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Col. Joseph A. CapobiancoProgram Executive OfficerPEO SOF WarriorSOCOM

IED Detection & Defeat O K-9 Warriors Logistics at the Edge O SATCOM

June 2013 Volume 11, Issue 5

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Cover / Q&AFeatures

Colonel Joseph A. CApobiAnCo

Program Executive OfficerPEO SOF Warrior

SOCOM

16

June 2013Volume 11, Issue 5Special OperatiOnS technOlOgy

128

Departments Industry Interview2 editor’s perspeCtive4 Whispers/people14 blACk WAtCh27 resourCe Center

bruCe G. MontGoMery, pePresidentSyntonics LLC

5k-9 WArriors And sofWhile emergent technologies have provided combatants with astounding capabilities unforeseen just a decade ago, some tasks still are best done by humans—and by man’s best friend. See how dogs help to save warfighters’ lives.

By Scott NaNce

19ied deteCtion And defeAtSince September 11, the enemy has hidden in the shadows, employing concealed improvised explosive devices that have become the leading killer of U.S. and coalition troops. We examine cutting-edge technologies to defeat IEDs.

By Dave ahearN & Jeff campBell

22loGistiCs At the edGeFor any combatant to prevail on the field of battle, everything that he takes to the fight must be at hand, on time. Logistics systems ensure that the warrior’s every need is met, even in the most remote areas.

By Jeff campBell

28

inside sofiC 2013With representation from all theater commands, industry partners were brought up to speed on current and future needs. The big question stayed unanswered through the gala keynote: Will funding be available?

By Jeff CampBell

supported by sAtCoMIn an era where the electronic warrior rules the theater of conflict, special operators in far-flung areas must be able to communicate with each other, even in mountainous areas where comms signals may be blocked. Satellite communications provide the solution, creating a fully netted force.

By marC Selinger

“Our customers demand that

their armor has the ability to

defeat enemy threats while maximizing

mobility. Our niche is developing and fielding

hard and soft body armor

solutions which maximize

ballistic protection without

weighing down our operators.”

—Colonel Joseph A.

Capobianco

A year ago, when Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Frank Kendall spoke about the devastating effects of sequestration, he also said it wasn’t going to happen instantaneously: It would be more of a slope, kind of like an avalanche.

“That’s what we’re in, and it’s getting worse,” Kendall said during his keynote presentation at the annual Special Operations Forces Industry Conference (SOFIC). “Some of the things we’re doing today … will set us back at least couple of years.”

The under secretary called fiscal year 2013 a “damage limitation exercise” that we’re trying to endure, hoping that 2014 comes back in better shape. “I’m pretty nervous right now that FY14’s not going to come back with something more reasonable,” Kendall said. “I don’t see the pressure building to get the Congress to give us a reasonable budget in ’14.”

Can the mechanism that has triggered sequestration be stopped? Kendall said the administration is working very hard to get to something that addresses the deficit problem, and he has laid out ways to reduce spending in his memo “Better Buying Power 2.0,” which calls for continuous improvement of management practices in acquisition. “It is perhaps more important than ever, that we be as effective and efficient as possible,” Kendall said.

Unfortunately, moving the ball in the right direction is tougher than the under secretary would like, given the particularly uncertain budgetary situation. “I’d like to see a world in which we had stable budgets and we could have the right balance … but we’re not there right now,” Kendall said. “I’d like to tell you that we’re going to be there sometime soon, but I can’t say that.”

SOCOM Chief Admiral Bill H. McRaven wants those making the tough cost-cutting decisions to remember that in addition to SOF community cuts, cuts to the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps also affect special operations forces. “Everything we do, every day in theater, in Afghanistan and around the world, has a service component to it,” McRaven said on SOFIC’s opening day. “So we work very closely with the service chiefs to make sure that we understand the cuts they’re taking and how that might affect us, and vice versa.”

Read about what the admiral’s doing to expand the global SOF partnership amid these cuts in this issue, and feel free to contact me with your comments.

Jeff CampbelleDitor


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KMI MedIa Group LeadershIp MaGazInes and WebsItesWith more than 40 product categories and 600 exhibitors, you will find no shortage of

innovation, technology and products in the unmanned systems and robotics industry.

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Learn about important issues, advancements and opportunities in the unmanned systems and robotics industry.

Choose from more than 100 technical sessions, panels and workshops featuring the industry’s top speakers and leading experts.

Explore the latest technology on the market, including live air, ground and maritime demonstrations, and much more.

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With more than 40 product categories and 600 exhibitors, you will find no shortage of innovation, technology and products in the unmanned systems and robotics industry.

Imagine being in one place with the biggest influencers in the industry who all want to share their most valuable knowledge with YOU!

Register today at auvsishow.orgWill you be there?

ConferenCe: 12–15 AugusttrAde shoW: 13–15 August

WAshington, d.C.WAlter e. WAshington Convention Center

Learn about important issues, advancements and opportunities in the unmanned systems and robotics industry.

Choose from more than 100 technical sessions, panels and workshops featuring the industry’s top speakers and leading experts.

Explore the latest technology on the market, including live air, ground and maritime demonstrations, and much more.

Mingle and network at daily receptions, coffee breaks, generous exhibit hall hours and our premier networking event, The Mix.

compiled by Kmi media Group staffWhiSperS

At a change of command ceremony for the 6th Military Information Support Battalion (Airborne) Lieutenant Colonel Bethany Aragon assumed command from Lieutenant Colonel James R. Hickman.

Special Operations Aviation Training Battalion bid fare-well to Lieutenant Colonel Mark G. Kappelmann and

welcomed new commander Major Jeffery J. Bragg in a ceremony at the General Bryan “Doug” Brown Compound, Fort Campbell, Ky.

Retired Chief Warrant Officer 5 Fred Arooji received the 2013 Bull Simons Award.

Eight sailors at the Naval Special Warfare Command

were authorized to wear the new rank insignias of their forthcoming promo-tions. Chief Warrant Officer 5 Kenneth Bowers, Master Chief Operations Specialist (EXW/SW) Donald Brockman and Special Warfare Operator Master Chief (SEAL) Terry Kelly all advanced to the top of their respec-tive pay scales to begin

the ceremony. Advancing as petty officers were Electronics Technician 1st Class (SW) Michael Martire, Legalman 1st Class (SW/AW) Sharon Renova, Yeoman 1st Class (AW) Aaron Warga, Intelligence Specialist 2nd Class (SW/AW) Mercedes Huff and Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Paul Coover.

The Navy SEAL Foundation has appointed Robin King to the new position of chief executive officer. The position was created as part of the organization’s restructuring. King, who has served as the interim executive director since March 2013, has been part of the foundation’s senior leadership team since its inception.

compiled by Kmi media Group staffpeOple

Test Flight Milestones Reached

Saab has verified a number of capabilities of its Skeldar V-200 vertical lift unmanned aircraft system (UAS) through flight campaigns at different sites in the United States and Sweden, demonstrating the system’s performance for both land and sea-based operations. Fully autonomous flights were conducted in both day and night conditions, demonstrating convoy shadowing capability, precision landing and long-range missions using tactical hand-over between ground control stations using Saab’s stationary and mobile ground control station.

A heavy fuel engine has also now been verified through exten-sive flight trials and an upgraded next-generation version of the original design aviation fuel engine has been delivered and is now cleared for flight test.

“The Skeldar V-200 has passed yet another important milestone in the program with these key capabilities verified and demonstrated to various

customers,” said Mikael Franzén, director of Saab’s product area tactical UAS.

The unmanned system’s built-in safety functionality confirmed contingency behav-iors in case of link loss, including autonomous navigation in accordance to predefined param-eters as well as auto landing and shut down.

“The combination of two alternative engine types, a modular payload design, and the ability to incorporate and utilize a variety of data link systems provides a true multi-mission capability for the Skeldar V-200 and a flexibility that enables the customer successfully meet their mission objectives on land or at sea,” concluded Franzén.

Communication Certification Received

DRS Technologies Inc. has received certification for its mobile X46-V communications on-the-move terminal to operate on DoD high-capacity communication satellites. The certification will allow users of these mobile terminals to connect to the U.S. military’s global information grid, giving warfighters greater flexibility and global support.

DRS received the first X-Band on-the-move certification by the DoD’s Joint SATCOM Engineering Center and the Army Strategic Command for its mobile X-Band system. The certification enables access to the wide-band global SATCOM (WGS) satellite constellation, allowing users a direct connection to voice, data and video capabilities for collecting, processing, storing, disseminating and managing information.

The X46-V is mission ready in a deployable package and has completed ML-STD-461 and ML-STD-810 certification.

Utilizing U.S. government wideband communications satellites, DRS’s X46-V allows a data transfer rate of up to 6Mbps. The system also operates on Ku and Ka bands, giving users additional flexibility to access both commer-cial and military satellite constellations.

“Having terminals that are certi-fied for both WGS and commercial satellites maximizes the warf-ighters’ ability to connect to the global information grid,” said Logen Thiran, president of DRS’s Intelligence, Communication and Avionics Solutions business unit. “The X46-V is a force enabler providing greater situational awareness and command and control, while reducing organiza-tional and operational support.”

www.SOTECH-kmi.com4 | SOTECH 11.5

Equipping K-9s to aid thEir opErator-handlErs.By scott nancE, sotEch corrEspondEnt

Dogs may be man’s best friend, but for the U.S. military, including the special forces, they’ve also proven to be a warfighter’s best friend.

U.S. special operators have paired up with canines in the Afghanistan and Iraq the-aters, and elsewhere, to take on a multitude of different missions, according to those who train the dogs and supply the variety of gear the dogs use to complete these often danger-ous assignments.

“I believe that the dogs out there work-ing the operation—the outside road clears, myriad searches and more—have been very beneficial to our troops in saving lives, absolutely,” said Bobby Roettger, director of military operations at Vohne Liche Kennels, an Indiana-based kennel which trains and provides dogs to special forces, as well as training the special operators paired with the canines.

Vohne Liche Kennels trains dogs to take on a variety of missions, which include tracking and apprehending human targets, as well as detecting explosives, Roettger said.

Explosives detection can range from everything from an improvised explo-sive device (IED), which may be buried underground, to explosives hidden within a house or on a suicide bomber’s vest, he said.

“And then also along with that, a lot of the ammunition and the weapons that are

used against the military carry the same sig-nature odors, so these dogs are responsible for finding caches of weapons and ammuni-tion that are also buried overseas. It’s amaz-ing what they’re able to do,” he added.

Florida-based American K-9 Detec-tion Services (AMK9) previously provided canine services to U.S. and Canadian special operators in Afghanistan through embed-ding human/dog teams within special forces units—and saw a similar result, according to John Johnson, the company’s vice president for strategic development.

“I think our teams were definitely a force multiplier in those instances they were successful in finding IEDs and caches doing exactly what we were contracted to do,” he said.

Deployment of canines by special forces and others in the U.S. military has grown in recent years as the value of the dogs has become more well-known, according to Jim Slater, president of K-9 Storm, a Canadian firm that makes dog-mounted cameras and other equipment for U.S. special forces and others.

“When success is realized, the word spreads and the utilization increases,” he said. “I would say, over the last 10 years, canine programs overall in the military have increased. That said, they’ve also been around for decades.”

The progress of canine use by special forces also can be measured by the fact that 16 years ago, when it was first introduced, the idea of a ballistic vest for canines was considered exotic, added Glori Slater, K9 Storm vice president. “Now, it’s pretty much standard-issue equipment,” she said.

AMK9 also took a lead in working with the Department of Defense to ensure that dogs provided to the U.S. military by con-tractors met a given standard, Johnson said.

“We saw a gap in the community that it was a highly fragmented market where you had a bunch of mom and pop kennels and canine service providers out there that weren’t really operating to any such stan-dard,” he said.

Vohne Liche Kennels also trains a spe-cific type of dog purposely for IED detec-tion, Roettger said. The company has been providing these canines, called the tactical explosive detector dog, since 2010, he said. These dogs are capable of working off-lead up to 100 meters to locate IEDs, he said, not-ing that the number of lives saved by these animals has been “astronomical.”

training dogs—and humans

For Vohne Liche Kennels, the story of how a dog becomes a K-9 warrior starts at the company’s kennels in Europe, Roettger said.

SOTECH 11.5 | 5 www.SOTECH-kmi.com

American trainers hand-select dogs, and those animals are then tested to find those that they believe will fit the training program, according to Roettger. The dogs that make the cut are moved to Vohne Liche Kennels’ 600-acre facility nearly two hours north of Indianapolis, he said.

Vohne Liche trainers put the animals through their paces on an expansive train-ing ground that simulates a variety of situ-ations and environments they are likely to encounter, including simulated schools, warehouses, different styles of homes and vehicles such as cars, trucks, tractor trailers and heavy machinery, Roettger explained.

Representatives from the special forces then arrive to evaluate the dogs, and special operators themselves arrive for training as dog handlers, he said. Both dog and human have to make the cut to succeed in the training program, he added.

“Once you become a dog handler, you’re going to work with that animal pretty much every day until the dog either retires or you move on to other things in your career,” Roettger said.

The dogs get additional training when they’re deployed in-theater because they’ve never been in Afghanistan or Iraq before, and it’s different from what they are used to stateside.

“They acclimate them there for a period of time, so they do the same thing that we did here in the United States. [However], they do it overseas because things are dif-ferent over there to a dog— the smells are different, the terrain is different, [and] the people are different. They do have to accli-mate them into that type of environment, but it doesn’t take very long at all. Then, they go out and they get ready to roll out on their missions,” Roettger said.

The types of dogs working with special operators have changed over the years.

Originally, male German Shepherd and Belgian Malinois dogs predominated, and then interest tilted towards more male Belgian Malinois and fewer German Shep-herds.

“Now one of the most sought-after dogs in the special forces is about a 45- to 55-pound female Malinois, or Dutch Shep-herd,” Roettger said. He added that “there are times when you have to pick that dog up, put it on your shoulder and take off, [so] it’s better to have that 45- to 55-pound female on your shoulder rather than about a 95-pound Malinois or 95-pound German Shepherd.”

Also, smaller and medium-sized dogs “are lasting longer, through their health and genetics,” and the special forces are getting “a little bit more bang for their buck,” he added.

thE gEar

Just as special operators often employ a variety of high-tech equipment to accom-plish their missions, their four-legged com-rades also frequently are outfitted with their own specialized tech gear, like cameras and sensors, as well.

K9 Storm makes a variety of equipment for the dogs deployed by the special forces, including dog-mounted cameras and har-nesses which assist in various missions, including IED detection, Slater said.

“In the case of, say, bomb detection or IED detection, the K9 Storm Intruder camera system [provides] the back-mounted camera, but also provides a chest mount point of view, so if the dog does go down-range to check a package or a particular device, the operators can see what the dog is sitting in front of, so you get an excellent point of view of the extended range capabil-ity,” he said.

The K9 Storm system is designed to be activated by a dog’s gross motor skills, is waterproof, and can be transferred from dog to dog “in just a matter of seconds,” Slater said.

The company’s harness systems are made to work in conjunction with its camera system and “can be worn for any insertion type of activity,” so if a special operations

unit is fast-roping into an incident from a helicopter—or even parachuting in—K9 Storm provides equipment that a dog would have on in order to get there, he said. Then once the dog is in position, the camera system will provide a picture of the dog’s point of view from a downrange position, he added.

Dog-mounted cameras help human operators make better sense of what a dog may be smelling in action, Slater said.

For instance, if a human target is hid-ing behind a trap door, the dog will smell that person and the handler will be able to see how the dog reacts. The handler doesn’t have to be standing right behind the dog to do so, he said.

The gear that a dog wears must be light-weight and have a perfect fit, Slater said.

“Our linkage system weighs 5 grams and has a load-bearing capability of over 2,500 pounds. That’s vital because every ounce really has to be accounted for on a piece of equipment like that so you have the inser-tion capability—the ability to parachute with the dog” even into water, he said.

K9 Storm also is capable of manufactur-ing custom gear for a specific special opera-tions mission, Slater said.

“While we can’t discuss the missions, when they have certain requirements we can build the gear that completely matches their mission so that they have success in the field and can come from battle safely,” she said.

K9 Storm provides its equipment to special forces from a number of nations, and finds that it often makes new sales by word-of-mouth, Slater added.

an operator trains for an aerial mission. [photo courtesy of K9 Storm]


“The special forces world is a small group. If one of them is using K9 Storm gear, then someone else from a NATO country will see that, and a result, many people have K9 Storm gear because they do a lot of their work jointly.”

soF lEading thE chargE

Tulsa, Okla.-based Tactical Electronics is another maker of dog-mounted cameras and other gear.

“Originally, we were approached by Naval Special Warfare [Command]—this goes back close to seven years ago—want-ing to put cameras on a dog’s back. As with a lot of innovative ideas, it sounded crazy at the time,” said Ben Kimbro, the company’s executive vice president. “Because of our commitment to supporting the warfighter and us liking left-field ideas, we engaged in it—and have watched it blossom out with

special forces leading the technological-development charge.”

The back-mounted cam-era has become a “profound tactical-level intelligence source,” Kimbro said.

“It makes the platoon-level crew on a target a lot more informed when that dog can get into a structure or space that humans can’t

readily or quickly [access]. Dogs are able to get in there a lot faster and provide a visual augmentation to a team in real-time. It’s positively been a lifesaver in a few instances.”

The company also found that in many cases, a forward collar-mounted camera makes much more sense than a back-mounted one, Kimbro said.

“That back-mounted camera is fantastic when you have a dog who is on an assault … mission. But what we learned pretty quickly is if you are to put that on a narcotics- or explosives-detecting dog, that back view over the top of their head is not effective enough,”

he said. “Detector dogs are down, working their nose.”

Head-mounted cameras also have been problematic, Kimbro said. “There are a lot of dogs that simply don’t like stuff on their heads.”

The collar-view provides “just a fantastic view of the article they’ll alert on, eventu-ally,” he added.

Tactical Electronics also offers a canine guidance system due to a requirement to direct a dog without exposing hand or verbal signals to the general public, Kimbro said.

That system does require a dog to be retrained for the guidance system to be effective. “We’re batting a thousand with the dogs being retrained to those vibration nodes as a steering mechanism, and have had a lot of success with it,” he added. O

for more information, contact SOTECH editor Jeff Campbell at [email protected] or search our online archives for related stories

at www.sotech-kmi.com.

Ben Kimbro

www.SOTECH-kmi.com SOTECH 11.5 | 7

More than a decade of war in Afghanistan has underscored the need for troops to be able to communicate in remote areas with little or no ground infrastructure. The challenge is particularly acute in mountainous terrain or over long distances, where line-of-sight com-munications may be difficult or impossible.

Defense contractors big and small have developed and fielded a variety of satellite communications products to help SOCOM and other military customers overcome these hurdles. These SATCOM products consist of, or support, such equipment as radios, portable ground-based systems, ground vehicles, and manned and unmanned aircraft.

Rather than rest on their laurels in this competitive marketplace, the seven companies surveyed for this article indicate they are each working to offer new or improved products to expand their capabili-ties.

gatr tEchnologiEs

GATR Technologies produces inflatable, portable, ground-based satellite antenna systems that, when packed up for transport, are 50 to 80 percent lighter and smaller than conventional rigid dishes. The company unveiled its 2.4-meter-diameter antenna system in 2007 and has since sold it to all four service components of SOCOM.

“It’s been used in all corners of the world” includ-ing Afghanistan, the Middle East, Central America and Africa, said Cyrus Wilson, GATR’s SOCOM program manager, who earlier served as both a U.S. Army

special operations communicator and a civilian program manager for SOF commands.

GATR has a new 1.2-meter version on the market and a 4-meter variant in development. All of its satellite antenna systems look like oversized beach balls and are filled with air using an automatic inflation device. For transport, they deflate to make them compact.

The 1.2-meter system became “available for prime-time use” in late 2012, Wilson said. While the 2.4-meter system fits into two cases weigh-ing less than 99 pounds each, the 1.2-meter antenna is small enough for a backpack or airline carry-on bag. Like the 2.4-meter version, it sends and receives data, video and voice.

In December 2012, the 2.4-meter system received U.S. government certification to operate at the X-band frequency on the new Wideband Global SATCOM satellite network. The company is seeking the same certification for the 1.2-meter system.

The 4-meter version is under development to meet the more robust communications needs of command centers, Wilson said. Set-up time

will be 90 minutes and, unlike most satellite dishes, will not require the laborious task of building a concrete base.

Based in Huntsville, Ala., GATR plans to have the 4-meter version ready in time to be displayed at the Satel-lite 2014 conference in Washington, D.C., in March 2014.

gilat satEllitE nEtworKs

Gilat Satellite Networks, an Israeli firm that makes a suite of popular Satcom on the Move (SOTM) systems for military and homeland security customers, is work-ing on a series of upgrades to its product line.

satEllitE communications companiEs arE rolling out nEw products to improvE thE aBility oF warFightErs to stay connEctEd in austErE tErrain.

By marc sElingEr, sotEch corrEspondEnt

Cyrus Wilson


Its SR-71X adds an X-band frequency capability to its SR-71, which is about the size of a four-slice toaster and allows small UAVs to send up to 1 megabyte per second of video to ground terminals. The first SR-71X prototype began undergoing ground testing in February 2013.

Gilat is exploring adding an X-band capability to its StealthRay 250M (SR 250M). The SR 250, which uses flat-panel array technology to maintain a low physical profile, fits on a HMMWV and sends and receives up to 2 megabytes per second of data, video and voice.

Gilat is also developing the Eagle Ray 5000, which is designed for command vehicles and can send or receive up to 10 megabytes per second “for serious data throughput,” said Michael Barthlow, Gilat’s general manager for North America. It will be available in Ka-band in the summer of 2013 and in Ku-band in December 2013.

Gilat is also under contract with the U.S. Army’s Communica-tions-Electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center to explore phased array technology that would eliminate moving parts from SOTM systems.

harris caprocK

Harris CapRock Communications, an arm of Melbourne, Fla.-based Harris Corp., recently teamed with Europe’s Astrium Services to begin offering ultra-high frequency (UHF) satellite communica-tions to international and U.S. government users. UHF allows troops in combat to communicate with each other or with command-and-control facilities.

Harris CapRock bought spare capacity on Astrium’s Skynet 5 satellites to provide beyond-line-of-sight data and voice communica-tions to UHF tactical satellite-capable radios, including Harris Falcon IIs and Falcon IIIs.

“You can reach back halfway across the world with one of these satellites now, because the primary satellite we’re on today covers from Australia all the way over to the Atlantic Ocean,” said David Cavossa, Harris CapRock’s president of Government Solutions.

Service for the Harris-Astrium team’s first customer, a European military agency, went live in April 2013. Strong demand is expected from international customers, who have purchased a host of UHF-capable radios in recent years but do not have anything comparable to the UHF Follow-On and Mobile User Objective System spacecraft that provide UHF satellite service to the U.S. military, Cavossa said.

“We have a long list of customers we’re talking to right now, all that have expressed interest,” he said.

Harris CapRock hopes to partner with Astrium, Intelsat or both to offer more UHF satellite services because demand for scarce UHF satellite capacity continues to greatly exceed supply. But bringing this idea to fruition will not happen overnight.

“To design, build and launch a satellite and bring into service, it’s about two years,” Cavossa said. “There are no other commercial satellites planned right now with UHF capacity on board other than what’s already on orbit. Even if we broke ground tomorrow and said we’re going to move forward on this satellite, it’s a two-year lead time before it gets in space.”

intElsat gEnEral

Intelsat General, the Bethesda, Md., subsidiary of Luxem-bourg-based satellite services provider Intelsat S.A., plans to field a next-generation line of satellites called Intelsat Epic Next Generation

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SOTECH_Sky's the Limit:Layout 1 5/25/13 8:39 AM Page 1


(EpicNG) to meet the growing SATCOM needs of SOCOM and other government and commercial customers.

The initial deployment will be two Boeing 702MP satellites that are expected to become operational in 2015 and 2016, said Britt Lewis, Intelsat General vice president of marketing and business strategy. The new spacecraft will be designated Intelsat 29e and Intelsat 33e and support a range of systems, including ground vehi-cles, manned and unmanned aircraft, and transportable terminals.

“SOCOM global broadband requirements are expected to increase, driven by the need for seamless connectivity, bandwidth-hungry mobility applications and the growing convergence of data and high-definition video,” Lewis said. “The Intelsat EpicNG satel-lites are designed to support very high throughput fixed, transport-able and mobile applications and will provide four to five times more bandwidth capacity in megahertz than our traditional satellites.”

The two new satellites will operate in the C-, Ku- and Ka-band frequencies, be fully integrated with Intelsat’s existing infrastruc-ture, and cover all of the populated continents.

Boeing recently revealed it will build three more 702MP satel-lites for the EpicNG constellation after Intelsat 29e and 33e.

itt ExElis

ITT Exelis is working on upgrades to two of its key SATCOM products: the Global Network on the Move Active Distribution (GNOMAD) system and the handheld RO Tactical Radio.

GNOMAD, which can be installed on ground vehicles to provide broadband voice, data and video, currently works with Ku-band sat-ellites, which are mostly commercial spacecraft. The system, which uses a “low-profile,” 7-inch-high antenna, has been combat tested in Iraq, and its current users include several military units, said Rob Semple, an Exelis business development manager.

The McLean, Va.-based company is developing a Ka-band and X-band frequency capability for GNOMAD and expects to test the enhancement near the end of 2013.

The RO Tactical Radio, which ITT Exelis began producing about three years ago, has a range of up to 250 miles and provides secure voice, data and position location information. Similar to a walkie-talkie, it allows radio users to communicate with each other. About 8,000 radios have been fielded with U.S. forces, including SOCOM.

Exelis believes the radio’s capabilities still have plenty of room for growth. Working with the Defense Information Systems Agen-cy’s enhanced mobile satellite service office, the company plans to extend the range so that forces on opposite sides of the globe can communicate using the handheld radio, said Dario Valli, an Exelis business development director. The software upgrade will help forces stay connected in the sprawling areas of responsibility of U.S. Pacific Command and U.S. Africa Command.

The upgrade will be available for fielding in 2014 and could be applied to existing as well as new radios, Valli said.

windmill intErnational inc.

Windmill International Inc. of Nashua, N.H., is seeing robust demand for its satellite communications products. It introduced its 32-pound KA-10 Suitcase Portable Receive Suite (SPRS) several years ago to receive video, imagery, weather updates and other infor-mation via the U.S. military’s Global Broadcast Service, and almost 250 SPRS systems are now fielded by special operations forces throughout Afghanistan, said Laura Dion, vice president of specialty products at Windmill.

Feedback from customers indicates the system is helping them identify insurgents and keep villages safe.

(Line of Sight for 2 Channels)

Operators Ask, We Listened...NOW we are accepting orders for the FORAX-LS2

We redesigned the FORAX-SC2 resulting in the LS2. The LS2 can be used to support VHF and UHF LOS operations utilizing frequencies from 30-512 MHz. The LS2 like its predecessor can still be used to support military UHF DAMA SATCOM. Syntonics has already developed a preplanned product improvement (P3I) plan that will allow the LS2 to be used with MUOS.

Optical FiF bi er Cable

SYNTONICS LLC410-884-0500 ext [email protected]

The FORAX-LS2 can be used to connect two radios, two power amplifi ers and two antennas and operate across the full 30-512 MHz frequency range.

The LS2 will continue to support UHF DAMA SATCOM operations, but unlike the SC2 can be used to support any VHF and UHF frequencies from 30-512 MHz

Syntonics has a preplanned product improvement (P3I) plan developed to modify the LS2 to operate with the MUOS waveform.

Ultra-high frequency allows troops in combat to communicate with each other or with command-and-control facilities. [photo courtesy of Harris Caprock Communications]


“Bottom-line, the KA-10 is sav-ing lives on the battlefield by allow-ing us to see potential hazards and address them with the appropriate action,” said Army Major Thomas Hooper, who led a joint special oper-ations task force in Afghanistan in 2012.

Dion said the system is popu-lar with special operations forces because it is easy to use and trans-port and does not require them to bring a communications special-ist on small-unit missions. Unlike manual systems, which require the operator to search for a satellite in the sky using a compass or other device, the KA-10 automatically acquires a satellite signal with the push of a button.

“Due to the patented auto-acquisition, you don’t need to be a communications expert to be able to use the system,” she said.

Windmill is under contract with the U.S. military to develop an even lighter version weighing just 20 pounds and called the KA-20 Ruck-sack Portable Receive Suite (RPRS).

“The rugged Ka-Band Rucksack Portable Receive Suite is a compact system that will enable an indi-vidual foot soldier access to high-bandwidth intelligence data at the tactical edge,” the company said.

SPRS and RPRS are both sched-uled to participate in a GBS operational test and evaluation that the Air Force tentatively plans to hold in the spring of 2014.

In addition, the company has introduced the 42-pound Ku Band Automated Positioning System, to receive and transmit data on commercial satellite networks. The system, which fits in a single case, can be set up in five minutes without communica-tions expertise.

xtar

XTAR LLC, which describes itself as the world’s first U.S. commercial provider of satellite services in the X-band frequency, recently expanded its role in the growing airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (AISR) market.

The Herndon, Va.-based company, a joint venture between Loral Space & Communications and Hisdesat, announced in December 2012 that it received a contract valued at more than $8 million to support manned aircraft over North and South America, Africa and the Middle East. Since then, it has signed new contracts with new AISR customers, said James Chambers, vice president of engineering at XTAR.

“We expect this trend to continue as airborne assets meet the needs of data collection around the world,” Chambers said.

XTAR, which operates two SATCOM payloads launched in 2005 and 2006, said it repointed several payload beams to better support airborne missions. In addition, the company is exploring adding a payload to its fleet to support growing SATCOM demand in Asia.

“XTAR is actively considering expansion of its fleet,” Cham-bers said. “This includes coverage over Southeast Asia where we do not currently have capacity, as we can see that demand in this region will increase based on the president’s pivot to Asia and the possibility of conflict and natural disasters in this region. As XTAR considers its strategic direction for the future, this may also include providing coverage in other frequency bands used by governments, like Ka-band and UHF.”

Chambers believes that X-band offers several advantages over other frequencies, including higher data rates, less susceptibility to interference from adjacent satellites, and better performance in bad weather.

“X-band offers the ideal solution for delivering high-definition video to help warfighters successfully achieve their missions,” he said. O

for more information, contact SOTECH editor Jeff Campbell at [email protected] or search our online archives

for related stories at www.sotech-kmi.com.

James Chamber

Britt Lewis

Laura Dion


“You can’t surge trust,” emphasized U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) Commander Admiral Bill H. McRaven while speaking to the SOF community on the opening day of its annual industry conference (SOFIC). “Those of who have spent time in this conflict from 9/11 know that it’s been all about relationships.”

What SOCOM’s found over time is that engagement must start early and remain persistent to maintain those relation-ships. “Our point is if you want to be global … you’ve got to start that early and often,” McRaven said. “So you can’t surge trust.”

Running from a local problem is not an option anymore. Now, SOCOM has learned that a local problem will manifest itself in other parts of the world. “The world is linked and there-fore we need to be linked,” McRaven said. “We’ve got to build the network to defeat the enemy network.”

Partner relationships with the industry and academia repre-sented at SOFIC are important to defeat global threat networks. McRaven and his team look at water availability and population density to better understand those local problems. “We have to understand what those global threat networks look like so that we are appropriately postured to do something about it,” he said.

Whether it’s one or two operators—or thousands in the case of Afghanistan—SOF are operating in about 78 countries every day of the year. “The point is, they are out there, and we need to connect them so the flow of information from one country to

the next is available to everybody that needs to find out what’s going on,” McRaven said.

While geographic combat commanders are geographically aligned, global threat networks are not. So the SOCOM chief is working to institutionalize the illumination of problems that cross territorial lines. The seeds of communication are planted in the early stages of an operator’s career. “Young captains that you learn to build trust with today, and you build that relationship today, will be the majors of tomorrow and the lieutenant colonels and the colonels and the generals. And before long, they’re the chiefs of staff of their Army or they are the admirals of their Navy,” McRaven said. Looking at his counterparts in the audience, he said, “Every one of them can give you a story about a guy they worked with over in country ‘X’ and now they are the head of their nation.”

Another key to partnership expansion is logistics. “We’ve got to make sure that when the president calls on us to do something, that we’re in a position to be able to get from point A to point B,” McRaven said. “Sometimes when point B is out in the middle of Africa, you have to ask yourself, ‘Can we get there?’” So, SOCOM did just that—conducted a logistics war game, picked some worst case scenarios and went over what was needed to go from one place to another. In some cases air and sea ports are available; in other cases they aren’t. Then, a bilateral agreement may need to be built, so SOCOM can use that country’s airfield.

socom commandEr ExplorEs ways to Expand whilE sEcrEtary wrEstlEs with spEnding cuts.

By JEFF campBEll, sotEch Editor


To expand SOCOM’s global logistics efforts, the commander has partnered with academia, think tanks and industry to find the best business practices. He cited one example where all his commanders and senior enlisted leaders joined him on a visit to FedEx. Since FedEx runs a global operation, McRaven wanted to find out how they do business. He was surprised he didn’t find a large command center with someone managing aircraft move-ment. He didn’t because, with an air tasking order, FedEx’s naval aviator on duty knew where planes were going to be, and only needed to deal with weather changes or mechanical issues.

“What I did take away from Federal Express was their purple promise and their philosophy,” McRaven said, noting that if they said a package would be delivered by 10:00, it would be there. “There’s a standard of excellence that is global when you talk about FedEx.”

McRaven wants to ensure every SOF operator down range—whether soldier, sailor, airman, Marine or civilian—is expected to maintain a standard of excellence. “If you get off the reservation, if you had bad behavior, that’s just not a reflection on you, that’s a reflection on everybody in the SOF community, and therefore we have to up our game,” McRaven said. “Because with FedEx, a purple promise was if you’re that customer, and you’ve got a FedEx box in there, it’s going to show up on time, just like you asked. With us, our ‘brand name,’ if you will, is spe-cial operations—we better be special in all aspects of what we do, not just the operations.”

FedEx Government Services Managing Direc-tor Kirstin Knott said FedEx is honored to be acknowledged during the speech as well as the visits Adm. McRaven’s team made to the FedEx Memphis World Hub. “Quality has always been a hallmark of our company and of our service,” she said. “However, we’re restless.”

FedEx works to improve service via quality driven management. “For every one of our more than 290,000 team members, our pur-pose is to connect people and possibilities around the world,” Knott said. “To empower our team members in the application of quality practices that improve the customer experience, we promote the use of quality processes, practices and tools at all levels of the organization.”

FedEx Chairman, President and CEO Frederick W. Smith’s quality principles include: customers define quality, optimize business performance, and view failures as opportunities. “Qual-ity-driven management is a unique philosophy and methodology, one built by FedEx for FedEx,” Smith said. “It is based on a belief deeply embedded in our culture—that customers define quality.”

Depending on the size, origin and destination, moves can be easier or more difficult to handle. “A small team’s cargo require-ment may be a pallet or two, which can be relatively easy to ten-der to an air carrier,” Knott said. “Yet, if the destination is a very remote location, commercial carriers may not be able to provide service.” Thus, commercial carriers like FedEx have expanded their service offerings as DoD and SOCOM have expanded their presence into other countries.

FedEx is able to serve most of the world within 48-72 hours with its international priority freight service. “Regardless if the

shipment is large or small from a unit or a team, the key to a successful shipment is advance planning and detailed, accurate paperwork,” Knott said. “When organic lift is not available, using a U.S. flag carrier and civil reserve air fleet participant, such as FedEx, can be a cost-effective alternative which still provides the custodial control required of sensitive shipments.”

FEEling thE cuts

The following evening, keynote speaker Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Frank Kendall asked, “How many of you are feeling the impact of sequestration?”

Many attendees’ hands raised and Kendall explained that the problem we’re facing isn’t a cataclysmic event like an approaching thunderstorm or hurricane. “It’s more like the rain started and … the water level keeps rising,” he said. When passed originally, the Secretary of Defense at the time said the idea of sequestration was to do something so crazy no one would let it happen. “We’re living in world that I did not really expect to have to live in,”

Kendall said.Kendall came up during the Cold War, first as

an operator, then working in research and develop-ment. “I’ve never seen a period of time in which we had the kind of problems we have right now,” he said. “I used to give speeches in which I would say that my opinion was that the center would hold,” meaning that there was enough support on both sides of the political aisle that national security spending was going to be protected.

“There was an assumption that there was a con-sensus about the importance of national security,” Kendall remembered. “I’m not as convinced of that anymore.”

Sequestration was set up as a vehicle to force Congress to do something. Instead, operational and readiness impacts are being felt across the force. “I think we’re doing our best to protect SOCOM,” Kendall said. “But … we really don’t have as much flex-ibility as we’d like in terms of prioritizing.”

The under secretary listed some of the cuts’ impacts: not flying airplanes, not training people, and not steaming ships. “I know what it’s like when you don’t train—and I lived through the readiness crisis in the 1970s,” Kendall said. As an operator during that time, he had trouble procuring spare parts. Once his unit did get what they needed, and the unit was trained and ready to go, “things would immediately start to deteriorate if you didn’t pay attention to it. Once you’ve lost that kind of capability, it was very hard to get it back,” Kendall said. “That’s what we’re doing now.”

Kendall urged the community to be more vocal, even though as a former Army officer, he knows SOF knows how to keep push-ing ahead and get the mission done. “That attitude may not be serving us very well right now,” Kendall said. “I think we need to let people know how we feel about what’s happening.” O



Kirstin Knott

[email protected]


EnhanCEd Ground SurVEIllanCE radarSRC

SRC Inc. has announced the

availability of the new SR Hawk

Version 2 enhanced ground

surveillance radar. Built upon the

success of previous versions of this

system, the enhanced version is

a high-performance, highly reliable,

commercially available ground

surveillance radar with a low total

ownership cost. It is suited for

missions such as border surveillance,

force protection, port and harbor

security and critical infrastructure

protection. The system is designed

and manufactured in United States.

“The SR Hawk (V)2 enhanced

radar delivers an accelerated track

acquisition timeline, increased scan

speed, and a more robust track

capability for better performance

in high-clutter environments,” said

Paul G. Tremont, president of SRC.

The radar can follow up to 350

simultaneous targets, and features

an automated priority target track

mode for improved usability. It

monitors areas ranging from as small

as 10 degrees azimuth to continuous

360 degrees while detecting slow-

moving personnel with an extremely

low false alarm rate. The SR Hawk

radar also tracks low-flying aircraft

including helicopters and ultra-lights.

A “port and harbor mode” optimizes

it for maritime applications such as

tracking personal watercraft, rubber

rafts and small boats. Additionally, it

can support simultaneous land and

over-water applications.

The radar can operate at

temperatures ranging from -40 to

+60 degrees Celsius and is qualified

to U.S. DoD MIL-STD-810G for rain,

ice, sand, dust, shock, vibration,

wind and humidity.

It has been fielded and

integrated with multiple optical

sensors, command and control

systems, and other radar sensors/

cameras (slew to cue) as part of

several wide-area and persistent

surveillance systems.

BlacK Watch

ConCEalmEnt VIdEo KItS for CoVErt SurVEIllanCEIntegrated Microwave Technologies LLC

Vitec Group’s Videocom division business

unit Integrated Microwave Technologies (IMT)

LLC has announced its new concealment video

kits (CTVK) that allow security professionals to

survey an area covertly for documented video

evidence. The kits use a wide range of indoor and

outdoor hides with integrated video transmitters,

such as GPS stands, outdoor colonial and street

lights, alarm clocks and fire detectors, and a

mock owl that can be positioned in a tree.

The CTVK kit is comprised of an integrated

miniature concealment transmitter, a mobile

viewer receiver, an Android tablet for transmitter

control, battery chargers and all required

cabling.

“From inside a vehicle to video surveillance

from the street level and indoor concealments,

IMT’s goal is to provide secure, reliable and

complete integrated solution packages for law

enforcement and governmental agencies,” said

IMT Divisional Chief Executive Stephen Shpock.

“All IMT concealments employ an internal heat

sink and quiet cooling system to allow for

continuous operation at the highest RF levels.

The design is RF transparent, enabling the full

transmission of both the RF signal and the

Bluetooth remote control signals.”

IMT’s CTx and CTx-II can be integrated into

numerous indoor appliances or utility boxes.

IMT’s line of indoor video concealments includes

a smoke detector and clock radio, each featuring

low-light, high-resolution imaging cameras, with

a 120-degree wide-angled lens. The clock radio

features a removable bottom plate for access to

the manual channel selection of the transmitter,

and the smoke detector features a mounting

system that enables the unit to be rotated for

optimal line-of-sight.

16-ElEmEnt PhotodIodE for ElECtron dEtECtIonOpto Diode

Opto Diode, a division of ITW, and a member

of the ITW Photonics Group, has introduced a

16-element photodiode for UV/EUV or electron

detection. The new AXUV16ELG features a 40-pin

dual in-line package, and internal

quantum efficiency at 100 percent.

The new photodiode is

designed with a large, 2-by-5 mm

active area and a sensitive area

of 10 square mm per element. To

enhance accuracy, the 40-pin

detector offers stable response

after exposure to high-energy

electrons or photons.

Storage and operating

temperatures range from -10

degrees to 40 degrees C for

ambient environments, and from

-20 degrees to 80 degrees C for

nitrogen or vacuum conditions.

The maximum junction temperature is 70

degrees C and the lead-soldering temperature

(0.080 in. from case for 10 seconds) is 260

degrees C.


unattEndEd Ground SEnSorL-3 Communication Systems-East

Unattended ground sensor (UGS)

supplier L-3 Communication Systems-

East has introduced its new BAIS-i

sensor. Initially developed as a capability

enhancement for the U.S. Army’s

Battlefield Anti-Intrusion System, the

BAIS-i sensor is backward-compatible

with legacy U.S. Army and U.S. Marine

Corps UGS systems, including L-3’s

remotely monitored battlefield sensor

system, tactical remote sensor system

and local key management device

solutions.

With proven mission duration of

greater than six months, the BAIS-i sensor

is suited for intrusion detection and threat

classification of personnel and vehicles

for small unit force protection. The BAIS-i

sensor deploys quickly without any cables

or spikes to bury, conceals easily and is

inexpensive enough to leave behind.

“L-3 CS-East is proud to continue

supporting our Army and Marine

Corps customers with best-in-class

capabilities,” said Bob Lisowski, vice

president of secure space and sensor

systems for L-3 CS-East. “The BAIS-i

sensor is a smaller, lighter, more capable

and less expensive solution with the same

highly reliable performance and rugged

dependability that our customers have

come to expect from L-3.”

Slightly larger than a hockey puck

and weighing only 8 ounces, each BAIS-i

sensor reliably detects and classifies

personnel and vehicle movement

at detection ranges in excess of 75

meters for personnel, 250 meters for

wheeled vehicles, and 350 meters for

large wheeled or tracked vehicles. An

extremely low-power transceiver provides

a 2-kilometer, ground-to-ground RF

communications range that increases to

a 10-kilometer line-of-sight range with

an elevated monitoring station antenna.

A companion base station receiver

connects to any computing device running

Windows or Linux operating systems. In

addition, the BAIS-i system’s two-way

RF communications capability supports

local and remote wireless programming

or reprogramming.

BIomEtrIC CaPturE and CrEdEntIal rEadInG SolutIonCross Match Technologies Inc.

Cross Match Technologies Inc. has

launched its new secure electronic enrollment

kit (SEEK) Avenger mobile handheld. Designed

to provide immigration, customs, border control,

and law enforcement and security personnel a

rugged, portable identity management solution,

the device incorporates Cross Match’s mission

oriented biometric software (MOBS), state-of-

the-art biometric sensor technology, and secure

credential reader and communication options.

“With thousands of handheld units in the

field and excellent customer relationships, the

company’s engineers and product managers

gained critical feedback,” said John Hinmon,

head of marketing at Cross Match. “The result is

a lighter, smarter and faster SEEK Avenger that is

uniquely suited to its application environments.”

Weighing in at just over 3 pounds, and 40

percent smaller than the SEEK II, the SEEK

Avenger is the only multi-biometric handheld

capable of capturing stand-off dual iris (SAP

40) and fingerprint (FAP 45) images in direct

sunlight. A 5 megapixel camera provides 1D/2D

barcode reading, captures evidentiary photos

and video, and takes facial images using auto-

facial recognition. The optional communications

cap provides LTE/3G or other network certified

cellular modems for additional connectivity

beyond the standard Bluetooth and WiFi.

The SEEK Avenger runs Cross Match’s

MOBS software on a Windows-based OS,

and incorporates onboard matching against

a watchlist of up to 250,000 records for

autonomous use. MOBS also generates multiple

agency-compliant files and handles their

transmission for remote matching to regional or

national AFIS databases, as required.

compiled by Kmi media Group staff

ShotGun maGazInE ConVErSIon KItSAdaptive Tactical

Available in three configurations, Adaptive Tactical has announced the release of their

Sidewinder Venom shotgun magazine conversion kits.

“Response to our re-engineered, preconfigured shotgun systems has been overwhelming,”

said Adaptive Tactical CEO Jim Bentley. “We’ve taken the next step and incorporated the

same advancements into our conversion kits for at-home installation.”

The new conversion kits can be installed in 88, 500, 535 and 835 and 590 series Mossberg

12-gauge shotguns. The kits are designed for faster cycle times, easy loading and reliability.


Colonel Joseph A. Capobianco hails from the state of New Hampshire, graduating from Norwich University in 1988 with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. Upon graduation, he received a regular Army commission as an aviation second lieutenant.

After completion of flight school, Capobianco served for 10 years in operational aviation assignments. His first operational assignment was with the 82nd Airborne Division’s 1-82nd Attack Helicopter Battalion, Fort Bragg, N.C. He held numerous positions participating in Operation Just Cause (Panama) and Operations Desert Shield/Storm (Saudi Arabia/Iraq). His second operational assignment was with the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regi-ment (SOAR), in the Republic of Panama and Fort Campbell, Ky. where he participated in counter drug/narcotic operations in Cen-tral/South America.

Capobianco’s previous acquisition assignments include assis-tant program manager, Government Flight Representative (GFR), and experimental test pilot (XP) with the Technology Applications Project Office. He also served with the Aviation Applied Technology Directorate as a program manager/XP in support of the Global War on Terror, division chief for the U.S. Army Special Operations Com-mand (USASOC) Operational Test and Evaluation Division, and product manager for Soldier Sensors and Lasers/Soldier Maneuver Systems, PEO Soldier. His last assignment was as division chief of Accelerated Capabilities, ARCIC.

Selected for graduate school, Capobianco attended the Georgia Institute of Technology, earning an M.S. in aerospace engineering and at Murray State University, an M.S. in management of tech-nology. His acquisition and DoD schooling includes the U.S. Navy Experimental Test Pilot School, DCMA GFR, and numerous Defense Acquisition University courses, to include the Executive Program Manager’s Course. His military schooling includes the Aviation Officer’s Basic and Advanced Courses, Special Operator Training Course (Aviation), High Risk Search, Escape, Resist, and Evasion, Defense Language Institute-Spanish, and the Army Command and General Staff College.

His awards and decorations include the Master Aviator, Senior Parachutist, Canadian Airborne, and Air Assault Badges, the Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal, Army Commendation Medal, and the Army Achievement Medal.

Q: Since your arrival, what changes have you instituted in SOF Warrior?

A: In the last 10 months, we focused on defining the program exec-utive office’s [PEO] mission, vision and motto followed by some

minor organizational and personnel adjustments vice outright changes. During my initial orientation to PEO Special Operations Forces-Warrior [SOF-W], it was immediately clear that the PEO was an extremely well-run and effective organization, focused on fielding critical operational capabilities to meet material require-ments and close capability gaps for the SOF operator. The PEO is the culmination of the recent merger of two PEOs, SOF-W and PEO Special Programs. The joining of the two organizations required some second- and third-order fine tuning and adjust-ments to further define roles and responsibilities of the program management offices [PMOs], system acquisition managers and other key positions. Before making any adjustments, the team spent time defining the PEO’s mission, vision and motto. Through a series of meetings with leadership and plenty of team member feedback, we codified the mission, vision and motto.

The mission is “to provide rapid and focused acquisition of SOF-unique capabilities to USSOCOM operators conducting decisive SOF activities and global operations against terrorist networks.” The mission statement really focuses on the continued drive to deliver rapid, focused and SOF-unique capabilities.

The vision is “to develop, acquire and sustain exceptional SOF capabilities for use in all environments.” This vision allows the PEO a wider aperture to look for creative and innovative solutions to meet SOF’s expeditionary and changing roles.

PEO SOF-Warrior Strengthens Warrior Support

Gear Deliverer

Colonel Joseph A. CapobiancoProgram Executive Officer

PEO SOF Warrior

Q&AQ&A


The motto is “Operator Focused, On Time, On Target!” This again centers our focus on the operator, while reminding us of the dual application of “on time—on target” from an operational stand-point, and doubling for the programmatic standpoint of being on schedule and meeting performance requirements.

After this work, the adjustments have focused on maximizing personnel density at the PMO vice PEO level, establishing clearer lanes and responsibilities for key PEO level positions tied back to individual strengths, renewed emphasis on fiscal execution due to continuing resolution authority [CRA] and sequestration, and tran-sition to a longer range focused battle rhythm.

Q: How do you assess progress in night vision technology in cur-rent systems, versus the initial green view of earlier assets?

A: During the past two to three years, the image intensification [I2] industry has continuously advanced the GEN III, I2 tubes from both a performance and manufacturing standpoint. The result is opera-tional overmatch in both volume, number of fielded systems, and value, I2 tube performance in varied applications. Today, our night vision devices [NVDs] demonstrate a 10-15 percent better low-light performance than demonstrated five years ago. We are exploring the potential benefits of fielding GEN III tubes with a white phosphor instead of a green phosphor display to provide better contrast in cer-tain combat applications and environments. Initial testing shows an improved image over a much wider spectrum of lighting conditions.

Q: What further advancements would you like to see in night vision technology?

A: I think there are three primary areas for technology advance-ments in operator-borne NVDs: multispectral/sensor fusion, digital versus current analog I2 tube capability, and continued size weight and power improvements. All three of these areas are in the works showing continued promise over the last five to 10 years.

Multispectral NVDs leverage the benefits of the low light/light intensification and the thermal spectrums. The combination of dif-ferent sensors, fused technology, allows the operator to see farther, with better clarity across different environmental and material obstacles commonly encountered in SOF operations. The SOF operator using fused NVD technology can detect targets at greater ranges, recognize what they are sooner, and, most importantly, identify what they are seeing before an opponent using a single band detector/NVD. Multispectral NVDs for the SOF operator equate to improved situational awareness [SA] and greater agility in all envi-ronments. As the SOF operator’s SA improves, it offsets the recent proliferation of single spectrum military and commercial NVDs entering the market and current fight.

We’re working closely with our industry partners to mature solid-state, low-light sensor technology to move from an analog to a digital I2 sensor. This move opens up numerous possibilities to provide the SOF operator with increasingly advanced cueing, placing critical time sensitive data on NVD displays, again resulting in improved SA. This SA comes from leveraging and displaying a vast array of information already available to the operator, enabling information flow without having to look away or pull out other devices distracting him from a critical task or areas of interest. This heads up, near real-time information advantage is only possible by moving from current analog to digital technology.

The final area of improvement is SWaP. As the NVD technology adds capability it does so at the cost of larger size, weight and bat-tery/power requirements. Considering the NVDs usually mount on helmets or weapons, these are two areas where weight savings are crucial. Across the board, the only way to leverage the SA advantages associated with multi-spectral/fused and digital NVDs is with signifi-cant and quantifiable SWaP improvements.

Q: Can you provide us with a status overview of the program to provide Special Forces with a new and much-needed internally transportable ground mobility vehicle [GMV] 1.1?

A: We get a lot of questions and interest in the GMV efforts currently underway, in source selection, led by PMO Family of Special Opera-tions Vehicles. The U.S. Special Operations Command [USSOCOM] has several ground mobility requirements, one of which is GMV 1.1, a modified-government off-the-shelf vehicle with SOF peculiar modifications. The key vehicle performance parameters include high mobility and a size factor that allows internal transport in a CH/MH-47 Chinook helicopter. This is an active procurement utilizing full and open competition, with the intent of awarding an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity [IDIQ] type of contract in August, 2013. The acquisition strategy approved in 2012, included initial hardware product samples evaluations, followed by source selection and after a single contract award a two phase effort. These efforts include SOF modification integration, production validation testing and operational testing, which upon completion move to full rate production delivery orders.

Q: What other vehicles would you like to incorporate into the fleet to carry special operators on insertion and extraction?

A: The Air Force Special Operations Command [AFSOC] is currently formalizing a requirement to meet an identified capability gap for a CV-22 Osprey, internal transportable vehicle [ITV]. PMO FOSOV is currently conducting a source selection to acquire a small quantity of ITVs for evaluation by AFSOC. AFSOC will assess these ITVs in an operationally representative combat evaluation to measure the ITV’s capability and to help refine the requirement’s key performance parameters. Upon completion of a successful combat evaluation, USSOCOM may establish an ITV program of record. A rough sched-ule could require proposals as early as May 2013. Following award, the schedule would include safety certification, combat evaluation, and orders for vehicles. Based on previous market research, it is anticipated that industry can provide a non-developmental, govern-ment off-the-shelf vehicle that will meet the requirements listed in the request for proposal. The key performance requirements for the ITV are:

Transportability: The vehicle shall be internally air transport-able, without shoring, by a V-22 at its gross vehicle flight weight. The critical flight mission payload has a 1,100-pound threshold [T] and 3,500-pound objective [O].

Casualty Transport: The vehicle shall be configurable to carry three litters T; six litters O, which must be attached to the vehicle framework such that the casualties will not extend horizontally out-side the vehicle and rescue personnel will have access to all patients.

Survivability: The vehicle shall provide an integrated structure with crush resistant roll cage to support 100 percent T; 150 percent O of the gross vehicle weight [GVW] over primary occupants.


Range: The vehicle at GVW shall be capable of traveling a mini-mum of 350 miles T 450 miles O at 45 mph on level paved roads using organic fuel tanks, without refuel, and exclusive of onboard fuel stor-age cans.

Q: How is the SOF-modified mine-resistant ambush protected [MRAP] all-terrain vehicle [M-ATV] performing?

A: The deployed, combat-tested SOF-modified M-ATVs are performing reliably and saving lives. Because of the unique missions that SOF operators perform on the battlefield, USSOCOM planned and managed several modifications to the service common M-ATV in order to make the vehicle a viable alternative for battlefield mobility and passenger safety. With larger windows, a fifth passenger seat, and small-arms protected rear cargo bed, special operations forces are better able to keep SA, carry more team members in fewer trucks, and use the rear cargo area for cover, if required. Some of these SOF-mods have been so successful on operations that the Army is installing them on their ser-vice common M-ATVs. The M-ATV is a highly capable off-road ground vehicle that allows SOF operators to travel “off the beaten path,” yet tough enough to allow soldiers protection against IEDs.

Q: Is the precision sniper rifle program [PSR] advancing?

A: Yes, the PSR and the 338 Lapua Magnum MK330 AB97 ammuni-tion have been placed on contract. Qualification and safety testing is planned to begin in August 2013 with system fielding planned a year later, August 2014. This is an important SOCOM effort for a couple of reasons. First, it is a large leap in sniper capability from a system standpoint, weapon, caliber, match grade ammo, optics. Second, we have done a great job teaming with the Army and Marine Corps during requirements generation, field assessments, source selection and planned testing to facilitate making the PSR a good candidate to leverage as a DoD-wide sniper system versus a SOCOM-only piece of equipment. The program as structured is postured for a SOF to ser-vice capability transition.

Q: Are you satisfied that current body armor systems are providing sufficient protection against the major enemy threats?

A: Absolutely. We know through study, engineering and testing that the SOF personal equipment advance requirements body armor pro-tects the SOF operator against current and emerging ballistic threats. Our program manager has current intelligence reports and conducts analysis and testing to ensure our systems are best of class in defeat-ing those known threats. We continuously push the state-of-the-art in research and manufacturing technology to ensure we can offer the level of ballistic protection required by our operators. Also, a big part of protection is the ability of an operator to rapidly react to imminent and unfolding situations without being encumbered by his protective gear. Our customers demand that their armor has the ability to defeat enemy threats while maximizing mobility. Our niche is developing and fielding hard and soft body armor solutions which maximize bal-listic protection without weighing down our operators. Based on past issues with Generation II and III body armor, we continue to team with our industrial base partners to not only ensure reliable, consis-tent production of our current ballistic plates, but also to maintain a healthy, competitive industry environment to respond to our future capability needs.

Q: What is the current status of the enhanced combat optical sight-optimized program?

A: The enhanced combat optical sight-optimized [ECOS-O] pro-gram is progressing on schedule. The SOC requirements evaluation board approved the requirement, followed by award of a contract to Leupold to integrate its variable power 3-18-by-44 mm day scope with an aim point red dot sight mounted on top. This combination provides both rapid target acquisition and long-range target engage-ment. The aim point red dot sight provides a wide field of view and environmental awareness required for close quarter combat to mid-range distances. The 3-18-by-44 mm day scope provides rapid target identification, range estimation and target engagement at extended ranges. This is a great example of where we can combine multiple capabilities in to a single materiel solution. This single solution provides our operators more capability while saving overall size and weight of the kit needed to accomplish the SOF mission. This combination of capability also helps to streamline our project and lifecycle support. We will conduct an operational test and evaluation of the ECOS-O system at Fort Knox, Ky., in July 2013 to ensure the system meets our SOF operators’ requirements with the intent to begin fielding to our components in the fall of 2013.

Q: Do you have any closing thoughts about the men and women of PEO SOF Warrior who successfully advance your efforts to provide effective and winning equipment for special operators?

A: I am very proud and humbled to serve with the PEO SOF-Warrior team. On a daily basis our individuals and collective teams do a phenomenal job executing the mission of fielding rapid, focused and SOF-unique capabilities to the operators in spite of the challenges associated with CRAs, sequestration and furlough. In keeping with one of the principal tenants of our SOF truths, “People are more important than hardware,” we cultivate a very strong bond with our supported combat developers across all of our component com-mands to ensure their capability needs remain our prime mission focus! As our PEO motto states: Operator Focused, On Time, On Target! O

a U.S. SOf team leader meets with a local afghan local police (alp) checkpoint commander in arghandab district, Kandahar province, afghanistan. The SOf team conducted the visit to alp checkpoints in the area to ensure their progress in providing security to the local villages by denying insurgents access to the local population. [photo courtesy of U.S. army]


In World War II, the enemy threat was highly visible in the form of massed armies and tanks moving toward allied forces, but in 21st-century warfare, the enemy’s weapon of choice is invisible, buried in roadsides.

But fortunately, industry has stepped up with systems that can detect and neu-tralize the threat of IEDs, which have killed more U.S. and coalition warriors than any other weapon deployed by the foe.

The inventiveness of industry is clearly reflected in the panoply of

countermeasures able to thwart a lethal threat, ranging from jammers that block cell-phone calls to detonate roadside bombs, to remotely piloted systems that search for IEDs, to line charges that clear a safe path for combatants by causing any IEDs in the path to detonate.

maKing iEds dEtonatE

One way to provide a safe path for vehicles and personnel in IED-infested areas is to expose, disrupt or neutralize

myriad tEchnologiEs can dEFEat iEds, aFtEr a dEcadE oF lEssons lEarnEd.

By davE ahEarn sotEch corrEspondEnt

& JEFF campBEll

sotEch Editor


IEDs before those vehicles or combatants venture there.

And one company has a system that does just that, according to Alan Garvey, director of demolition and breaching with Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Co. (EBA&D).

That safe path is created by a line charge, where the line is attached to a small rocket that deploys the line over the path to be cleared. The line then falls to the ground, and a charge that fills the line detonates, causing any IEDs or trigger mechanisms along the line to be exposed, disrupted or neutralized.

The MPLC Tactical Line Charge is a single-use, lightweight, man-portable, rocket-launched explosive line charge system designed to establish narrow breach lanes or paths through complex minefields, Garvey explained. It can be

employed in various terrains, including urban areas, from covered and concealed positions.

The MPLC provides a precise mine-clearing weapon system, he noted. The system is light enough to be carried by one soldier and can be deployed in less than one minute.

The line charge is designed to assist in clearing a narrow footpath to a target by exposing, disrupting or neutralizing IED trigger mechanisms, while minimizing collateral effects on non-combatant per-sonnel, structures and property, according to a 75th Ranger Regiment after action report in 2011.

While conducting dismounted opera-tions, warfighters are encountering mined anti-personnel obstacles on some of the most remote and hostile regions of Afghanistan, Garvey observed. These

obstacles impede their ability to conduct tactical movement on selected targets.

Because of mountainous terrain and distances patrolled, the dismounted sol-dier requires lighter, more compact and easier to transport weapon systems to counter possible trip-wire or trigger-acti-vated IEDs.

In addition, the International Secu-rity Assistance Force rules of engagement require the use of precision fires when deliberately targeting an area, in order to minimize collateral injury and effects on nearby, non-combatant personnel, struc-tures and property. Therefore, the system needs to be not only lightweight and easy to carry, but also precise.

In fall 2011, EBA&D was approached by the Asymmetric Warfare Group (AWG) concerning this urgent need.

They did not know what product would solve their need, but they knew the solu-tion needed to “expose, disrupt or neutral-ize IED trigger mechanisms, specifically victim-initiated IEDs.” EBA&D quickly created a team of highly skilled engineers who developed a white paper outlining various design options that met the AWG’s overall IED defeat capability objectives and line charge length, standoff and weight standards—all encompassed in a single man-portable backpack. The white paper was analyzed at a meeting at Fort George G. Meade, Md., and, as a result, the MPLC Tactical Line Charge system was developed.

Within six months, EBA&D provided the first prototypes. Working closely with the AWG and the Rapid Equipping Force, EBA&D was able to complete the concept development, safety release, concept veri-fication, and concept validation/transition efforts leading to the delivery of the first production units within 12 months. To date, a total of 3,000 systems have been delivered and shipped for active use.

Weighing less than 30 pounds (14 kilograms), this rocket-propelled clearing system has successfully assisted small tac-tical units in creating footpaths in urban, complex, mined or trip-wired environ-ments, according to Garvey.

He cited a warrior who recently served in Kandahar Province in Afghanistan:

“We were on a patrol to the north of [Combat Outpost] Garabohned and there was a [building] we had to go investigate, and there were reports of a heavily IED’d area,” said Sergeant Andrew Pemberton, a squad leader with A Company. “We pulled

Kestrel land 3.0 includes improvements to both the probability of detection and and the speed to detection. [photo courtesy of Sentient Vision Systems pty ltd.]

Sentient Vision has demonstrated its ieD detection and defeat capabilities to the australian defence community. [photo courtesy of Sentient Vision Systems pty ltd.]


for more information, contact SOTECH editor Jeff Campbell at [email protected] or search our online archives for related stories

at www.sotech-kmi.com.

out the MPLC and we fired it to the back side of the [building]. It employed per-fectly.”

The area Pemberton was patrolling was littered with IEDs. According to his account, the weapon helped him and his fellow soldiers uncover three sympathet-ics, or IEDs that were buried in the road.

staying ahEad oF thE gamE

The state in which—and where—IEDs are buried continues to evolve. Another company, Brimtek Inc. of Ashburn, Va., is focusing their IED detection efforts on recognizing “leave behind” IEDs. These could be hidden in a culvert or placed inconspicuously on a park bench. Brimtek finds them by combining both advanced equipment technologies and cutting-edge software, said President and CEO David Tilton.

“The current state-of-the-art IED detection is comprised of many technolo-gies that can, not only detect IEDs and people carrying them, but also identify types and amounts,” Tilton said. “These pieces of equipment can recognize explo-sives and alert operators, ‘real time’ of the threat that is imminent.” With former Navy special forces operators on staff, Brimtek is able to develop needed technol-ogies seen from personal overseas experi-ences.

As the enemy’s tactics evolve, Brimtek is keeping pace, getting solutions through testing and certification and into the warfighters hands in about half the time it took a year ago. “This enables to opera-tors to request, receive and deploy much needed equipment quickly so that they can perform their jobs in a much safer environment,” Tilton said.

As fast as local environmental con-ditions change, so can the entire area of operations, and along with it, detec-tion methods require frequent changes and updates. As the nation continues its strategic pivot to the Pacific, industry partners are committed to ensuring the latest IED detection equipment goes with our special operators. “Brimtek is focused on producing multi-tasking equipment capable of being deployed to various parts of the world in one small package,” Til-ton said. “This capability saves the U.S. government money and allows them to focus funds on other much-needed areas of technology.”

Fiscal responsibility during the devel-opment phase is recognized by our allies across the globe, such as Sentient Vision Systems Pty Ltd, of Port Melbourne, Aus-tralia. “I think there is little doubt that in a time of tightening budgets there isn’t a significant appetite for risk,” said Jason Beasleigh, vice president of Defence Busi-ness at Sentient. “That said, if you can demonstrate improvements to the current detection capability and a reasonable level of maturity your technology will get seri-ously looked at.”

Sentient has found success with that balance, including a recent demonstration to the Australian Defence community of their surface based ground change detec-tion software. “We designed our product to compare imagery from previous mis-sions to real time imagery, simultaneously visually highlighting changes to a vehicle crew,” Beasleigh said.

Sentient released Kestrel Land 3.0 late last year, a generational improvement over the previous system with improve-ments to both the probability of detection and the speed to detection. “Additionally we have applied a large amount of effort to implementing improvements gained from four years of operational service in theater,” Beasleigh said.

The company has an overreaching stra-tegic goal to narrow the economic divide between the cost of laying an IED versus the cost of detecting an IED. To do this, they automate the detection capability of existing systems that rely heavily on man-ual processing. “We automatically detect targets that are very often either too small, slow, or—due to the environment—too

difficult for the human operator to reliably detect,” Beasleigh said. “By doing this, we allow the operator to better utilize their mental bandwidth from actively search-ing for targets, to making smart decisions about the targets or “items of interest” that are presented to them.”

All of these technology leaps help operators keep our troops safe. Beasleigh cited a recent example that came about just a coalition partner’s unmanned aerial vehicle returned from a mission. At the very bottom of the viewer, Kestrel detected a very small target in an area known for IEDs. “In this case, the sensor was utilizing a very wide field of view in order to maintain situational awareness,” Beasleigh said. “Upon interrogation of the detection, it became apparent that Kestrel had detected three insurgents planting an IED.”

Almost three-quarters of a century removed from World War II, the big-gest driver in IED Detection and Defeat developments is software, according to Beasleigh. “The biggest imrovements to probability of detection are coming from software improvements, particularly sys-tems that can interrogate data sources from other systems such as chemical sniff-ers, penetrating radar and vision-based systems,” he said. O

a man-portable line clearing charge detonates at fort Drum, ny. [photo courtesy of ensign Bickford aerospace & Defense Co.]


A military operator needs a 15 kilowatt generator at a distant outpost in Afghanistan. You are the logistician with the mission and located in Kandahar, and as far as end-to-end supply distribu-tion goes, this isn’t the end—it is actually 100 miles away and across unforgivable, rugged terrain. Is there a scheduled airlift, or can one be allocated?

Most of the time, tactical logisticians won’t deliver goods by land unless there is a scheduled, routine ground-based re-supply line. Once delivered, the question is not simply, “Did I deliver the generator?” it is, “Did I deliver the generator that will operate for the next six months without fail, or did I deliver the generator and spare parts such that anyone can fix it?”

The depth to which logisticians have to examine what is being delivered, to whom, and for how long, is almost exponentially increased when supporting a small team operating away from a forward base, according to Major Gen-eral Kevin A. Leonard, USA (Ret.), now Fluor Govern-ment Group vice president operations. That thinking in time takes on added importance when dealing with small units in austere environments. The old adage, “for the want of a nail,” could play out for that small unit; missing one critical item, a mission could fail.

Big army & air ForcE supporting small spEcializEd units

In his last assignment, commanding the U.S. Army Military Surface Deployment and Distribution

Command (SDDC), Leonard led the surface arm of the United States Transportation Command (TRANSCOM). A decade prior, commanding U.S. Special Operations Support Command, he developed and deployed the first logistics unit dedicated to U.S. Army Special Forces, and after 10-plus years of sustained combat, he has a unique perspective on the differences between moving and supporting large forces versus precision support to small teams.

“When you think about moving a big force, big Army, you think about large airfields,” Leonard said. “The mechanisms that TRANSCOM has in place to move the Department of Defense all come into play.” When moving small, special operations ele-ments, the need for operational security (OPSEC) is greater than when moving a massive force. “Obviously when we went from the

United States into Uzbekistan and into Afghanistan, OPSEC was paramount and so we purposefully didn’t want to reveal who was moving, when they were moving, where they were going to protect our troops,” Leonard said. “That is when operational security begins to trump just about everything.”

While the movement of an infantry division is very precise, large troop units do have some margin for error. “Conversely, when you’re moving small, specialized units, the margin for error is actu-ally less,” Leonard said. “In other words, if I put a small team on the back of an aircraft with a very specific mission, with very unique equipment, the excuse that ‘Oops, I left that behind at Fort Bragg,’

sEasonEd logisticians support small units BEyond thE FixEd BasEs.

By JEFF campBEll

sotEch Editor

Kevin A. Leonard

[email protected]


is not going to play very well—in fact, that’s going to be prob-lematic.”

When the average person goes on a trip, whether business or pleasure, forgetting camera batteries at home is not such a big deal, but when SOF units deploy, they must have everything. Lines of communication beyond the forward operating base will be thin, if almost non-existent at times. “The package has to constantly and consistently be looked at and refined and checked and double checked,” Leonard said. “I probably was more thorough as a leader of special operations logistics at checking loads, and thinking through contingencies, because I knew that once I got where I was going, we were essentially on our own with what we deployed with for a while.”

doing morE with lEss

As another provider, ADS Inc., interacts with the SOF com-munity, Business Development Director Ryan Angold and his team are finding more attention being placed on doing more with less in the SOF world. Oftentimes they don’t have the luxury to wait for a long-delivered contract or procurement action. “I find we’re able to quickly turn around specific requirements for mission-critical equipment that is identified as being important,” he said. “We are providing value in our ability to work with industry, work with man-ufacturers and end-users—warfighters really on the battlefield—to identify the requirements with any new solution immediately.”

The logistics edge ADS provides often comes with multiple options, saving the operator a couple of steps. “Sometimes it’s tough to see how long it takes certain people to get equipment,” Angold said. “We understand there’s a lot more going on behind the scenes than we’re aware of, but we always want to make sure that we’re presenting the end-user with multiple courses of action when it comes to getting that quick turnaround equipment to meet their high-priority requirements.”

All of these solutions speak to the SOCOM commander’s top pri-orities. Chief among them, “Win the current fight” and “Expand the global SOF partnership” won’t happen without extensive logistics support. Angold said the industry is definitely hungry to continue to support SOF, as future SOF logistics support requirements become more apparent.

“Across the board, we’re trying to understand what industry needs to do to be able to support that requirement,” Angold said. “It’s an important requirement; I think it implies smaller groups being able to deploy throughout the world, but not for a long period of time.” He sees the logistics needed to support that type of mission being quick, accessible and creative when it comes to assembling all requirements for a SOF element in a remote area for a 30-, 60-, or 90-day period.

One of the top challenges in making that happen is the short timeline to get the items delivered quickly. Once there, it’s impor-tant to have some capacity to forward stage items in certain areas where more can be received quickly. Forward staging becomes critical as DoD reduces costs. Cost reductions could include send-ing people forward with less support when it comes to logistical services. For example, instead of having two or three spares for cer-tain items, a team may just have one, reducing their footprint, the supply chain and costs. “The flipside is, something happens—your backup product goes down and needs to be replaced—how do you get it out there quickly to maintain the readiness of the specific unit?” Angold asked.

It comes down to where the unit is—some will be in areas where industry can supply them in theater relatively quickly, while in other areas, it’s impossible to nail down the timeline since the ship-per won’t know where the conflict is. “We can plan for it,” Angold said. “But the challenge is going to be logistics in getting specific items, equipment and services into specific areas where there is going to be a relatively small footprint for a short period of time.”

From small Footprint to nonE at all

As American forces continue the shift to the Pacific, SOF will face logistics constraints in the region. Aeroscraft Founder and CEO Igor Pasternak champions his airship as a vehicle that can assist with this historic shift. “The global broader role for SOF, in peace and war required to shift from an episodic deployment force to a persistent-presence force—with more forces forward, in more places, for longer periods of time—presents a new challenge,” Pas-ternak said. “SOF already face constraints with respect to logistics and lift in the Asia-Pacific region.”

While speaking with SOCOM Vice Commander Lieutenant Gen-eral Bradley Heithold, Pasternak discovered that the Aeroscraft’s airfield independence could have applications for SOF operations. “The Aeroscraft is not just a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft logistical solution; the VTOL, survivability and stealth characteristics of the Aeroscraft offer ‘unique’ capabilities and


applications—without modification—in support of SOF missions,” Pasternak said. “It really can, and will, be a game changer.” The absence of amphibious access, ports, runways and host nation sup-port make hostage rescue operations tricky, but Pasternak said the Aeroscraft addresses these difficulties. Unlike a conventional hybrid airship, the Aeroscraft doesn’t require a runway or external water ballast, for flight lift control or compensation when off-loading pay-load. It’s a new type of hybrid aircraft that combines airplane and airship technologies, allowing freedom of action, unconstrained by the absence of host nation support or basing rights.

FastEr than “Just in timE”

The Just in Time (JIT) philosophy is a sound one in business, but that timing becomes even more critical for SOF units. Leonard sees his personal high standards as a soldier at work at Fluor. “It’s the way we measure ourselves, not just in my business line but across our business lines, that we have to meet time-definite delivery for our clients,” he said. “Let’s say you are erecting a bridge somewhere and it has to be delivered by date certain because if it is not, it begins to cost your client a million dollars a day.” Whether preventing the loss of large sums of money or people, logistics systems need the fidelity to anticipate and respond. “In fact, those are some of our ways of thinking,” Leonard said. “Are we anticipating, are we responding?”

Having a global presence and a track record going back 100 years also provides trust and continuity. With the aid of procure-ment software and in transit visibility, Fluor keeps a close eye on their products and services. “In a profit or loss kind of company—which is all of the defense contractors—you can imagine that most of them have fairly sophisticated modeling and systems that allow you to see yourself from the time you buy a product or service to the time you deliver it,” Leonard said.

We civilians are spoiled in a way with smartphone technology, the ability to communicate and access data anywhere and every-where. While industry support can be limited by time and distance, ADS’ Angold said everything’s on the table as far as SOF support going forward.

“It’s obviously harder to do it when you’re forward in areas where there’s limited connectivity,” he said. “Same thing applies to getting products and services to [the civilian consumer]—every-one’s used to being able to order things quickly.”

JIT delivery is even more critical when supplying SOF, and industry veterans are working hard to maintain or shrink the supply chain in efforts to meet the SOCOM commander’s lines of operations. “I understand we need to win the current fight and then find out how we’re going to support operators—smaller footprint, smaller supply chain. They’ll still need that flexibility to be dynamic and respond to what’s on the ground, what they’re dealing with, and get things from the rear back there on the front lines as required,” he said.

Ten-plus years of war have created a small body of very seasoned special operations logisticians. “If you talk to the average special operator and you ask them how many tours they have in southwest Asia, you’ll get numbers approaching 10, 12, even higher in some cases,” Leonard said. “That has become somewhat true of their logisticians as well, so you have this seasoned workforce, seasoned leaders and logisticians that through a decade of war have also developed an incredible thirst for innovation and technology and leveraging that tech.”

Comparing the kinds of radios, body armor and surveillance systems available then and now is a quantum leap. “That same quantum leap has occurred with our relationship and our inte-gration with interagency and international partners as well as defense contractors, and Fluor’s one of them, in the sense that the partnership that has to occur to enable success on the battlefield it is paramount,” Leonard said. “We really do have a generation of leaders who understand that.” The skillsets Fluor provides include base establishment and base operating systems. The company has a saying that they “bare-base any place.” Whether Antarctica or Africa, organizations like Fluor provide those capabilities to DoD without investment needed in structure and manpower. So when SOCOM wants to “expand the global SOF partnership,” it can turn to a global company like Fluor that already has the business struc-ture in place. “We can leverage our commercial capability and tie that into supporting both large defense forces and special operat-ing forces,” Leonard said.

Whether at home or abroad—primarily in support of Opera-tion Enduring Freedom—the supply chain is set up to get mate-rial in theater quickly. “When it comes to these smaller-profile missions, smaller groups in areas where there isn’t that logistical support, it is going to be challenging,” Angold said. As with many military occupation specialties, the expectation is to complete the mission with what you’ve got, but commercial industry is setting precedence by delivering goods more quickly than ever. “I think in the defense industry we’ve got to figure out a way to translate that commercial demand expectation with putting a reality check on it and applying it to supporting SOF elements,” Angold said.

One way ADS tries to meet customer requirements is by offering a broad range of operational equipment and logistics supply chain

The aeroscraft will have a low radar signature and be able to provide direct delivery heavy lift to unimproved areas. [artist’s rendering courtesy of aeroscraft.]


services. The company keeps specific high-demand items ready, so they’re on the shelves and ready for transport as quickly as pos-sible when the requirement comes in. “We’re definitely focusing on the expeditionary environment for supporting smaller groups, and we’re involved with the effort that the Army and Marine Corps are working to reducing that supply chain by being more energy efficient,” Angold added.

ADS provides energy-efficient systems scaled correctly to the size of the units they’re supporting, which reduces fuel consump-tion in remote areas. The company also reuses water for certain applications, tying into the overall effort to reduce the supply chain, and the amount of personnel required to support smaller groups.

cost comparison in tight timEs

The cost of moving a small unit is not necessarily more expen-sive than moving a large force. “One of the great things about leveraging industry is if they have a tender in place and they’re already moving material, it is not that much additional cost if we have a small package to move,” Leonard said. “Firms like Fluor allow us those economies of scale that actually don’t increase our cost if we are moving small units or big units. It is simply a matter of space and time.”

At this time, costs associated with procurement and transporta-tion are under even closer scrutiny, but while the budget process is difficult, Leonard firmly believes it will be overcome—it must, because the business of DoD, the Department of Homeland Secu-rity (DHS), U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is the sur-vival of the nation. “What we have done at Fluor is take a look and say, one way or another, these things will continue forward, and we have built a government group and business lines that are able to provide those kinds of services and materials that are needed regardless of what’s going on with the budget or sequestration,” Leonard said. “While the soldier part of me thinks I would like to see them resolve this, the citizen part of me and the part of me who is working in a business line now understands the political realities and just simply said, ‘Let’s roll up our sleeves, look at the opportu-nities, see where we can be of help and assistance to our DoD, DHS, FEMA and USAID partners, and go out and do it.’”

That positive stance, coupled with the ability to respond across a number of disciplines, has translated into a number of success stories, such as Fluor’s involvement with the logistics civil aug-mentation program (LOGCAP). “The transition of the LOGCAP in Afghanistan was seamless,” Leonard said. “I think Fluor has done exceptional work there supporting a broad range of activities, not just big Army, but SOF and the Marines … so the dexterity that we have shown—and our ability to reach across a number of services and providers and get things done—is truly impressive.”

Fluor has also helped a client in Africa achieve mission goals. “We brought in capabilities to allow them to do their planning, food service, shelter, hygiene—all those things when you first start a contingency you do not think about too much because you must get there and do it,” Leonard said. “If you are going to be in some place working foreign internal development, working certain kinds of SOF missions, you really need those kinds of capabilities.” The key for Fluor and most logistics providers is partnering with clients as early as possible in the planning stage. “We know that if Fluor is

integrated early into a planning process, into a process that is con-sidering an operation, wherever it is, we will provide that assured support that special operations requires,” Leonard said.

Supplying SOF units requires dynamic support when it comes to everything from fuel, water, to specific equipment and supplies. ADS offers a wide range in the operational and organizational equipment realm, from tents, shelters and generators to C4ISR equipment and clothing. “If I’m on the active duty side, a war-fighter, I want to be able to have the options not just to get the best equipment the industry has to offer at the best price,” Angold said. “But to also ensure that we’re being good stewards of the taxpayer dollars and we’re shopping around for the best way to procure those items. Sometimes it’s timeline driven, sometimes it’s price driven, but ADS presents multiple courses of action so the unit can compare and stack it up against other options.” Above all for ADS, it comes down to putting the warfighter first. “The experience level that’s in the SOF community is greater now than it has ever been,” Angold said. “Knowing that it’s not going to get easier, we just want to make sure we’re doing everything we can to support the war-fighters who are out there protecting our country.” O



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2013 SOCOM

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT UPDATES


Bruce G. Montgomery, founder and president of Syntonics LLC, is a veteran of entrepreneurial startup businesses. Syn-tonics is a 1999 technology transfer “spin-out” of Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory. Montgomery is a reg-istered professional engineer in Maryland, a senior member of the American Insti-tute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, a member of the International Society of Automation, and a founding director of the Maryland Space Business Roundtable.

Q: Can you tell us a bit about Syntonics?

A: Syntonics is an engineering-driven radio frequency [RF] technology company. We provide advanced RF-over-fiber sys-tems and innovative RF technologies for military, civil, and industrial markets. For the past 14 years our research and develop-ment [R&D] activities have been focused on customer needs in response to calls from the field asking for something new. All Syntonics’ products trace their origins to a radio communication R&D project for USSOCOM.

Q: What challenges does the company resolve for the SOF community?

A: Our Fiber Optic Remote Antenna eXten-sion [FORAX] RF-over-fiber product line came from a project sponsored by a special operations forces group at Fort Bragg. The guys at Bragg wanted to remote their SATCOM antennas over long lengths of lightweight optical fiber, rather than carry thousands of pounds of heavy, unwieldy, relatively short coaxial cables. Synton-ics developed the SATCOM, two radios [FORAX-SC2] system for them and, once fielded in 2004, we began developing and offering various FORAX models to custom-ers with tactical communications needs. The first commercial FORAX sale in early 2005 was to a Canadian SOF customer.

In response to another USSOCOM request, we developed a line of handheld tac-tical antennas for handheld radios. Heritage

antennas tend to be fragile and heavy; our sponsor wanted antennas that were light-weight and rugged. By using unusual met-als and engineering plastics and fabrics, we developed a series of antenna models that were unbreakable, low visual profile, very lightweight, and that could fold up into a stuff sack that fits in a rucksack or trouser pocket. These antennas have been popular with U.S. SOF and reconnaissance units plus several European SOF units.

Q: What are the benefits of the FORAX RF-over-fiber system?

A: Customers buy FORAX equipment for three reasons. One, they can move their radios far away from their antennas, which are highly visible “aiming stakes” for bad guys. This significantly reduces the visual profile of a command post and keeps the radio operators safer. Two, they can put their radios inside RF-tight vaults while connecting to antennas outdoors via an optical fiber. This improves the operational convenience and physical security of the radios, which are usually controlled COM-SEC items, since fiber optic cable can be used to connect a radio in a SCIF whereas coax cable cannot.

Third, remote antennas can be inte-grated into existing systems. For example, most Army aerostats in Afghanistan are being equipped with FORAX-High Anten-nas for Radio Comms [FORAX-HARC] sys-tems. FORAX-HARC lets the commander put antennas for as many as six radios high overhead on a tethered aerostat, dramatically extending the range of the unit’s tactical radios, which keeps the radios secure and convenient in the command post. The HARC product resulted from an email in 2007 from a senior NCO in charge of communications

in Baghdad, requesting a way to put some of their unit’s antennas up high on their new ISR aerostat, so it’s a good example of how a call from the field can result in Syntonics inventing something new.

Q: You make a pocket-portable tacti-cal antenna. Describe its value to the deployed warrior.

A: For tactical operators who walk, jump or swim to work, weight and reliability are both critical. Our line of lightweight, rug-ged—almost unbreakable, actually—hand-held tactical antennas for handheld radios meet this need. Our TACSAT antennas have been especially popular. An operator can be confident that no amount of abuse is going to break the antenna, so he can always communicate.

Q: What new technologies do you see in the near-term that will enhance the mis-sion of the SOF community?

A: We have begun developing a light-weight, battery-powered RF-over-fiber sys-tem for handheld radios. Our concept is an “antenna dongle” that lets an operator connect his radio to a distant antenna over a long optical fiber. The remote electron-ics at the antenna are also lightweight, are battery powered, and may even be recharged by light transmitted over the optical fiber cable.

We have also been working on a new “noise radar” for hostile fire detection. Noise radar can be stealthy, because their signal is spread so widely that the power-per-hertz is about the same as the environmental noise floor. This makes them essentially undetect-able. And they excel at one specific task: detecting moving projectiles regardless of the optical or acoustic environment. Last winter we tested a one-antenna breadboard system with good results. Existing optical and acoustic hostile fire detection systems have a tough time operating on a helicop-ter; we’re optimistic that our new staring projectile detection radar will make a real difference to SOF forces who are flying in harm’s way. O

inDUStry interVieW Special Operations technology

Bruce G. Montgomery, PEPresident

Syntonics LLC


July 2013Volume 11, issue 6next iSSUe

Cover and In-Depth Interview with:

DirectorSOCOM J2 Intelligence

Konrad Trautman

Special Section GEOINT and SOFa sure way to win the fight is to know where the foe lies, the direction of its movements, and what the enemy is about to do. here, special operators reap the benefits of myriad platforms that harvest enormous amounts of information about the opponent, all without exposing U.S. personnel to lethal dangers.

FeaturesHuman GeographyWhile special operations usually is associated with kinetic operations under the cover of darkness, special ops also involves many other strengths, such as military information support operations. here, we examine human geography, and how U.S. goals can be attained without combat.

Strategic Mission Planningto prevail in combat, every element of a mission must be foreseen and planned carefully beforehand. We present an overview of the systems that can help ensure nothing is left out, so that once the mission begins, special operators will possess everything required at every moment, leading to mission accomplishment.

3-D Flash LiDARthis technology can have myriad applications, including aid to pilots landing helicopters in brownout or whiteout conditions, guidance for unmanned aerial vehicles, military mapping, and wmore. Several major companies have developed advanced systems using 3-D flash liDar.

AGILE. INNOVATIVE. ON-DEMAND.JUST LIKE THE SPECIAL OPS WE SERVE.

Not just anyone can keep up with the U.S. Special Operations Forces. Lockheed Martin provides global reach, logistics, and sustainment to support even the most demanding missions. With fl exibility to satisfy evolving

requirements. And one-stop service to lower costs and keep them there. For more information, ask your contract offi cer about Lockheed Martin’s full-scope logistics and sustainment, or visit: www.lockheedmartin.com/sofclss

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