F-35 talks to Army Missile Command

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by zerion » 06 Aug 2019, 22:04

F-35 talks to US Army’s missile command system, says Lockheed
By: Jen Judson   2 hours ago


HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter demonstrated its ability to send data to the U.S. Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System during the Orange Flag Evaluation 19-2 at Palmdale, California, and Fort Bliss, Texas, in June.

F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin announced in an Aug. 6 statement that the jet, in a live demonstration, sent track data to the IBCS through the F-35 ground station and “F-35-IBCS adaptation kit.”

The Northrop Grumman-developed IBCS was able to “receive and develop fire control quality composite tracks during the exercise, leveraging the F-35 as an elevated sensor," the statement added.

The capability is seen as important in multidomain operations because it would be able to detect threats that are tough for ground-based sensors alone to pick up.

“This demonstration represents a significant growth in capability for the Army IAMD program and Army for multi-domain operations. The capability creates additional battlespace awareness, and the ability to track incoming targets and take action, if necessary,” Scott Arnold, Lockheed’s deputy of integrated air and missile defense, said in the statement. “The F-35, with its advanced sensors and connectivity, is able to gather and seamlessly share critical information, enabling greater joint force protection and a higher level of lethality of Army IAMD forces.”

But the demonstration isn’t only about the F-35′s ability to contribute as a sensor in the air and missile defense architecture, but also about the IBCS’ ability to bring in sensor data from a variety of platforms.

The IBCS was originally developed as the brains of the Army’s future air and missile defense system, but its potential mission continues to grow as the service works to tie other sensors to IBCS to create a layered defense.
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The service is also working to tie in radars and sensors for its Indirect Fire Protection Capability as well as its Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense system. The idea now is for the IBCS to tie into any sensor or shooter the Army brings into its framework.

The F-35 ground station has been sent to White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, to continue F-35 integration testing during IAMD developmental testing.

The Army's Integrated Battle Command System's mission is growing, and it's unlikely the service will be able to shore up a now four-year initial operational capability schedule delay.
By: Jen Judson

The Army’s IBCS program experienced delays as it added capabilities to its defensive framework to protect against everything from ballistic missiles and cruise missiles to unmanned aircraft to rockets, artillery and mortars.

But it is now the top priority for the Army’s cross-functional team dedicated to air and missile defense. The team is tasked with modernizing capabilities under Army Futures Command. IBCS will undergo a limited user test next spring ahead of a production decision in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020.

https://www.defensenews.com/land/2019/0 ... nd-system/


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by Corsair1963 » 07 Aug 2019, 04:52

zerion wrote:
F-35 talks to US Army’s missile command system, says Lockheed
By: Jen Judson   2 hours ago


HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter demonstrated its ability to send data to the U.S. Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System during the Orange Flag Evaluation 19-2 at Palmdale, California, and Fort Bliss, Texas, in June.



This makes Turkey's case for the S-400 even harder to defend..... :doh:


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by aussiebloke » 07 Aug 2019, 08:52

Image

Presumably the F-35 targeting data was sent via Link 16 rather than MADL.


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by spazsinbad » 07 Aug 2019, 12:04

F-35 Spots Targets For Army Missile Defenders
06 Aug 2019 Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.

"WASHINGTON: An Air Force F-35 has transmitted live targeting data to the Army’s IBCS missile defense network on the ground, Lockheed Martin announced this afternoon. It’s an important step forward for two high tech programs that have come in for frequent criticism. It’s even more important for the wider interservice struggle to create a Multi-Domain Command & Control (MDC2) network that can share data rapidly among everything from fighters to satellites to foot soldiers to submarines. The event took place as part of a regular Orange Flag exercise, which brings together aircraft — and now, it seems, ground forces — from the different military branches to test their interoperability as a joint team.

While Lockheed’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter was initially conceived of as a fighter-bomber, it’s become increasingly important in military planning as a high-tech scout. What joint commanders increasingly prize is the F-35’s ability to sneak into enemy airspace using stealth, spot enemy forces using its advanced radar and infrared sensors, take all the data it gathers, make some sense of it and relay all that data back to other aircraft with larger bombloads, warships, and even ground forces using hard-to-detect transmissions. (The technical term is LPI/LPD, “Low Probably of Intercept/Low Probably of Detection.”). The Missile Defense Agency is particularly interested in using F-35s to spot — and potentially shoot down — enemy missile launches. The Air Force Chief of Staff, Gen. David Goldfein, has called the F-35 “a computer that happens to fly” and sees it as a central node in the joint MDC2 network he’s determined to construct.

Likewise, IBCS, built by Northrop Grumman, was originally intended to connect different types of radars, missile launchers, and command posts within the Army. That internal connectivity is a high priority because the service currently has a panoply of not particularly compatible anti-aircraft and missile defense systems, from shoulder-launched Stingers to Patriot to THAAD. It wants each of them to be able to engage targets spotted by one of the others, rather than depend on its own radar. (IBCS is an awful nested acronym for Integrated Air & Missile Defense Battle Command System)….

...Even once you convince two formerly incompatible computers to exchange data, you need a communications network that can transmit the data fast enough that it isn’t obsolete before it arrives, after all some missiles move at thousands of miles per hour and some can maneuver unpredictably. Finally you need a computer brain that can almost instantly compile data from multiple sources into a single coherent picture, instead of creating six images of a single missile because six different radars reported it in slightly different locations from different perspectives....

...Lockheed said today only that the F-35 transmitted the data “via the F-35 ground station and F-35-IBCS adaptation kit, both developed by Lockheed Martin.” “The F-35, with its advanced sensors and connectivity, is able to gather and seamlessly share critical information,” Lockheed missiles & fire control VP Scott Arnold said in a statement. “This demonstration represents a significant growth in capability for the Army IAMD [Integrated Air & Missile Defense] program and … multi-domain operations.”..."

Source: https://breakingdefense.com/2019/08/f-3 ... defenders/


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by spazsinbad » 07 Aug 2019, 12:47

F-35 Track Data Fed To Army Missile Defense System
06 Aug 2019 Lee Hudson

"...“This demonstration represents significant growth in capability for the Army IAMD program and Army for multi-domain operations,” Scott Arnold, vice president and deputy of integrated air and missile defense at Lockheed Martin said in a statement.

This new capability demonstrates AIAMD can gather sensor data from multiple platforms. In 2016, the F-35 and Aegis Combat System demonstrated integration of the F-35 supporting Naval Integrated Fire Control-Counter Air. The F-35 ground station resides at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico to support AIAMD follow-on developmental testing."

Source: https://aviationweek.com/defense/f-35-t ... nse-system


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by hornetfinn » 07 Aug 2019, 12:50

F-35 is definitely extremely well suited for both ballistic and cruise missile defence. I'm sure Israel and South-Korea are extremely interested in that capability.


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by spazsinbad » 07 Dec 2019, 00:27

Another ORANGE FLAG - fully quoted because youse'll run out of FREE LOOKS at this website....
Edwards Air Force Base units to test combat airpower in ‘Orange Flag’ Exercise
05 Dec 2019 Mojave Desert News

"EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE —The Air Force Test Center is scheduled to host Orange Flag Exercise 19-4 at Edwards AFB, Dec. 10, which will include participants from nine bases across the U.S.

Orange Flag is a developmental flight test event that brings together capabilities from across the military services to evaluate systems in a near-peer adversary environment. Fighters, bombers, command and control, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance aircraft will fly together in the skies above California to pit their systems against a challenging set of ground and air threats.

Participants are scheduled to come together from all across the U.S.: Edwards Air Force Base, Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, Nellis Air Force Base, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve Test Center, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Offutt Air Force Base, Tinker Air Force Base, Dyess Air Force Base, Travis Air Force Base, March Air Reserve Base, and Fort Bliss.

“Interoperability is the key to modern warfare. Our ability to successfully test the integration of networks and systems across the services contributes directly to combat capability,” said Maj. Ed Cannon, F-35 test pilot and Orange Flag deputy director. “As an example, in Orange Flag 19-2 the F-35 demonstrated for the first time the ability to send data to the U.S. Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System.”"

Source: http://www.desertnews.com/news/article_ ... 45f6a.html


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by jetblast16 » 07 Dec 2019, 03:37

(The technical term is LPI/LPD, “Low Probably of Intercept/Low Probably of Detection.”)


Probably not lol. Probability
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by doge » 19 Dec 2019, 07:42

F-35 participated in the Army's cruise missile intercept test, It seems. 8)
What role did F-35 play...? :roll: I'm interested !! :doh:
https://www.army.mil/article/230907/arm ... st_targets
Army Integrated Air and Missile Defense System successfully intercepts test targets
By U.S. ArmyDecember 12, 2019
WHITE SANDS MISSILE RANGE, N.M. -- The U.S. Army conducted a successful intercept test today with the Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Battle Command System (IBCS).
The test was executed by the IAMD Project Office and Soldiers of the 3-6 Air and Missile Defense Test Detachment (3-6 AMDTD).
Preliminary findings indicate that the planned flight test objectives were achieved and the targets were successfully intercepted. The Army will conduct further analysis in order to validate system models and inform future predictions for system capability.
The test, designated IAMD Flight Test 5 (FT-5), was the final developmental flight test prior to entering operational testing in 2020. IAMD FT-5 included multiple sensors contributing to a composite target track from the Army, as well as joint sensors from the Air Force and Marine Corps. The successful engagement was conducted using PATRIOT Advanced Capability-2 (PAC-2) missiles against two cruise missile surrogates.
"We are extremely proud of the Soldiers who executed the test today and the performance of the system," said Col. Phil Rottenborn, IAMD Project Manager. "This test marks the first time Soldiers conducted a live engagement using IBCS in a developmental test, and demonstrates Soldier and system readiness for transition to the operational test phase."
Army Integrated Air and Missile Defense (AIAMD) integrates current and future Air and Missile Defense (AMD) sensors and weapons into a common integrated fire control capability with a distributed "plug-and-fight" network architecture. IBCS is the fire control and operational-center capability that provides greater defense effectiveness than the current single sensor fire unit systems.

Soldiers from the 3-6 AMDTD executed the engagement using the IBCS, in addition to operating the PATRIOT and Sentinel radars and PATRIOT launchers. Marines from the Marine Air Control Squadron 24 (MACS 24) operated the TPS-59 Radar and served as the Link-16 Higher Echelon Unit (HEU) during the flight test, providing early warning and engagement decision to IBCS. Two Air Force F-35s also participated, contributing to the IBCS composite track.

Flight Test 5 was the fifth flight test for the IAMD Project Office, which is responsible for modernizing the air-defense mission-command systems and facilitating the concept of "any sensor, best shooter."
"Flight Test 5 is truly a large step forward in the implementation of IAMD with the joint community supporting Multi-Domain Operations" said CW2 Phil Holman, who participated in the engagement from the 3-6 AMDTD. "It is an exceptional honor to be part of a team of outstanding Soldiers and expertly knowledgeable civilians from multiple agencies."


https://news.northropgrumman.com/news/r ... light-test
Successful US Army flight test further demonstrates IBCS’ unprecedented interoperability and ability to detect, track and simultaneously engage threats
December 12, 2019
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – Dec. 12, 2019 – The U.S. Army and Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) successfully conducted simultaneous engagement of two incoming target cruise missiles during a flight test using the Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Battle Command System (IBCS). Including Sentinel, Patriot and Marine TPS-59 radars and Patriot Advanced Capability-2 (PAC-2) Guidance Enhanced Missile-TBM (GEM-T) interceptors, the test demonstrated successful interoperability and the end-to-end performance of the IBCS system to detect, track and simultaneously engage multiple threats.
“Building on the success of the most recent flight test this past August, today’s test demonstrates that IBCS is achieving unprecedented performance in defeating multiple missile threats,” said Dan Verwiel, vice president and general manager, missile defense and protective systems, Northrop Grumman. “Taking advantage of all available resources in the battlefield, IBCS enhances battlefield survivability by enabling 360 degree sensor coverage, and enables highest probability of defeat by ensuring the most effective weapon is used to intercept each threat.”

The test was conducted at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico by a test detachment of soldiers from the 30th Brigade 3rd Battalion 6th Air Defense Artillery Regiment who manned the workstations and executed the engagement plan presented by IBCS. The friendly forces defense laydown consisted of a battalion, two battery IBCS engagement operations centers, a Patriot radar, two Sentinel radars and two PAC-2 launchers. Also contributing to the test were a U.S. Marine Corps AN/TPS-59 joint radar connected to an external Link 16 network and F-35 fighter aircraft with sensors adapted to IBCS. All these systems were connected to the IBCS Integrated Fire Control Network (IFCN).

Designed to emulate potential real-world events, the flight test began when two cruise missile surrogate threats were launched. The cruise missiles flew in a maneuvering formation until they neared their targets, and then split off to attack two separate defended assets. IBCS fused data from the various participating sensors and external networks into accurate composite tracks of both threats. Then it developed the engagement plan employed by the soldiers to successfully launch two PAC-2 missiles and intercept both cruise missile targets.
“Today's successful flight test further demonstrates the maturity of the Integrated Battle Command System and its capabilities in support of Multi-Domain Operations,” said Maj. Gen. Rob Rasch, Army Program Executive Officer, Missiles and Space. “The inclusion of Marine Corps and Air Force sensor systems in the test architecture validate the system's open architecture and the potential for IBCS to operate seamlessly with joint services, as well as foreign partners in the future, to extend battlespace and defeat complex threats."
“IBCS is the Army's #1 Air and Missile Defense priority and will fundamentally change our air and missile defense force and capability, maximizing the combination of sensors and shooters in a completely different way than ever before,” said Brig. Gen. Brian Gibson, Army Futures Command and director of the Air and Missile Defense Cross Functional Team. “Successful execution of this mission-critical test validates that IBCS is well prepared for the upcoming Limited User Test in second quarter 2020.”
IBCS is the cornerstone of the Army’s IAMD modernization program. Designed to connect the force for unified action against evolving threats, IBCS is a net-centric command and control system for the air and missile defense mission. IBCS enhances battlefield survivability by creating a resilient self-healing network of all available sensors that can reduce and eliminate vectors of attack while providing operators with a single integrated air picture of unprecedented accuracy and expanded area of protection.
IBCS is managed by the U.S. Army Program Executive Office for Missiles and Space, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.


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by charlielima223 » 19 Dec 2019, 13:35

Given the fact there will be more F-35s in the air, this means there will be more eyes in the sky.


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by steve2267 » 19 Dec 2019, 14:01

The Great War, i.e. WWI, demonstrated the futility (stupidity?) of fixed fortifications. In today's exceedingly lethal environment with smart munitions and fast movers, ground based radar sites may be the 21st century equivalent to the Maginot Line. While a ground based radar may be "mobile," it is probably as good as dead if its position can be fixed, unless it is able to shut down and move inside the enema's OODA decision cycle time. With hypersonic weapons ("oooooh...") on the horizon, that cycle time may shrink, at least in the opening phases of a conflict, to the point where a GBR does not have time to setup and do anything useful before it has to shutdown and move, or die.

With this test demonstrating an integrated "any sensor, best shooter" paradigm, it may need to be considered that the sensors should all be moving, or be inexpensive (so you can afford to buy a lot of them, since they are going to get targeted and destroyed). What about inexpensive (relatively speaking) AND moving? Aerostat radars might be inexpensive, relatively speaking, and if they get blown up, no big deal (if you have enough to replace them with), but they don't move too fast. Dirigible radars wouldn't move very quickly either. F-35 sensors would be great, but you'd have to dedicate a LOT of F-35's for 24x7 coverage. AWACS-style could work, but that gets pretty expensive, pretty quickly. What about drone-based AESA's? The drone's could be moved from one racetrack holding pattern every 30-60min, or whatever your OODA cycle time is, or you could set up a much larger racetrack with multiple drones, so they all appear to be moving.

Perhaps something like the Bell V-247 outfitted with AESA 'dar would fill this role?

On the other hand... if the ground based radar is AESA, and LPI... perhaps the radar equivalent of the Maginot Line is not yet here?

Too much wunderin'... Need more coffee... Ugh.
Take an F-16, stir in A-7, dollop of F-117, gob of F-22, dash of F/A-18, sprinkle with AV-8B, stir well + bake. Whaddya get? F-35.


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by marauder2048 » 20 Dec 2019, 23:27

The Army is looking at hybrid aerostats/airships: they could receive power from a tether (JLENS was 60 kW of prime power for the radar) or detach from the tether and operate autonomously for 7 days with 2000 miles of range.
The goal cost-wise is "attritable."

For MUX (V-247) the USMC was looking for A2A capability + 12-hour orbits for AEW with 15 kW of prime power
for the radar. I think the stretch-goal unit cost-wise is MQ-9.


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by boogieman » 21 Dec 2019, 00:53

The way I see it, an aerostat based radar system would be most useful when located well behind friendly lines providing low altitude radar coverage over fixed high value assets. This would allow you to keep 24/7 overwatch against low flying enemy aircraft, UAS and cruise missiles. Connect this into the broader ISR network and pair it with an SM6-style ARH long range SAM (plus PAC3 & AMRAAM-ER) and you just plugged a BIG gap in our existing IADS set up. Survivability will be improved by keeping it away from the FEBA and the fact that it'll be sitting behind a wall of friendly fighters and SAMs.


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by marsavian » 23 Jan 2020, 01:07

F-35 sensors help ground interceptors engage “air-breathing” targets

https://www.flightglobal.com/fixed-wing ... 70.article

The Lockheed Martin F-35 has demonstrated has demonstrated a capability to downlink targeting data about multiple “air-breathing threats” to ground forces.

The work took place at White Sands Missile Range in December 2019, according to Lockheed Martin. A pair of US Air Force F-35s were integrated with the US Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS), with the fighters “providing an airborne sensor capability to successfully detect, track and intercept near simultaneous air-breathing threats.”

The aircraft and IBCS were connected through the Multifunction Advanced Data Link (MADL) in the proof of concept activity. It marked the first time F-35s were used as sensors during an IBCS live fire test against multiple targets.

“The F-35’s advanced sensors and connectivity enable it to gather, analyse and seamlessly share critical information with the joint fighting force to lead the multi-domain battlespace,” says Greg Ulmer, Lockheed Martin vice president and general manager of the F-35 program.

“This test validated the F-35’s capability to serve as an airborne sensor and extend the range of critical Integrated Air and Missile Defense interceptors.”

The company did not state the size of the targets engaged, but such a capability would prove useful against low flying targets such as cruise missiles.

The work also demonstrated a way to engage low-flying threats that are over the horizon or terrain masked.

The test followed previous work conducted in mid-2019 during an Orange Flag Evaluation in Palmdale, California and Fort Bliss, Texas. This was the first time that live F-35 tracking data was sent to IBCS via an F-35 ground station and F-35-IBCS adaptation kit, which were developed by Lockheed Martin.

The ground station was subsequently moved to White Sands Missile Range.


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by doge » 02 Dec 2020, 18:31

With the U.S. Army 8)
https://news.northropgrumman.com/news/f ... f-soldiers
Watch the Army and Northrop Grumman’s IBCS simultaneously destroy multiple threats in test
May 27, 2020
It’s a cold December morning at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and two surrogate cruise missile targets have just been launched, one after the other. They are flying separate courses among the jagged San Andres and Sacramento mountains toward soldiers in a U.S. Army Air and Missile Defense unit at a test site called TAC-2 – Tactical Command Post 2.
These sophisticated targets precisely mimic real cruise missile threats and can take advantage of this terrain to hide from the radars and sensors commanders have positioned in the area. This can create gaps in tracking that make the job of interceptor missiles or other defensive weapons more difficult – you can’t hit what you can’t see.
Today, though, their maneuvers won’t enable them to evade detection. This is Flight Test 5 (FT-5), the most sophisticated and difficult development test yet for the Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Battle Command System (IBCS), developed by Northrop Grumman.

High above the range, sensors aboard U.S. Air Force F-35 fighter aircraft see and acquire the two surrogate missiles. IBCS integrates the aircraft sensor data with that of available ground sensors, including Sentinel, Patriot weapon system and U.S. Marine Corps TPS-59 radars. All share information via the IBCS Integrated Fire Control Network (IFCN). As one sensor loses sight of the threats – and each will at some point – the targets are acquired by other sensors on the IFCN, enabling IBCS to create a precise, uninterrupted composite track of each missile’s movements.
With data from every sensor, IBCS produces a single integrated air picture on the screens of the air defense soldiers at TAC-2. They see every change in altitude and direction as the two surrogate missiles paint tracks across their screens. Because IBCS enables joint weapons as well as joint sensors, the defenders at the controls can select the best effector to use against these targets. Today, the soldiers are about to launch two Patriot Advanced Capability 2 (PAC-2) interceptor missiles.
“Without IBCS, all those different sensors operate independently, creating opportunities for threats to avoid detection as they fly to a target,” explained Northrop Grumman IBCS Program Director Mark Rist. “Without being integrated onto a network, these sensors produce a more ambiguous, less-clear air picture, making engagements of threat systems more challenging.”
He is monitoring FT-5 from miles away, in the test’s mission control room. The soldiers at TAC-2 can be heard on the radio, calm but urgent voices reporting “target acquired” by airborne sensor, and talking of the “IP” or intercept point, and “kill box.” It’s only been moments since the threats were launched, but now comes “Free to engage … Missile away … Missile away …”
One, then another PAC-2 interceptor missile is launched by the soldiers. IBCS is not only able to launch the missiles, but also plays a critical role in the engagement by actively closing the fire control loop and providing in-flight updates as the PAC-2s converge on their targets. The surrogate cruise missile targets are closing in and can now be seen on video in the control room – and then suddenly they can’t: One, then the other disappears in a ball of fire as the PAC-2s destroy them.
Cheers erupted in the control room, and those of Rist and his team may have been loudest among the many generals, colonels and visiting officials that day at White Sands. After years of effort, working closely and constantly with soldiers, FT-5 fully demonstrated IBCS’s unprecedented capability to integrate sensors and effectors to detect, track and simultaneously engage multiple targets in flight.

“Information is ammunition, and IBCS is providing soldiers with more,” Rist said. “We brought a lot of things together in this development test. It was the first including joint operations with the Air Force F-35 and Marine Corps radar systems, the first with Air Defense Artillery soldiers at the controls, and the first involving software developed using our Agile methodology.”

https://www.army.mil/article/237878/arm ... se_systems
Army gets closer to fielding new air defense systems
By Devon Suits, Army News ServiceAugust 10, 2020
WASHINGTON -- Further evaluation of new air defense capabilities is currently underway, including the Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System and directed energy weapons, as the Army aims to empower units against near-peer threats.
Soldiers from 3rd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment and 3rd Bn., 6th Air Defense Artillery Air Missile Defense Test Detachment are involved in a limited user test for the IBCS that started in early July, said Maj. Gen. Robert Rasch Jr., head of the Program Executive Office of Missiles and Space.
The evaluation was initially scheduled for May, but was pushed back about a month due to COVID-19 safety concerns, he added. The Army will complete the current test, which is being held at New Mexico’s White Sands Missile Range, by September.
The 3-43 ADA, a Patriot missile unit, will also be the first unit equipped with the IBCS capability once the limited user test is complete, Rasch said. After the limited test is complete, the equipment and software will be refreshed to support an operational test and evaluation before the unit achieves an initial operational capability in 2022.
The new system will provide the Army with an integrated command-and-control system, capable of blending current and future air and missile defense sensors and weapon systems under a unified network. The limited user test is focused on the baseline requirements for IBCS, including integration of Patriot and AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel components, PEO officials said.
"The Army committed one of its coveted Patriot battalions, which are in high demand across the world given the current [operational] tempo requirements," Rasch said Aug. 4 during the Space and Missile Defense Symposium.
The battalion is assigned to support the program for the next three years.
The Army looks to bridge its offensive and defensive fires and sensor capabilities to fight and win in a multi-domain battlespace. The IBCS program will create an architecture, allowing for the consistent transmission of information from higher headquarters, all the way down to the operator.
In December, the Army proved the IBCS capability after successfully launching Patriot Advanced Capability-2 missiles to intercept two cruise missile surrogates.

During the evaluation, officials networked between a Marine Corps Ground and Air Task-Oriented Radar and two Air Force F-35 Lightning IIs flying overhead to identify the targets beyond Patriot radar technology, Rasch added.

https://www.foxnews.com/tech/attacking- ... g-fast-war
'Attacking at speed': Army Project Convergence and breakthrough lightning-fast war
The exercise was a part of the Army’s Project Convergence 2020
September 27 2020 By Kris Osborn | Warrior Maven
The Army is already moving out on new plans for Project Convergence 2021, an experiment intended to draw upon the Air Force and even international allies to network an even wider sphere of air and ground weapons.
“Next year we will have PRsM (Precision Strike Missile) and F-35,” McCarthy added.
While the F-35 will take on a larger role next year, McCarthy did refer to recent exercises connecting ground forces with Marine Corps F-35Bs as part of an assessment of multi-domain combat ops intended to synergize air-ground targeting, informational exchange and attack operations.
McCarthy explained that once weapons systems reach the right level of technical maturity, they will quickly be added to the Army’s convergence process. The Army’s Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS), a networked system of air defense sensors and radars, recently went through successful Limited User Tests and will likely be used next year.

https://www.foxnews.com/tech/f-35-sends ... p-to-f-35s
F-35 sends targets to ground soldiers and army soldiers send targets up to F-35s
An experiment aimed to advance Multi-Domain, joint tactics
October 5 2020 By Kris Osborn | Warrior Maven
An advancing infantry unit breaks through a thick wall of enemy fighters when suddenly, while under heavy fire, soldiers on the ground receive incoming targeting data from an overhead F-35 showing that their unit will soon encounter a massive, mechanized force of enemy armored vehicles.
Moving quickly with little heavy fire support, the advancing Infantry Brigade Combat Team realizes it should await air and ground reinforcements before moving to “close with the enemy” at the next phase of the assault. The ground unit is then able to send intelligence details related to the enemy force up to the F-35, which then drops precision-guided bombs onto the enemy formations. Using its web of integrated sensors, the F-35 is able to synthesize ground navigation details with targeting intelligence received from Army units to perform Close-Air-Support, firing air-to-ground missiles and even its 25mm cannon at opposing forces to clear the way for a continued ground assault.
The kind of potential scenario, wherein air-ground intelligence, surveillance and weapons-related specifics of great tactical relevance are shared between ground units and an F-35, could optimize targeting, data-networking and previously impossible tactical methods of attack. This integration has long been a goal for Pentagon, Army and Air Force weapons developers pursuing Multi-Domain Operations. Now… it is a reality.
During a massive Army live-fire event called Project Convergence 2020 at Yuma Proving Grounds, Ariz., Marine Corps F-35Bs networked with Army ground soldiers as part of an experiment to advance Multi-Domain, joint tactics on the tactical edge, to a new level.

"We were able to pass ground targets to the F-35 so the F-35 could ‘effect’ those targets, and we were able to pass target information from an F-35 to ground units so we could deliver effective fires in support of their efforts,” Brig. Gen. Ross Coffman, Director, Next Generation Combat Vehicle Cross Functional Team, Army Futures Command, told reporters in Yuma, Ariz. during Project Convergence 2020.
The experiment is generating some enthusiasm among Army weapons developers who are already planning extensive F-35 integration in next year's Project Convergence 2021.


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