New Army Network ‘A Revolution’ For Airborne: Commander
Since World War II, every airdrop has been a well-armed leap of faith into the unknown. A new tactical wireless network could change that.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr. on November 18, 2019 at 2:36 PM
WASHINGTON: From D-Day to today, every time a parachute unit hits the ground, it shatters. A well-ordered formation breaks apart into individuals, strewn across the landscape and unsure of where their comrades and commanders have landed. Leaders race to reform a fighting force before the enemy can pick the scattered paratroopers off.
Now the famed 82nd Airborne is testing to see how much faster could that force form up and move out if paratroopers could see each others’ locations in real time on a digital map. What new tactics would become possible?
â€Right now, to gain accountability, I touch a kid on the shoulder and say, ‘oh, there you are.’ And when I’ve touched 4,400 of them, I know the brigade’s assembled,†said Col. Andrew Saslav, who commands the 1st Brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division.
https://breakingdefense.com/2019/11/new-army-network-a-revolution-for-airborne-commander/
