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1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery
Project Convergence 2022 (PC22) WO2 (BSM) Byrne
The UK’s intent for PC22 was to optimise the delivery of ‘any sensor, right decider and best effector’ by integrating a vertical slice (theatre to sub-tactical) of networked capabil- ity as part of a Joint and Combined Multinational Force. Whilst the UK’s Main Effort was ‘Scenario B,’ which was framed by the Eastern European theatre of operations, the Commanding Officer (CO), Battery Commander (BC) and Battery Sergeant Major (BSM) O/HQ Battery deployed to Camp Pendleton, California to lead with the experimentation during ‘Scenario A,’ which centred upon the Indio-Pacific region.
The Sensor-Decider-Effector (SDE) chain was experimented with across three (of four) use cases: Combined Joint All Domain Situ- ational Awareness; Joint Suppression of Enemy Air Defence and penetration of an Integrated Air Defence System; and Expanded Manoeuvre. Optimising the SDE chain generates tempo and has the potential to create a decisive advantage relative to an adver- sary capable of multi-domain operations.
During ‘Scenario B’ the CO, BC and BSM were joined by the Bde JFC, reinforced by Targeteers from HQ ARRC, and deployed to Fort Irwin, California; they played an integral part in the experi- mentation, providing a JAGIC(-) / JFC(+) into HQ 20 ABCT, act- ing as a 1* C2 node, rather than being deployed in its warfighting HQ configuration.
During PC22, the team achieved a ‘first’ for US-UK interoperabil- ity, the JFC achieved the technical solution for passing enemy tar- get information and Calls for Fire from the Fire Control Battlefield Information System Application (FC BISA) to the US Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System (AFATDS) through Artil- lery Systems Cooperation Activities (ASCA). This was achieved across dispersed HQs, without the requirement to ‘swivel chair’ information. Targeting data from strategic, operational, and tacti-
cal sensors, including satellites, aircraft, remotely piloted air sys- tems, and ground-based observers, across multi-domains, was passed through targeting processers to develop actionable fire missions, which enabled command and control nodes across the force to make decisions on prosecuting the targets. The fire missions were relayed, using national fire control systems down to fires assets, both guns and launchers, employed by 26 RA in Whitesands Missile Range. By integrating US and UK systems the delivery of effects was expedited. This incredible feat of net- work engineering earned WO2 (WOCIS) Rees a DCGS’s coin and subsequently, The Lefroy Gold Medal, awarded to a serving member of the Royal Regiment adjudged to have made an out- standing contribution to the science and application of artillery.
The experimentation also provided the empirical evidence to a much-discussed topic, qualifying RPAS operators as trained observers. 32 RA and 47 RA deployed on PC22 with FC BISA at their Ground Control Stations (GCS), allowing them to success- fully send target information and initiate fire missions for both UK and US effectors. Acknowledging RPAS operators are not authorised observers, by experimenting with them sending CFF, the number of trained observers on the battlefield was increased and therefore, increased tempo. Defence Science and Technol- ogy Laboratories (DSTL) collected quantitative data to compare the current process of the GCS sending a sighting report and the JFC subsequently initiating the fire mission in contrast to the GCS initiating the fire mission; it provided empirical evidence substan- tiating an argument to train RPAS operators in basic CFF.
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