainment Center of Excellence (SCoE) runs eight different versions of battalion and brigade-level pre-command branch or technically focused courses. Five of them are conducted at ALU; one of those five course that ALU is responsible for offering is the resident 2-week Sustainment Pre-Command Course (SPCC). The SPCC was once taught at each individual Army branch school. In 1993, ALU was given the mission to train all multifunctional logisticians.
The Civil Reserve Air Fleet is a partnership between the Department of Defense and commercial airlines where the airlines contractually commit a portion of their aircraft and crews to be used by the Department in the event of any level of military conflict. These aircraft can be “called up” and required to respond quickly to provide airlift support to the Department of Defense. There are minimum required levels of participation in order for the airlines to be eligible, and in turn they receive peace time business including passenger and cargo movement approximately in proportion to their commitment level. The program is divided into three segments which include varying amounts and sizes of aircraft that serve specific purposes. There are also three levels of activation depending on the severity of the conflict, which also require different amounts and sizes of aircraft. This program has been in place for nearly 53 years, and has become an essential partnership required for an effective United States military. The following pages are an investigation various aspects of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet such as its purpose, history, and effectiveness.
Thesis. Air War College, 1987. http://www.airwar.edu//a>. Maxwell, Alabama: United States Air Force, 1987. DTIC Online -.
Assigned 815 Troop Carrier Squadron, flying C-130s from Ashiya AFB, Japan in support of 315 Air Division 1958. Assigned as Operational Plans Officer, 315 Air Division 1959.
2. Battle Management, Command, Control, and Communications (BM/C3): The BM/C3 component is divided into two main parts. First, the Command and Control (BM/C2) system controls the overall NMD system. Information from sensors is forwarded to the BM/C2, which processes the data and determines the targets for the GBI to intercept. Second, the In-Flight Interceptor Communications System (IFICS) is a network of ground systems that relay communications to the GBI while in flight to guide it to the incoming warhead.
Smart, J., & Kropp, C. (2005, Winter). Waves of Change: Army Transformation at Aberdeen Proving Ground Reaches Technical Escort Unit. Chemical and Biological Defense Information Analysis Center, 6(1), pp. Cover, 12-14. Retrieved from http://www.hdiac.org/islandora/object/hdjournal%3A38/datastream/OBJ/view
PRECISION ENGAGEMENT provides NORAD the capability to precisely engage threats throughout the full range of our surveillance coverage to ensure off-shore threat engagement well before air and space weapons threaten Canadian or American citizens. This requires agile platforms with lethal munitions to enage targets more responsively and accurately from longer distances and precise, immediate operational assessments with the agility to re-engage if required. The system will include a flexible, near real-time targeting architecture, including space-based wide area surveillance, rapid identification, tracking, and near real-time sensor to shooter links.
The Vietnam War provided challenging and exciting times for United States (US) military aviation. Jets were still considered new technology at the beginning of the 1960’s and had not been tested thoroughly during the Korean War. As the situation in Vietnam started to escalate, US leadership recognized the importance of air superiority and the need to use and adapt newer technology. Air superiority can be achieved through multiple means, but none as romanticized and iconic as aerial combat. The general concept remains the same even to this day—defeat the other plane. However, the means to winning a dog fight had changed greatly due to the quick advancement in jet propulsion and guided weapon technology. This paper provides a summarization of the US efforts towards achieving air superiority through the means of aerial combat.
In today’s operational environments, the U.S. Army is facing a range of problems and mission sets that are arguably more complex than previously encountered. Forces face an array of demands that encompass geo-political, social, cultural, and military factors that interact in unpredictable ways. The inherent complexity of today’s operations has underscored the need for the Army to expand beyond its traditional approach to operational planning. In March 2010 in FM 5-0: The Operations
The military use of lethally autonomous robots (LAR) is not science fiction – it is happening right now. A robot is a mechanism guided by automatic controls. Autonomous robots are able to independently maintain stability and plan action. The first generation of military robots have operated under direct human control. The most well-known military robots are “drones” or unmanned aerial vehicles. The drone system currently in use is the unmanned aerial vehicles IAI Pioneer & RQ-1 Predator which can be armed with air-to-ground missiles and remotely operated from a command center. Drones have already been used by the U.S. military for unmanned air attacks in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other war zones. (Merchant, 276).
There are many agencies that have the ability to perform Signals Intelligence, electronic reconnaissance and most of all signals intelligence from all available sources inducive to the environment. The United States Army uses the Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (Joint STARS) as its main entity for signals collection. The Joint STARS platform was designed to provide a highly effective, real-time, collection tool to the ground task force commanders during battlefield engagements, but for the past ten years, the sensor has been used for peacekeeping missions. Army analysts can predict the enemy’s behavior by identifying choke points, potential avenues of approach and operating patterns such as supply routes and logistical points. The analysis gives the ground commander a more complete view of the enemy’s weaknesses. The United States Air Force employs the Joint STARS in a different mission than the Army. The Air Force uses Joint STARS as a battlefield management tool versus a collection tool as used for by the Army. The Air Force uses the platform to provide immediate and direct support to the Air Component Commander and continue to observe the enemy’s movement from a far distance in the sky. Providing essential data to commanders such as size, direction, and speed of the adversaries, with minimum casualties while under battlefield conditions, makes the Joint STARS an extremely effective tool. The Air Force also employs the Predator vehicles, which are unmanned aerial vehicles that are used for reconnaissance.
While delving into information about our nation’s military the interesting topic of the AH-1 Cobra came through. The Cobra struck me in a way that I now feel the need to explain how great of an asset this machine is to our country. What sources provided the best information were mostly government websites. The information found ranged from system specifications to available ammunition all the way to what countries have a contract with Bell Inc. and can use their product with their military. There will be a presentation of what packages the AH-1 Cobra comes with, the evolution of the Super Cobra, how our military uses these magnificent machines, and of what they are all capable.
The use of drones as weapons of war and delivery and surveillance systems should not be dismissed because many people do not realize the real capabilities of drones and how they can be used to better the world through efficient air strikes, faster delivery times, and useful surveillance. Some of the most common misconceptions about drones arise due to the lack of knowledge about what drones are. A drone is a remote controlled, pilotless aircraft that can be used to survey an area, conduct stealth missions, and deliver supplies into difficult to reach areas (Drone). Unmanned aircraft are also, contrary to popular belief, not solely machines that kill without even a thought to who is being fired upon. They have proved to be effective surveillance units in areas that may be dangerous for manned aircraft to fly, along with the potential to be reliable delivery units (Drones).
This new technology helps the commanding officers know what is going on by that they can be back at there command base and watch raids unfold on large screens and watch real time footage. This allows them to know what exactly what is taking place.