 Wireless
for the Warfighter capability fills communication gaps
for warfighter
U.S. Joint Forces Command's Joint Systems Integration Command
developed a new capability to allow joint warfighters to more
rapidly establish command and control when they set up operations
in an area where no established networks are available.
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By Robert
Pursell
USJFCOM Public Affairs
(SUFFOLK, Va. - Sept 5, 2006) -- U.S.
Joint Forces Command's (USJFCOM) Joint
Systems Integration Command (JSIC) has developed
a new capability to rapidly establish computer networks
when joint warfighters move in to areas where there is
no established
communications network.
Wireless
for the Warfighter (W4W) provides an advanced wireless
capability to provide faster
setup, communication
and dissemination
of critical data.
James Bohling, W4W project lead, explained how the capability
allows more mobility with reduced components.
"The W4W solution will ultimately provide 5-10 miles
of secure unclassified wireless and secure classified local
wireless access so that the warfighter doesn't have to
be tethered to a network," he said. "The requirements
came from a request from U.S. Northern Command's Joint
Task Force Civil Support (JTF-CS) to be able to extend
critical communications wirelessly from
a forward
command
post to elements of a joint task force."
JSIC
developed W4W out of the need outlined by JTF-CS for
a capability that would improve and support rapid establishment
of a joint operations center (JOC) as well as feeding
classified and unclassified data back and forth between
personnel.
"JSIC's role is a near-term capability gap filler.
There's a gap identified that the military wants to go
wireless. There are a lot of people that are doing it and
they're having problems," said Bohling. "We want
to be able to give that near-term solution that's secure
and useable and jumpstart the process by providing that
capability."
Other advantages of W4W include:
• The
overall reduction of the JTF communications footprint
when deployed,
• a decrease in the amount of time to connect with various
parts of a JTF,
• and the expansion of coverage area to network services
for individual warfighters.
Bohling
added, "[W4W] provides mobility. One of the
big aspects, unseen until the recent demonstration at the
JTF-CS local exercise, is that it's reducing logistical
clutter. When they deploy, their JOC
usually has wired networks with wires running everywhere.
We're cutting out a lot of the administrative, logistical,
and operational 'fat' typically associated with traditional
wired networks."
When
speaking about W4W's deployment, Bohling said with the
final product, there is "an outlook for May-June
2007 which will include an increased wireless capability.
We want to provide that wireless metropolitan area network
as opposed to just a local wireless capability."
For the security aspects of W4W, JSIC works with various
partners to harvest products that are useable today.
Some of those supporting partners are the USJFCOM's Joint
Communications Support Element, the Joint
Experimentation Directorate, SPAWAR Tactical Communications Center, and
the National Security Agency.
Bohling
explained that W4W provides increased and easier access
to network services. With these capabilities JTFs
can establish command and control in a joint operations
area much quicker.
"What
they use today in the garrison, they're going to be able
to use in the field and they're going to be
able to have access to those resources they need, a lot
easier, a lot faster and the decision cycles are going
to speed up tremendously at all levels."
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