BAE Systems is developing a semi-autonomous, on-board software to enhance shared situational awareness between operators and pilots during air-to-air and air-to-ground combat operations.
The new approach has been taken by the company to overcome the fact that in the current battlespace, combat missions are a manual, coordinated effort by operators and pilots using a combination of manned and unmanned vehicles, sensors, and electronic warfare systems that all rely on high-availability networks such as satellite communications and tactical data links. When those networks are interrupted, it leaves warfighters with the inability to effectively communicate and avoid threats during their missions.
The new Distributed Battle Management (DBM) software provides timely and relevant information to operators and pilots when communication is not assured, so they can better manage and control combat in contested environments.
The automated, on-board software provides users with shared situational understanding, interchangeable roles, coordinated objectives for teams of manned and unmanned aerial vehicles in communications denied environments, and compressed, prioritised data transfer when communications are available.
Capabilities were demonstrated during a flight test series with DARPA in association with the US Air Force Research Laboratory, including a mix of live and simulation runs and simulation-only runs.
David Hiltz, director of the planning and control technologies directorate at BAE Systems, said: ‘The lack of automated decision aids severely hinders operators and pilots from making critical decisions with limited communications so they can adapt to combat scenarios.
‘Our DBM software delivers these automated decision aids that provide mission execution options and the ability to maintain a consistent mission representation and status across all platforms, which allows warfighters to make better, faster combat decisions to ensure mission safety and completion.’
Airbus was awarded the Composante Spatiale Optique (CSO) contract at the end of 2010. This included an option for a third satellite, which was activated after Germany joined the programme in 2015.
In today’s contested operational environment, adaptability is key. The new Geospatial-Intelligence as a Service (GEO IaaS) solution from Fujitsu and MAIAR empowers militaries by enabling intelligence advantage, combining advanced technology with human expertise to deliver actionable insights.
Israel will continue to develop autonomy for its weapons and platforms as it brings together defence personnel, academia and industry.
Clavister CyberArmour, an integrated defence cybersecurity system, will be used on BAE Systems Hägglunds’ CV90 platform in deployments with a Scandinavian country, as well as in an eastern European nation.
The tactical satellite (TacSat) is an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) system and will participate in exercises in 2025.
The airborne three-domain, the two ground-based and the ¼ ATR OpenVPX-based cross-domain systems were engineered to provide real-time security across multi-domain operations.
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