The Soldiers slip around the edge of the wall, stacking up against a rusty metal door blocking access to the compound. With a heavy punch of a boot, the entry is ripped from its hinges and the Soldiers pour into the hard-packed dirt yard in a flow of lethal green.
After a look around, the insurgent they were sent to nab isn’t there.
Time to look in another house.
In the past, resetting the squad, briefing them on the next target, moving in an orderly and safe fashion to the new house and conducting another search would have taken precious minutes a wary enemy could use to slip away for good. But with new technology doled out to a specialized Army unit deployed to Iraq since April, the Soldiers cut that nearly in half.
A program that many see as struggling on life support, Land Warrior has for the first time proven its worth in combat. Though Soldiers still criticize the system’s clunky components and groan at the added weight of batteries and other electronics, the Land Warrior suite fielded in Iraq is nevertheless helping Soldiers on the ground execute their mission more effectively.
“First I thought that’s a lot of equipment, that’s a lot of weight,” said Sgt. 1st Class Ruben Romero, a Land Warrior program official who deployed to Iraq previously without the system and is now helping Soldiers use it in combat.
“But as I got introduced to Land Warrior and started using it, I thought: ‘Man, I could have used this my first time.’ ”
Funding for Land Warrior was zeroed out by the Army in its fiscal 2008 budget submission this year, but money for the Iraq deployment comes from funds allocated in 2007.
Program officials are quick to point out the fielding of the current components of Land Warrior in Iraq is not an “experiment,” they are continuously adding capability to the system based on advice from Soldiers in the field and technological advancements.
Army officials delivered over 200 Land Warrior systems to Soldiers of the Fort Lewis, Wash.-based 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division’s 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team back in 2006 to train with the system in preparation for their deployment to the hotly-contested provinces north of Baghdad. The components are divided into two basic categories, one for mounted Stryker Soldiers and one for dismounted infantrymen.
The dismounted system consists of a small, helmet-mounted display that can be flipped down in front of the Soldier’s eye or removed from view like a night vision optic. Attached to the display is a lightweight computer housed in a pouch worn on the Soldier’s back that can store map data, GPS location information and position details on the rest of the team and their targets.
All of that information can be displayed on the helmet-mounted screen, and Soldiers can toggle through different features using a mouse-like device attached to the front of their body armor vest.
“When these guys go outside the wire … you’d be hard pressed to find a paper map anywhere,” said Lt. Col. Brian Cummings, Land Warrior product manager who’s overseeing its employment in Iraq. “Their leaders can tactically know where they are in relation to the mission and where the Soldiers are at any given time.”
There’s also an encrypted radio that can transmit voice and a limited amount of data, such as email and text messages, to other members of the unit or to commanders back at the forward operating base.
Unlike previous versions of the Land Warrior system that envisioned a hard-shelled “turtle back” containing all the electronics and mission computers, the system fielded to Iraq units can be tailored for each mission. If a Soldier will be riding in a Stryker, for example, he can plug into the vehicle’s onboard systems and leave his computer back in the hooch.
The dismounted system also includes a video optical weapons sight that can display target information on the helmet-mounted screen, allowing Soldiers to lift their weapons above a compound’s wall and see what’s behind without exposing themselves.
“Yes it’s another piece of equipment added to your weapon system that makes it heavier,” Romero explained. “But being able to use it to peek around corners rather than poking my head around the corner … I feel more comfortable now.”
Program officials have recently added the capability to display video taken by battlefield robots searching for improvised explosive devices on the helmet-mounted display and are working on the potential to transmit video obtained from the weapon sight back to base for instant evaluation.
Though the future of Land Warrior is still in fiscal limbo, the system has so far turned doubtful Joes into unwavering proponents.
“This is something that we should build more of and make improvements on and get it to every Stryker unit in the Army,” Cummings said.
The troops should drive further development and continued funding if they see they it as an assest. Perhaps, sensors can be placed on the the uniforms that would sense soldier orientation and bullit inpact point, of which the data would use to extrapolate probable sector of return fire, to be sent to his visor and others in close proximetry, as an urgent message.
I hope they still teach them how to use paper maps and all and stuff like that. A map that is shot is a mape with a hole in it. A screen that is shot is a deadweight. (not try to knock the system at all here)
igt,
The screens are very small. I’m sure they’ll still learn how to use paper maps as they still teach the classic methods of navigating themselves even though they have GPS.
Even if the eye piece gets damaged, each squad is supported by a stryker, so I’m sure they have spare parts on hand.
Oh, so the project manager thinks it’s a terrific program, and we should build lots more of them. Now that’s what I call news!
And oh golly — it’s yet more bulldog journalism from Christian!!! Look, since this site has access to genuinely informative professionals like Norman Polmar, why do you bother to put up press release stenography from this hack?
sglover:
I didn’t see you piping up when Christian was breaking news around body armor (while NBC was pushing utter BS) a few weeks back. Take your weak sauce elsewhere.
The aussies can look around the corner too. It’s just an extension to their standard scope (making it L-shaped) and probably costs 3 dollar 15. So the idea will not be accepted by the US army, because: it is not an American, overly complex, overweight and overpriced piece of equipment.
“The aussies can look around the corner too.“
What a brilliant solution! All they have to do is stop, attach the scope, peek, take the scope off EVERY time they want to look around the corner! Or maybe they can just keep it on all time and just stand at right angles to their targets all the time.
Hope it’s dummy corded.
I think this is important technology. Should it be in the field right now? With the issues the system has (weight, computing power)? Probably not.
But I think they realized if they did not get something out into the field and operate it under real world conditions, the whole program would go into the scrap heap.
Which would be a shame considering the potential.
And as for the Australian sight, I agree it is a simpler solution. But the digital,gun mounted one will eventually allow for NVG and infrared (or one of the systems they are developing which combines the best aspects of both) to be built in.
New technology is allowing for charging of batteries from a distance (Just read it in Popular Mechanics. Concept being you could place sensors all over your house and keep them working with wireless power). It may be possible to reduce the battery size if the Stryker Generated wireless power for the troops.
All of this new technology will not be tried if there is not at least a program in place to do so.
So common, we all had a Tandy 1000 at one time. They were just about useless, but today I am posting this comment on a site and you are reading it.
–Dennis
Yes I know, Landwarrior is not about a scope, a computer or whatever, but about the concept. It’s not about evolution but about revolution. The concept itself is very interesting and I hope something usefull comes out of it.
“Mounted directly behind the sight, the OAVD can also be swiveled to a redundant position on the side of the weapon to allow normal on-axis use of the sight. The OAVD can be rotated back into place behind the sight with one hand, or removed and stored in the soldier’s webbing.“
Alas, too cheap, too simple etc. But seriously, the idea behind Landwarrior is worth pursuing and even a story like this from the marketingboys at the DoD is of great interest. I am only a sucker for the really simple and unorthodox solutions like this OAVD or duct tape (that ad at the bottom of the page .….)
Didn’t I read something on there where the gun camera had a 1 second lag and the blue force tracker had a minute lag?
http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/military_law/4215715.html?page=2
There is an article by Noah with first hand experience with the Land Warrior FCS. I really wonder how well these things are doing over there.
Our military is small in size compared to the emerging superpowers so we will not be able to play the numbers game like WWII if it comes to that. We have to be perpared to fight the smarter fight.
In the city fight, surounded by civilans we can’t use our overwelming firepower. Again we need to fight he smarter fight.
We really need this kind of R&D. Sure it is not all that hot now but it’s getting better all the time. Remember, everyone thought the airplane was not all that useful in war.
Good point. The 12x gun camera could be great. The ability to lase a target while at the same time sended your position and the position of the target up the chain of command including pictures of the target really could make thing better now. GPS + Laser Range Finder + Radio are already around and making it simpler and faster would be great.
I hope someone is looking at non Li-ion batteries. Lithium is mainly found in Blovia, not exactly friend of the US, and China. That is 70–80% of the world supply I recall. No batteries, these systems will just be boat anchors