Defense Systems

Army prepares test of new wireless war game gear

In August, the Army will conduct its first functional field test of a wireless tactical training system that it will eventually embed in Future Combat Systems vehicles and weapons systems.

Defense Systems

Reaching out to tech firms

Each year, new network-centric technologies vying for command-level attention get a tryout at the Coalition Warrior Interoperability Demonstration.

Defense Systems

Filling the SATCOM gap

Communications demands, new threats in space and delays in delivery of systems are forcing the Defense Department to realign priorities.

Defense Systems

The future is slow to arrive

The Army's Future Combat Systems project is changing to meet criticisms and shifting priorities, but critics doubt the changes are coming soon enough to matter.

Defense Systems

Training to go for Marines

University is helping make portable simulators easier to use

Defense Systems

Much more than a game

America’s Army provides an enterprise platform for Army training

Defense Systems

Eyes in the Sky

Aerostats and towers give sensors a lookout on the battlefield

Defense Systems

The Army's future combat systems in a nutshell

Army future combat, command and control vehicles

Defense Systems

Linking up first responders

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Defense Systems

Drills test NMCI system

The Navy and a contractor hold drills to measure the capability of workers to maintain the continuity of operations of the Navy Marine Corps Intranet

Defense Systems

Wireless supply line

The Army is upgrading a wireless system designed to connect theater logisticians directly to their electronic ordering systems, which has been a Defense Department goal since Operation Desert Storm.

Defense Systems

Self-Healing Aircraft

Researchers develop a liquid healing agent for the skins of aircraft and missiles

Defense Systems

Return to sender

Air Force ICBM fuse mix-up prompts investigation, nuke inventory

Defense Systems

Back to the future

The future of the Army’s Future Combat Systems, from strictly a technical standpoint, would seem fairly certain at this point.

Defense Systems

A virtual plane for Navy techs

The Navy has found a better way to troubleshoot an aircraft. It commissioned American Systems to develop simulators for F/A-18C maintenance training.

Defense Systems

The risks of thinking big

There’s no crime in thinking big. However, as seen in the case of the Army’s gargantuan Future Combat Systems project, there are practical limits to how big a project can be.

Defense Systems

USAF spends on flexible microcircuits

The Air Force Office of Scientific Research is funding research on thin,flexible transistors that could be developed into high-performance optoelectronics.

Defense Systems

Switches with wings: UAVs as comm relays

Giant blimps are not the only vehicles capable of stratospheric flight. Fixed-wing aircraft such as the Lockheed U-2 have done it for decades.

Defense Systems

High Bandwidth

With mounting pressure for high-bandwidth connectivity for forces in the field, and concern about available satellite communications, a number of programs are seeking to revive an old technology — airships.

Defense Systems

DHS ‘virtual fence’ and Army’s FCS test limits of networked sensors

The core of Project 28 is a network of nine mobile towers that carry a range of radar systems, cameras, and satellite and wireless communications. Unattended ground sensors (UGS) scattered along the border are meant to catch movement and alert the towers for a more detailed look.