Interoperability -- An Australian View

Abstract

Australia's traditional allies have been New Zealand, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (U.S.). Before the advent of digital C3I Systems, interoperability among Australian, British, and American forces was maintained through the use of common communications equipment and procedures but also by people, training, and doctrine. Australia has traditionally procured its major military equipment, including C3I systems, from the United States and the United Kingdom. This tradition has assured the Australian Defence Force (ADF) some level of interoperability with U.S. and UK forces. Australia also has a long history of training with military forces in the United Kingdom and the United States and participating in exchanges of personnel. Looking over the past decade, it is clear that the majority of future operations conducted by the ADF will be Operations Other Than War (OOTW). This will require the ADF to operate in coalitions or alliances. The partners within these coalitions or alliances may not have common doctrine, training, or operating procedures. Security also will be a major issue. In addition, the operational environment within these partnerships will need to take into account civil and national influences, as well as influence from United Nations participation or control and from Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). Interoperability can be defined as the ability of systems, units, or forces to provide to and accept services from other systems, units, or forces, and to use the services so exchanged to enable them to operate effectively together. Interoperability cannot be thought of solely on an information systems level; it must include doctrine, people, procedures, and training. This paper will examine the interoperability of Command and Control Systems (C3I) with reference to the ADF. The paper includes a discussion of the technical concepts of interoperability, as well as an examination of ADF requirements and it's current status.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 2002
Accession Number
ADA467489

Entities

People

  • Neil Warner

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • C4I

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Command And Control
  • Command And Control Systems
  • Databases
  • Department Of Defense
  • Electronic Mail
  • Humanitarian Assistance
  • Information Exchange
  • Information Systems
  • Interoperability
  • Military Operations
  • Military Organizations
  • National Security
  • New Zealand
  • Organizational Structure
  • Security
  • Standards
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP).
  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.

Technology Areas

  • Fully Networked C3
  • Fully Networked C3 - Command and Control