“I want to speak about bodies changed into new forms.”⁰¹

As the U.S. military evolves to meet the complexities of modern warfare, the looming threats of conflict can sometimes overshadow the essential preparations needed to address future challenges. One critical requirement for the modern soldier is connectivity, whether for an infantryman, a pilot, or an intelligence analyst. The question then arises: How can U.S. forces maintain connectivity in denied, degraded, or disrupted environments during large-scale combat operations (LSCO)? This article explores how an unmanned system (UxS) network can provide reliable connectivity to the forward line of own troops (FLOT) in combat scenarios.

The first step in addressing this issue is to recognize the complexities that electronic warfare introduces to connectivity on the modern battlefield. Near-peer nations, such as China, Russia, and Iran, possess modern electronic warfare capabilities that can affect U.S. forces' ability to operate in the electronic/communications environment. From mass jamming to data collection, electronic warfare capabilities significantly impact a front-line soldier’s ability to fight.

The U.S. military possesses a wide array of tools to address the challenges of modern warfare. Among these tools are UxS, which include not only aerial drones but also ground, maritime, and space-based platforms. To ensure battlefield connectivity, advances in network technology and architecture now make it possible to deploy connectivity solutions directly on UxS platforms, enabling critical communications in contested environments. Additionally, by employing a multi-domain approach, U.S. forces can mitigate some of the risks posed by adversary electronic warfare to these systems.

To better understand how this concept works, we can take a closer look at the physical network architecture required to enable connectivity. When a user opens an app on a smartphone, the phone emits a signal that a nearby base station receives. Civilian base stations are usually located on cell towers, rooftops, or streetlights. The next step is for the base station to transmit the data request to the base station control (BSC), which manages base station requests. Then the BSC transfers the data request to a mobile switching center (MSC), which is also found on cell towers or rooftops. This MSC routes data services and ensures seamless handoffs across multiple user requests. The MSC will transmit data through various MSC nodes until it reaches the data server requested by the app. Once the data server confirms the transmission, the data returns to the phone via MSCs, BSCs, and the final base station (see figure below).


Each of these key components in a physical cellular wireless network can be placed onto various UxS platforms. They are lightweight enough to be used as payloads or can be integrated into the platform during manufacturing.

Imagine that, in the near future, U.S. forces are digging into a trench along the FLOT to fortify a position against a near-peer nation-state military. How can U.S. forces maintain connectivity to their command-and-control (C2) in contested electronic warfare positions? Can these soldiers rely on civilian cell networks to communicate if adversary electronic warfare begins jamming known military frequencies? What information could be given to these troops that would give them a decisive advantage over the enemy?

Now imagine, in this same scenario, a UxS team at a tactical operations center (TOC) launched a series of drones to support connectivity along the FLOT. One UxS, equipped with a BSC, is positioned 200 feet in the air near the troops. A second UxS, carrying an MSC, is deployed a few miles further back. To establish a physical connection, the team launches another UxS trailing a fiber-optic cable. This UxS lands five miles from the TOC in a trench along the FLOT, remaining connected to the TOC via the fiber-optic cable. Soldiers can plug their laptops or phones into the UxS to access critical updates, including a common operating picture, imagery of enemy and friendly positions, orders for the next 24 hours, and an updated request for information (RFI) list.

When the troops encounter a GPS-degraded environment, the commander alerts the TOC. In response, the TOC UxS team launches two additional drones equipped with atomic clocks. These drones transmit precise timing data using GPS software to supplement the limited space-based GPS coverage. As a result, U.S. forces along the FLOT receive updated positional data on their phones and critical updates on their laptops, restoring situational awareness.


This scenario portrays a drone network used to connect a command-and-control node to the FLOT. Each UxS can be configured to operate like a traditional cellular network and provide communications capabilities to the FLOT in a degraded, disrupted, or denied environment. The scenario also highlighted another key element of modern warfare: adaptability. Placing the physical architecture of a network on UxS enables U.S. forces to create a dynamic network that can be employed, retrieved, and repositioned in real time. As U.S. forces advance, the network can push forward to ensure continuous connectivity.  Now, a drone enabled network can adapt to match the complex, ever-changing environment along the FLOT.

Such a drone network can be useful at scale within conventional U.S. Army units; however, it can also be utilized as a special warfare drone network (SWDN). Given the same equipment, small teams of UxS operators can launch a series of drones behind enemy lines and provide a temporary network for resistance forces partnered with a Special Forces Operational Detachment – Alpha (SFODA). The same UxS team can then re-task the SWDN to provide a Psychological Operations team with a means through which to transmit information to resistance forces about newly discovered enemy propaganda. Finally, after resistance forces recapture a key city, the same SWDN can be used to provide a temporary network for U.S. forces and civilian leaders until critical infrastructure is restored.  

A critical aspect of constant transformation is transformational infrastructure. Transformational infrastructure is as simple as a concrete or asphalt road. Concrete and asphalt roads enabled vehicles to grow in size, weight, and payload while spurring automotive innovation, such as advances in tires, shocks, steering, and braking. Another simple transformational infrastructure arrived in the form of shipping containers. Standardized shipping containers allowed ships to be designed around a known number of containers, enabling container managers to estimate the weight and available space on each container more accurately. All of these transformational infrastructures provided greater stability in the global supply chain. These factors then lead to a greater transformation of limited economies and limited supplies into the current interconnected global economy.

The concept of an SWDN is a transformational infrastructure. Having a dynamic cellular/digital network that enables U.S. special operations forces to constantly innovate and adapt to the modern battlefield is a key component of success in modern warfare. Having a dynamic SWDN enables the transmission of significantly more data to front-line soldiers and provides new avenues for operations, deception, and information collection. The SWDN is an enabler that enhances U.S. operators’ survivability and lethality in large-scale combat operations.

About the Author
Staff Sgt. Samuel S. Overton is a Psychological Operations sergeant. A former U.S. Air Force officer, Overton previously served as the project manager for Modernizing Eastern Range Network at Cape Canaveral Space Range, Florida. As a civilian, he worked on the project management team at the Department of Energy on the nuclear triad modernization project. The views, opinions, and analysis expressed do not represent the U.S. Army or the Department of War.

References
01  Ovid. (1993). The Metamorphoses of Ovid. (A. Mandelbaum, Trans). Harcourt Brace. 1.1.