C4I Strategic-Operational Link and Future Developments Impacting the OperationalCommander

摘要

Technology developments within the Command, Control, Communications, Computersand Intelligence (C4I) area are rapidly causing changes throughout the world. U.S. operational commanders should reap benefit from these advances. However, the fact we can disseminate more information, faster, and to a wider audience is not the only measure of effectiveness. Recent experiences during the Gulf War, Somalia, and in development of contingency plans, have shown the dramatic role C4I capabilities can have at the operational level. Future operations across the spectrum of conflict will continue to demand more in the Form of C4I support. The concept of forward deployed Forces is shifting to force projection from the Continental United States. Coupled with resource constraints, this shift requires C4I employment concepts and architectures to chance. These changes are represented in concepts such as the Joint Staff's C4I for the Warrior and the U.S. Army's Enterprise Strategy. Architectural change, such as the new U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command's (INSCOM) Information Management Architecture (IMA), is beginning to focus technology advances on to equipment, deployment methods, and force structure. The focus of all these efforts is the link between strategic resources and the operational commander. Barriers to fully integrating strategic and operational C4I capabilities do exist. C4I vulnerabilities, Multi-level security, joint interoperability, and integrating U.S. and coalition forces continue to be issues that will demand the attention of C4I planners and operational commanders of the future. Operational commander, Technology, Application, Impacts.