Command and Control (C2) to enable multi-domain teaming of unmanned vehicles (UxVs)

In his best-selling book, War Made New, military historian Max Boot supports his thesis with historical examples to show how technological-driven “Revolutions in Military Affairs” have transformed warfare and altered the course of history. The U.S. military has embraced a wave of technological change that has constituted a true transformation of the way that military forces will fight in the 21st Century. One of the most transformational technologies adapted for military use is unmanned and autonomous systems. The expanding use of these systems for civilian and military applications has increased dramatically over the past decade. This should come as no surprise, as these systems represent one of the most rapidly growing areas of innovative technology adoption. In the military trade space, the use of military unmanned systems (UxS) is already creating strategic, operational, and tactical possibilities that did not exist a decade ago. These systems are not only changing the face of modern warfare, but are also altering the process of decision-making in combat operations. Indeed, it has been argued that the rise in drone warfare is changing the way we conceive of and define “warfare” itself. However, while these unmanned systems are of enormous value today and are evolving to deliver better capabilities to the warfighter, it is their promise for the future that causes the most excitement. Indeed, these systems have created substantial buzz in policy, military, industry and academic circles. One of the most cutting-edge and challenging aspects of autonomous systems is enabling systems that operate in different domains - Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs), and Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) - work together as a heterogeneous whole. As autonomous systems become more important to military operators, and especially as they are used for more diverse and complex missions, the issue of command and control (C2) of cross-domain unmanned vehicles (UxVs) will become more important. Today, while the performance of UxV in all domains has improved dramatically, the C2 issues of controlling UxVs in multiple domains simultaneously remains an area requiring additional research, modeling and simulation, and operational testing. This paper will present the results of operational testing of cross-domain UxVs in The Technical Cooperation Program (five-eyes) Hell Bay 4 experiment during international exercise Unmanned Warrior 2016 at the British Underwater Test & Evaluation Centre (BUTEC), in the Kyle of Lochalsh, Scotland, United Kingdom. The primary objectives of this experiment focused on cooperative teaming of a UAV with UUVs to demonstrate extended range C2 of remotely deployed UUVs in a contested littoral environment. One of the most promising results of this experiment was the ability of the test UAV to travel for one hour at twenty-five miles per hour while carrying a ten-pound payload. This UAV (a United States Vapor 55) was thus able to transit from one ship to the other, autonomously take off and land, and recharge when necessary. This capability demonstrates the potential for these UAVs to operate from ships in international waters (outside a nation's twelve mile territorial sea) and have enough endurance to conduct missions ashore. The undersea portion of the experiment was equally promising, with the operational team able to effectively control Iver2 and Iver3 UUVs - as well as the UAV - via the ONR CaSHMI control station. Of note, we were able to successfully relay data between UUVs and the UAV at several miles separation. Finally, this paper will present the details of proposed future experimentation and provide on-ramps for industry, academia, military and allied partners to participate in future events. The presenting author will provide appropriate points of contact at the various organizations that participated in The Technical Cooperation Program Hell Bay 4 experiment during international exercise Unmanned Warrior 2016, and will suggest ways of other parties can join future experiments.