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- Pridružio: 04 Maj 2009
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- Gde živiš: Slovenija
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Citat:
Croatia Looks Beyond Afghanistan Kit
SDT Sustav is developing a soldier modernisation suite to demonstrate the potential capabilities of such a programme as Croatia begins to consider is own programme
SDT Sustav began its work in C4I in the early 1990s with the ArtSys2000 system for the Croatian armed forces, a functional model for an artillery Fire Control System (FCS) for forward observers with the key element being a weapons display unit which utilised real time differential GPS to enhance accuracy.
Stjepan Adrinek, General Manager at SDT Sustav explained, “At the that time, selective availability was imposed, so ordinary GPS used to have a 50-200m accuracy with only NATO having precision with a single GPS at 15m. However, with ArtSys2000 we achieved 1-2m in real time.”
Later, the company developed and fielded with the Croatian army a stand alone mortar FCS which utilised an in-house mapping and GIS module. The firm is currently developing the Battle Management System known as BMVIS for use with Croatia’s AMV and MBT fleets and will integrate to provide an integration interface with the SMP system it is developing.
Adrinek said that there was currently no Croatian SMP requirement yet but he believes that exposure to similar systems by Croatian forces overseas in operations in Afghanistan or in international peacekeeping operations will lead to a clamour for their own system.
SDT Sustav are currently working with a number of potential suppliers including Itronics rugged computers, the TDS Nomad and Liteye head mounted display. SDT Sustav’s intention is to undertake a demonstration as early as spring 2010.
For the proof of concept stage, SDT have used commercial devices with Adrinek saying that his basic requirements have been GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, rugged mouse and video output to a head up display. The company believe that if sufficient numbers of system are ordered this could result in the firm developing and producing its own rugged computer.
An area in which they don’t intend to produce a device is in the communications field. Adrinek said, “We need a network, a personal role radio. When I developed the suite for field applications I used WiFi but I will invite companies to connect with my computer. The only requirement for the radio is that the device accepts TCP/IP protocols and nothing more.”
A typical Croatian squad is typically ten strong although this can vary from eight to as many as twenty. Any soldier network will have to link into Croatia’s current Combat Net Radio solution, the VHF SINCGARS ATCS and Spearhead radios. BMVIS comes down over VHF to the commander screen and then software will distribute this to others over a soldier network.
Adrinek said, “Through our applications you have map on the screen, you see all the members of your team in real time. Everyone in the squad has a screen. However, the commander decides if each soldier can see his position, he is the boss. They can exchange text messages and will each have the same tactical security. The network is high speed, so the next step is very soon VoIP and exchange of video, so you can look around corners and even shoot.”
To meet current near term personal role radio requirement, Croatian forces deployed to Afghanistan are equipped with Motorola GP300 radios. From late 2008, the RIZ company have provided throat mikes in support of troops Afghanistan.
Ballistic protection is provided by Kroko’s M120 Combat Ballistic Vest which proves protection at NIJ III-A upgradeable to IV with side protection plates. Other protection elements include the ESS Interchangeable Component Eyeshield. Sestan Busch have provided their BK-3 combat helmet with 30,000 delivered since 2002. The same helmet has been selected by Italy for its Soldato Futuro programme with further 100,000 helmets ordered by Saudi Arabia and another 40,000 by the UAE.
Croatia is also in the process of fielding a new camouflage paten using IR resistant materials with work beginning in 2003. Croatia’s new assault rifle, the bullup 5.56x45mm VHS assault rifle is also entering service. VHS prototypes passed trials in Spring 2009 with a order following for an initial 1000 weapons’ with a further order for 16,000 weapons expected to follow by the end of 2009. The weapon has already been deployed with Croat forces deployed on UN operations to the Golan. Trials to determine a new Underbarrel Grenade Launcher are continuing as is a decision on a new weapon sight originally scheduled to be made from 2008.
http://www.soldiermod.com/volume-4/croatia.html
Dopuna: 18 Feb 2010 12:54
Citat:Serbia Eyes Soldier Modernisation
In anticipation of the Serbian government’s renewed interest in soldier modernisation, state owned Yugoimport has developed the VB10 ensemble, designed to meet Serbia’s soldier modernisation requirements
“The Serbian government have requirements which they established during the 1990s,” explained Aleksandar Lijakovic, Head of the Promotion Department at Yugoimport. He continued that recently, the company has looked again at how infantry requirements had developed in recent years, analysing new trends in programmes throughout the world, particular the West.
The Serbian military requirements for the future soldier, explained Lijakovic, consists of a subsystem for survivability, specifically about ballistic armour and NBC protection, advanced cold weather protection systems and also supply systems and weapon systems, based on the M21 assault rifle and integrating further systems on this core.”
Lijakovic outlined the broad approach capabilities being investigated; “Integrating the weapon system with C4I systems at the infantry level and integration with new, corner firing systems, laser range finder and sub systems for the integration of target data based on the laser range finder and orientation system up to the higher levels of command in C4I systems. The system also contains new ballistic protection systems with integrated combat and ballistic jacket, together with a new camouflage pattern which we are also developing, based on a digital format. The most important systems however are C4I and opto-electronic systems which are integrated at the level of soldier and their weapons.”
Yugoimport is a government state owned company but with a more complex role than simply as a manufacturer. Lijakovic outlined the firm’s three basic missions, “the first is representing our defence industry in the market, the second mission is as C4I developer and the production of complex defence systems as a system integrator, and the third mission is as the importer for Serbian armed forces.”
Yugoimport began work on the project in earnest in 2009, undertaking basic trials and developing demonstrators. A squad for the Serbian Army represents eight to ten men, with Yugoimport concentrating on a trials process with an initial three prototype systems.
Lijakovic said, “It is normally intended for infantry squads, particularly special forces and elite forces but also for infantry based on the squad, platoon and company and for integration in modern network centric operations.”
For the communications bearer network, Lijakovic explained that Yugoimport had obtained a number of Western designs for the trials, although for night vision devices both overseas and well as domestic solutions were used.
The three systems will equip the squad commander, deputy commander and soldier. Lijakovic said, “We are offering it as our programme and we are expecting this programme to be entered for our armed forces but we are also offering it foreign partners too.”
While there are inevitably similarities between the official military requirements and that of Yugoimport, there are distinct departures. While the Serbian military concentrates on equipping with any future system with the Zastava M21 rifle which fires the 5.56x45mm NATO round and entered Serbian service in 2004, Yugoimport have solutions based on both the M21 and the legacy 7.62x39mm Zastava M70. Lijakovic said, “We are using a highly upgraded M21 but also using the M70. That was our choice, we are combining those two weapons.”
Rifles used in the initial trials were used in differing roles. Lijakovic continued, “One has the Laser Range Finder with the ability to get the range to the target and getting the information about soldier position and calculated position of the target to send this data to a higher level of command for fire control systems for example. Another has the ability for corner firing, reflex sight and laser target pointer, and a pocket sized computer to get the information from the commander using the same equipment as the squad commander and a platoon and company commander.”
http://www.soldiermod.com/volume-4/serbia.html
Dopuna: 18 Feb 2010 13:00
Citat:Practice Makes Perfect
With a new small arms suite, clothing and load carriage equipment, Slovenia’s Warrior programme will address additional C4I capability in the future
Slovenia’s armed forces are eighteen years old, a date marking the country’s independence from the former Yugoslavia. Unable to access the original suppliers of its armed force’s legacy equipment, Slovenia has been obliged to undertake an almost compete revamping of its military equipment, including soldier modernisation. It believes that its future soldier programme, known as The 21st Century Warrior or Slovenian Warrior is now almost complete, with the exception of C4I which they believe is arguably no bad thing reflecting, the speed at which developments are taking place in that field.
The Slovenian Armed Force (SAF) define its Warrior programme in the context of a unit system consisting of a section within a motorised unit, equipped with two types of vehicle, the 6x6 Pandur and more recently the 8x8 Patria AMV, the latter giving the section greater internal volume and mobility. The first infantry company received the AMV in 2009.
The Warrior programme began with a pre study phase in 1998, quickly followed by a study phase with field trials from 1999-2005 with procurement and integration of a number of equipment categories taking place from 2002 to the present day. The scope of the Warrior programme is ‘simply’ that it covers all the equipment that the soldier will use, carry, wear and consume during operations. Four key areas of improvement have already been achieved, in the areas of small arms, higher level C2, protective clothing and individual equipment and mobility.
Lt. Col Peter Zakrajsek, former Head of the Doctrine and Development of the Infantry Section, part of the Army’s Doctrine, Development Training and Education Command and responsible for controlling the programme’s implementation, provided an overview of progress thus far, “We have already improved our weapon systems. For C2, we have improved many items at the platoon level, and also above the company and battalion level, but since the technology is changing so quickly, I think that for the dismounted soldier, we should delay the state of the art and modernise in the future. The current systems still enable us to train with the modernised C2 systems and for tactical simulation systems for training that’s just enough.”
Continuing the training theme, Lt. Col Zakrajsek said that C4I was comparable in some ways to mobile phone technology with users often only using the same basic functionality offered in the first phones, even though their latest phones are extremely feature rich. “The same thing happens to equipment you give to the soldier if you don’t train them properly. They have state of the art equipment but they use only the primary functions of this equipment. If you want to explore the full potential of the existing C4I systems, you have to train soldiers extensively and properly.”
Lt. Col Zakrajsek sees weight as a key issue going forward, “When I was a battalion commander, we once weighed all the individual’s equipment and it came out at 95Kg. The Warrior system also covers equipment that is carried inside and outside vehicles and also sustainability for several days of operations.”
The programme’s acquisition strategy comprises several core priorities, emphasising the purchase of, off-the shelf equipment, ideally field proven with a development path that would allow for future equipment upgrade, supplied by a domestic source if possible.
Lt. Zakrajsek puts the cost of an individual soldier, fully equipped with night optics at around €18,000.
The Warrior programme’s most recent achievement has been a complete replacement of its suite of small arms, which has broadly coincided with the full professionalisation of the Slovenian armed forces, supplemented by a small contracted reserve.
The core of the small arms programme is the adoption of the FN F2000S assault rifle with 6500 weapons being acquired. At the time, Lt. Col Zakrajsek explained, “it took a quite a lot of courage to choose a weapon that was still not proven with other armies but as we tested it, it proved quite reliable and gave us all the capabilities that a modern assault rifle should have.” He identified key factors in its favour as the weapon’s balance, small size and weight and utility for Military Operations in Urban Terrain. In terms of optics the FN2000 are issued with a mix of the COMP M-2 and Trijicon ACOG 3.5x35 sights.
New sniper rifles are also fielded, including the 7.62mm Ultima Ratio Commando and the larger 8.6mm Mini Hecate with both rifles using Schmidt and Bender sights. For suppressive fire, FN’s 7.62 mm MAG and 5.56mm Minimi have been selected. For night operations, Simrad’s KM250 and 252 are issued.
Slovenia’s new anti-tank capability is represented by the RGW 90 equipped with both fragmentation and anti-tank warheads.
Addressing the new Protective Clothing and Individual equipment sub-systems, Lt. Col Zakrajsek, “For clothing, we have equipped our army with a new vest. It is difficult to equip so quickly. Now we are testing the latest equipment and going on to final trials. The principle is to have many layers that we can combine depending on the environment.”
At the beginning of December 2009, approximately twelve months of testing procedures for the SAF’s new urban and all purpose uniform, issued to 13 different Army units, was completed. Prototypes of the all purpose uniform have now been tested in all required environments and circumstances: on exercises both international and domestic, during Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn, during daylight, night and while observed with IR devices.
The prototypes for the uniform fulfil all the programme’s challenging camouflage requirements including use in all weather conditions from -32C to +49C. Manufactured from 100 percent cotton, rip stop material it also affords complete IR protection. It is also more breathable, easier and more comfortable to wear with greater water protection and more pockets.
The SAF have also developed a new type of military boot which features increased comfort, durability and flexibility, with anatomically designed foot bed, firm rubber and sole protective toe cap, designed to provide extreme rigidity and comfort at the same time.
The Warrior system’s modular load carriage system comprises a rucksack, combat rucksack, combat belt and shoulder belt, carriage equipment and sleeping equipment. For CBRN protection, new protective clothing has been sourced from Saratoga and each soldier carries a personal dosimeter. More capable CBRN detection resides at the battalion level.
The current Slovenian C2 battle management system, reaching down to the squad leader and up the brigade is the TIS C2 project, which will equip the 1st Brigade and 10th MOTB. At the squad level, users are connected via the RF-5800V-HH radio with information, presented on a hand held display. However, Lt. Col Zakrajsek added that in the future a helmet mounted display was being considered. The information available to the user consists of situational awareness information, mapping and reporting and messaging functionality. In addition to Squad Leaders, Forward Observers and Special Forces will also receive the equipment.
Slovenia continues to deploy forces in Afghanistan. Lt. Col Z Zakrajsek said, “Almost ten percent of troops have been deployed. That is quite big operation for such a small army. It is very difficult to do mission specific training and also to train on new equipment. Because of the operational tempo, soldiers tend to adjust the procedures that they are used to and it is very difficult to adapt to other equipment, so you have take into account every aspect such of tactics, techniques and procedures to successfully change and adapt to the new systems.”
The near term goals for the Slovenian Warrior programme are not procurement led, with the majority of capabilities now in place. Lt. Col Zakrajsek concluded, “I think that the biggest challenge for us now is to how we can best exploit the potential of this equipment.”
http://www.soldiermod.com/volume-4/slovenia.html
Citat:Slovenia: Warrior of the 21st Century
Incremental acquisition is the watchword of Slovenia’s Warrior programme, which in C4I terms, is maximising the use of existing equipment
Under the “Warrior of the 21st Century” programme, the Slovenian Armed Forces are rapidly modernising, acquiring significant chunks of transformational capability, integrating them within the soldier system today, while researching in parallel, other candidate domains for inclusion tomorrow.
“In one area [of capability], weapons are to some extent already finished,” explained Ales Lebar, Senior Adviser on the programme for the Ministry of Defence Logistics Directorate, Armament and Equipping Office, Military Technology, Research and Development Division. “We have bought a completely new range of weapons. Basically we have changed calibres.”
This new suite of lethality systems include the Beretta M92 FS 9mm pistol, and several weapons sourced from FN Herstal; the FN F2000 S 5.56mm assault rifle with a mix of Aimpoint sights, laser pointers and Acog optics and underbarrel grenade launcher; the Ultima Ratio Command I sniping rifle, some with integral silencer; FN’s .338 Lapua Magnum PGM Sniping rifle; the Hecate II 12.7mm rifle, the Para Minimi 5.56mm Light Machine Gun and 7.62 MAG general purpose machine gun.
New camouflage
Slovenia has now been working for almost three years on a project to provide a prototype urban and all purpose uniforms, together with the University of Ljubljana and University of Maribor. The Chief of General Staff gave the green light in March 2008 for 200 sets of the general purpose uniform to be produced for testing from January 2009.
Major Bozo Majcen, programme lead for the new uniform in the General Staff, explained that after the uniform completes its roughly eight-month assessment, the Army will make a decision whether to continue with development or begin a new project.
The material used is 100 percent cotton, ripstop material sourced from local firm Carinthia with IR protection included in the textile.
The Urban uniform is not being tested at the moment. Major Majcen explained that the pattern design was made by taking roughly 400 pictures of Ljubjana, Slovenia’s capital city and then computers were used to generate the best match in terms of colour and pattern.
C4I
“We made lot of progress in the last three years,” explained Matevz Ferjancic, Head S&T Defence Programmes, S&T IT Solutions and Services while discussing the progress of Slovenian Armed Forces in C4I. S&T is the industrial lead in the SAF’s work on C2 for the dismounted soldier. “The Army has moved from C4I experiments and the system is now pretty mature and it is being deployed. We have some milestones in January 2009 and afterwards they will equip all battalions in the Army’s 1st Brigade by the end of 2009.”
C4I is being extended down to the dismounted soldier by extending the existing IS PINK (Command & Control) activities with a new interoperable project, KISB, dedicated to dismounted operations, which was launched in 2006. KISB was designed to produce a C2 capability for a range of roles, including squad leaders, forward observers, Special Forces and patrols.
Initially only a rugged Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) device has been fielded with a moving map display and an integrated GPS. Discussing the navigation element Ferjancic said, “It replaced commercial GPS devices used by soldiers who bought them with their own money and instead used COTS commercial navigation software, sourced from Ozexplorer in Australia.”
The GPS chip is integrated into the PDA together with a digital compass. Optionally a Metrix Laser Range Finder (LRF) manufactured by the Slovenian firm Fotona, standard issue for the Slovenian army, can be connected to the PDA via a serial link to get measurement data from the LRF. In addition to C2 software, a mortar fire control programme has been implemented on the PDA. In communication terms the PDA offers many options. Ferjancic continued, “Inside we can put a GSM card, WiFi, Bluetooth and an installation of a military version of WiFi [Thales BattleLAN] is also possible.”
Systematic’s Pocket Sitaware software has also been used in the past but this is no longer the case. Ferjancic explained that Pocket SitaWare was determined not to be suitable for navigation. “We are now working on custom developed software that is not yet fielded.”
The PDA hardware is made by the Swedish company Login. The PDA’s battery can be changed on the fly without data loss and the device is also submersible and complies with IP67 environmental protection standard. Ferjancic commented, “We’ve heard comments from the military; ‘Why should we carry a big expensive brick, if we can use IPAQs and throw them away [when they break]?’”. Ferjancic has a simple answer to this: “Logistics, because then somebody has to bring in lots of IPAQs.”
OTIS
One of the components of the KBIS programme is the Personal Tactical Information System (OTIS), a simple Head Mounted Display (HMD) based situational awareness system to display the C2 picture and share imagery. Ferjancic said “It’s a Helmet Mounted Display with embedded systems integrated into the plate carrier internally, and four buttons to control it, that’s it. We did an initial field test in August, in a MOUT training area in Slovenia. We envision that it is not something you would usually wear deep inside enemy territory. Instead you would use it for patrolling on Peace Keeping Operations while wearing ballistic protection.”
“The trick is to have a head motion sensor inside the helmet,” Ferjancic said. “If you turn you head to the right and you are looking through the HMD, you will see the compass turning to the right, and symbols will move into view, showing heading and distance [to friendly and reported enemy units].”
“We made the system really simple. The target was an almost no-button interface. If the soldier had to press a button then you were doing something wrong.” The system is only being issued to commander and team leaders within ten-man sections.
Communications Interoperability
A larger C2IS system is deployed in Infantry Fighting Vehicles within the overall IS PINK C2IS programme, which includes navigation, Blue Force Tracking, higher level C2 and data base functionality. Ferjancic adds, “The Slovenian Army is fully MIP compatible. We are fully MIP compatible with whatever we do.”
A dismounted version is also being developed aimed at company commanders that will use GD-Itronix’s MR-1 mini laptops, which will be integrated wirelessly with a number of vehicle’s sensors and weapon systems.
Slovenia currently has an eclectic mix of communication systems with the oldest being the Tadiran CNR-900 which equips most units, while the most recent one is the Harris RF5800V-HH hand held radio for dismounted troops. In the future, Thales BattleLAN could be installed on the new Patria AMV vehicles.
S&T were tasked with creating a bridging solution to enable the exchange of BFT information over these heterogeneous networks, sharing a Common Operational Picture on a Windows XP based platform.
“We are able to transfer the BFT information and some operational data over the old Tadiran radios in a type of an ad hoc Mesh network. We are providing a [software] abstraction layer for the radios. For the software engineer, it doesn’t matter which kind of radio the Army will be using. If they are using the Tadiran radios the pipe is thinner and if you are using the Harris radios the pipe is wider. It is very important that you adjust to the size of the pipe in your software, so that you don’t need to programme specifically for every type of radio.”
There are no current plans to equip every soldier with a ‘PRR’ class of radio. Other options are already available today and the flexibility of the system will allow additional systems to be added in the future. Ferjancic explained, “If the vehicle is somewhere close by, you can get data over the BattleLAN [military WiFi network] around the vehicle, if you have a radio you can get the data over the radio. And even if you don’t have these systems but instead have some other communication system that is integrated into the C2 system of the Slovenian army, you will still be able to receive the BFT information. All available data from the integrated systems is then collected and intelligently displayed in such a way that only the data that is relevant to the soldier is shown.”
http://www.soldiermod.com/volume-2/slovenia.html
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