Page 23 - Williams Foundation Air-Sea Integration Seminar

Shaping an Integrated Force in the Extended Battlespace

“The next generation of frigates will be electric. The phased array is remarkable technology. It’s game
changing technology, especially in the way we think about how we operate at sea.

“We’ll move away from having to worry about the maintenance and the fixed specifications of the radar into
a system where you can change the software and change the way the radar behaves.”

Question: And this approach is being taken across the joint force as well, isn’t it?

Rear Admiral Dalton: “It is. For example, with regard to Army, we’re on the cusp of moving to a tactical
communications network where the network controller will reside in the radios because the radios are software
configurable. That’s the next big leap.

“We’re doing the risk reduction studies right now to move from a tactical communications network that has
hardware boxes that do the routing into software enabled radios that can do all that in their own network.
Our systems, like our decision management tools, will live like apps on the network.

“When you see kids get into our vehicles today, they see a piece of glass, the first thing they do is touch it
and wonder why it hasn’t come on. We’ve got to get to the mindset where when they touch it, they get a menu
that says ‘what do you want to do today?’ Here’s your battle management system. Here’s your artillery firing
system. Here’s your blue force tracker. They can swipe left and right on that and get the result they want and
need.”

Question: And you are going in the same direction with your submarine combat systems as well?

Rear Admiral Dalton: “We have a cooperative development program with the US Navy which leverages a
common core combat management system currently used in our Collins class submarines and their attack
submarines and will ultimately go onto their boomers as well.

“With regard to the next generation Australian submarines, they will be part of that software revolution as
well.”

CAPTAIN NICK WALKER PROVIDES AN UPDATE ON THE QUEEN ELIZABETH
CLASS CARRIER

Captain Nick Walker of the Royal Navy, who is on the Naval Staff, provided an overview on the Queen
Elizabeth carriers and their role in the transformation of the UK forces. Earlier, Captain Walker was
interviewed as part of a RN and RAF team discussing the carrier and strike aviation at Whitehall in the first
quarter of 2014.

He was then Commander Nick Walker and serving as the Chief of Staff Carrier Strike in the Carrier Strike
and Aviation Division within Navy Command Headquarters in Portsmouth.

During that interview, Captain Walker underscored a key point about the new capability for the national
decision makers:

Question: How does this evolving capability affect a possible rethink about the way ahead for the
forces?

Walker: This evolving capability will give the decision maker a lot of flexible tools to respond or prepare for
crises.

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