WIN-T gets thumbs up in Arizona test
By John Harlow
January 11, 2006
FORT MONROE, Va. (Army News Service, Jan. 11, 2006) – With a successful test of the Warfighter Informational Network-Tactical, known as WIN-T, observers are now saying the goal of better communications between commanders and Soldiers on the ground is closer to reality.
WIN-T was tested in November at Fort Huachuca, Ariz. It is part of the future fighting construct of LandWarNet, the Army’s effort to integrate multiple systems into a joint, network-centric, knowledge-based warfare capability.
The WIN-T system is designed to provide reliable, secure and seamless voice, video, and data communications to enable decisive combat actions, said Army Training and Doctrine Command officials. They said it will help provide the operational picture for theater combatant commanders on-the-move.
Futures Center oversees testing
“From what I saw, the system seemed to work very well in the test,” said Carl D. Genteline of the Battle Command and Awareness Division of the Capabilities Development Directorate at the TRADOC Futures Center.
“From a development side, we observed the system operating successfully,” Genteline said. “But I was most impressed when I got out talking to the Soldiers who tested WIN-T and heard their good comments. They really liked the system and also were already learning how it would improve their ability to do their job in the future.”
In the development and experimentation phase of WIN-T, the engineers used lessons learned from Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom to help make the system effective no matter what the terrain or weather.
Gen. William Wallace, while the commander of V Corps, identified two major capability gaps in communications during OIF, Genteline said.
“There were problems with his ability to operate on the move and to communicate over great distances,” Genteline said. WIN-T fixes both of these problems.”
Links replacing antenna towers
In past conflicts, the Signal Corps would forward-deploy early to set up a communications network that could take days to establish and required multiple line-of-sight antenna towers to cover a great distance.
With WIN-T, Genteline said the early deployment will not be necessary. There is the terrestrial function of the communications link, but there is also an airborne relay system and also satellite capability.
“We are working to make an integrated effort to get voice, video and data down to the tactical commanders in the field, on the move and beyond line of sight,” said Genteline.
This is just the first step toward WIN-T becoming an important part of battlefield communications, Genteline said. He said LandWarNet will integrate WIN-T with other communications systems, battlefield applications, network services and standards to achieve the Army vision.
Several more tests planned
“This test is the first in a series to support the development of WIN-T,” said Genteline. “We still have a multitude of gates to go through before full fielding of the system. After this test, there are people thinking WIN-T is farther along in development than they previously thought. This is just another step in the acquisition cycle. It is a big step, but it is not the end of the process.”
The first test took place on the ground at Fort Huachuca, but also had beyond-line-of-sight network connections at Fort Hood, Texas and Fort Monmouth, N.J.
“This developmental test gave us an idea of what we can do,” said Genteline. “We tested in the box at Huachuca, but we were connected to Hood and Monmouth. The Initial Operational Test and Evaluation will do more in-depth testing, with a bigger scope and more entities.”
“However, you can’t let the test get so big that you can’t measure the system under test. When you do a test on a larger scale, it makes it more difficult to find out what happened if/when things go wrong,” Genteline continued. “The more layers that go into the test, the more opportunities exist for problems, and the more difficult to track the problems. How the tests will proceed in the future will be determined by the program manager and the testing community to make sure that we get the most accurate tests possible.”
System switches to airborne relay
During the test, it was planned that Soldiers on the ground would lose terrestrial communication, but it didn’t affect the unit or the commander’s ability to communicate with them as the system automatically went to satellite or airborne relay capabilities.
“We learned during OIF and OEF that the capability of satellite communications was hindered in an urban environment,” said Genteline. “The line-of-sight was also hindered and it provided a big challenge. During the test, Soldiers lost line-of-sight communications, but because of the airborne layer and satellite layer, communications between the commander and the troops on the ground were not compromised.”
The estimated cost of the completed and fielded WIN-T system is $10 billion and the original projection for development is 2008.
“WIN-T is just a part of the LandWarNet concept,” said Genteline. “We are looking to see if the WIN-T system can be accelerated to assist Soldiers fighting today. Our Soldiers deserve the best equipment that we can give them. We want to give our Soldiers what they need to fight and not jeopardize what will happen for our future.”
One successful test doesn’t make a project complete, Genteline said, but he added this test of the WIN-T starts the Army on the path of being able to communicate with Soldiers on the battlefield.
(John Harlow writes for the TRADOC News Service.)
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