UEx Space Support Element Enhancements to Phase I and Phase II Operations By LTC Richard Dow Since August 2004, Army Space Support Elements (SSEs) Information and Services (GI&S) Section and the SSE. have been providing Space support in garrison to their respec- • Developed redundant means to acquire and exploit tive Unit of Employment x (UEx) headquarters and subordi- Space-based Electronic Intelligence from In-band Signaling nate units, by comprehensively integrating and coordinating (IBS) broadcasts. Space capabilities into Phase I and Phase II planning, training • Supported the acquisition of software licenses and s and operations. As of May 2005, the Army has four Active associated operator training of specialized National Geospa- n Component SSEs, one of which is currently deployed with tial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) imagery software (Broadcast the 3rd Infantry Division (3ID) in Iraq. The other three SSEs Remote Intelligence Technology Enhancement, or BRITE) o (10th Mountain Division, 101st Airborne Division and 4th which retrieves and processes NTM imagery. Infantry Division) will deploy within the next year. • Provided analysis on the capabilities and integration i t The training and integration requirements for each of of a specialized intelligence broadcast capability into division a these UEx headquarters, as they prepare for combat, has in- intelligence operations, and served as lead for acquiring this volved each SSE with the planning, integration and coordina- capability (in coordination with G-7). r tion of Space support throughout their staff sections. These e garrison Space support efforts are ensuring that each UEx Support to the Geospatial Information and headquarters and their subordinate units will deploy with a Support Section p signifi cantly enhanced ability to fully access and exploit all • Coordinated for GI&S Soldiers to receive imagery O available Space capabilities. software training with SMDC’s Spectral Operations Resource The following real-world examples describe how these Center (SORC). SSEs have supported their staff sections in their collective ef- • Assisted in the distribution of archived commercial un- fort to fully integrate Space capabilities for enhanced combat classifi ed satellite imagery to other staff sections and Brigade n readiness. Combat Teams. • Assisted in the acquisition of the most recently ar- i Support to the G-2 chived commercial unclassifi ed satellite imagery of post train- e • Coordinated the development of commercial satellite ing areas and the Joint Readiness Training Center. imagery “basic loads” for use and access by the G-2 section. c These “basic loads” include 1 meter and sub-1 meter imagery Support to the Staff Weather Offi ce a for their entire respective areas of responsibility (AOR). The • Coordinated the collaboration of Tactical Space Envi- total basic loads range from 200-270 gigabytes of imagery. ronment Network Display and Space Support Enhancement p • Developed standard processes, division of labor, fi le Toolset capabilities to generate and interpret Space analysis S formats and imagery working groups to rapidly develop cus- and effects products for the staff. tomized and relevant imagery products for all staff sections. • Provided dedicated Space analysis expertise for the The 3ID SSE supported the implementation of the “3ID Im- monitoring, analysis and reporting on multiple Space weather agery Coordination Cell” to synchronize their units’ imagery products and their effects on division operations. requirements between the G-2 Imagery Cell, the Geospatial 10F Army Space Journal Spring 2005 Report Documentation Page Form Approved OMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. 1. REPORT DATE 3. DATES COVERED 2005 2. REPORT TYPE 00-00-2005 to 00-00-2005 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER UEx Space Support Element Enhancements to Phase I and Phase II 5b. GRANT NUMBER Operations 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) 5d. PROJECT NUMBER 5e. TASK NUMBER 5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION Army Space & Missile Defense Command,Army Forces Strategic REPORT NUMBER Command,Redstone Arsenal,AL,35809 9. SPONSORING/MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 10. SPONSOR/MONITOR’S ACRONYM(S) 11. SPONSOR/MONITOR’S REPORT NUMBER(S) 12. DISTRIBUTION/AVAILABILITY STATEMENT Approved for public release; distribution unlimited 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT 15. SUBJECT TERMS 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17. LIMITATION OF 18. NUMBER 19a. NAME OF ABSTRACT OF PAGES RESPONSIBLE PERSON a. REPORT b. ABSTRACT c. THIS PAGE Same as 4 unclassified unclassified unclassified Report (SAR) Standard Form 298 (Rev. 8-98) Prescribed by ANSI Std Z39-18 Space support enhances division’s planning efforts By Debra Valine The last time the 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) de- ployed, the Plans and Operations offi cer had to rely on terrain maps for battlefi eld awareness. It was all they had. The next time 10th Mountain deploys things will be different. Soldiers will have access to Space. In July 2004, the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Com- SGT Tobias Mitchell, part of the 3rd Infantry Division Space Sup- mand transitioned a Space Support Element to the 10th Mountain port Element pulls a map off the plotter. Photo by MAJ Jim Rozzi Division at Fort Drum, N.Y. The SSE is made up of three Space op- Support to the G-3 erations offi cers and one noncommissioned offi cer. They are trained • Provided Space architectural expertise to support the opera- in exploiting Space-based capabilities to improve battlefi eld awareness tional integration of all divisional Blue Force Tracking (BFT) capa- for the warfi ghter. bilities into a Common Operational Picture (COP). This included “In the past, I kind of bumped around because I did not know coordination with the BFT mission management center, multiple where to get this expertise,” said COL Michael Coss, 10th Mountain BFT program managers and much education regarding the Space- Division Plans and Operations offi cer. “When the Space operations based aspects (capabilities, limitations, cost-benefi t analysis and vul- offi cers fi rst showed up, I had no idea what they would do. Since nerabilities) of each BFT capability. they’ve been assigned, we have had four command post exercises and • Developed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) (“battle in every case, they have provided me with the kinds of operational drills”) and integration capabilities for personnel recovery (combat capabilities on the battlefi eld that the UEx headquarters is charged to search and rescue, downed-pilots, mission Soldiers) missions involv- do. There is no turning back. We are dependent on technology. It is a ing Space-based BFT capabilities (e.g. combat survivor evader loca- tremendous enhancement, but you have to have experts that can keep tor, Miniature Transmitter (MTX), Grenadier BRAT, Force XXI it up and create workarounds when something is not functional. Our Battle Command Brigade and Below, or FBCB2). Space experts provide us that.” • Coordinated the acquisition of additional MTX BFT devices The 10th Mountain SSE includes LTC Dennis Brozek, MAJ Jo- to be distributed and employed by organic forces during specialized seph Bolton and MAJ Brain Soldon, all SMDC-trained Space opera- missions. tions offi cers and SSG Lee Rawlins, a satellite maintainer/operator. • Supported the development and dissemination of imagery This is the second of four teams SMDC has transitioned into the new maps for current training and real-world operations, to include the units of employment (UEx). The 3rd Infantry Division received the acquisition of recently collected unclassifi ed commercial satellite im- fi rst team in June 2004. That team is now with 3rd ID in Baghdad. An- agery to support real-world Department of Homeland Security mis- other SSE was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) sions. and the 4 Infantry Division in July 2004 and plans are to assign SSEs • Supported the G-3 Air Section with the development of un- to all the divisions by 2007. classifi ed imagery maps for use in personnel recovery missions. “I was originally assigned to SMDC’s G-3 (Plans and Opera- • Developed uniquely tailored satellite linkages to track and in- tions) in July 2002, straight out of the Command and General Staff tegrate FBCB2 and other BFT device data feeds into the division College at Fort Leavenworth, Kan.,” said Brozek, who had fl own at- COP. tack helicopters for 14 years before being selected to become a Space • Developed Space operations sections for Division Tacti- operations offi cer. He attended the FA40 Space Operations Offi cer cal SOPs, and Space annexes for operations plans and contingency Qualifi cation Course in Colorado Springs, Colo. plans. “I was the fi rst one on the ground at Fort Drum, but I already • Developing tactics, techniques and procedures to access and knew the two majors who were coming in,” Brozek said. “It was like exploit their command’s use of Overhead Non-Imaging Infrared ca- starting from ground zero in a new environment. There was no sup- pabilities to provide defi nitive discrimination on the detection, loca- port, no plan for setting up a new section as part of the UEx. As we tion and identifi cation of specifi c tactical infrared events. worked through the logistics issues of setting up a new section, I was (See SSE, page 12F) (See Division Planning, page 13F) Spring 2005 Army Space Journal 11F MAJ Jim Rozzi stands in water near the I-Direct antenna after a heavy rain. Photo by SGT Jennifer Swift Support to the G-6 to the standardization of this capability into a C2V. • Supported the coordination for SMART-T operator • Provided one of the command groups an initial entry training and commissioning of satellites by leveraging the ex- wide-band SATCOM capability. pertise of SMDC’s Extremely High Frequency (EHF) Net- • Supported the G-5 (Future Operations) with the devel- work Operations Manager (NOM). opment of imagery maps for future operations. • Supported the development of real-world Space and • Developed numerous Space briefi ngs, Offi cer Profes- s Space-related data feeds into the global command and control sional Development classes, information papers, studies and n system common operational picture architecture. analysis, lessons, insights and after action reports regarding • Supported the restructuring of the Division Data Man- Space operations capabilities and how UExs can best access o agement process (how to enhance “data mining”, especially and exploit all available Space capabilities. This leadership i for Space and Space-based products, databases, analysis etc.). education support has been provided to all staff sections and t • Assisted G-6 NCOs with specialized satellite coordina- many subordinate commands. a tion and request processes to Regional Satellite-Communica- From August to November 2005 fi ve new SSEs will be tion Support Centers. activated. These include I Corps, 1st Cavalry Division and the r 25th Infantry Division from the Active Component and the e Support to the G-7 (Force Modernization) 34th (Minnesota Army National Guard) and 35th (Kansas • Supported the development of a UEx distribution Army National Guard) Infantry Divisions from the Reserve p plan for Space-based BFT devices. Component. These future SSEs will likewise provide similar O • Supported coordination with outside defense contract- garrison Space support to their headquarters as they learn ing “vendors” to assess emerging Space-based materiel capa- from their combat-experienced predecessors. The SMDC bilities for possible and actual use by UEx staff sections and SSE Tiger Team continues to collect and analyze data on the subordinate commands (e.g. GPS-enabled digital camera). operations and effectiveness of all SSEs. From this analysis, n • Supported the analysis of a wide variety of Document refi nement to doctrine, equipment and training will continue Assistance Review Team issues regarding the size, composi- to occur for the benefi t of all tactical Army and Joint Space i tion and equipment sets for both UEx SSEs and organic Fires forces and the units they support. e Brigade Space operations offi cers. These efforts directly re- LTC Rick Dow is an FA40 offi cer assigned to U.S. Army Space sulted in an approved increase in the quantity of SSE Soldiers c and Missile Defense Command, Future Warfare Center and to support pending real-world deployments. serves as the SMDC/ARSTRAT "Trail Boss" command lead for a Space Support Element fi elding. His previous SMDC assign- Other Command Group/Staff Support ment was the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance p team leader, FDIC. His experience includes 15 years as a • Supported the Public Affairs Offi ce Staff with the Military Intelligence offi cer, having served in various tactical in- S installation and commissioning of satellites for commercial telligence command and staff positions, as well as a combat PAO SATCOM video systems. development tour working Tactical Exploitation of National Ca- pabilities requirements and concepts. He is a graduate of the • Supported the mobile command group’s Command Space Operations Offi cer Qualifi cation Course and recently and Control Vehicle (C2V) with the experimental integration graduated from Webster University with a master’s degree in of a wide-band SATCOM system. This experimentation lead Space Systems Operations and Management. 12F Army Space Journal Spring 2005 SGT Tobias Mitchell and SSG Ronnie Anglin operate the SATURN. Photo by MAJ Jim Rozzi explaining what the SSE would add to the division. The amount of assets being pushed to the division is growing because “We’re all watching the 3rd ID SSE to see how they set up,” Space is now down to the muddy boot level – to the Soldiers. Without Brozek said. “We will be providing the same support within the the- someone to translate that expertise, the Soldiers would not be able to ater. It won’t be a mirror operation, but it will be the same type of get the information.” support.” Coss said the key is having the SSE as an in-house conduit to all The SSE offi cers use their expertise to plan, integrate and coor- the Space-based capabilities available. dinate Space mission areas into all aspects of the UEx. The team is “There is a series of Space-based products and services that pre- involved in anything that goes to, through or from Space, such as blue viously I did not know where to get,” Coss said. “I had no conduit; force tracking, satellite imagery and global positioning systems – posi- now I do. I used to go to my terrain guys to see if I could get an image tion, velocity and navigation of the GPS, Brozek said. or go to someone else about a satellite communication link that wasn’t Having an embedded SSE helps the unit understand Space and working. There are so many things linked to Space now, such as GPS they communicate what Space can do across domains such as intel- and other devices. Having trained Space operations offi cers assigned ligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, geospatial information and to the division gives me a staff expert in leveraging Space-based prod- services products and blue force tracking. ucts, platforms and services. “We talk in terms of two capabilities: Space support to lethality “This area has become so important to the way we fi ght,” Coss and Space support to force protection,” said LTC Rick Dow, SMDC’s said. “We have taken risks with some of our systems by reducing command lead for SSE fi elding. “Space support to lethality comes capabilities because we thought we could use joint capabilities to fi ll from commercial Space sources or other sources of targetable in- the gap. The bridge between the services is sustained by Space-based formation such as ONIR (overhead on-imaging Infrared) . Knowing products.” where the targets are and how to get them enhances lethality. Space SMDC started having Space operations offi cers in 1998 when support for force protection means providing Space-based blue-force the Army started creating functional areas. The fi rst formal FA40 tracking for situational awareness and understanding.” Space Operations Offi cer Qualifi cation Course was in 2001. To date “Understand that the SSE relies heavily on reach-back to SMDC 128 Space operations offi cers have graduated from the course. The because that is where the expertise is,” Brozek said. “We have a SAT- next class is scheduled to begin in June. URN system for communication so that we can talk to the experts to Each SSE receives an additional three-week refresher course be- get the answers we need.” SATURN – Space Application Technology fore being assigned to a division. User Reachback Node – provides unprecedented global wideband “Because this was such a new mission and concept for us, it was commercial satellite communications to the warfi ghter. good for them to get the refresher training and get updated on the “I think it is incredibly important for the SSEs to be assigned to equipment. It changes frequently,” said LTC Michael Powers, chief of the divisions. All the branches of the military – particularly the Army SMDC’s Space Proponency Offi ce. – depend very heavily on Space for dependency on satellite communi- “The biggest reason they were put into the divisions was to pro- cations systems; imagers – both national technical means, government vide that continuous planning capability,” Powers said. “Before we and commercial; and GPS systems,” Brozek said. “The amount of started fi elding the SSEs to the divisions, we would send in an Army receivers is growing so fast it is incredible. The need for bandwidth is Space Support Team just in time before deployment. The SSE pro- growing at a tremendous rate. We need someone at the division who vides continuous integration so that the SSE is part of the team.” has the knowledge of how it works and knows who to go to get help. Spring 2005 Army Space Journal 13F