FACTOR 13


Capability Set 13 fills the gap as other communication systems leave Afghanistan


by LTC Bill Venable, Mr. Michael Valdez and Mr. Clifton Basnight A


ustere, treacherous terrain. Few routes in and out. Lim- ited resources and personnel to execute a daunting mission.


Tese are the well-known challenges of retrograde from Afghanistan. But they also apply to the flip side: fielding brand- new network technologies in the midst of drawdown operations.


By overcoming these challenges, the Army has delivered an essential commu- nications capability to many of the troops who remain.


CS 13 ARRIVES IN AFGHANISTAN In the spring and summer of 2013, a small, skilled “surge” team deployed to Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) to execute the final phases of fielding CS 13. Composed of technologies including sat- ellite-based systems, advanced data radios, smartphonelike devices and the latest mission command software, CS 13 pro- vides the Army’s first integrated network connectivity across the entire brigade combat team (BCT) formation, from the fixed command post to the commander on-the-move to the dismounted Soldier.


Te Army targeted CS 13 capabilities to arrive in the OEF theater at a critical time. As U.S. forces continue to retrograde, they are closing many of their forward operating bases (FOBs) and removing communications


infrastructure such as


hard lines, towers and other equipment. With CS 13, the BCTs


tasked with


removing this infrastructure still have the ability to communicate at the tactical level and exchange voice and data across their entire area of operations.


Tis connectivity is also critical for U.S. troops as they advise and assist the Afghan National Security Forces, often in mobile operations distributed over great distances and terrain obstructions. As one brigade commander described the CS 13 network,


“It gives us the ability to extend our reach, even as we reduce our presence.”


CS 13 has been fielded to two security force assistance brigades (SFABs) and one combined joint task force (CJTF) headquarters (HQ), the 101st Airborne Division HQ. Select units across that CJTF’s area of


responsibility will use


the technology, which is expected to be an enduring capability for the next two


SFAB rotations until the U.S. mission in Afghanistan concludes.


CS 13’s arrival in theater culminates a total Army effort to quickly field the technologies, spanning dozens of commands and locations and requiring constant coordination among network and vehicle project managers, production facilities, brigade staffs, fielding personnel and training professionals.


Te final phase of fielding was especially complex. Not only did the team complete the integration of more than 265 networked vehicles on the ground in theater, but it also managed the arrival of additional vehicles and components from the United States. Te team balanced CS 13 priorities, schedules and requirements with the massive OEF retrograde effort.


BALANCING ACT Te CS 13 architecture divides network systems between two types of platforms,


“key leader” and “lower tier.” Key-leader vehicles, designed for leaders at company level and above, include on-the-move network and mission command capability through Warfighter Information Network


14


Army AL&T Magazine


October–December 2013


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