techie@btr.com (Bob Vaughan techie@btr.com) (02/27/91)
I think this may be of interest to Telecom readers. This is part of a
thread which appeared in the sci.military newsgroup and was written by
the people named in each part. References are given to Message-ID
numbers if you wish to locate and review the entire thread. The item
by Bruce Carlson is to be especially noted.
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: What does a Comm center need?
Date: 27 Feb 91 02:22:25 GMT
References: <1991Feb18.054110.11303@cbnews.att.com>,
<1991Feb22.232157.4167@cbnews.att.com>,
<1991Feb26.012058.5985@cbnews.att.com>
>From: carlson@gateway (Bruce Carlson)
In article <1991Feb26.012058.5985@cbnews.att.com> bcstec!shuksan!
major@uunet.UU.NET (Mike Schmitt) writes:
>> From: efrethei@afit.af.mil (News System Account)
>> MEDELMA@CMS.CC.WAYNE.EDU (Michael Edelman) writes:
>> >This brings up the question of what is needed for a command and control
>> >center.
> The 'normal' brigade CP consists of about 4 M577 command tracks.
> one each for intelligence, operations, fire support and engineer.
> Each track carries a 'field desk' full of all the necessary SOPs,
> and forms - radio instructions etc - all kinds of radios and spares,
> antennas up the ying-yang - canvas, light sets, coffe pots, heaters,
> cable, wire, and a generator to power it all. Inside this "Main CP"
> also sit the Air Force ALO (Air Liaison Officer) talking to the fighter
> pilots and/or forward air controller, the supporting combat aviation
> company's liaison (called a 'battle captain') and numerous lieutenants
> from subordinate/attached units acting as LNOs (liaison officers)
> anxiously awaiting to courier orders/instructions to their own units.
> mike schmitt
One other item the Brigade CP has is several touch-tone telephones,
which gives them direct dial access throughout the division area and
may give them connectivity to Corps or higher. The telephones are
connected to automatic switchboards that are primitive by AT&T
standards, but still work very well. The boards can have up to 90
lines (although at Brigade I think they only use a 30 or 60 line
configuration). Local numbers are three digits and "long-distance" to
division or to other brigades is 9xx-xxx. Division Signal publishes
phonebooks and it is fairly easy to locate and call anyone else in the
Division.
The telephone traffic trunk lines are multiplexed with other circuits
and tranmitted through a grid of interconnected multichannel VHF radio
systems. All VHF circuits are bulk-encrypted and classified traffic
can be discussed over the telephone. Brigades also usually have a
facsimile system, which is used to send intelligence summaries,
diagrams, or anything else you might think of. Each brigade also has
a comm center that provide over-the-counter service for transmission
by facsimile or radio-teletype and for delivery by courier.
Infantry battalion CPs are supposed to have a line into the brigade
automatic switchboard, but very few units run the line unless they
know they are going to stay in place for a while. Battalions use
single-channel VHF FM radios with encryption devices for most of their
commo to Brigade and to their companies. Battalions may run wire to
the companies in the defense, but in the offense it is usually too
time consuming.
The fire support officer at battalion is an artillery officer assigned
to a unit in DIVARTY and tasked as direct support to a specific
battalion. He talks up to DIVARTY and down to his FIST team chiefs
that are with each company in the battalion. The FSO uses a different
set of radio nets than the infantry/armor staff in the CP.
Bruce Carlson
carlson@gateway.mitre.org
-----------
Bob Vaughan - techie@well.sf.ca.us {apple,pacbell,hplabs,ucbvax}!well!techie
1-415-856-8025 - techie@btr.com {fernwood,decwrl,mips,sgi}!btr!techie