Army Robots Prepare for Multi-Domain Air-Sea-Land War

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By Kris Osborn – President & Editor-In-Chief, Warrior Maven

The Army is fast-tracking Robotic Combat Vehicles to face enemy fire, conduct forward surveillance, carry ammunition and even destroy tanks when directed by soldiers as part of its fast-moving modernization strategy.

The U.S. Army plans to “field” military robots in 2022 with units and put them in the hands of soldiers to assess their effectiveness, refine requirements and technologies and prepare them for possible warfare operations.

Prototypes of the Army’s Robotic Combat Vehicle Program – Medium (RCV-M) will be sent forward to units for in-depth, hands-on soldier assessments called “touchpoints,” service officials tell The National Interest. The concept behind soldier touchpoints is clear, as it is based upon the realization that experienced soldiers themselves are best positioned to know how best to use them and discern what works and does not work with the platform.

“Soldier engagements can help pinpoint end-user issues that may otherwise be overlooked and confirm or dispel the need for development teams to address real or perceived technological challenges.” Lt. Col. Brandon Kelley, Modernization Team Lead, Army Public Affairs, told Warrior.

The program has now been underway for several years, given that the Army awarded developmental deals to Textron, General Dynamics Land Systems and QinetiQ to build and test initial prototypes. Testing the various offerings in an operational setting replicating anticipated combat circumstances is designed to help weapons developers make technological adjustments, refine requirements and concepts of operation and move the platforms closer to operational service and combat at war. The intent, one Army official told me, is to essentially engineer the robotic vehicles around and for “soldiers.”