Army Accelerates Upgraded Intel Data-Base to War

Raytheon Photo

By Kris Osborn – Managing Editor – Warrior Maven

The Army is taking its intelligence data base and accelerating it to the edge of combat with a series of strategic and technological initiatives including ruggedized laptops and an increased ability to enable tactical operations in challenged or “disconnected environments,” service officials announced.

Through a new deal with Raytheon and Palantir technologies, the Army plans to quickly integrate hardware and software improvements to its Distributed Common Ground System-Army such that it can better access and organize combat relevant information at the “tactical echelon,” Army officials announced.

Called Capability Drop 1, the emerging Software will “enable operations in a Disconnected, Intermittent, and Limited bandwidth environment, enhance ease of use, and provide improved tools for Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield and Processing, Exploitation, and Dissemination,” according to an Army statement from Program Executive Office Intelligence, Electronic Warfare & Sensors.

Upgrades will further harden the system and integrate an improved graphical user interface to enhance soldier’s ability to see and utilize intelligence information; this can be information from nearby drones, ground vehicles, aircraft and other sources of intelligence of great significance to combat operations.

The new deal, which includes a 10-year, $876 million possibility, is part of a key Army strategy to better enable rapid expeditionary operations. This includes a decided push to strengthen connectivity for dismounted units and other combat assets as the “tip of the spear.”

For instance, infantry preparing for an assault would doubtless be better positioned with access to new, fast-moving intelligence about enemy movement, weapons or location information for other connected sources of intelligence. The Army already uses existing UHF data links to connect intelligence information from aerial surveillance plans such as EMARSS ( Enhanced Medium Altitude Reconnaissance and Surveillance System) to inform ground operations; upgrades to DCGS will substantially improve the efficiency of these operations.