JWID Changes Name
As part of an ongoing evolution, organizers of the Joint Warrior Interoperability Demonstration (JWID) will change the name of the event next year to the Coalition Warrior Interoperability Demonstration. Lt. Gen. Harry D. Raduege Jr., USAF, director, Defense Information Systems Agency, says the new name better reflects a transformation that has been going on for some time. JWID, which is based on an Army effort that took place during the late 1980s, has included an international contingent for several years. One goal was to improve interoperability between U.S. and non-U.S. systems. Although other countries will participate in JWID 2004, this year’s event also will help resolve interoperability issues for coalitions of a different kind: government agencies within the United States. In some cases, technologies developed for military use are being examined for homeland defense and security purposes. For example, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is exploring blue force tracking technology, a capability that would facilitate locating emergency personnel during a disaster.
Multinational Exercise Underway
Forces from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, Peru, Norway, Italy, Denmark and France are cooperating in realistic and dynamic scenarios similar to joint operational challenges faced throughout the world. The Combined Joint Task Force Exercise, which involves more than 28,000 U.S. and allied service members, is completing its final phase from June 12 through June 22 in the southeastern United States and along the Atlantic seaboard. Personnel at 20 other locations in the United States are involved as virtual participants. This is the first Joint National Training Capability integration event that focuses on functional combat commands.
Assessing TIA
The U.S. Defense Department’s stillborn Transformation Information Awareness program, or TIA, was “a flawed effort to achieve worthwhile ends,” that points out the advantages and pitfalls of broad government data mining, according to an independent advisory panel appointed by U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. The report by the Technology and Privacy Advisory Committee, titled “Safeguarding Privacy in the Fight Against Terrorism,” called both for safeguards against government intrusion on privacy in the war on terrorism and for new approaches to privacy that remove bureaucratic and burdensome protections that could hinder efforts to fight terrorists. Among the recommendations offered by the panel were to establish minimum technical requirements for the acquisition and use of data, including security and access controls and protection for non-defense databases; to create a policy-level privacy officer to advise on and implement privacy protection mechanisms; and to support research for improving the effectiveness of data mining systems and of privacy protection tools.
Raven Takes Flight
Small unit ground troops operating in Afghanistan and Iraq will be able to conduct reconnaissance missions with the help of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that fit inside of a rucksack. The Raven aircraft features a wingspan of 4.5 feet, weighs only four pounds and can be assembled in less than three minutes. After being launched by hand, the UAV’s flight can be controlled by an operator, or it can steer left or right at a constant altitude in semi-autonomous mode. The system can transmit real-time video images and location information to the ground control unit and remote video terminal from a distance of up to 6 miles. Flight time is limited to 90 minutes. U.S. Army Solider Systems Command, U.S. Special Operations Command Special Operations Acquisition Logistics-Technology, and Aerovironment Incorporated developed the Raven system, and more than 100 will be produced this year.
Homeland Security Solicits Technologies
The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the Chief Information Officer and Office for Domestic Preparedness are looking for information technology projects to find smarter and better ways to combat terrorism and remove barriers in homeland security mission critical areas. Eligible applicants include the state administrative agencies in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands. A list of the selection criteria can be found at
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/fundopps.htm. Applications must be received by June 30, 2004. Awards will be made no later than September 30, 2004.
Army Divisions Begin Modularization Two U.S. Army divisions have begun reorganizing internally into the Army’s new modular units of action and units of employment design. The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and the 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, New York, each will gain a brigade as part of this reorganization. The modular design is part of the Army’s force transformation to a more brigade-focused organization that would be better able to respond to regional combatant commanders’ needs and employ joint capabilities. These two divisions are following in the footsteps of the 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Georgia, which already has converted to a modular design.
International Passenger Data Collection Legalized The United States and the European Union have signed an agreement to legally allow U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to collect airline passenger name record (PNR) information for flights between the United States and the European Union. PNR data will be used to prevent and combat terrorism, other serious transnational crimes, and flight from warrant or custody for these crimes. The agreement allows the CBP to retain collected data for three and a half years, and filter and delete sensitive data as mutually identified by the CBP and the European Commission. Once implemented, the agreement will be in effect for three years, with renegotiations starting within one year of the expiration date.
NRO Solicits Intelligence-gathering IdeasThe National Reconnaissance Office (
www.nro.mil) is seeking research and development proposals that focus on space-based intelligence gathering. The solicitation, which ends July 14, is open to large and small businesses, academic and nonprofit institutions, government agencies and research centers, and collaborative ventures from mixed sources. The proposed work can be no longer than nine months in duration and, if selected, would receive a maximum of $350,000. Both classified and unclassified proposals are eligible for consideration. The solicitation is part of the Director’s Innovative Initiative and administered by the office’s Advanced Systems and Technology Directorate. Additional proposal guidance is available on the Web at
http://dii.westfields.net.
Lethal Drone Under DevelopmentA new generation of small, unmanned aerial vehicles is being developed that will perform not only reconnaissance missions but also hunter-killer missions. Individual Unmanned Air Scouts (IUAS), also dubbed Cyber Scouts, will take off and land on land or water; operate in congested urban and jungle environments as well as desert and mountainous terrain; perform traditional surveillance missions; and feature perch-and-stare capabilities. They are being designed with an open access airframe fuselage that can be configured in the field with cameras, sensors, weapons and instruments. Cyber Aerospace Corporation is assembling the team of military experts and aerospace and composite engineers to design and build the IUAS.
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