The rise of Rockwell Collins’ mobile targeting system.
The FireStorm Integrated Targeting System, the Rockwell Collins system that has been benefiting JTACs and FACs for several years, is now being offered as a wearable technology as the defence market continues to adapt to demands for soldier mobility. The development will keep the company ahead of the curve in the artillery and mortar market.
“We took our biggest step into the joint fires space back in 2007 when we satisfied a critical UOR for the British Army in Afghanistan to provide a system for accurate targeting for close air support,” said Graham Davenport, Marketing Director for EuMEA Surface Solutions at Rockwell Collins. “We provided a package of equipment based on two key elements: our Rosetta software, which provides the communication interfaces and ability to absorb positional data and plot it on a map; and an augmentation unit for laser rangefinders which overcomes the shortfalls in the digital magnetic compass and provides a level of precision needed in this space – not just CAS, but also for artillery applications.”
The company claimed that UOR, rolled out the equipment, and saw it become successfully rotated throughout Afghanistan from 2007 to 2014 when British combat forces finally withdrew from the conflict.
“The requirement changes over time,” Davenport said. “The ability to have a more mobile system has become a major driver now and that’s partly due to the operational changes we’re seeing – in other words, the need to operate out of FOBs has changed to a more mobile deployment. We have therefore continued to develop along this track with our mobile body-worn system, which can still be used in a static position, I should add, if you need a longer range. Alternatively, you can be mobile with a shorter range but still with the level of accuracy offered by an effective laser rangefinder.”
After the UK adopted the system, Germany penned contracts for almost exactly the same product, along with new Link-16 VMF Gateway solutions that enabled an interface with the German Adler II solution. This software is at the heart of both the ESG MOBIFAST and multi-link system, and while Germany and the UK represent Firestorm’s two big European We Bring You Fire The rise of Rockwell Collins’ mobile targeting system Richard de Silva 7 :: Defence Industry Bulletin Land successes, the company’s software and equipment is also integrated in systems from Scandinavia to Eastern Europe. Beyond the continent, the company has recently completed its work to entirely reconfigure the infrastructure for UAE joint fires and is now providing the provisions for training. In 2012, Rockwell Collins was also selected as the prime contractor for the Australian Defence Force Land 17 Digital Terminal Control Systems (DTCS) programme, delivering a total of 152 systems valued at $68 million to Special Forces and artillery forward observers. This represented the first ‘formal iteration’ of using FireStorm in an artillery-led environment. With that capability proven, the same offer has therefore also opened up for mortar operators.
Aside to this, the U.S. Air Force signed Rockwell Collins to the Tactical Air Control Party Close Air Support System (TACP CASS) programme. The company is now under contract for the latest version of that software (TACP 1.4.5), continuing its run as the baseline for the U.S. Air Force JTAC system.
“Across all of these nations, interoperability is fundamental, and allied interoperability, in particular, is of course a critical requirement,” said Davenport.
“We have to continue to meet VMF standards, the capability of which is seen on many of these CAS aircraft today – the U.S. F-18s and A-10s, the UK Tornados, for example – and in fact this year we’ve proven our capability with an F-35, given the intentions to have that aircraft take on the CAS role.”
April trials at Edwards Air Force Base, California, saw a current and qualified FAC from the UK undertaking the flight test using a complete air strike mission thread in both a ground test and live flight.
“Users of the F-35 will certainly therefore be on our prospective customer list for the near-term, but other aircraft are still likely to be pulling much of the weight in this area while the F-35 is undertaking other missions.”
“Whether they are older aircraft or newly dedicated CAS aircraft, all of that will require us to continually update our software. VMF is unfortunately not a standard fixed in stone, varying across platforms and over time, so we have our work cut out if we intend to keep up. The standard that is becoming ubiquitous is Link-16, hence our priority that the software can translate data from Link-16 into VMF and display the air picture on the screen of any computer in use.”
Davenport also clarified that with Rockwell Collins’ having identified the need to move to smaller, simpler and mobile solutions, the new FireStorm package “will be launching in the UK this September. It’s still FireStorm, but its capability will be revamped.”
