Navy Civilian Engineers Work with Warfighters in Afghanistan to Field New Communications System
Navy NewsStand
Story Number: NNS090810-21
Release Date: 8/10/2009 8:53:00 PM
By John J. Joyce, Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Public Affairs
DAHLGREN, Va. (NNS) -- A team of Navy civilian engineers are working with warfighters in Afghanistan to evaluate and field test Netted Iridium radios designed to solve a communications capability problem in the country's rugged and mountainous terrain.
"We've had a continuous presence in theater for 10 months," said Capt. Sheila Patterson, Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Dahlgren Division commander. "Our civilian engineers continue to meet the needs of warfighters by applying systems engineering and commercial, 'off-the-shelf' technology for quick response to address [the needs of] irregular warfare."
Since a September 2008 Limited User Evaluation (LUE), between three and five NSWC Dahlgren Division engineers have been conducting Distributed Tactical Communications System (DTCS) training and field support to warfighters.
DTCS handsets will provide on-the-move, over-the-horizon, beyond line-of-sight voice and position location information without the need for ground infrastructure, according to NSWC Dahlgren engineers who responded to an urgent request from U.S. Central Command.
"This in not just a user phone handset. It's a system of systems," said Igor Marchosky NSWC Dahlgren DTCS Technical manager. "In addition to the military tactical radio, warfighters will get the whole network and everything behind it, including the Iridium constellation of sixty-six commercially-owned satellites, the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) gateway in Hawaii and the support of people in nine integrated product teams."
The integrated product teams support the satellites, the gateway, platforms, systems engineering, human systems integration, information assurance, operations, testing and the handsets.
"We did not build the satellite gateway, the space vehicle or the radio," said Marchosky. "We took commercial off-the-shelf parts and made DTCS tactically suitable by applying science, technology and systems integration."
According to NSWC Dahlgren engineers DTCS, also known as Netted Iridium handsets, ensure a reliable connection to a constellation of 66 satellites providing global availability for joint forces on the ground, in vehicles and aboard aircraft.
"It took a very diverse team to bring these capabilities to the field," said Marchosky about the scientists and engineers from NSWC Dam Neck and four technical departments at Dahlgren – Asymmetric Defense Systems, Warfare Systems, Engagement Systems and Strategic and Weapon Control Systems Departments, who integrated the handset's systems.
Marchosky's team proved DTCS's reliability by partnering with the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center (MCMWTC) to test DTCS handsets in the rugged California Sierra mountains, similar to Afghanistan's mountainous terrain, which constantly challenge and defeat terrestrial-based line-of-sight communications.
"Our confidence in the effectiveness and reliability of DTCS is extremely high," said Col. Norman Cooling, MCMWTC commanding officer. "Since DTCS was delivered here in February 2008, it has been our most reliable source of voice communications and our only source of position location information."
The Training Center in Bridgeport, Calif., is used for pre-deployment training of Marine Corps forces going to Afghanistan because of the similarity of its terrain and environment to that country.
The Range Management Division at the Mountain Warfare Training Center used for training Marine Corps forces going to Afghanistan routinely experiences communications "dead spots" that could not be overcome by existing line-of-sight systems.
"With the DTCS, we have experienced no dead spots," said Cooling.
"This satellite-based voice communication system has proven to be an invaluable asset in our overall range safety plan."
The Marines at MCMWTC also provided feedback to Dahlgren engineers on fit and form-factor decisions as well as concept of operations development to better support the U.S. Central Command joint urgent operational need.
In Afghanistan, three NSWC Dahlgren engineers conducted a site survey and the LUE, a user evaluation which identified and developed processes and procedures for the long-term fielding and support of DTCS systems.
This system allows each handset to display not only its own position on a map but also the location of other members of the same network, while still maintaining voice priority over data.
For more news from Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren, visit www.navy.mil/local/dahlgren.
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