Digital Guardian Angel Guides U.S Troops In Afghanistan

U.S soldiers in Afghanistan will rely on a new, mobile tactical communications network to stay connected and cover more ground. 

From tracking the progress of small groups of soldiers at remote outposts to directing operations while traveling through mountainous terrain, the unit is leveraging Capability Set 13, or CS 13, to communicate and carry out its advise-and-assist missions in support of the Afghan National Security Forces, according to an official statement. 

"The enhanced situational awareness given to us by this suite of technology has allowed us to maintain a 'digital guardian angel' as we conduct our advising duties and missions", said Maj. Gary Pickens, the communications officer for the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, which is the first unit to deploy CS 13 in theater. "The various platforms of CS 13 give us a digital reach like we've never had before".

The technology, an integrated group of tactical communications systems that came together through the Army's Network Integration Evaluation, or NIE, process, arrived in Afghanistan with the BCT this summer, and has supported multiple missions during the last several weeks. While it is still early in their deployment, users say CS 13 is a significant improvement over previous equipment and will become even more critical as drawdown operations accelerate.

As U.S. forces continue to retrograde, they are closing many of their forward operating bases, known as FOBs, and removing communications infrastructure such as hard lines, towers and other equipment. With CS 13, select units that remain will still have the ability to communicate at the tactical level and exchange voice and data information across their entire area of operations.

The 4th BCT will be joined in theater this fall by the 3rd BCT, 10th Mountain Division, which has also been fielded with Capability Set 13. Both Infantry Brigade Combat Teams have reorganized into Security Force Assistance Brigades, which deploy with fewer personnel than a typical BCT, and work closely with the Afghan forces in mobile, dispersed operations, making network connectivity even more important.

CS 13 provides the Army's first integrated communications capability across the entire BCT formation, empowering commanders and Soldiers at every echelon to make faster, better informed decisions. Through its tactical network backbone, Warfighter Information Network-Tactical, or WIN-T, Increment 2, it provides mission command "on the move", allowing leaders to expand their reach on the battlefield by taking the network with them in their vehicles.

In Afghanistan, this capability has allowed battalion-level advising teams to exchange voice and data, access mission command systems and maintain situational awareness while on patrols, even in extremely difficult terrain.

CS 13 also extends the network to the Soldier level through a combination of smartphone-like Nett Warrior "End User Devices," or EUDs, and Rifleman Radios that together can transmit text messages, GPS locations and other data. This empowers dismounted troops with the real-time information that previously was only available in vehicles or command posts. It also allows the BCT headquarters and battalion and company leadership to digitally track and communicate with Soldiers who have spread out to remote locations, even inside distant buildings. as they advise their Afghan partners.