Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va. --
In recent years, intelligence experts have
warned
that new and emerging technologies could change and potentially revolutionize
battlefield communications, effectively altering how Marines on the ground
detect and locate their adversaries, communicate with each other, and direct
operations.
To mitigate this risk and ensure Marines remain lethal on future battlefields,
Marine Corps Systems Command recently fielded the Marine Corps Wideband
Satellite – Expeditionary, or MCWS-X. MCWS-X is a man-portable,
multiband, super-high frequency, multi-waveform satellite communications
terminal that provides the warfighter resiliency and agility in the field.
Designed to be transported by a single Marine – and set up by that same
Marine in less than 15 minutes – MCWS-X will allow Marines on the ground
to quickly and securely connect to various SATCOM frequencies while providing
high throughput rate.
In short, the warfighter gains speed.
"I think MCWS-X’s name says it all,” said Lt. Col. Wynndee
Young, deputy program manager for Communications Systems at MARCORSYSCOM.
“When Marines hear ‘expeditionary,’ they know they're
being empowered to do what Marines do best: quickly assess the situation, set
up, conduct the mission, and exit safely in order to move on to their next
assignment.”
"Thanks to this new capability, Marines can shoot, move, and communicate
a lot faster than before,” said Frank Mello, product manager for
Satellite Communications.
This gained capability ultimately aligns with
Force Design 2030
goals, which call on the Corps to adapt, remain relevant, and out maneuver its
adversaries by developing “smaller but better-connected formations that
organically possess a complete kill chain appropriate to echelon, and that can
prevail in a contested operating environment.”
[blockquote:Speed certainly increases lethality, but it also ties back to
Force Design 2030's stated goals by empowering small units of Marines to
successfully conduct missions quickly and effectively.:Lt. Col. Wyndee Young,
deputy program manager for Communications Systems at MARCORSYSCOM]
“Speed certainly increases lethality, but it also ties back to Force
Design 2030’s stated goals by empowering small units of Marines to
successfully conduct missions quickly and effectively,” said Young.
"In practical terms, MCWS-X shortens the kill chain for Expeditionary
Advanced Base Operations. That’s Force Design 2030,” Mello added.
But speed isn’t only a capability gained through MCWS-X; it can also be
used to describe the acquisition process led by Young and her team.
After all, they went from concept to Full Operational Capability in under
three years.
“What the SATCOM team has done in a short period of time is simply
exceptional,” said Young. “MCWS-X was able to prove the
effectiveness and efficiency of a [Middle Tier Acquisition] for Rapid Fielding
by successfully navigating the acquisition framework through design,
development, testing, and full fielding in 32 months.”
“The true value of the MTA process was revealed by accepting the
appropriate level of technical risk while maintaining a high level of product
quality and fielding a viable expeditionary SATCOM capability to the Fleet
Marine Force,” she added.
But this feat in expediency did not deter the team from incorporating Marine
feedback into the process, an important factor Young emphasized.
“Field user evaluations are important because they provide Marines with
a hands-on opportunity to operate the equipment and provide feedback to both
the acquisitions team and the vendor. This process allows us to better
understand how the warfighter might actually use the capability in the field
and preempt any challenges that could arise from equipment fielded by
MARCORSYSCOM,” Young said.
“Field User Evaluations have really helped my team and me to better
understand the impact our work has on the Fleet Marine Force,” said
Young. “Their feedback, the hot washes, the process improvement …
all of these factors allow us to incorporate Marine feedback into the
acquisitions process, ultimately allowing us to field a product that will make
the warfighter even more lethal.”
But the team isn’t done after the successful fielding of MCWS-X; now,
they’re literally shooting for the stars.
“The SATCOM team is focused on the future. We are working to give our
Marines options and the ability to execute communications in layers. While
MCWS-X has the ability to connect to various SATCOM frequencies, we’re
presently looking at mods to actually tackle different orbits out in
space,” said Mello. “It’s really not too early to
implementing multi-orbit, multiband capability.”