Blackout and now? Network Centric Warfare in an anti-access area-denial theatre

Abstract

The advance of information and communication technology nowadays offers worldwide broadband communication with high data rates. Motivated by the benefits of real-time distributed information shared between units as well as different levels of command for the purpose of fast and reliable decision-making, numerous nations have been working hard over the past years to implement Network Centric Warfare (NCW). By that, information superiority can be gained and translated into command superiority and finally into force superiority. Being strongly dependent on fast and reliable communication, electrical power outages or disruptions of network nodes like SatCom systems respectively links can have a severe impact on information gathering and in turn on the decision making process and the capacity of forces to act. As a consequence, questions arise about the robustness of the NCW doctrine. The ability of power projection is strongly hampered by anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) capabilities. In order to successfully conduct military operations against technologically advanced opponents, forces must address A2/AD as an important element of today's battle-field, comprehend the associated operational implications, and eliminate any imbalances between military objectives and the means by which to achieve them. Following these considerations, this paper - on a technical level - analyses capabilities and weaknesses of NCW with regard to modern theatres. Based on that, recommendations in order to strengthen the performance and reliability for the further development of NCW are given.