A I R DE F E N SE SY S TE MS
U.S. Army Program Executive Office, Air, Space and Missile Defense (PEO ASMD) is responsible for the management, acquisition and fielding of landbased air and cruise missile defense systems, including short-range air defense (SHORAD), medium extended air defense system (MEADS), Patriot/PAC-3, joint tactical ground station (JTAGS), joint land attack missile defense elevated netted sensors (JLENS), and the Army’s tactical exploitation of national capabilities program (TENCAP). Today’s Stinger-based SHORAD forces are highly deployable and provide the shoot-on-the-move capability and mobility necessary to support the maneuver force. The SHORAD system has four basic components: missiles, launch platforms, Sentinel radars and the forward area air defense command control system (FAAD C2) tactical operations center (TOC). SHORAD is transforming from a system-centric current force capability to a capabilities-centric Future Force, enhanced area air defense system (EAADS). The EAADS capability is envisioned to be a mix of kinetic and directed energy systems capable of overmatching traditional air and cruise missile defense threats and the evolving rockets, artillery and mortar
Stinger manportable air defense system (MANPADS).
(RAM) threats. The current overarching air and missile defense (AMD) architecture consists of launchers, missiles, sensors and battle management command and control, communications and computer intelligence (BMC4I) from a number of different Army and joint systems. The EAADS capability will fight side by side with the current Stinger-based force and incremen-
tally replace Stinger-based systems. This capability provides an order of magnitude increase in battlespace available against cruise missiles (CMs), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and fixed-wing (FW) and rotary-wing (RW) aircraft over the current Stinger-based systems (MANPADS, Avenger and Linebacker). The critical initial EAADS Block I capability will be achieved through the deployment and integration of surface launched AMRAAM (SLAMRAAM) systems, Sentinel (ETRAC) augmented by other necessary sensors and BMC4I. SLAMRAAM, a unit of employment (UE) asset, will be task-force organized to the unit of action (UA) as an integrated weapon system (launcher, organic sensor, and BMC4I). SLAMRAAM’s capability-centric system will allow the use of external data sources to assist in developing a single integrated air picture/ground picture (SIAP/SIGP) network interoperability with all AMD systems and the Fu-
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ture Combat Systems (FCS) battle management network. Surface-Launched Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (SLAMRAAM), is a net-centric Block I of EAADS extended-range capability in support of the Future Force. Critical initial EAADS Block I capabilities will be achieved with the SLAMRAAM system of systems through the development of a fire unit and BMC4I/ integrated fire-control station (IFCS); integration of Sentinel enhanced target range and classification (ETRAC) and joint land attack cruise missile defense elevated network sensor (JLENS); and AMRAAM missile. The SLAMRAAM BMC4I will be fully integrated and compatible with Army AMD and the Future Combat System (FCS) networks. SLAMRAAM provides a critical overmatch capability against the rapidly evolving CM, UAV, FW and RW. The AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel is an advanced, three dimensional, battlefield Xband air defense phased-array radar with an acquisition range of 40 km. Sentinel transmits its radar imagery to the FAAD C2 via radio frequency link. Sentinel is being upgraded to the ETRAC configuration that doubles its range and will integrate with future AMD BMC4I via SLAMRAAM. Envisioned as an Army “inner tier” capability for EAADS, the Mobile Tactical High Energy Laser (MTHEL) program will develop the first mobile directed energy weapon system capable of acquiring, tracking, engaging and destroying air-tosurface munitions, CM, UAV, RAM projectiles and surface-launched ballistic missiles. Since June 6, 2000, the tactical high energy laser advanced concept technology demonstrater (THEL ACTD) has shot down 28 single and multiple rockets and five 152 mm artillery projectiles. Stinger, a fire-and-forget infrared/ultraviolet (IR/UV) missile system, is mounted on a variety of platforms and is the only air defense weapon in the forward area. Stinger is manportable and has been fielded on MANPADS, Avenger, Kiowa Warrior and Special Operations Black Hawk helicopters and on Bradley Linebacker and Predator vehicles and the U.S. Marine Corps light armored vehicle, air defense. The management of the Army’s theater ballistic missile (TBM) lower-tier systems—the Patriot antitactical missile system, upgraded to Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC)-2, and guidance enhanced missile (GEM), GEM+, the new PAC-3 missile and MEADS—was centralized with the activation of the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Project Office in August 2000 for a more effective integration of these systems into a seamless lower-tier air and missile defense mission area. The Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS) will provide joint
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lower-tier air defense, missile defense and cruise missile defense for maneuver forces and other critical forward-deployed assets throughout all phases of tactical operations. MEADS will operate in an enclave with upper-tier systems in areas of debarkation and assembly. It will also provide continuous coverage alone or with forward-area air defense systems in the division area of the battlefield during movement to contact and decisive operations. The system will provide air and missile defense of vital corps and division assets associated with Army and Marine Corps maneuver forces. It will use a combination of netted and distributed architecture with modular configurable battle elements, interoperability with other airborne and ground-based sensors and improved seeker/sensor components to provide a robust 360-degree defense against the full spectrum of tactical ballistic missile, cruise missile, unmanned aerial vehicle and rotarywing and fixed-wing threats. MEADS will provide future Army forces with a defense against multiple and simultaneous attacks by short-range ballistic missiles—especially cruise missiles—and other air-breathing threats to the force; immediate deployment for early entry operations with C-130 deployability; mobility to move rapidly and protect maneuver force assets during offensive operations; a distributed architecture and modular components to increase survivability and flexibility of employment in a number of operational configurations; and significantly increased firepower with greatly reduced personnel and logistics requirements. A tri-national source selection committee, composed of representatives from the United States, Germany and Italy, chose MEADS International of Orlando, Fla., as the prime contractor for this air defense system in May 1999. In 2004, the contractor successfully demonstrated elements of the
Patriot missile system.
battle management, command, control, communications, computers and intelligence (BMC4I), and that the MFCR had been successfully developed and integrated with the battle-proven PAC-3 missile. In addition, the demonstration verified BMC4I capability to control and display surveillance radar, MFCR and launcher functions. In May 2005, MEADS International signed a contract valued at $3.4B for design and development of the system, leading to a U.S. first unit equipped (FUE) date in 2014 for the system. The Patriot Missile System provides defense of critical assets and maneuver forces belonging to corps and to echelons above corps against aircraft, cruise missiles and tactical ballistic missiles (TBMs). The PAC-2 system upgrade, along with the PAC-3 missile, provides the Patriot missile system with an advanced antitactical missile capability. The combat element of the Patriot missile system is the fire unit, which consists of a phased array radar set (RS), an engagement control station (ECS), an electric power plant, an antenna mast group, a communications relay group and eight remotely located launching stations (LSs). The RS provides all tactical functions of airspace surveillance, target detection and tracking, and missile guidance and engagement support. The ECS provides the human interface for command and control of operations. Each LS contains four readyto-fire missiles sealed in canisters that serve as both shipping containers and launch tubes. The Patriot’s fast-reaction capability, high firepower and ability to track numerous targets simultaneously and operate in a severe electronic countermeasures environment are significant improvements over previous air defense systems. The Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) Missile program incorporates sig-
nificant upgrades to the RS and ECS and the battle-proven PAC-3 missile, which uses hit-to-kill technology, for greater lethality against tactical ballistic missiles (TBMs) armed with weapons of mass destruction. The PAC-3 missile is the first operationally deployed hit-to-kill weapon system capable of defeating all known air and missile defense threats. In addition, it will be possible to have up to 16 PAC-3 missiles per launcher, thereby increasing firepower and missile defense capabilities. The PAC-3 missile’s primary mission is to kill maneuvering and nonmaneuvering TBMs while remaining able to counter advanced cruise missiles and aircraft. The PAC-3 missile upgrade program adds system improvements to increase performance against an evolving threat, meets user needs and enhances joint interoperability. The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, a key element of the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS), will provide rapidly deployable ground-based missile defense components that deepen, extend and complement the BMDS to any combatant commander to defeat ballistic missiles of all types and ranges while in all phases of flight. THAAD’s combination of high-altitude, long-range capability and hit-to-kill lethality enables it to effectively negate the effects of weapons of mass destruction at in-
tercept ranges well beyond the defended area. These attributes, along with THAAD’s unique endo- and exo-atmospheric capability, enlarge the battle space to allow multiple intercept opportunities in both the late-midcourse and terminal phases of ballistic missile trajectories. THAAD can accept cues from Aegis, satellites and other external sensors to further extend the battle space and defended area coverage. THAAD will operate in concert with the lower-tier Patriot/PAC-3 missile system to provide increased levels of effectiveness. THAAD is a rapid-response weapon system that can be deployed quickly to protect critical assets worldwide. The THAAD element consists of five major components: missiles; launchers; radars; command, control, battle management and communications (C2BMC); and THAADspecific support equipment. All components have been successfully integrated, tested and demonstrated during the first program phase that concluded in 2000. The THAAD development program flight testing resumed in 2005 with the first 15 flight tests. The THAAD governmentindustry team continues to focus on mission success and delivering, testing and integrating hardware and software components that ensure the highest level of quality, reliability, producibility and affordability.
The Joint Tactical Ground Station (JTAGS) is an ACAT III, nondevelopment item (NDI) program providing the combatant commander a transportable information processing system in theater for contingency and/or wartime operations. JTAGS directly downlinks data from up to three DSP sensors to determine launch points, state vectors, and predicted ground impact points for tactical ballistic missiles (TBMs) and other tactical events of interest throughout the theater. This data is disseminated using existing communications networks, thereby reducing transmission time and reliance on long-haul communication nets, enabling combatant commanders to take immediate retaliatory action to engage and destroy threats and to protect valuable assets in the projected impact area, all the while supporting theater missile defense (TMD) pillars (attack operations, active defense, passive defense and battle management/command, control, communications and computers (BM/C4)). In 1997, JTAGS units were fielded to continental U.S. locations and forward deployed to EUCOM, PACOM and CENTCOM theaters. Since that time, the JTAGS systems have been sustained by the Army. The JTAGS program has been and is currently in a preplanned product improvement (P3I) program in which JTAGS units are being upgraded to the multimission
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Joint land attack cruise missile defense elevated netted sensors system aerostat.
mobile processor (M3P). Theater combatant commanders have consistently, over the last decade, stated a need to retain intheater missile warning capability. In order to provide the combatant commanders with what they need, the Army is developing a defense support program (DSP) only M3P (DM3P) as an evolutionary step in the spiral development of the M3P program. This step pulls aging JTAGS units out of the field and replaces them with new hardware and software during FY 2006. Ultimately, the goal of the Army is to upgrade the DM3P systems (Block II) to a geosynchronous M3P (GM3P) in FY 2010-11. The GM3P units will continue to use DSP satellites for down linked data and will use the space-based infrared system (SBIRS) satellites for full SBIRS system of systems architecture integration. Upgrade of JTAGS, to continue to operate with the next generation of space-based sensors, will extend this capability well into the 21st century and provide greatly improved performance. The Joint Land Attack Cruise Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensors System (JLENS) is a low-cost elevated sensor suite providing over-the-horizon land attack cruise missile defense. The JLENS uses offthe-shelf aerostats operating at altitudes of up to 15,000 feet for extended periods to elevate sensors, communication systems and networking technologies to provide precision tracking and 360-degree, wide-area surveillance of land attack cruise missiles. The JLENS sensor suite consists of a surveillance radar (SR) and a precision track and illumination radar (PTIR). The SR provides a long-range air picture enhanced by identification friend or foe. The PTIR is a steerable, lightweight array capable of tracking multiple targets in a sector. The JLENS prioritizes remote and local tracks autonomously or accepts external requests for precision tracking and engagement support. A key element supporting the single integrated air picture, JLENS integrates data from multiple sensors and command, control, communications and intelligence (C3I) networks to provide correlated data to weapon systems. The system also provides data on surface moving targets via a common operational picture (COP). The JLENS technologies provide a long-endurance capability to protect U.S. troops and assets in foreign lands and provide a significant contribution to the defense of the continental United States and its popu298 ARMY I October 2005
lation from cruise missile, UAV and other airborne attacks. JLENS provides combatant commanders with the following warfighting capabilities: G Detection and tracking of low-altitude threats (cruise missile and aircraft) that may go undetected by surface-based sensors because of terrain masking and line-of-sight locations of targets. G Support for current air defense weapons such as Patriot Advanced Capability-3, Aegis/Standard Missile and advanced medium-range air-to-air missile. G Support for air-directed surface-toair missile and air-directed air-to-air missile engagements, including engage-on-remote and forward pass. G Detection and tracking of enemy surface moving targets. In January 2003, the U.S. Army validated a requirement to enhance force protection for coalition forces engaged in Operation Enduring Freedom. These forces were experiencing indirect fires in their area of responsibility that adversely affected their ability to provide adequate security for airfields and forward operating bases. They required an enhanced capability to detect and identify threat movement at sufficient distances to enhance tactical decision making. The JLENS Project Office identified a low-cost material solution to fill this operational need. The first systems were fielded in March 2003. This system is currently known as rapid aerostat initial deployment (RAID) and is the system assigned with the responsibility of providing force protection and security for coalition forces.
Faced with a changing world and an increasingly diverse, lethal and proliferating multiple-platform air and missile threat, the U.S. Army has developed a defense strategy for theater air and missile defense that provides protection to contingency theater geopolitical forces and assets and deployed U.S. forces. New air and missile threats provide potential enemy nations a variety of deployment options that can affect each stage/phase of U.S. operations. Within the next 20 years, significant improvements to air and missile defense capabilities are expected. The use of spacebased assets will be critical to maximizing the benefits of these improvements. The Army Space Program Office is responsible for the Army’s Tactical Exploitation of National Capabilities Program (TENCAP). The program focuses on exploiting current and future tactical potential of national systems and integrating the capabilities into the Army’s tactical decision-making process. The tactical exploitation system (TES) is the Army’s objective TENCAP ground processing system for the 21st century. This next-generation system serves as the interface between the national systems and in-theater tactical forces and receives data directly from theater and tactical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) assets. TES products are a means to focus sensors, provide situational awareness, develop intelligence preparation of the battlespace, perform deep targeting functions and provide direct receipt weather data. TES is designed for split-based deployment and consists of TES forward and TES main configurations. The TES forward is a highly mobile Humvee-based element and the TES main is housed in vans. Each element has similar operational, communications and support capabilities. TES provides quick set-up/tear-down and C-130 drive-on/drive-off capability to support rapid deployment. TES has been successfully deployed in every global war on terrorism operation since 9/11.