Military Customers Research Articles

Applications and classifications of unmanned aerial vehicles: A literature review with focus on multi-rotors

AbstractDuring the past two decades, with the advancement of avionics, control systems, design, product methods, and communication systems, UAVs have gained more interest from both civil and military customers. Hence, more researchers have dedicated their time to developing new applications for drones and improving their performance. In this study, a literature review on drone applications is conducted. It is explained that they can be more effective and beneficial when merged with preexisting systems, and thus making a system of systems. Further, we have classified UAV applications more comprehensively. This classification can be very useful for providing insights when designing new UAVs. Finally, previous works are discussed thoroughly and diagrams are developed to show the research focus in this field. These statistical diagrams can also be used as a gap analysis tool.

Captives of Liberty: Prisoners of War and the Politics of Vengeance in the American Revolution

Captives of Liberty: Prisoners of War and the Politics of Vengeance in the American Revolution

ЛОГІСТИЧНА СКЛАДОВА МЕНЕДЖМЕНТУ ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ВІЙСЬК (СИЛ): ДОСВІД ТА ПЕРСПЕКТИВИ

The article characterizes the logistics component of troops (forces) support management and provides the overview of military logistics system and subsystem including general information, international experience and conventional logistics functions; determination and purposes of military logistics system; concept of efficient management within military logistics system. Currently, troops (forces) support management, being at the stage of significant development, concerns improvement of organization and controlling of facilities and equipment provision of training and combat use of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It requires development of new concept of management of military information and logistics flows that is considered to be the fundamental principle of logistics component of troops (forces) support management being implemented within a number of tasks. The aim of the article is to investigate the logistics component of troops (forces) support management from the point of view of international experience of staged creation of logistics support system, determination of support types, logistics functions and logistics management. The research found that the system of military logistics is hierarchical, integrated and it possesses the unified structure organizing the coordinated unity of information, material and financial flows. Its functions are the following: collection of information about nomenclature, volumes and terms of provisions of facilities and equipment from defense manufacturers and military customers’ orders in an automated mode; organization of receipt of armament, facilities, equipment and materials from manufacturers, optimized control over their distribution, movements and provision in accordance with the established rules of logistics and organization of their safe storage in the armouries, storing facilities, and warehouses. Conclusions. The logistics component of troops (forces) support management deals with the centralized system of troops (forces) support with military supplies by types of support (technical, logistical, and medical) functioning under consolidated administration. Also, it introduces the provision processes on the principles of transparency (clarity) and precise hierarchical system of responsibility of appropriate officials. The system was designed as similar to the logistics system of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland meaning the chosen system of military logistics by planning and performing functions is requesting to replace the existing system of logistics support. Staged implementation of planned activities of creation of efficient logistics support system will allow for retaining the existing support system and gradual transition to the system that will meet the all modern requirements, procedures, and standards of NATO member states. Keywords: troops (forces) support management, military logistics, functions of logistics, system, logistics management.

Products Liability Law – Lessons from the Military and Industrial Contexts

Abstract The policy bases for American products liability law have developed largely through a series of state court cases that involved products sold to ordinary consumers. These cases featured significant disparities between manufacturers and injured consumers in understanding latent risks from product use, and in their ability to avoid the risks and to absorb and to distribute the costs of the risks. The policy bases that appear cogent for consumer products fail to explain or justify the imposition of liability in many industrial settings, which involve military or industrial customers that are well aware of the products’ latent risks and that have moral, common law, statutory, and regulatory duties to ensure that the industrial products are used safely.

Methodological Approaches and Features of Formation of the Digital Image of Sectoral Socio-Economic Systems (Through the Example of the Logistics System for Military Customers)

The presented study examines the specific sectoral aspects of formation of the digital image of socioeconomic systems. The subject of the study is the logistics system for military customers. Aim . This study aims to examine the problems and prospects of forming a promising digital image of the key element of military-economic relations — the logistics system for military customers. At the same time, the digital transformation of this system is considered not as an independent phenomenon, but in the context of a broader trend involving organizational and technological transformations. Tasks . The authors identify stages in the development of theoretical ideas about the organizational transformations of the examined system; consider the key technologies that can serve as a basis of the digital logistics system for military customers; formulate the principles of operation of this system based on the provisions of the ecosystem approach. Methods . The study uses the methodology of the ecosystem approach, military-economic and evolutionary analysis, methods of grouping, comparison, and expert assessment. Results . Digitalization is found to be one of the key trends in modern socio-economic development. However, the studies of this phenomenon remain insufficiently diverse from the sectoral perspective. The digitalization of military-economic processes is a particularly underexplored area. The authors propose to consider it in the context of not only general socio-economic, but also specific sectoral organizational and technological transformations associated with the improvement of the national (military) security system. It is established that this approach is new and integrates previous directions of Russian research into the transformations of the examined complex sectoral socio-economic system. The conducted analysis indicates that the following key technologies can serve as a basis for an advanced digital logistics system for military customers: Internet of things; big data; cloud technologies; artificial intelligence; virtual and augmented reality; blockchain; process automation; additive manufacturing. When developing such a system, it is recommended to apply the principles of transparency, modularity, platform approach, integrality, and network nature. Conclusions . The conducted study shows that the formation of the digital image of socio-economic systems has peculiar industry-specific features that should be taken into account when creating and developing such systems. In particular, the study highlights this specificity in relation to the logistics system for military customers. The formulated theoretical provisions and practical recommendations can be used to improve this system.

Military Symbols of Scythia and Sarmatia: Totemic Beliefs and the Cult of the Wolf

The article analyzes military totemic cults, the veneration of the wolf in the aristocratic classes of Scythian and Sarmatian ethnic groups. The work also discusses similar traditions of ancient European peoples who bordered on Scythia and Sarmatia, in particular, totem customs of Eastern Celts and Getae-Dacians. It is determined that in Indo-European ethnic groups, the cult of the beast-predator had formed the military outlook of the ruling aristocracy from ancient times. Central and Eastern Europe in the pre-Scythian period already observed the existence of militaristic totemism. In the 7th–3rd centuries BC, during the Scythian era, totemic military cults became widespread. This is evidenced by the proper names of the Scythian militant associations (Saki-Humovargs, Daoi-Wolves), references of ancient authors, archaeological findings of sacred military insignia (military flags), and the widespread use of the “beast-style” with an aggressive predator. In the 3rd c. BC – 2nd c. AD, Sarmatia witnessed even a greater dissemination of the military totemism. At that time, the cult of the wolf became particularly important. Ritual objects, depictions of wolf-like animals on the hilts and handguards of Sarmatian swords (acinaceses), and individual names of Sarmatian subethne (Urgi-wolves) are all striking examples of the totemic military cult of the wolf warrior as an ancestor of the Sarmatian peoples. The same totemic traditions of the neighboring European peoples – the Dacians and the Eastern Celts – should be considered separately. The Dacians had a pronounced military custom of worshipping the wolf, and the Celts had similar traditions, including the totemic wild boar cult. Nevertheless, influence of the Scythian, and later, Sarmatian military traditions, which could have had a significant impact on all neighboring ethnic groups, is noted as the dominant one.

Response.

Dear Editor-in-Chief, We are grateful for the opportunity to respond to the insightful critiques provided by our colleagues and clarify our study’s rationale (1). Load carriage over complex terrain is a common scenario for dismounted military. However, it is challenging to study as it involves prolonged outdoor walking at a varying pace over a series of route segments of different distances, grades, and surfaces. Global positioning systems (GPS) offer a practical solution for obtaining data that can be input into walking equations to estimate energy expenditure (EE). We made estimates of EE using GPS-based modeling as a pragmatic means of providing needed solutions to our military customers for use in real-world, non–steady-state activities. Our study attempted to estimate EE contributed by aerobic metabolism in dynamic field conditions. When taken in the context of exercise with a discrete on and off phase, we see how our methodology has led to some confusion. Because of respiratory gas exchange kinetics, measures obtained in real time via gas exchange display a classic half-time response, both on and off; therefore, they do not directly compare with steady-state estimates. The approach we took sought to adjust for this half-time response. As part of our rationale, we included references describing delayed respiratory gas exchange kinetics (2,3) and excess postexercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) (4,5). Typically, estimates of EE are made using a square-wave prediction; however, using this approach avoids accounting for these half-time responses. To address these time offsets, we applied a simple exponential smoothing filter to better align walking equation estimates with aerobic EE calculated from measured oxygen uptake. This approach assumes the steady-state energy cost for a given work is correct but adjusts the time period during which the cost is expended to closer approximate how the energy cost is met by aerobic metabolism. For example, exponential smoothing a basic on–off square-wave results in a curve similar to the oxygen deficit/EPOC response to exercise. As with any method, there are limitations and room for improvement. On one hand, exponential smoothing does not immediately account for the contribution of all anaerobic energy stores when walking speed, grade, or terrain costs increase. On the other hand, instantaneous EE estimates are difficult to verify, and solely using them ignores order effects such as additional aerobic EE during trail segments that follow more metabolically taxing ones (e.g., downhill slope after a climb to the summit). To address other raised concerns in order: (i) GPS device details were listed in the original manuscript; (ii) we did state the need for downhill correction factor(s) but do note our colleagues have since developed a series of equations estimating EE during level, uphill, and downhill walking from GPS, heart rate, and accelerometry (6); (iii) the same conversion factor was applied to both measured and estimated V˙O2; and (iv) our colleagues’ equation estimates V˙O2 from combined mass of the individual plus all equipment. We appreciate the constructive feedback and look forward to future work in this area. Adam W. Potter David P. Looney William R. Santee U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental MedicineNatick, MA

Preferential treatment from the defense industry for the military

PurposeThe military of today depends on the availability and readiness of high-technology weapon systems. As the military often has to focus on core tasks (the usage of systems), logistics and support tasks are outsourced to industry, which means that industrial suppliers gain importance for making weapon systems available and mission ready. However, companies are profit-maximizing and invest their best resources in the most promising business areas, which might be clients other than the (domestic) military customer. This raises the question of how the military can ensure that the defense industry provides the best performance: preferential treatment for the military. The purpose of this study is to investigate preferential treatment in the specific context of defense.Design/methodology/approachThis paper reports on the examination of factors influencing preferential treatment for the military. The analysis uses structural equation modeling and data from a sample of German defense suppliers.FindingsThe results show that the perceived customer attractiveness has a strong effect on preferential customer treatment. Attractiveness is influenced by trust, commitment and a comparison with other customers.Research limitations/implicationsThere are several implications for defense theory and practice, including the need for further consideration of relational in contrast to transactional practices in military–industrial supply collaboration, as these seem highly relevant for getting the best resources for producing and maintaining weapon systems. In addition, increasing customer attractiveness, in particular if the military lacks a domestic defense industry base, is proposed.Originality/valueThe findings are based on a focus sample of only defense suppliers. This paper transfers the industrial discussion about the buyer–supplier relationships and preferential customer treatment to the defense logistics research context.

Freedom's Call

I can't tell my history without taking you to the Ohio town where I grew up. It's a military town, and this essay revolves around a particular military custom known as a tattoo. Here, the location (a military base) and activity (a celebration of military strength) combine in an American performance of freedom that is implicitly backed by threats of violence. In this way, a small-town celebration on the 4th of July suggests that to live in post-9/11 America is to inhabit a place of tumult, fear, and boredom.

Professionalism: a student perspective.

INTRODUCTION Before commissioning as an officer in the U.S. military, the topic of professionalism had always seemed akin to modern art, easy to point out yet hard to describe. I had never really given it any significant thought beyond an unconscious attempt to portray it; whatever “it” was. The military has introduced me to the concept of explicitly training professional behaviors and helped me to define specific characteristics of professional behavior. What was once seemingly indefinable has become a conscious and practiced set of skills. At the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), professionalism is emphasized as a requirement for graduation in accordance with Liaison Committee on Medical Education 2014 Core Competencies. As a medical student surrounded by military custom day-in and dayout, my understanding of “military” professionalism had been established with training, and reinforced with daily practice. The concept of “medical” professionalism, however, was not as clear to me. Military professionalism appears black and white, with clear regulations about right and wrong. Medical professionalism, on the other hand, is more “gray,” with an unwritten scale of what appears to be acceptable professional behaviors. In medical school, we are explicitly evaluated on our fund of knowledge and medical communication with patients and staff. We are also evaluated on “professionalism,” however because of a lack of well-defined metrics, this is often subjective. Much research has been published attempting to define medical professionalism and how to measure it. One proposed measurement tool is the Professionalism Mini-Evaluation Exercise (P-MEX). The P-MEX has been shown to be a valid and accurate measurement of professional behaviors in medical students. This tool highlights 24 professional behaviors in four primary domains:

Niccolò Machiavelli, John of Salisbury, and the Originality of Arte della guerra

Niccolo Machiavelli occupies an important place in the canon of military authors. He is often considered the first original Western writer on war since the fall of Rome because his book, Arte della guerra (“Art of War”), synthesizes contemporary military customs with those of antiquity. However, in this essay I challenge the originality of three of that book’s core elements: its use of military exempla, its emphasis on educated generals, and the reciprocal military-state relationship it describes. I argue that it was actually John of Salisbury, the notable twelfth-century English writer, who first formulated these principles in his book Policraticus. This essay explores the dimensions of John’s antecedents and also the intellectual connections between the two books, including the influence of Policraticus in Renaissance Italy and, possibly, upon Machiavelli himself. It concludes by advocating for John of Salisbury’s own place in the canon of original military authors.

군수품 특성을 고려한 품질만족도 모델 개발에 관한 연구

Purpose: In the private sector, many Customer Satisfaction Index Models have already been developed and are being applied in a variety of industries. In spite of continuously increasing of quality for military goods, measuring tools of Quality Satisfaction have not been developed yet. Method: In 2004, Defense Quality Assurance Agency and Seoul National University jointly developed MCSI(Military Customer Satisfaction Index) as a benchmark NCSI(National Customer Satisfaction Index), but it is limited to aply to military goods. We focused on product quality and developed MQSI(Military Quality Satisfaction Index) Model. Result: We propose a new Satisfaction Index Model(MQSI, Military Quality Satisfaction Index) that can be applied to military goods. Conclusion: In this study, configuration and variables of MQSI Model are described. Also the result of preliminary survey is briefly explained.

THE UNMANNED MISSION AVIONICS TEST HELICIOPTER – A FLEXIBLE AND VERSATILE VTOL-UAS EXPERIMENTAL SYSTEM

Abstract. civil customers. These applications cover a wide spectrum from R&D programs for the military customer to special services for the civil customer. This paper focuses on the technical conversion of a commercially available VTOL-UAS to ESG's Unmanned Mission Avionics Test Helicopter (UMAT), its concept and operational capabilities. At the end of the paper, the current integration of a radar sensor is described as an example of the UMATs flexibility. The radar sensor is developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques (FHR). It is integrated by ESG together with the industrial partner SWISS UAV.

Military Customs and Traditions / Militêre Gewoontes en Tradisies

Origins of the retreat ceremony While the Retreat Ceremony itself is one of the few uniquely South African military traditions, it derives from the old British military custom of 'beating the Retreat' (by drum) which originated in the sixteenth century. In its original form the custom has been variously interpreted as a signal to literally 'retreat' at the end of a day's fighting, or as a means of summoning those soldiers required to stand the night's watch. By the eighteenth century, however, a contemporary British Treatise On Military Discipline explicitly defined the practice thus:

Arms and Innovation: Entrepreneurship and Alliances in the Twenty-First Century Defense Industry (review)

Reviewed by: Arms and Innovation: Entrepreneurship and Alliances in the Twenty-First Century Defense Industry Byron K. Callan Arms and Innovation: Entrepreneurship and Alliances in the Twenty-First Century Defense Industry. By James Hasik. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2008. ISBN 978-0-226-31886-8. Tables. Notes. Index. Pp. 189. $35.00. Small business firms have played an important role in the development of contemporary weapons systems and technologies. This is particularly true of sectors where there has been rapid technological change, such as the aircraft industry in the first part of the last century and more recently in defense information technologies. But even in seemingly mature markets, small firms can play critical roles engendering major military innovation. For example, Higgins Industries of New Orleans developed the Eureka workboat in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The Eureka was ideally suited for the bayous and swamps of Louisiana where it was initially used in logging operations. In 1939, Higgins received a contract from the Navy for an experimental landing craft based on the Eureka and subsequent designs were critical to the conduct and execution of U.S amphibious operations in the Second World War. [End Page 1028] James Hasik's Arms and Innovationhas a contemporary focus, but provides a useful framework for historians to consider the structure and evolution of defense industries, and the role of small enterprises in developing weapons and supporting products. Hasik uses six case studies of current or recent U.S. defense procurements to discuss the role of small firms in the arms industry. These vignettes on weapons such as the Predator unmanned air vehicle, the Joint Direct Attack Munition, and the Space-Based Infrared Sensor are used to illustrate why small firms succeeded, or were unsuccessful, in developing and producing defense products. The case studies are well chosen as they include commercial products adopted for military use, and purpose-built weapons and software products Hasik identifies three circumstances where small firms could be "relatively advantaged" over larger enterprises. The first is "innovative" markets that don't require capital-intensive research and development and for which the vector of technological change is uncertain. Another is in circumstances where a high degree of skill is needed but where ensuing production runs could be low. The third is where there are already large players but where there is room for smaller firms to prosper. He also discusses circumstances where small companies should consider an alliance with larger enterprises. The audiences Hasik directs his recommendations to are aspiring and current defense contractors both large and small and government procurement and policy personnel. Hasik does not believe that small firms hold all the keys to weapons innovation and indeed the purpose of his study of the Joint Direct Attack Munition is to highlight instances where a small firm was not as well equipped as a large one (in this case Boeing) to undertake high level serial production of a weapon. However, he believes "small firms have an important role to play in the cycles of military-industrial development…" There were some areas that Hasik could have been explored in greater detail. Little was said about how small firms were able to make their skills and products initially known to potential military customers. In some instances, the U.S. Congress has played a critical role in shepherding and protecting smaller firms and this could have been discussed, particularly in the instance of the Predator program. And inter-service rivalries can also help a smaller firm find willing new customers. Little was said about the funding and policy initiatives that could provide entrance points for smaller innovative firms in defense markets. However, Arms and Innovationdeserves a place in the library of anyone interested in military procurement and weapons development. For the historian, the framework Hasik used may be helpful in identifying the circumstances in earlier time periods that allowed smaller firms and enterprises to bring forth new military tools. [End Page 1029] Byron K. Callan Darien, Connecticut Copyright © 2009 The Society for Military History

Dead Slow: Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Loitering in Battlespace

Unmanned (or Uninhabited) Aerial Vehicles are a key part of the American military's so-called revolution in military affairs (RMA) as practiced over Iraq. They are also part of the drive to shift agency away from humans and toward machines. This article considers the ways in which humans have, in calling on high technologies to distance them from what the military calls the “dull, the dirty, and the dangerous,” hoped to avoid responsibility for murder in wartime. In examining the claims of weapons manufacturers and their military customers, the article focuses on the concept of “systems of systems” and the various outcomes such battlespace imaginings might have for human beings. The article concludes that the RMA entertains a fantasy of human agency while technological systems call out to and conjure up other technological systems that are possessed not only of their own logics but also purposes that are hidden and disturbing.

The U.S. Approach to Combating Trafficking in Women: Prosecuting Military Customers. Could it Be Exported?

On 15 September 2004, the Joint Service Committee on Military Justice of the Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense announced that it was considering changes to the Manual for Courts Martial. The proposed changes involved crimes that could be charged under Article 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Two of the offenses—“Patronizing a Prostitute” and “Pandering by Compelling, Inducing, Enticing, or Procuring [an] Act of Prostitution”—were described by a senior Department of Defense official as intended to address misconduct associated with human trafficking. Pandering, an offense calling for up to five years’ imprisonment and a dishonorable discharge from the military, and prostitution, which can be punished by a dishonorable discharge and confinement for one year, were already listed as offenses; the proposed changes to the manual were technical. However, criminalizing the patronage of a prostitute is a novel and politically attractive approach to the problem. It is novel because those countries that forbid prostitution typically focus their enforcement efforts on suppliers rather than customers. Nor does any other country, to my knowledge, extend the reach of its military justice system so that, for example, a soldier who seeks sex from a prostitute in a country where prostitution is permitted would still be subject to criminal prosecution. It is politically attractive for several reasons. First, it evidences governmental willingness to undertake new initiatives to cope with this enormous international threat to the rule of law. Second, imposing sanctions on military customers, rather than all customers, can be justified in disciplinary terms and as an aspect of enlightened foreign policy. Finally, it is attractive because soldiers, sailors, and airmen have less domestic political influence than affluent tourists who

L’armée romaine tardive dans quelques travaux récents 1re Partie. L’institution militaire et les modes de combat

This is the first of two survey articles (the second will appear in the next issue) considering several publications – both books and articles – which have appeared in the last five or six years, on the subject of the late Roman and early Byzantine army. The appearance of recent overall studies (Lee, Nicasie, Elton, Dixon and Southern on the 3rd-6th centuries; Haldon and Treadgold on the Byzantine period) reflects the contribution of detailed studies in this area. Now that attitudes towards Late Antiquity are generally more appreciative, military matters may be considered more positively. This reassessment is applied in various areas – the real impact of barbarisation (Liebeschuetz, Nicasie, Elton), or the functioning of a ‘two-speed’ army (Nicasie, Dixon and Southern). This allows new and interesting perspectives – such as Elton’s comparison between the military customs of the barbarians and the Romans, or the attempts, undertaken by Nicasie, or Dixon and Southern, to study the relationship of technical developments to changes in tactics. In general. these studies of the Roman military machine place far less emphasis on its degeneration than earlier authors. The continuity between the Roman and Byzantine armies is presented in two contrasting and complementary ways by Treadgold, concentrating on the technical aspects (tactical organisation, pay and manpower, military budget) and Haldon, studying the adaptation of the army to the society around it. Their conception of the moment of change differs: Treadgold sees continuity into the 11thcentury, while Haldon emphasises the transformations of the 7th century, although he places as late as 840 the full impact of the so-called theme system. On many points, the description of the Byzantine situation could benefit from a deeper knowledge of the Late Roman military system and legal discipline, which might produce a clearer understanding of some aspects of the transition.

Misplaced marketing: Landmines and the misplaced marketing of destruction

From a humanitarian standpoint, “antipersonnel landmines” are condemned for the indiscriminate terror they inflict on civilian populations. A functional tool of battle, landmines provide conflict between the production of a product that the military customer desires but one that does not serve the needs of humanity. Claims by component producers that they are unaware of the destination of their product demonstrates either the divorce of marketing from production or an attempt to persuade critics that ignorance allows dissociation from responsibility. Producers of components and assemblers of landmines have been named by the anti‐landmine movement. The impact of such action is likely to negatively influence the perceptions of other products produced by these companies with the results on profitability. Furthermore, the growing movement towards accountability may leave producers and assemblers at risk of litigation. It is concluded that the production of a weapon that meets the needs of the military customer but does not meet the needs of humanity is an example of misplaced marketing. Firms involved in component production or assembly are well advised to cease such operations to ensure their profitability in the future.

Pharmaceutical Logistics in the European Theater

This article describes the responsibilities and objectives of the pharmacy officer for the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Center, Europe. Pharmacists' experiences and knowledge offer advantages in the ordering, storage, and distribution of medical materiel. Exploitation of new technology and a customer-focused attitude encourage a working environment that capitalizes on pharmaceutical expertise. The use of temperature monitors, enhanced automation opportunities, expired drug return credits, and other customer-focused initiatives exemplify pharmacists' value to military medical logistics organizations. An overview of the pharmaceutical pipeline to U.S. military and State Department customers in the European theater is provided.