Adv Fa Tac Data Sys/Eff Cntrl Sys (AFATDS/ECS)

Abstract

The Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System (AFATDS) automates fire support planning and coordination for the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. AFATDS automates the planning, coordinating and controlling of all fire support assets in the Joint battlespace (field artillery, mortars, close air support, naval gunfire, attack helicopters, and offensive electronic warfare) from Echelons Above Corps to Battery or Platoon in support of all levels of conflict. As a result of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF)/Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), AFATDS has implemented precision fires capabilities in new/improved munitions such as Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) Unitary Vertical Attack, Excalibur, Smart and 155 Bonus. Additional implemented capabilities include automatic conduct of Unit Fratricide Avoidance Checks and Collateral Damage Avoidance. AFATDS will interoperate with the other Army Battle Command Systems, current and future Army, Navy and USAF Command and Control weapon systems, and the German, French, Turkish, and Italian fire support systems. The system is composed of common hardware/software employed in varying configurations at different operational facilities (or nodes) and unique system software interconnected by tactical communications in the form of a software-driven, automated network. The system is currently fielding non-developmental, rugged common hardware, running the Windows Operating System. The total force will be fielded a Windows based platform by fiscal year 2013. GPS-based Precision Guided Munitions (PGMs) require pre-launch loading of sufficient GPS Satellite related data down at the Weapon Platform level to enable ?Precision Capable? Fires. This ?hot? start capability allows for rapid post-launch time-to-first-fix of GPS signal and maximum utilization of PGM maneuver authority to insure required target engagement performance. This is especially critical for short times of flight and steer-early solutions such as Mortar and Cannon based PGMs. Local GPS Satellite visibility challenges due vertical terrain/complex environment issues during normal combat operations can prohibit ?Precision Capable? Fires when using GPS Satellite data generated exclusively at the Firing Weapon Platform. A system-of-systems Network Assisted GPS capability will be developed, integrated, and validated to overcome local GPS Satellite masking problems through the sharing of sufficient timely required GPS Satellite data via Wide-Area Network (WAN) and Local-Area Network (LAN) based materiel solutions that effectively and efficiently leverage mature Technologies and sunk taxpayer investments of existing Programs of Record.

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Document Details

Document Type
Project
Publication Date
Oct 01, 2013
Source ID
322_0203726A_7_2040_PB_2013

Tags

Readers

  • Computer Networking
  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.
  • Munitions and Ordnance Engineering

Technology Areas

  • Fully Networked C3
  • Fully Networked C3 - Command and Control
  • Microelectronics
  • Microelectronics - Microelectromechanical Systems
  • Space

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