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Army Digitization Master Plan (ADMP)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

"Shared situational awareness, coupled with the ability to conduct continuous operations, will allow information age armies to observe, decide, and act faster, more correctly, and more precisely than their enemies."

               General Gordon R. Sullivan and Colonel James M. Dubik

The Army Digitization Master Plan (ADMP) provides the roadmap and the direction necessary to bring the capabilities of information age technology to the future battlefield. The ADMP addresses strategies, responsibilities, requirements, acquisition, experimentation methodology, joint and combined interoperability, and the management process that will transform the Army into a 21st century force (Force XXI). It provides the guidance necessary for developing, testing, and producing digital hardware and soft ware to meet the Force XXI requirements. By providing guidance designed to insure the seamless interoperability across the battlefield, the ADMP reflects the Army's recognition of the absolute necessity to develop and put in place an overall architectural framework for the battlefield that is based on well defined standards and protocols. It further details the manner in which the Army's battlefield digitization efforts are being coordinated within the Army and with other Services, our Allies, and other f oreign countries.

The ADMP is a living document that will be updated on an annual basis in synchronization with the Planning, Program, Budgeting, and Execution System (PPBES) cycle and after each major milestone. As digitization efforts mature, the ADMP will be refined and adjusted based upon the results of the extensive modeling, simulation and experimentation built into the program.

The Army digitization effort, as detailed in the ADMP, is a vital part of the larger process of redesigning the Army to meet the challenges of the 21st Century. The larger effort, called Force XXI, will encompass the reconceptualization and redesign of the force to enhance lethality, survivability, tempo, sustainability, deployability, joint/combined linkages, and versatility. The Army's intellectual and physical focus has shifted from Cold War/Industrial Age emphasis on increasingly complex and capable we apons systems to one focused on leveraging the power of our people, information, and technology.

Digitizing the battlefield entails the application of technologies to acquire, exchange, and employ timely information throughout the battlespace, tailored to the needs of each commander, shooter, and supporter. The objective of the Army digitization effort is to assure the superiority of our command and control system by providing warfighters with a horizontally and vertically integrated digital information network. This effort will insure a simultaneous, consistent picture of the battlefield from soldier r to commander at each echelon as well as insuring the Army is facilitating interoperability with its Sister services and Allied Forces.

Information is power. The commander who possesses it and uses it has a decisive advantage over an opposing commander who does not. Despite significant improvements brought about by automation efforts within specific battlefield operating systems, such as in fire support and military intelligence, the current method of distributing critical, time-sensitive information across the battlefield has not changed. For example, battlefield reports are currently passed upward from the lowest tactical level by voice e radio when a brief pause in the battle allows time to forward the report.

Figure 1

The effectiveness of digitization can be shown by considering the following example. On a digitized battlefield, a tank triggers his laser range finder on the lead vehicle of an approaching enemy. The global positioning system (GPS) equipped tank "knows" its own location, determines the range and azimuth to the target, and can immediately compute the coordinates of the enemy. This information is automatically placed in a spot report message that the tank commander or platoon leader calls up on his screen en. This message is transmitted over the digital radio to the company commander. This near instantaneous (seconds instead of minutes) transfer of information provides the commander with a more complete picture of his battlespace, enabling him to quickly direct his subordinates, getting every shooter into the fight, and making maximum effective use of the direct and indirect fires available to him. The enemy location information can be easily transferred to a call-for-fire (CFF) message template that a tan k commander calls up on his screen. The CFF message is then transmitted over the digital radio to the fire direction center which automatically begins the decide, detect, and deliver targeting sequence. The firing unit is then alerted. The targeting information is processed while simultaneously being routed into the intelligence database. If a firing platoon is in position waiting for a CFF, rounds can be in the air within 45 seconds of the original CFF sent by the tank. All of this can be done without voice transmission.

Force XXI will complete the transition from a threat-based force to a knowledge and capabilities based force. The campaign to achieve this end is being conducted in three parallel efforts called axes: redesign of the Operating Force (Joint Venture); redesign of the Institutional/TDA Army (Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans); and acquisition and assimilation of Information-Age Capabilities (Army Digitization Office). All three efforts are being coordinated by the Deputy Chief Staff for Operations  and Plans (DCSOPS). These efforts will provide the information necessary to guide fielding and associated organizational and operational decisions for Force XXI.

Figure 2

It is the acquisition and assimilation axis, being orchestrated by the Army Digitization Office (ADO), which will provide for the introduction of modern information technologies throughout the force. It is to this axis that the term "digitization" is applied. To insert or retrofit a new technology onto the Army's substantial equipment inventory is a massive undertaking. To accomplish this task, the ADO was established in July 1994 to oversee and coordinate the integration of Army battlefield digitization on activities. The ADO balances the operational requirements generated by the US Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) and technical requirements developed by the Director of Information Systems for Command, Control, Communications, and Computers (DISC4) with emerging system technologies from the Army Materiel Command (AMC) to enable the Army to evolve into Force XXI.

While the ADO works with the research, development, and acquisition community to develop the operational, technical, and systems architectures necessary to field operational, interoperable, and cost effective digital hardware and software, Joint Venture is working to define the future doctrine, training, leaders, organizations, materials and soldiers (DTLOMS) capabilities that will be put into place in the Force XXI Army. Simultaneously the TDA/Institutional axis focuses on the concept, processes, and design  of the institutional Army and its sustaining base. DCSOPS is synchronizing the three axes to ensure a seamless linkage from the factory to the foxhole is achieved.

Joint Venture includes a series of Advanced Warfighting Experiments (AWEs) that will support decisions related to the redesign of the operational Army. These AWE's will also provide the key mechanism for evaluating the effectiveness of the information technologies being developed under the digitization axis. Two 1994 events, Desert Hammer and Desert Capture III, have become the baseline for two AWEs to be conducted in 1995, Focused Dispatch and Warrior Focus. Preceding each AWE, a sufficient train-up time is provided for participating units to become proficient in the fielded digital capabilities and to refine tactics, techniques, and procedures. The critical event in 1997 is the AWE called Brigade Task Force XXI. Digitized division and corps command and control elements will be included in the Brigade Task Force XXI experiment to provide insights into division and corps operational concepts and organizational designs. In addition, constructive, virtual and live simulations as well as experience from current  operations will influence the Force XXI design decisions. This experimentation strategy will insure final decisions for redesign of the forces are informed decisions based on empirical data and information. A division level Battle Command Training Program exercise, called Division XXI AWE, will be conducted in FY98. The results of each AWE will be used to modify and update the rolling baseline for the next exercise. The ultimate outcome of this strategic process is an appropriately designed and equipped  Army to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

The Army's digitization efforts are requirements driven and based on a number of validated/evolving requirements documents. Notably, three key documents provide the foundation for the digitization concepts and requirements. These documents are the Horizontal Integration of Battle Command Mission Needs Statement, the Army Battle Command System Common Operating Environment/Common Applications Operational Requirements Document, and the Force XXI Battle Command Brigade-and-Below Operational Requirements Document .

The Horizontal Integration of Battle Command Mission Needs Statement (HIBC MNS) establishes the baseline operational requirements for digitization of the battlefield and future command systems. The Joint Requirements Oversight Council validated the MNS on 10 January 1995. The objective of this MNS is broad in nature, intended to address the operational needs and provide the Army with the technical means to meet the battlefield command and control challenges of the 21st century.

The Army Battle Command System Common Operating Environment/Common Applications Operational Requirements Document (ABCS COE/CA ORD) further defines the operational capability needs defined in HIBC MNS. It defines the need for a common operating environment (COE) for common applications(CA). It is currently being developed by TRADOC. This operational requirements document calls for the migration of current separate Army command and control component systems into one integrated system. Its purpose is to merge existing capabilities and requirements into on integrated battle command system from individual squad/platform through strategic levels.

The Force XXI Battle Command Brigade-and-Below Operational Requirements Document (FBCB2 ORD) also further refines the operational capability needs defined in the HIBC MNS. It defines the need for the lowest level command and control interface capability to the Army Battle Command System and standardizes the components of that capability. This document is currently being developed by TRADOC and will continue to evolve through the experimentation process. Further refinement will be done in coordination with  the Air Force and Marine Corps based upon experimentation results.

Figure 3

To achieve the capabilities defined in the requirements documents, an Army Digitization Campaign Plan has been developed. The execution of this campaign plan will be conducted in four thrusts: 1) acquisition, 2) development of the "Tactical Internet", 3) integration of all operating systems, and 4) evolution of the Battlefield Information Transmission System (BITS).

A key aspect in providing digital capability to Force XXI is the acquisition of a digital capability for lower echelon forces. This effort, Force XXI Battle Command Brigade-and-Below (FBCB2), will equip platforms which lack an embedded digital capability with a laptop-sized computer -- the applique -- and provide the common software to link them together and to the command and control systems at echelons Brigade through Corps. The initial set of appliques will be used primarily for situational awareness a and operational control. Three hardware variants are being acquired: Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS), ruggedized, and militarized. Embedded systems currently providing digital functions and processes may require upgrading to host the common software for participation in the various AWEs.

The second thrust is integrating the various battlefield communication systems through the use of widely used Internet protocols and routers into the Tactical Internet. This integration will provide the battlefield users with a seamless communications capability and permit data transfers to access all available communications systems. The initial "Tactical Internet" will consist of the Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System (SINCGARS), Enhanced Position Location Reporting System (EPLRS) radios, a and Mobile Subscriber Equipment/Tactical Packet Network (MSE/TPN). In the near-term, these three communication systems will be combined through translator "gateways" to form a complete, seamless system for the initial brigade-sized task force and division digitization experiments.

Thrust 3 focuses on assuring that the digital capabilities provided via the applique hardware and software are integrated with other information and weapons systems on the battlefield. It entails assuring that data elements, message standards, and communication protocols are common across all platforms that must exchange information. In some cases, this will require upgrading embedded systems so they can implement these common elements. The underlying strategy is the promulgation of a common standards-based  Technical Architecture and common software modules. The Army is committed to migrating to the Global Command and Control System Common Operating Environment (COE), not only at echelons above corps, but also for the tactical command and control systems. Where necessary, the Army, in concert with the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), will extend the Joint COE to support requirements for battlefield C2 systems and accommodate the processing constraints of embedded and hand-held digitized systems .

Thrust 4 is concerned with the Battlefield Information Transmission System. While the "Tactical Internet" will substantially improve communications connectivity, the digital data load of the future is expected to exceed the capacity of this network. Experiments will be conducted with commercial technologies, such as direct broadcast satellites and digital cellular phones.

To achieve the vision and goals of Force XXI, all battle command systems must be flexible and interoperable. The supporting battle command information infrastructure must support the ability to structure a force rapidly and efficiently to meet any future contingency. The capability to seamlessly transfer information across all the tactical Battlefield Operating Systems and from the lowest to highest echelon of command is dependent on having in place a well defined standards and protocols based set of arch itectures. The overall integrated architectural framework for the digital battlefield is based on three separate and distinct architectures. These three architectures, as defined by the Army Science Board, are the Technical, Operational, and System Architectures. The Operational Architecture says what to build, the System Architecture says how to build it, and the Technical Architecture states the rules and standards to follow.

Developing and implementing these architectures will result in fully interoperable Army systems, but that is not enough to meet the goals of Force XXI. The Army fights as part of an air, sea, space, and land team. As part of the team it must have the capability to exchange information with units from other services as easily and effectively as it does between Army units. The Army's approach to focusing on attaining Joint interoperability on the digitized battlefield has three components. First, the key t o achieving the required interoperability is the development and implementation of the Technical Architecture. The ADO is aggressively coordinating Army efforts to ensure that the Army Technical Architecture for information systems is in full compliance with the provisions of the DoD Technical Architecture Framework for Information Management (TAFIM), which serves as the common technical architecture of the Joint community. Second, the Army Digitization Office will closely coordinate its digitization efforts  - to include the review and approval of information standards and data transport profiles - with its sister services, the Joint Staff, and OSD through memorandums of agreement and proactive participation in Joint working groups and pertinent panels of the Military Communications-Electronics Board (MCEB). To ensure senior level involvement from the other Services, the Horizontal Technology Integration General Officer Working Group, chartered by the Army to oversee technology insertion into the Army, will l invite appropriate flag rank personnel from the sister Services when Joint interoperability issues are scheduled for discussion. Third, other Services will be invited to participate in planned experiments, such as AWEs and BLWEs. These experiments will be used to address, evaluate, and resolve interoperability effectiveness issues.

Finally, the Army's digitization efforts fully embraces and supports the Joint Staff developed "C4I for the Warrior" concept. To accomplish the goals of this concept, each Service has implemented a framework to achieve Joint interoperability within the DoD guidelines. The Army's framework is called "The Enterprise Strategy." Battlefield digitization is one of the ten principles of this strategy and will ensure that the Warfighter will have information superiority over any opponent. The ADMP guides Army efforts in support of this principle and reinforces the overall Army Enterprise Vision.

Tomorrow's smaller Army must be an effective and lethal force with every decision maker deciding, every shooter shooting, and every supporter supporting in a synchronized manner and enabled by rapid, complete, and interoperable (Army, Joint, and Combined) digital information systems.