FOUR FUTURE TRENDS IN TACTICAL NETWORK MODERNIZATION
SECURED TRANSMISSION
PacStar’s Secure Wireless Command Post (Wi-Fi) is a modular commu- nications package that provides a classified wireless network for all the warfighter’s mobile devices within 100 feet in deployed environments.
EXPANDING THE RANGE
The Secure Wireless Command Post (TLS) expands the range on the Wi-Fi enabled command post, from thousands of feet to several miles from the cellular base station, and allows secure transmission of classi- fied information using LTE-enabled devices.
In other words, situational awareness cannot wait until troops establish an at-the-halt position. Entering a dynamic tactical environment “blind” puts warfighters at a significant disadvan- tage, which can lead to loss of life and mission failure. Tere is a need to ensure that transportation vehicles and aircraft opera- tors can communicate directly with a warfighter’s headset—and vice versa—while en route to the destination.
True mobility demands innovation and modernization designed to reduce size, weight and power requirements. Not only do dismounted Soldiers need mobility, but so does the network infra- structure to support them.
All else being equal, communications equipment can never be too small, too light or too power-efficient. In contrast to legacy data-center-style, rack-mounted equipment, new generations of equipment designed for tactical and expeditionary use are becoming available with enterprise-grade networking and secu- rity technologies.
SECURE WIRELESS Te DOD shift from wired to wireless battlefield and in-theater communications has been slowed by warfighters’ not being able to securely transmit classified information over wireless networks. Without the confidence to share classified data securely, warfighters lose situational awareness relative to adversaries who can move faster and accept more security risk. Tis is particularly problematic when it comes to how defense units have historically operated in tactical environments.
While it was possible in the past for warfighters to use Wi-Fi, LTE and other radio types to transmit classified data, it was
124 Army AL&T Magazine January-March 2019
prohibitively expensive and required both ends of the connection to be staffed with Soldiers cleared to take possession of classified cryptographic hardware. As a result, wireless Internet Protocol networking was primarily limited to site-to-site, WAN commu- nications, and warfighters did not have the ability to use mobile devices for classified warfighting operations.
To enable mobility for warfighting, the National Security Agency established a program called Commercial Solutions for Classified. Tis program enables DOD organizations to transmit classified information using commercial-grade encryption solutions, elimi- nating the need for expensive, difficult-to-use classified equipment.
A new class of deployable small wireless access systems is bring- ing the benefits of classified wireless access to warfighters in the field, allowing warfighters to use commercial smartphones, tablets and laptops to access classified information over Wi-Fi and LTE.
CYBERSECURITY Cyber has emerged as a new warfighting domain, and DOD is considering cyber at the same level as traditional land, sea and air warfighting domains.
Many experts believe that cyberattacks will soon have the capacity to destroy physical infrastructures and kill humans if unauthorized individuals gain access. Because of these fright- ening possibilities, the Marine Corps is testing deployments of cyberwarriors at the tactical edge as part of a longer-term project to incorporate cyber best practices into tactical units, thus addressing a set of threats and challenges in tactical cyber, including:
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