Defense Technology International - April 2008 - (Page 39) DATA LINKS TACTICAL SEEING IS BELIEVING Rover video aids combat ops and relief missions RAMON LOPEZ•WASHINGTON U.S. AIR FORCE PHOTOS T actical jet jockeys and ground pounders in Iraq and Afghanistan share live video of battlefield targets, collaborating on precision air strikes to an extent not possible even six years ago. But the combat-proven Rover (Remotely Operated Video Enhanced Receiver) and Mini-Rover, a smaller version, are also geared to humanitarian missions, thus establishing a widening military and civil market for the technology. Rover, with ruggedized laptop and antennas, allows joint terminal attack controllers (JTAC) to coordinate accurate air strikes. A JTAC can see on his Rover laptop a real-time video feed of a target from an unmanned aerial vehicle or a tactical aircraft’s targeting pod. Before the pilot executes a strike, permission must be given by a JTAC who confirms the location to minimize collateral damage and avoid injury to friendly forces. Rover—along with a new generation of smart bombs—has increased the accuracy of air strikes so much that “danger close,” the minimum distance from U.S. forces that a bomb can be dropped, is now 75 meters (246 ft.) versus 2,000 meters in 2003. “The Rover allows JTACs to see through the eyes of the pilot,” says U.S. Air Force Sta Sgt. Kenneth Swank, a combat controller. “The video feed from an aircraft transmits to the screen below and we are able to guide the pilot to a specified target based on landmarks seen from the air.” The Rover is precise. “We can zoom in and see individuals running in and out of buildings and follow them through a city. It also tracks vehicles through congested streets,” Swank says. The Rover 1 receiver was developed by General Atomics ASI, which builds the Predator MQ-1 UAV, to provide USAF AC-130 gunships with Predator video. MVR III, or Mini-Rover, is a handheld unit with integrated computer, antennas and display. The air-to-ground Rover 2 was born in 2002 during Operation Enduring Freedom, when it was determined that special operations forces in Afghanistan would benefit from real-time video footage shot by Predators. General Atomics ASI engineers went back to the drawing board and came up with a hefty receiver that special ops could haul around and use to target Hellfire missile strikes on insurgents. Rover 2 was used exclusively by clandestine operators over the next year. The future of Rover changed in early 2003 when Lt. Col. Gregory E. Harbin, a veteran USAF command pilot, volunteered for assignment to U.S. Air Forces Central, where he worked in a time-sensitive targeting cell. His job was to study photographs and video sent by UAVs over Iraq and Afghanistan, looking for targets of opportunity. From Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia, he saw that special ops forces could call in attacks by Predators in less than a minute. Conventional ground troops had to route Predator attack requests through Harbin’s shop, a process that took as long as 45 min. The di erence was that a handful of special ops units were equipped with Rover 2, which simplified communications to the airborne shooters. Harbin believed conventional fighting units could use Rover. His bosses agreed and he was sent to the U.S. for a crash course on how to use the device. In December 2003, Harbin and four Rovers went to Fallujah, in Iraq’s Al Anbar province, to train members of the 82nd Airborne Div. in using the devices. Harbin eventually got the idea to link Rover to manned tactical aircraft, and video transmitters were soon installed on their targeting pods. Meanwhile, L-3 Communications’ Communications SystemsWest was brought on to develop and produce Rover 3, which incorporates a multi-band (Ku-band digital, C-band digital, Cband analog and L-band analog) receiver able to accept video from Predator, other drones and fixed-wing tactical aircraft with targeting pods, including Litening II/III and Sniper XR. Harbin calls development of the Rover 3 “a phenomenal leap in warfighting ability, achieved without the traditional reAPRIL 2008 DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL 39 Canadian forward air controllers are now equipped with Rover to guide air strikes. AviationWeek.com/dti http://AviationWeek.com/dti
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