SOTECH 10-9 (Nov./Dec.)

World’s Largest Distributed Special Ops Magazine

Aerial Provider Col. (P) Clayton M. Hutmacher Commander U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command

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November/December 2012 Volume 10, Issue 9

Command Surgeons Round Table O SOF Gear and Technology Special Operations Medical Gear O Cockpit Innovations

DUAL LANGUAGE ARABIC-ENGLISH EDITION—MIDDLE EAST DISTRIBUTION

Special Operations Technology

Special Operations Technology is how you reach the Middle East and those seeking innovative special operations solutions ■ Exclusive Interviews with Key Middle East Leadership ■ Bonus Distribution to the Region ■ Key Articles in English and Arabic ■ Focused Special Operations Content ■ Same Unmatched Distribution to all U.S. Special Operations Forces

BONUS DISTRIBUTION: IDEX I N S E R T I O N O R D E R D E A D L I N E : J A N U A RY 4 , 2 0 1 3 | A D M AT E R I A L S D E A D L I N E : J A N U A RY 1 1 , 2 0 1 3

Special Operations Technology

November/December 2012 Volume 10 • Issue 9

Features

Cover / Q&A Cockpit Innovations The glass cockpit is evolving rapidly, bringing greater safety and predictability to pilots and passengers alike, providing clarity in brownout landings, terrain avoidance advances and more.

By Leslie Shaver

4

Rapidly Changing SOF Gear and Technology Examine the advanced technology in critical gear employed by special operators. We spotlight items that can provide special operators with an edge over the enemy, allowing warriors to prevail in a difficult and dangerous theater of war.

8

16 McRaven Awards Dinner Admiral Bill H. McRaven, SOCOM commander, accepts a prestigious award not for himself, but for the 66,000 special operators whom he leads.

Colonel (P) Clayton M. Hutmacher Commander U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command

12

special section: SOF medicine Special Operations Medical Gear In the golden hour after a special operator is hit by enemy fire, these medic kits and medical devices can assure the wounded combatant makes it alive to a field hospital.

By Henry Canaday

19

Departments 2 Editor’s Perspective 3 Whispers/People 14 Black Watch 27 Resource Center

The Future of SOF Medicine

23

In repeatedly stepping into harm’s way, special operators are at high risk of suffering grievous wounds. But medical technology offers signal advances that can prevent loss of life. We feature a roundtable with SOF component command surgeons.

Industry Interview

28 Pete Campbell Medical Sales Manager ADS Medical

Special Operations Technology Volume 10, Issue 9 • Nov/Dec 2012

World’s Largest Distributed Special Ops Magazine Editorial Editor Dave Ahearn davea@kmimediagroup.com Managing Editor Harrison Donnelly harrisond@kmimediagroup.com Online Editorial Manager Laura Davis laurad@kmimediagroup.com Correspondents Peter Buxbaum • Henry Canaday • Jeff Goldman Hank Hogan • William Murray • Marc Selinger Leslie Shaver

Art & Design Art Director Jennifer Owers jennifero@kmimediagroup.com Senior Graphic Designer Jittima Saiwongnuan jittimas@kmimediagroup.com Graphic Designers Amanda Kirsch amandak@kmimediagroup.com Scott Morris scottm@kmimediagroup.com Eden Papineau edenp@kmimediagroup.com Kailey Waring kaileyw@kmimediagroup.com

Advertising Associate Publisher Scott Sheldon scotts@kmimediagroup.com

KMI Media Group Publisher Kirk Brown kirkb@kmimediagroup.com Chief Executive Officer Jack Kerrigan jack@kmimediagroup.com Chief Financial Officer Constance Kerrigan connik@kmimediagroup.com Executive Vice President David Leaf davidl@kmimediagroup.com Editor-In-Chief Jeff McKaughan jeffm@kmimediagroup.com Controller Gigi Castro gcastro@kmimediagroup.com Marketing & Communications Manager Holly Winzler hwinzler@kmimediagroup.com Operations Assistant Casandra Jones casandraj@kmimediagroup.com Trade Show Coordinator Holly Foster hollyf@kmimediagroup.com Operations, Circulation & Production Circulation & Marketing Administrator Duane Ebanks duanee@kmimediagroup.com Data Specialists Tuesday Johnson tuesdayj@kmimediagroup.com Raymer Villanueva raymerv@kmimediagroup.com Summer Walker summerw@kmimediagroup.com Donisha Winston donishaw@kmimediagroup.com

EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE With this issue, Special Operations Technology proudly celebrates its tenth anniversary.

This magazine was created and made a success by Jeff McKaughan, now editor-in-chief of KMI Media Group, to chronicle the exploits of the best warriors in the world—special operators—and to focus on the gear that they employ in their challenging missions. It has been a momentous decade for special operations.

For example, since SOTECH began publication, the CV-22 Osprey began supporting special ops missions, and advances were made in sniper rifles and body armor. There also was the arrival of the new MC-130J multi-role Dave Ahearn Editor aircraft.

Born in 2003, at the start of the war in Iraq, SOTECH has never been published in peacetime. Rather, it has presented the advent of a new type of war, the asymmetric tactics of a new enemy attacking in new ways, and a comprehensive overview of the myriad new technologies that special operators have used to counter the enemy aggression.

In 2004, the singular successes of these elite units were recognized when then-President Bush assigned Special Operations Command the huge responsibility of taking the lead in the war on terrorism.

SOTECH spotlighted the steady growth and enduring effectiveness of SOCOM and its component commands, whether describing a nighttime raid or a disaster relief mission winning friends for the United States.

SOTECH has focused on the brilliance and bravery of SOCOM and its unrivaled warriors, such as the most important mission of the war on terrorism. Led by Admiral Bill H. McRaven, now SOCOM commander, the mission took down the mastermind of the September 11 massacre of thousands of Americans, Osama bin Laden. And this year, SOTECH celebrated as SOCOM reached a major milestone—its 25th anniversary.

For the past decade, SOTECH has recorded the illustrious history of these courageous combatants and the contribution SOCOM has provided to all of the Department of Defense, such as the command procuring superior, cutting-edge arms and gear in a streamlined acquisition process, advancements that often wound up being provided to the larger armed services.

It has been our privilege to bear witness to SOCOM’s successes and preeminent position in the prosecution of war, and we are grateful for that opportunity.

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WHISPERS Black Hawks to Gain Hoists, Hooks Breeze-Eastern Corp. has been selected

by Sikorsky Aircraft to supply cargo hooks, electric rescue hoists and RAST (recovery assist, secure and traverse) probes for U.S. Army UH/HH-60M Black Hawk and U.S. Navy MH-60S and MH-60R Naval Hawk helicopters. Sikorsky is a subsidiary of United Technologies.

The five-year agreement could exceed $40 million if production demands meet expectations under the agreement. The Army medevac helicopters will be equipped with rescue hoists; MH-60 and UH-60 helicopters will be equipped with cargo hooks. The MH-60R “Romeo” helicopters will feature RAST probe hoists. The armed services could procure up to 916 helicopters under terms of the agreement with Sikorsky, known as Multi-Year VIII.

Compiled by KMI Media Group staff

System to Aid Close Air, Pararescue

Black Diamond Advanced Technology has completed delivery of 92 of its wearable Modular Tactical System (MTS) to several units within the Air National Guard (ANG) and Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC).

The company is now training end users on the proper operation and employment of the MTS. The MTS units will be used by tactical air Control party (TACP) personnel within select ANG air support operations squadrons (A), and Guardian Angel combat

Coast Guard Itself Rescued After Hurricane Sandy The U.S. Coast Guard’s Sector New York (USCG Sector NY) on the Staten Island waterfront was hit hard by Hurricane Sandy, losing all network connectivity. Backup satellite communications connections were too slow and unreliable for the sector to participate effectively in key operations.

But Persistent Systems, a Silicon Alley company in midtown Manhattan, volunteered its time, personnel and equipment the morning after Sandy arrived.

Army to Obtain Airburst System ATK received a $16.8 million engineering and manufacturing development contract modification from the U.S. Army’s Program Executive Office (PEO) Soldier for its XM25, Individual Semi-Automatic Airburst System.

The contract funds the continuing design, integration, production and testing of fully functional systems to ensure the weapon’s final design meets performance requirements and is production-ready prior to fielding.

The XM25 is a rifle that fires a 25 mm air-bursting round programmed by the weapon’s integrated target acquisition and fire control system to burst directly above a designated target.

The system allows soldiers to quickly and accurately engage targets by producing an adjusted aimpoint based on range, environmental factors and user inputs.

The Army conducted forward operational assessments (FOA) with early XM25 prototype weapons deployed in Afghanistan from November 2010 through May 2012, with soldiers actively employing them on patrols in areas experiencing high levels of enemy activity. Soldier feedback validated that the XM25 provides a unique combat advantage.

Furthermore, the FOA provided information that will inform decisions regarding tactics, training, basis of issue and system improvements prior to the weapon’s fielding. ATK will be supporting another Army XM25 FOA scheduled for 2013 with a 36-gun battalion set of new pre-production prototypes.

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rescue officer team commanders (CROTCs) and pararescue team leaders (PJTLs) within the 10th AFRC. The Black Diamond Advanced Technology MTS is a versatile, wearable multi-mission system that funnels control of mission-critical peripherals to a central display to eliminate battery and equipment redundancies and lighten load-out. As an off-the-shelf solution with a patent-pending cable-management cummerbund system, the MTS allows the ANG and AFRC to fulfill their requirements and field truly foot-mobile solutions.

Persistent’s Wave Relay Mobile Ad-Hoc Networking System, a wireless mesh technology currently used by the U.S. military, connected USCG Sector NY directly to Persistent’s offices, using the high-speed internet connection.

The multi-hop, 20 Mbps network stretched from Persistent’s offices to an apartment rooftop in Manhattan, across the Hudson River to a radio in New Jersey, and then to Staten Island.

More than $135,000 Raised for Special Operations Warrior Foundation K2 Solutions raised more than $135,000 for its 3rd Annual Special Operations Warrior Foundation (SOWF) Golf Tournament at the Country Club of North Carolina.

The SOWF charity provides scholarship grants to the children and families of special operations warfighters killed or injured in the line of military or training duty.

PEOPLE Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta announced that the first-ever Better Buying Power Efficiency Award goes to the Acquisition Rapid Response Medical Team for Tactical Combat Casualty Care and Casualty Evacuation at SOCOM. Panetta also announced the two David Packard Award winners are Project Manager Combat Ammunitions Systems (Army) and the DDG

K2 has hosted this 10 year old tournament for three consecutive years, resulting in the donation of more than $250,000, which translates to full college tuition for three children.

This annual tournament signifies one of the major charitable events conducted by K2 in support of its military and local community.

Compiled by KMI Media Group staff

51 Shipbuilding Program Office (Navy).

Battelle has hired retired Air Force Major General John Folkerts to lead its business with special operations forces. Folkerts will build upon, formalize and further develop Battelle’s business with SOF. His 34-year-military career included a tour as vice commander of the Air Force Special Operations Command.

SOTECH 10.9 | 3

Budget and technology shifts drive cockpit changes.

Budgetary cutbacks have hit every part Aviation, a diversified aircraft service proof the military. And the cockvider offering expertise in the pits of military aircraft are no areas of aircraft maintenance, different. modification and refurbishThat means the focus is ment, aircraft sales, aircraft on upgrading the aging airmanagement, flight services craft platforms of the Reagan and fixed-base operations. He and even Carter administrasees the same thing as Olson. tion, not investing boatloads “With the Army, whether it’s of money into new systems. special operations or utility With these retrofits come personnel carriers, they’re opportunities. For companies looking to upgrade the stanBob Olson like Greenville, S.C.-based dard configuration,” he said.

Stevens Aviation, Arlington- bob.olson@honeywell.com Stevens does major retroVa.,-based Elbit Systems of fits for special mission C-12s America, and Euless, Texasand utility C-12s, and Rigby based Aero Dynamix, there thinks these facelifts help a is work to secure. And even great deal. “They’re spending the big guys, like Morrisa couple million per aircraft, town, N.J.-based Honeywell but they’re giving them a new International, are seeing an lease on life,” he said. “These opportunity to put high-tech aircraft would be obsolete, systems in aging aircraft, as but because we develop retroare L-3 Aviation Products and fits, you can bring it up to the Esterline Control Systems. standard of a new aircraft.”

John Rigby “There are no new platElbit Systems of America forms being developed,” said jrigby@stevensaviation.com provides systems, software Bob Olson, manager of strateand total product life cycle gic marketing at Honeywell, support to many of the front which produces avionics sysline fighters, airlift, transport, tems like mission computers, helicopter and tilt-rotor airdisplays, navigation sensors craft used by the U.S. miliand radars for all types of tary. Elbit leaders see much aircraft. “Retrofits are the big of the same thing. opportunity right now. What D. Kelly Dameron, vice we’re seeing from the Army president airborne systems is that they’re trying to do at Elbit Systems, said the more with less. They’re takcompany’s first priority is to D. Kelly Dameron ing their existing equipprovide mission-relevant kelly.dameron@elbitsystems-us.com ment and adding upgrades cockpit avionics solutions to improve it. We’re not expecting to see big that enhance operational effectiveness. developments for new platforms.”

“Upgrading legacy platforms in the near future is needed both for sustainability of the various systems and for increased Keep Aging Aircraft Going overall platform operational performance,” he said. “Elbit leverages leading-edge John Rigby is executive director of technologies to provide large-format, highmarketing and program sales with Stevens 4 | SOTECH 10.9

By Leslie Shaver, SOTECH Correspondent resolution cockpit display systems, advanced helmet-mounted and heads-up displays, high-performance mission processing, HDquality data recording and storage, and advanced avionics architectures for our aging military aircraft that need to operate for an extended life cycle. Our approach is to work closely with our customers over the life of a program to address the total life cycle of a product or system, from design for performance and scalability, to maintenance and support, to technology refresh.”

Elbit produces the F-16 core avionics systems, F/A-18 primary flight displays, and the joint helmet-mounted cueing systems used on F-16, F/A-18 and F-15. It is developing an upgraded head-up display for the U.S. Air Force C-17. It supplies the cockpit displays and processing, digital moving map, and helmet-mounted displays for current MV-22 and CV-22 tilt rotor aircraft. The latter is used for SOF insertion and extraction. And the company is working with the V-22 OEM/NavAir team to develop and provide an integrated avionics processor and a color helmet-mounted display as part of ongoing upgrade efforts for the users of the V-22.

Elbit also provides the day/night helmetmounted display and tracker systems for the USMC AH-1W Cobra, UH-60 Black Hawks and CH-47 Chinooks. Dameron said the system provides pilots with increased situational awareness for day, night and decreased visual environment weather operations. It also provides the helmet-mounted display and tracker, along with the advanced mission processor for the newest U.S. Army Apaches.

All of these products keep legacy systems going. “Upgrades are envisioned to keep our legacy aircraft mission relevant for the increasing demands of today’s and future battlefields,” Dameron said. “This is partly around predictable control of the product’s and system’s life cycle (i.e., parts obsolescence, ease of modification and maintenance, etc.).” www.SOTECH-kmi.com

But these upgrades also have to increase performance to support future operational use and meet budget requirements. “We look at leveraging the newest, fastest, highest resolution, and scalable technologies and software architectures,” Dameron said.

“Both aspects must be achieved in a more affordable business model. These trends are not new but are more important than ever to provide highly capable systems that support the accuracy and speed needed in cockpits flying in today’s battlefields, while working to remain reliable and supportable for the various platform user communities.”

Wide Variety of Changes Stevens, which Rigby said is the first company to develop a glass cockpit for the C-12 with Rockwell Collins, expects to do 60 cockpit upgrades in the next two to three years.

The changes industry is making to these aircraft start with the basics, like putting in an all-glass cockpit. But that’s just the start. Companies like Stevens rewire everything, install auto pilot, upgrade the instruments, add a flight data recorder and put in a collision avoidance system that is intended to make auto pilot more reliable and modern.

Stevens also builds in some redundancies with navigation equipment, Rigby said.

“Pilots can go from one aircraft to another without more training,” he said. “There’s a major push from the Army to have cockpits be more uniform.”

The cockpit upgrades have other benefits.

Time on station is increased because maintenance is reduced. All navigation aids are on one multi-function display instead of forcing the crew to rely on a separate Garmin GPS system.

For Honeywell, a major focus has been adding the Sandblaster in its upgrades and any new offerings. The program, which it partnered with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, allows helicopters to operate in degraded visual environment (DVE). It basically allows the pilot to see things they otherwise wouldn’t.

“This Sandblaster program allows the pilot to see from a sensor what he’s actually on top of, like if there’s a truck or something in the way during a landing in a dusty operating environment in Afghanistan,” Olson said.

“We’re working on a capability to operate in these degraded visual environments. That’s one of the newest things that we’ve got going.” www.SOTECH-kmi.com

In this new era of warfare, Olson said a system to counter DVE is essential.

That’s another trend driving cockpit upgrades. “The face of warfare is changing,” he said. “It’s much more localized and focused on terrorists and those types of things. Helicopters are becoming much more important in warfare. We’re operating in austere environments. That’s causing us to move towards improved situational awareness through DVE.” Phoenix-based L-3 Aviation Products provides display systems, avionics systems, aviation recorders and electronic system services.

Steve Henden, senior communications manager for the company, said it “provides a wide range of products that support tactical and special mission rotary wing platforms, ranging from specialized high-resolution sensor displays to a digital form, fit, function replacement or standard cockpit instruments.”

L-3’s rotary systems are found in the AH-64 Apache, AH-6, the CH-46 and the CH-47. Those include a high-resolution, sunlight readable, night vision goggle (NVG)-compatible monochrome sensor display; an electronic engine indicator that converts legacy engine signals to digital in the display, negating the need for a data converter; and electronic flight instruments based on a standard product that is easily modified to satisfy specific platform requirements, according to Henden.

On the fixed wing side, L-3 developed the FA2100 cockpit voice recorder and the Flight Data Recorder to ensure compliance with the latest FAA, Transportation Safety Board of Canada, and International Airworthiness requirements for recording controller-pilot data link communication digital aircraft messages. “The FDR includes high-speed data rate throughput capability to maximize the number of aircraft flight parameters that can be recorded and the sampling rates for each parameter,” Henden said.

L-3 has also just introduced its new model GH-3900RSU Electronic Standby Instrument System with an ultra-thin display. The system features a 4.2-inch diagonal high-resolution display and a separate remote sensor unit.

“With a widescreen display that is only 1.5-inches deep, the display can be installed almost anywhere in the cockpit without panel clearance issues,” Henden said. “The separate remote sensor package also has the flexibility to be located almost anywhere in the aircraft, freeing up valuable real estate from behind the panel.”

SOTECH 10.9 | 5

L-3 has also implemented changes for the 7.1 TCAS upgrade, which says that aircraft heavier than 12,566 pounds or carrying more than 19 passengers flying TCAS II in European airspace are mandated to upgrade their software to Change 7.1 by December 2015. “Change 7.1 is a simple modification that provides important safety enhancements for operators, including: reversal logic, new aural alerting for adjusting vertical speed, and ‘level-off, leveloff’ resolution advisories to make it clearer that a reduction in vertical rate is required,” Henden concluded.

NVG Challenge Night vision goggles have helped pilots land in dangerous conditions for a long time, but they’ve also had long-term issues in the cockpit.

“Interior aircraft lighting not compatible with the spectral sensitivity of NVGs presents another concern,” said Mike Sedillo, master sergeant in the U.S. Air Force at the Air Force Research Laboratory in Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, in a paper called “Night Vision Goggle Cockpit Integration” written over a decade ago. “The prohibitive cost of aircraft modifications has resulted in the application of frequent ‘quick-fix’ solutions.”

Though Sedillo’s paper is 12 years old, many problems remain the same. NVGs are sensitive to infrared (IR) light, which reflects off the terrain from stars and the moon and is picked up by the NVGs. While cockpit lighting allows the pilot to see instruments and radios at night, it usually emits IR light as well because it is incandescent. Incandescent light emits more than 90 percent of its energy in the IR range, which NVG is sensitive to. In fact, NVGs, designed to pick small amounts of IR, are sensitive to even the dimmest lighting in the cockpit. The basic takeaway—the nighttime cockpit atmosphere isn’t conducive to effective NVG use without alterations.

“You have IR [infrared] coming off the cockpit lights, then you’re effectively blinding the goggles and preventing the pilot from being able to see outside the cockpit through the window, which is what they’re really trying to accomplish with the NVGs anyway,” Larry Snyder, who manages Aero Dynamix marketing and sales activities, said.

When the potential of pilots being blinded exists, the results could be calamitous. That’s why companies like Aero Dynamix specialize in complete and fully integrated Night Vision 6 | SOTECH 10.9

Imaging System (NVIS) lighting solutions for aircraft. These systems are designed to achieve a balanced cockpit that is optimized for nighttime and daylight readability performance. Aero Dynamix takes products from avionic original equipment manufacturers, like Honeywell, Garmin, Becker, Avidyne, Rockwell Collins and others and modifies those for NVG compatibility.

Aero Dynamix provides subminiature NVG-compatible filtered lamps that carefully fit in the instrument to be modified. It utilizes light balancing techniques to assure a well harmonized instrument panel and it modifies radio displays by adding IR absorption/contrast enhancement filters optimized for the type of display. It replaces control head backlit panels with NVG-compatible panels and bezels. It makes internal lighting modifications to flight instruments, communication and navigation systems and provides large scale back-lit panels that illuminate the entire instrument panel using NVIS white lighting to be able to discern colors.

Other companies offer less expensive solutions that strap onto the instrument or are glued on the top of the instrument and filter out the infrared light. Snyder argues that this also cuts down the visibility of the instrument itself. “You’re effectively cutting out 30 to 40 percent of the illumination of the instrument. The instrument may not be very readable with that loss of light.”

He said these solutions can also create glare, can leave the instrument damaged or scratched or lead to IR leakage. “All of those affect the safety of flight under NVG,” he said.

Companies like Boise, Idaho-based Aviation Specialties Unlimited and Bedford, Texas-based RebTech also compete in the evolving NVG space. RebTech provides complete cockpit/cabin night-vision-compatible lighting systems and equipment modification for new or “green” aircraft/helicopters.

The company can modify nav/comm control heads with Shadows color filters, which have night vision compatibility and satisfy sunlight readability requirements. To meet Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requirements, a new filter assembly is installed to replace the filter normally furnished by the OEM. Mark Cochran, vice president of business development and product management, for Everett, Wash.-based Esterline Control Systems, which makes human machine interfaces like displays and panels with integrated keys, said his firm is looking other solutions.

“We deal with NV goggles and NV imaging

systems,” he explained. “But we’ve been looking at some of the systems that would replace NV goggles.”

The iPad Effect While the desire for NVG upgrades has been around for a while, the advent of touchscreen devices over the last decade has driven another innovation in the cockpits of aircraft.

“The biggest trend that we’re starting to see not only for military aircraft or for the commercial world is the iPad effect,” Cochran said. “We’re starting to see a lot more displays with touchscreens on them.

It’s the biggest single thing that we’re starting to see.”

For instance, Cochran said, the F-35 Lightning II has a huge touchscreen display in front of the pilot. Generally, though, it’s a bigger trend in commercial aviation. That’s where the company has seen issues putting touchscreens to use in the cockpit.

“We’ve figured out that there are hardware considerations associated with how your finger slides across the touchscreen,” he said. “You don’t want it to skip while flying.”

Esterline has developed what Cochran said are some novel ways of dealing with that issue. For example, a display in the aircraft has to be durable and stand up to a certain amount of force.

“With many of the displays where we’re looking at putting touchscreens, we have a novel way of making them durable and getting the right force out of them,” Cochran continued. “When you slide your fingers across the surface, it feels slick but it’s not really slick.”

The coatings you see on your iPad or iPod also won’t fly in the cockpit. “With an iPad and iPhone, all you’ll see is the reflection,” Cochran cautioned. “That’s something you don’t want in an aircraft. You can’t afford to have those types of reflections.”

More NVG Markets Yes, NVGs have been around since World War II, but there’s more progress to be made.

For one thing, there are more customers using NVGs that need help in the cockpit.

But when Desert Storm happened in 1990, the public learned the value of NVGs and how much impact it had on the battlefield.

“Until then, the military was primary user,” Snyder said. “The public became aware www.SOTECH-kmi.com

of opportunity largely as result of the Gulf War. In the early ’90s, we saw civilian early adopters, primarily in law enforcement.”

Suddenly, Snyder saw air marshals, Customs and Border Patrol, the U.S. Park Police, and the Drug Enforcement Administration migrating to NVG in their aircraft.

“All of the government, paramilitary groups became interested,” Snyder said.

“Anyone who has got to fly into a dark spot at night can benefit from this technology.

They’re seeing this option across the board.”

And with that added adoption of NVG, there are more opportunities for Aero Dynamix and other firms that focus on upgrading NVG readability in cockpit systems. Add that to the continued retrofit upgrades, and aircraft cockpits appear to offer industry many opportunities in the coming years.

Contract Award A General Dynamics C4 Systems-led team received a contract from the U.S. Marine Corps to build up to four engineering development models and nine limited deployment

units of the processing and display/sensor data subsystem (PDS/SDS) for Increment 1, Phase 2 of the Common Aviation Command and Control System (CAC2S).

When built and fully operational, the General Dynamics system will deliver a realtime picture of events taking place at sea, in the air and on land during a mission, enabling faster, more informed decision making for Marine Corps commanders and their staffs. The contract has a total potential value of $61.4 million if all options are exercised.

“We have worked side-by-side with the Marines for many years and have a unique understanding of the complexity and intensity of their overall mission. By supporting swift and decisive movement from the sea, the air and on the ground, this next-generation command and control system is a key enabler of the Marine Corps’ amphibious capabilities,” said Chris Marzilli, president, General Dynamics C4 Systems.

The PDS/SDS is the aviation command and control enabler for three mission-critical air command and control organizations that

support Marines on the ground. The tactical air command center provides airspace management, the direct air support center controls air assault and other airborne operations and the tactical air operations center performs air surveillance and controls air-toair fighter and air defense.

The General Dynamics-designed subsystem will increase the mobility and agility of Marines operating on land, in the air and at sea. It is also smaller, lighter and more energy efficient compared to earlier stovepiped systems. The complete CAC2S is based on commercial off-the-shelf components that deliver manufacturing and operational efficiencies and reduce training and logistics support costs.

The General Dynamics-led team includes Fulton, Md.-based Raytheon Solipsys; Smartronix Inc., of Stafford, Va.; Ternion Corp., of Huntsville, Ala.; and Engility of San Diego. O For more information, contact SOTECH Editor Dave Ahearn at davea@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.sotech-kmi.com.

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SOTECH 10.9 | 7

SOF Gear

Wide array of assets helps special operators do better in battle.

If a civilian product fails to perform, it might be an annoyance or costly mistake. But with special operators, if something performs poorly or not at all, it can place a combatant’s life at risk. Fortunately, special ops

is one area where rapid innovation is providing ever-better gear to help give warriors the edge over the enemy.

We examine just some of the top-drawer tools of war available to the finest fighters on the planet.

Battery Charger The modular universal battery charger (MUBC), developed and manufactured by Thales Communications of Clarksburg, Md., is a scalable, tactical, multi-platform charging solution designed for warfighters, especially those in austere mission environments. It combines the functions and capabilities of multiple battery chargers into one small, scalable package and reduces overall weight, size, cost, complexity, repair, maintenance and logistics support.

The MUBC can simultaneously charge multiple battery types, including AN/PRC-148, AN/PRC-152, AN/PRC-154, BB-2590, Land Warrior and Nett Warrior LI-80 and LI-145, and conformal batteries BB-2525 and BB-2521.

The MUBC can be powered from multiple sources, including solar power. It has a built-in analyzer that allows the user to have “go-no go” mission testing for their batteries—the user presses the health button on the MUBC, and it flags (red LED) any battery that has less than 80 percent battery life. The MUBC is rugged and sealed, Tier 1 capable, charges in heavy rain without cover, and has a simple intuitive user interface.

A single MUBC can be carried to meet the charging needs of a squad, while multiple MUBCs can be connected together and

powered from a single source to meet the charging needs of a company/platoon. The MUBC can also be used for vehicle platform applications, making it a universal charging system for all applications.

The MUBC has been successfully demonstrated in operational scenarios by the U.S. Army in Network Integration Exercises and by the 75th Ranger Regiment in Afghanistan.

Lightweight Central Display Technological advancements have pushed computers and compatible technology into the frontlines, but often without addressing the stated goal of all military branches to reduce the amount of weight carried by warfighters. The wearable Modular Tactical System (MTS) from Black Diamond Advanced Technology, however, has succeeded in making warfighters lighter, faster and more lethal while reducing the weight carried.

The MTS is a wearable multi-mission system that funnels control of missioncritical peripherals to a central display to eliminate battery and equipment redundancies and lighten user load. An off-the-shelf solution that can integrate into any plate carrier, the MTS allows an operator to be truly foot mobile and switch in seconds from system operation to direct combat, even while wearing gloves.

Fielded as a complete wearable, vest-based system—which includes the tactical mission controller, universal tactical

8 | SOTECH 10.9

display, tactical I/O hub, patent-pending cable-management cummerbund system and GPS module—the ultrarugged MTS weighs just 5 pounds. Since the MTS operates on any battery the military has deployed and can also control multiple tactical radios, video downlink receivers, lasers and other equipment, the system can result in a net reduction in weight carried.

Primarily used by SOF personnel for a variety of missions including precision targeting, C4ISR, SA, EOD and UAS/UGV control, the MTS has been fielded in support of Operation Enduring Freedom since 2010. Often used for close-air support, the MTS increases lethality by improving the precision and speed of air strikes, which is particularly important for mobile targets. Other recent deployments include several units within the Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve Command, Marine Corps, and as a component of the Battlefield Air Operations Operator Control System for the Air Force.

www.SOTECH-kmi.com

Situational Awareness Marines on-the-move often outrun their communications capabilities, leaving the forward commander without real-time situational awareness.

The Marine Corps’ Networking-On-The-Move (NOTM) system is an advanced wireless mesh-network built around satellite communications, secure local area networks and a designated network operations center that is mounted into a vehicle.

NOTM helps commanders in forward positions with reliable and critical information via voice, video and data.

The flexible NOTM design enables front-line warfighters to send and receive secure and unsecure C2 information across rugged terrain and remote locations with over-the-horizon and beyond-line-of-sight capabilities. NOTM is the only mobile C2 system to date that has passed all tests and received its certifications for operational deployment in the field, the NOTM prime contractor, Pelatron, noted.

NOTM primarily uses COTS components that make the system cheaper to build and maintain. If a COTS component in NOTM fails, it is easier to swap out with working components and to continuously upgrade capabilities. COTS components also ensure high-reliability, ease of maintenance and ease of configuration.

To expand upon NOTM’s capabilities, NOTM will integrate full-motion video from UAVs and amphibious vehicles, further

providing forward commanders with information, thus replacing the function of traditional combat operations centers in the rear.

Pelatron is based in Honolulu. The firm is a defense contractor with strong capabilities in innovative design, systems engineering, IT network operations and maintenance and light manufacturing.

Pelatron is a Native Hawaiian Organization-owned 8(a) SDB.

Training System The UTM/Phoenix RBT Solutions non-lethal reality-based training system provides an innovative training approach for servicemembers. The training system consists of weapon conversion kits, non-lethal training ammunition (NLTA), magazines, training courses, training props, portable training facilities and personal protective gear.

The training system allows users to replicate the stress of military combat without real world consequences.

The system allows soldiers to respond and react utilizing their go-to-war weapons and equipment throughout the training cycle, beginning with the fundamentals of marksmanship and continuing through all tactical applications. The goal is to have soldiers train like they fight and fight like they train.

UTM conversion kits offer unprecedented fail-safe features that will not allow the firing of live, lethal ammunition. UTM provides several different NLTA options including the following rounds: Man Marker Round (MMR), Silent Blank Round, Battlefield Blank Round and Target Bullet Round.

www.SOTECH-kmi.com

Unlike other products on the market, UTM’s NLTA does not cause fouling or blockages in the barrel of the gun. The innovative 5.56 mm MMR training ammunition maintains an unprecedented shot group of four inches or less at 30 meters (375 feet per second) and the pistol MMR ammunition maintains a two inch or less shot group at 20 meters (335 fps).

UTM and its training division, Phoenix RBT Solutions, is currently the largest provider to the Army’s Close Combat Mission Capability Kit program, providing soldiers with reality-based training without life-threatening risk.

SOTECH 10.9 | 9

Power Packs

Tough Tires

Aegis Defense/ZenTreks have collaborated and engineered a new breed of power packs. With unique features such as ultra-durability and power production while encompassing all that a warfighter might need, it has been spotlighted numerous times for its abilities. What makes the pack unique is its exterior fabric and power production capabilities.

The exterior fabric is specially designed to be resilient in any and all conditions. Made with ceramic plating infused on ballistic fibers, the fabric is slash-resistant, abrasion-resistant, cut-resistant, water-resistant, fire-resistant (optional), and can be made to coordinate with any color or camouflage.

The manufacturer combined this durability with powerproducing capabilities through twin solar panels. These panels produce over 2 watts of power, are lightweight, flexible and durable enough to take five punctures from 9 mm rounds and still produce power.

This power is inputted into a battery/controller which redirects power through twin USB ports at 5V with charging velocity at 1 amp and 2 amp. This battery pack also has a DC output that charges devices at 5, 8.4, 9, and 12v for all other electronics.

To further the power capabilities, there is integrated a portable hydrogen fuel cell in partnership with Horizon. This fuel cell in essence generates power from the input of water.

The converter for the system separates the hydrogen and oxygen and condenses the hydrogen into a fuel stick while the oxygen is released. The hydrogen stick is then inputted into the fuel cell that converts the hydrogen gas into power that is equivalent to ~ 12 AA/AAA batteries per stick.

The combination of all these abilities will give its endusers the ability to go farther in the most challenging environments.

Polaris has recently begun low rate production on some new tire technology that can not only improve mobility for SOF, but can reduce logistics burden and improve payload capability in all-terrain vehicles as well.

Polaris’ new non-pneumatic tire technology utilizes a urethane web and tread band combination to create a tire that is not dependent on air to retain its shape, and is therefore nearly impervious to one of the most common failures faced by wheeled vehicles: the flat tire.

The tire assemblies are comprised of a modified wheel which is attached to an elastomeric web designed to absorb shock and bear the weight of the vehicle, and a tread band around the circumference of the web that also serves to help distribute weight and provide traction for the vehicle.

Currently, in order to ensure mobility, units are often faced with the difficulty of transporting spare tires while utilizing all-terrain vehicles for insertion or reconnaissance. This requirement uses up valuable space and payload on already crowded vehicles.

The new tires remove the need to transport the spare tire, as they are not susceptible to sidewall tears or tread punctures like standard pneumatic tires. Polaris has tested the durability in a number of different ways, to include ensuring they will perform up to specifications even following penetration by a .50 caliber projectile.

Currently the tires are sized to support Polaris allterrain vehicles such as the MV850 utilized by SOF, but Polaris is investigating the opportunity to expand the capability into larger vehicle platforms. This new technology will improve the mobility of the SOF soldier, and help to ensure tire punctures are not one of the risks to continuous operation and mission success.

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www.SOTECH-kmi.com

Better Boots Launching in spring 2013, Danner is introducing its lightest weight boot to date in the Tachyon.

Designed to be elective in both military and law enforcement training environments and high-speed operations, the Tachyon exemplifies a balance between lightweight construction and lasting performance.

A pair of the Tachyon boots weighs a combined 26 ounces, yet despite its lightweight construction, its durability is maintained. A fully rubberized Danner Tachyon outsole featuring pentagonal lugs combined with additional abrasion resistance in the toecap warrants superior surface contact and wear life.

Comms Kit Designed for maximum mobility and flexibility, the Quick, Deployable Mobile Communications Kit by General Dynamics C4 Systems provides a private, secure IP network to the special forces. The “grab and go” packaging allows for stealth deployment anywhere, anytime for live situational awareness even in the most unusual circumstances. You can set up the self-contained kit in an operations center, vehicle or a tent. Network connectivity is maintained through a selfforming, self-healing, wireless mesh network that requires no fixed infrastructure. Confidential and secure, special forces can communicate, share data and receive live streaming video to advance their mission with increased precision.

The Quick, Deployable Mobile Communications Kit works on-the-move. It can operate independently or as a mobile extension to a fixed network. The IP network is designed for maximum flexibility to handle a wide variety of devices and protocols to create a network of unified communication services (data, voice and video).

Key Benefits:

Synthetic ultralight upper material eliminates substantial weight and allows for quick dry time, while a speed lace fastening system and brass hardware ensure secure fit. The Tachyon is built with three layers of comfort: An open cell PU footbed generates airflow and an EVA midsole provides cushion underfoot, while an integrated EVA Strobel board creates a more flexible platform.

“As a team, we wanted to create a boot that offers the most optimal balance between weight, performance and comfort, and we executed very well with the Tachyon,” said Ryan Cade, law enforcement and military product line manager for Danner.

“When someone laces these boots up, they will feel the comfort story and when they put them to work, the outsole and overall construction will speak to the Danner name people have come to trust over the years.”

The Tachyon is available with 8 inch heights in black, tan and sage green styles and will be available in 2013 with an expected retail cost of $140. The company will have the tan version in shipment and the black and sage ready to ship in January. O

• Creates a private, secure network that you can take anywhere • Provides reliable service when fixed or commercial networks are either not available or degraded due to large crowds or natural disasters • Extends existing fixed infrastructure private networks to austere locations needing temporary, high-capacity static or mobile data services • Supports video sources (analog & IP) and IP-enabled enduser devices via wired and local area wireless connections • Runs on batteries, standard AC power or vehicle 12vDC accessory power • Optimized for video performance

www.SOTECH-kmi.com

SOTECH 10.9 | 11

Admiral Bill H. McRaven, SOCOM commander, accepts the American Patriot Award on behalf of all 66,000 special operators. [Photo courtesy of National Defense University Foundation]

SOCOM commander vows to meet high standards.

By Dave Ahearn, SOTECH Editor

Admiral Bill H. McRaven, the SOCOM commander, on November 15 accepted a distinguished award as he stood before a glittering gala audience, a black-tie soiree in an awe-inspiring setting in the Reagan Building atrium in Washington, D.C. But in a move typical of the man, he accepted the award not for himself, but on behalf of all 66,000 special operators in SOCOM and its component commands.

This was all the more remarkable given that McRaven himself is richly deserving of recognition. For example, he has expanded SOCOM, growing the force of special operators, while not rushing things. (One of the five SOF Truths is that special operations forces cannot be mass produced).

He also has provided the very best gear for special operations warriors, using an expedited, cut-the-red-tape acquisition system.

In turn, that often has led to the larger armed services gaining topdrawer equipment and assets after they have proven their worth in the hands of special ops personnel.

And a grateful nation can’t forget that McRaven led the crowning achievement of the war on terrorism, the raid that took down Osama bin Laden, mastermind of the massacre of thousands of innocent humans on September 11, an atrocity on American soil.

So it would be a tough challenge to find a warfighter more deserving of recognition than McRaven. But in his usual manner, he eschewed taking credit for himself. Rather, he accepted the American Patriot Award from the National Defense University Foundation (NDUF) not for himself, but for those he leads.

When he was applauded by the hundreds of attendees attired in tuxes and gowns, he turned that applause toward special operators,

12 | SOTECH 10.9

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asking them to stand. Citing the special operators in the room, and the thousands of others performing around the world, McRaven told the audience and the NDUF, “Thank you again for recognizing these great Americans.”

It was a rare moment for them, since special operators perform missions in the dead of night, preferring darkness and silence to the spotlight of publicity.

McRaven hailed “the 66,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines” who make up the U.S. special operations capability.

The SOCOM commander has repeatedly expressed concern for those he commands, pressing forward with a program to help ease the stress that special operators face in the form of frequent deployments, time away from families and more. The effort was begun by his predecessor in leading SOCOM, now-retired Admiral Eric T. Olson.

McRaven was introduced by retired Admiral Mike Mullen, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and, before that, chief of naval operations.

The SOCOM commander “cares immensely about his people and the families in the special operations world,” Mullen said. “He is the right individual for a community that is in transition.”

After the war in Iraq has ended, and U.S. troops are set to withdraw from Afghanistan, the heavy demand for special ops missions is expected to increase.

McRaven lauded those in other agencies, including the CIA, NSA and State Department. The CIA painstakingly assembled intelligence that identified a courier for bin Laden, eventually leading to knowledge of the al-Qaida kingpin’s hiding place in Pakistan.

Before commenting on McRaven, Mullen had some strong advice for special operators: be quiet. “There have been too many people talking” about special ops missions, Mullen said. He added that his comments were directed at both active and retired spec ops personnel. The former CNO decried the airing of secrets, saying there are “too many movies, too many books” about what should be secret operations and tactics of the special ops community.

Then Mullen turned to the business at hand, pointing to McRaven for his leadership of the bin Laden raid, saying, “You have made our country so proud.” Mullen hailed McRaven as representing a new generation of military leadership for the United States, saying the SOCOM commander “represents the best of what comes after me and my colleagues.” The older generation has “full confidence in those who currently lead,” Mullen asserted.

The former JCS chairman turned to another critical issue facing the military: The future fortunes of those who are leaving military service. Under one plan, more than 100,000 people in uniform will return to civilian life, as services see a reduction in their end strength. And many service personnel find great difficulty in finding jobs, with some of them winding up homeless.

Mullen spoke directly to the many military contractors in the audience, saying, “I would ask you to do one thing as a business leader, and that is hire a lot of veterans.”

He spoke as Alcoa, Boeing, GE, Lockheed Martin and others are forming a movement to hire at least 15,000 veterans initially, matching military expertise with civilian job skill requirements and providing retraining for vets. Ultimately, tens of thousands of vets may be hired, and Mullen asked contractors—as they make their pledges to hire them—to be “very aggressive with your numbers.”

He asked company leaders to bear in mind that among vets, “50 percent of them are married.” www.SOTECH-kmi.com

Companies should provide veterans with “a short to medium transition period” to becoming fully trained and well paid, Mullen advised. This need not be a totally altruistic exercise, Mullen continued, saying that veterans “are a good bet for a better bottom line.”

McRaven marveled at the immense number of medals awarded to special operators, while also extolling non-SOF combatants.

His comments came just hours after at least two servicemen riding on a float in a parade died while pushing their wives to safety, just before a train plowed into the float in an accident at a railroad crossing in Midland, Texas.

Army Sergeant Major Lawrence Boivin, 47, and former Army Sergeant Joshua Michael, 34, who was twice awarded a Purple Heart, saved their wives by pushing them out of the way of danger, even though that meant the men were hit by the train. Also killed were Army Sergeant Major Gary Stouffer, 37, and Army Sergeant Major William Lubbers, 43.

In an era when controversies recently have struck many in the military, the SOCOM commander closed his remarks with a vow: “We know that the American people have an expectation we must uphold,” McRaven said. “We will not let them down.” O

For more information, contact SOTECH Editor Dave Ahearn at davea@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.sotech-kmi.com.

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SOTECH 10.9 | 13

BLACK WATCH

What’s Hot in Special Operations Gear

L-3 GCS Selected as VSAT Terminal Partner for Inmarsat’s Global Xpress Service

XG-25P Portable Radio Unveiled that Offers Bluetooth Connectivity

L-3 GCS announced that it has been signed by Inmarsat as an initial launch partner for land satellite terminals for Inmarsat’s forthcoming Global Xpress service.

L-3 GCS brings the field-tested credibility that Global Xpress customers require when upgrading to Ka-band speed and coverage. By coupling L-3 GCS Panther- and Hawkeye-certified terminals with Inmarsat’s global managed services, customers will realize the value and flexibility

Form: Portable radio for interoperable communications Weight: Less than 15 ounces Capability: Supports Project 25 (P25) Phase 1 and Phase 2 Rugged: Meets MIL-STD-810G design Features: Bluetooth connectivity and AES encryption

of combining national MILSATCOM with on-demand commercial services under any operational scenario.

“We are particularly honored to have been selected as a VSAT terminal partner for Global Xpress. Our valued customers will now have access to not only the highest-quality, innovative, WGS-capable VSAT terminals, but also to on-demand commercial services with the superior speed and coverage of GlobalXpress,” said Bob Jacobson, president of L-3 GCS. Scheduled for service introduction in 2014, Global Xpress will offer an unprecedented combination of high data rates, bandwidth and global coverage.

Inmarsat’s new satellite network aligns with the trend by governments worldwide to shift operations to Ka-band and will provide super-fast uplink and downlink data rates.

Global Xpress is the only global Ka-band system of its kind and will enhance L-3 GCS’ line of highly transportable, rugged and reliable terminals on a variety of applications and missions.

“Inmarsat is pleased to include L-3 GCS as a supplier of Global Xpress-qualified terminals. Government customers have come to rely on Panther and Hawkeye equipment for some of their most critical missions. They will be especially pleased that the outstanding performance and reliability they have come to expect in the field from L-3 GCS terminals will soon support global high-rate secure operations across our Global Xpress network,” said Peter Hadinger, vice president of government market development, Inmarsat Global Xpress.

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Harris Corp.

Mission-critical radio users now have a feature-rich yet economical portable radio for P25 Phase 1 and Phase 2 operation, according to Harris Corp.

The latest XG-25P portable radio delivers mission-critical feature set

and interoperable communications for users operating on 700 and 800 MHz frequencies. The Harris XG-25P portable radio’s software-defined architecture allows for operation in multiple modes, including P25 Phase 1, P25 Phase 2, EDACS and OpenSky2.

Light Mount Works on Any Ferrous Surface First-Light USA

Attachment: Four 15-pound nickel neodymium disc magnets Placement: On any shape of ferrous surface Positioning: Rubberized to eliminate movement Flexibility: 180 degrees rotation—pivots while holstered Dimensions: 3.5 x 2 x 1.25 inches Weight: 2.8 ounces First-Light USA as introduced a new Tomahawk TRS magnetic mount. The mount is constructed of a high-strength flexible material, which permits a Tomahawk tactical light to be positioned on any ferrous surface regardless of its shape. The mount can easily attach the Tomahawk tactical flashlight to a military vehicle, car, truck, work vehicle or boat. Rubberized construction secures the mount and eliminates movement.

The clip features 180 degrees of rotation allowing the Tomahawk tactical flashlight to pivot while holstered. It is available in three colors: black, tan or foliage green, and is compatible with any Tomahawk tactical flashlight equipped with TRS. TRS dovetail sleeve and instructions for installation included. www.SOTECH-kmi.com

Compiled by KMI Media Group staff

Companies Team to Advance Camo Technology Milliken/SSZ Capability: Conceals against enemy IR imagers Parameters: Mid wave infrared range Comfort: Moisture permeability—breathable Milliken & Co. and SSZ Camouflage Technology AG of Switzerland announced an agreement making Milliken the exclusive licensee of SSZ’s multispectral camouflage technology in the United States. By significantly reducing the thermal signature on fabrics, SSZ infrared camouflage technology goes beyond the current visual and near-infrared range to provide concealment in the mid wave infrared range, reducing the risk of detection from thermal infrared imagers.

Milliken will incorporate the SSZ infrared camouflage technology into its performance fabrics to provide U.S military personnel with better concealment, adding yet another layer of protection to their uniforms.

Tested by the Swiss Army and others, fabrics with this camouflage technology maintain breathability and moisture vapor permeability, making them both comfortable and highly protective.

“Milliken and SSZ Camouflage Technology are transforming how the U.S. armed forces think about the performance of their uniforms,” said Sim Skinner, president, Milliken Performance Products.

“If the enemy can’t see you, they can’t target you.

With this new level of concealment technology, warfighters can dramatically reduce the risk of detection and continue to own the night.”

New Laser Comms System to be Produced in Massachusetts Schott/Space Photonics

FLIR

Data medium: Laser Reception: Beam pointing, acquisition and tracking Mounting: Building, vehicle or tower Schott North America and Space Photonics announced that they have entered into an exclusive licensing agreement for the commercialization of LaserFire free space optical communications systems for military and intelligence customers.

The covert communications technology enables uninterrupted, secure communications— building-to-building, vehicle-to-vehicle and towerto-tower—where high-capacity fiber optic cable has been damaged or is not available, particularly in RF-denied environments.

Many free space optical communication systems use a large beam to maintain their links in order to accommodate for small mounting structure shifts. The LaserFire system, however, incorporates a patented automated beam pointing, acquisition and tracking technique. This ensures a more robust network when optimal performance is critical, regardless of available bandwidth, distance, adverse weather conditions, or movement.

Further, since the terminal uses low-power infrared lasers, it is nearly impossible for adversaries to detect and intercept the beam while the system is operating, providing the ultimate intelligent gateway and enabler for covert operations, according to Schott.

www.SOTECH-kmi.com

Innovative Visual Systems Unveiled FLIR announced new systems to aid warfighters in three areas:

“This mission-critical communications technology was developed from our longstanding collaboration with the U.S. Department of Defense. LaserFire will dramatically improve communications in RF-constrained environments,” said Chuck Chalfant, president and CEO of Space Photonics Inc. “We chose Schott as our manufacturing partner because of the company’s unparalleled ability to industrialize and produce highly complex optics.”

“In the field, effective communication determines the fate of a mission. LaserFire will ensure the safety of troops by offering a precise, secure, and dependable means of transmitting information,” said retired Major General Scott Custer, USAF, president and CEO of Schott Defense.

• FLIR Quark featuring SSN (silent shutterless non-uniformity correction): Quark is already the smallest fullyintegrated, long-wave infrared camera available. Now the firm has added a new SSN feature that makes Quark even easier to integrate into unmanned vehicles, thermal sights and more.

• CLIP 600 – Compact Laser Illuminator/ Pointer: FLIR Systems’ CLIP-600 is a military qualified 830nm 600mw multifunction illuminator/pointer designed to, among other things, make it easier and faster to trigger ID patches, giving warfighters the ability to make quick decisions during difficult nighttime operations.

• FLIR Motion Control Systems Tracking SDK: Already a leading manufacturer of high-performance pan/tilts, FLIR MCS announced a new software development kit (SDK) that enables its pan/tilts to send and receive commands to Windows, Linux, Android and other platforms. This SDK offers low latencies and jitter in FLIR MCS pan/tilts used for video and antenna tracking applications.

SOTECH 10.9 | 15

Aerial Provider

Q& A

USASOAC Provides Vital Lift to SOF Missions Colonel (P) Clayton M. Hutmacher Commander U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command Colonel (P) Clayton M. Hutmacher assumed command of the U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command June 13, 2012.

Prior to this command he served as the assistant commanding general for Special Operations Forces Mobility, North Atlantic Treaty Organization Training Mission, Afghanistan/Combined Security Transition Command.

Hutmacher was born in Lake Stevens, Wash. He entered military service January 4, 1978, as a private in the U.S. Marine Corps. In May 1984, Hutmacher transferred to the Army after being accepted into the Warrant Officer Flight Training program. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant of aviation in October 1987.

Following graduation from Officer Candidate School and the Aviation Officer’s Basic Course, his first assignment was with 1st Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), as the headquarters and service company executive officer, and later as the MH-60 Direct Action Penetrator platoon leader, Delta Company.

He served three other tours with the 160th SOAR (A) to include executive officer of 1st Battalion, commander of 1st Battalion, and regiment commander.

Other assignments include the U.S. Air Force 55th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlburt Field, Fla., as squadron tactics officer, instructor pilot, and flight commander; troop commander and S3 of the Flight Concepts Division at Fort Eustis, Va.; and commander of 5th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment, Giebelstadt, Germany.

Hutmacher holds a Bachelor of Science in aerospace management from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, a Master of Arts in national security and strategic studies from the United States Naval Command and Staff College, and a Master of Science in strategic studies from the United States Army War College.

His military awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit with one Oak Leaf Cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross with one Oak Leaf Cluster, Bronze Star Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters, Defense Meritorious Service Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters, Meritorious Service Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters, Air Medal with Number 6, Army Commendation Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster, Air Force Achievement Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster, Army Good Conduct Medal, Marine Good Conduct Medal, Combat Action Badge, Master Army Aviator Badge, Pathfinder Badge, Parachutist Badge and Air Assault Badge.

Q: U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command is one of the newest special operations commands, performing a vital service of providing aerial support to special operations. What are your goals for building this command?

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A: I am committed to continuing the good work started under [Major General Kevin Mangum]’s tenure. My focus is for USASOAC to be value added to the entire Army special operations aviation [ARSOA] enterprise by reducing the span of control of the 160th SOAR commander and ensuring the larger ARSOA community is adequately manned, trained and equipped to accomplish their myriad of missions.

Q: How do you assess the MH-60 Black Hawk and its performance in theater, including insertion and extraction missions?

A: The MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter is among the most versatile and dependable aircraft in the special operations aviation inventory. It is a genuine multi-role helicopter, providing assault, close air support and resupply capability in a largely Army-common platform. The legacy fleets of MH-60K and MH-60L aircraft have performed admirably and reliably for their age and original design; however, their high-grossweight performance limitations have been reached in the altitudes and temperatures of the current fight. To further the Black Hawk’s performance in these regimes and to meet our customers’ needs, we are building and fielding the most powerful and advanced Black Hawk to date: the MH-60M. This aircraft builds on the successes of the Army’s UH-60M and adds more powerful engines as well as SOF-common avionics and self-protection suites. These are factory-new, zero time airframes with performance that will increase the Black Hawk’s reach and payload into the next decade. www.SOTECH-kmi.com

Q: What is your view of the performance of the MH-47 Chinook?

A: The performance of the MH-47G is truly exceptional. It will carry greater payload further, faster and more efficiently than any other helicopter in the Army’s rotary wing fleet. Impressively, although it is extremely complex, it has proven to be a rugged and resilient enabler of SOF operations in the most hostile aviation environments on earth. It is among the oldest basic platforms in the U.S. inventory and is still USSOCOM’s vertical lift workhorse. There are technological improvements on the horizon which will potentially enhance performance, enable longevity and add to the safety of the Chinook. These include the active parallel actuator [APA] and the advanced Chinook rotor blade [ACRB]. APA is a flight control improvement that leverages new technologies to apply engine power between the rotor systems dynamically rather than the current fixed ratio design. ACRB will utilize merging composite manufacturing technologies to employ airfoil design improvements that were not previously producible. These improvements will ensure that the MH-47 remains the platform of choice for the foreseeable future.

Q: There have been several helicopters shot down in theater, including a Chinook last year in which 30 personnel were lost. Is there any improvement in defensive systems that you would like to see on vertical lift aircraft?

A: Unfortunately, the most primitive weapons are among the most devastating and difficult-to-defeat threats on the battlefield.

Complex weapons which depend on active and passive targeting sensors can be countered effectively by manipulating their sensors.

Small arms and rocket propelled grenades [RPGs] have no such guidance systems to exploit. Survivability efforts against accurate, unguided projectiles must either focus on preventing an engagement or surviving the engagement. Regarding future aircraft defensive systems, preventing an engagement includes comprehensive signature reduction, aiming disruption, proliferation of network threat data and other efforts which would prevent an unguided projectile from being properly employed against an aircraft. Future material solutions to surviving an unguided projectile engagement include enhanced, fully-integrated lightweight ballistic protection of occupants and aircraft systems, and, in the case of RPGs, the ability to prematurely detonate, disable or disrupt the fusing system.

While many of these material solutions are approaching viability for ground vehicles, the space, weight and power limitations of an aircraft application have yet to be fully overcome.

Q: What is your assessment of the supply chain and maintenance operations efforts for special operations aviation assets in theater?

A: Being an effective supply chain management team is critical to supporting ARSOF in Afghanistan and throughout the world. This Herculean task is accomplished through substantial investment of resources and effort by dedicated professionals. ARSOA supply chain management continues to be defined by meeting warfighter requirements for critical items; effective and efficient inventory management, including spare parts and accurately predicting demand for spare parts; and a comprehensive, integrated strategy for addressing and resolving supply chain management problems.

Three focus areas for ARSOA have remained at the forefront of our www.SOTECH-kmi.com

sustainment success: requirements forecasting, asset visibility and materiel distribution.

The integration of condition-based maintenance [CBM] provides a safe aircraft and preserves limited funds as components are repaired or replaced based upon serviceability instead of solely on a traditional schedule based upon component hours. The continuous improvement of CBM methodologies will further streamline and reduce the maintenance and logistical footprint of ARSOA. CBM focuses maintenance in critical areas through real-time monitoring of aircraft systems, allowing early indication of pending failures, reducing rotor smoothing and vibration analysis and increases on wing time of dynamic aircraft components. The end result is reduced maintenance time and increased aircraft available to the ground force commander.

Q: Defense spending reductions of $487 billion over 10 years are being legislated. What cost-cutting moves have you already made in the command?

A: During Program Objective Memorandum [POM] 14, we suffered a decrement of $81 million in our investment programs. This reduction contributes to a steady decline in the percentage of investment funding over the POM years 10-18. By fiscal year 2018, the percentage of investment dollars compared to sustainment dropped from 52 percent in FY10 to $193 million in FY18. The significance of this decrement is a threat to our materiel programs such as Degraded Visual Environment, Next Generation FLIR and Common Infrared Counter Measures that provide a comparative advantage.

Q: There also is a possibility of another potential $500 billion of cuts over a decade that may begin starting in January. How would that affect your command?

A: A gross estimate of the ARSOF portion of a potential sequestration would amount to a decrement of about $55 million per year. A reduction of that magnitude would threaten termination of one or more major programs.

Q: How do you assess performance of the AH-6 Little Bird as a light attack aircraft?

A: There is not a more rapidly deployable, agile, flexible rotary wing attack platform on the battlefield. These features provide the ground commander unmatched ability to reduce operations risk through measured-in-inches precision for light assault and attack missions.

No other platform in the inventory can fill this unique role. The aircraft is nearly always the first to launch and the last to return, and enjoys a tremendous reputation with the men who fly it and the men who count on it to be overhead. In order to keep the Little Bird in the fight, we are pursuing engineering updates for safety and sustainability margins while making sure the intentionally austere avionics suite can provide the minimum essential situational awareness. These updates will provide the critical bridge to future Army common solutions.

Q: What are your efforts in future vertical lift?

A: We are embedded with the Army, which is the lead service within DoD in this joint program. We actively participate with USSOCOM in SOTECH  10.9 | 17

the requirements definition process; most recently, we collaborated with the respective service subject matter experts on the Future Vertical Lift [FVL] Initial Capabilities Document. USSOCOM also programmed funding for the FVL, beginning in FY14, at a cost of $1.3 million per year through FY18.

Q: What is your relationship with the conventional Combat Aviation Brigades?

A: Greatly improved. The fifth SOF truth is that most special operations require non-SOF assistance. When we began combat action over 10 years ago, there were no processes in place to address this fundamental relationship, and it suffered. But that is not the case today.

ARSOA and conventional aircrews are working together more than ever to provide world-class support to all special operations, and we are maturing the processes that integrate our efforts in all phases of the Army Force Generation cycle.

Q: What is your assessment of UASs and their utility to SOF units, and can you provide examples of missions where UASs provided the margin of success?

A: The unmanned aircraft system [UAS] has become a force multiplier and game changer across the battlefield for the ground force commander, and both conventional and SOF units. USASOAC will continue to monitor and assess capabilities or initiatives across DoD,

18 | SOTECH 10.9

other government agencies and partner nations to continue the maturation of personnel, platforms and processes for greater effectiveness in both ARSOA and UAS efforts. Collectively, ARSOA and the UAS community are providing a foundation of proven tactics, techniques and procedures, experienced UAS warfighters and improved materiel solutions to deploy, communicate, survive, deliver effects and remain responsive in real time to meet the supported commander’s changing tactical requirements. A recent example of a UAS SOF mission is found in the story of Staff Sergeant Robert James Miller, a 3rd Special Forces Group soldier who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for actions in Afghanistan. Staff Sergeant Miller used an RQ-11 Raven to confirm enemy position and helped save his team from ambush.

Q: Do you have any closing thoughts about the command and the men and women who work to make it a success?

A: The failure of Desert One in 1980 was a tragedy and national embarrassment. In response, the nation resourced and built the ARSOA enterprise to ensure that never happens again. In October 2001 after attacks on our own country, ARSOA carried Army SOF into the backyard of our nation’s enemies to accomplish something no other rotary wing aviation unit could do. We will continue progressing to maintain a comparative advantage over our enemies despite the challenge of operating in an era of diminishing resources. O

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special section: SOF medicine

Innovative medical equipment saves special operators’ lives.

By Henry Canday SOTECH Correspondent

Lifesaving care on the battlefield depends both on personal skills and available tools. The military trains medics and corpsmen on the skills, while private firms are mostly responsible for developing and bundling the tools that will make them more effective in the field.

Often, private firms play a major role in helping the military select and assemble the medical gear that will go with medics. For example, Tribalco is the prime integrator for the Special Operations Command (SOCOM) Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) Casualty Evacuation (CASEVAC) Set Program, explained David Spence, Tribalco program manager.

This program aims to reduce preventable battlefield deaths and minimize effects from injuries by providing medics with the right equipment at the right time.

“Tribalco’s role is to identify, acquire and assemble disparate bestof the-best medical products,” Spence said. The company does not

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manufacture items, rather, it acquires them and gets the best of the best into medics’ hands. “The prime integrator’s job is to streamline the process of kitting, allowing medical items to make it into the field much faster than they would if each individual item had to be contracted.”

The current set has over 500 individual items from more than 40 sub-vendors. As prime integrator, Tribalco holds biennial meetings where suggestions for additions and modifications are made.

Representatives of each SOCOM component are present, as well as a representative from the committee on TCCC. Suggestions for inclusion in the set are voted on by all the representatives. The completed set is called the Tribalco Integrated Casualty Solution (TICS).

Two TICS features stand out, according to Spence. First, special operations medical elements need organic self-rescue and transportation capabilities. To that end, TICS has an extraction module

SOTECH 10.9 | 19

special section: SOF medicine that includes extrication hardware such as a manual hydraulic cutter and spreader, battery powered Sawzall, grinder, and manual tools enabling access to patients trapped in armored vehicles or confined spaces. This extraction module also includes air-inflatable lift bags capable of lifting several tons each, as well as ropes and rigging equipment for patient hoists.

Second, TICS is self-contained, scalable and man-portable. All items come in seven storage cases A that can interlock when stacked on pallets. Internal padding can be rigged for air drops. Medical personnel take only those components required for any B given mission. Components are man-packable, as no individual component exceeds 55 pounds.

When a hard case is opened, equipment inside is packed into back-pack carriers that can be deployed immediately.

Spence said TICS has been successfully fielded to several units and used operationally.

C “But it is an ongoing project. Modifications are anticipated based on emerging technologies, changes in combat conditions and interaction with the committee for TCCC.” ADS Medical is the largest distributor of tactical medical products, according to Tactical Medical Specialist Brad Stewart. “We work with over 100 medical manufacturers and create custom solutions for our customers to support their missions,” he added.

“One unique solution ADS Medical D designed for our customers is the TBIT [Traumatic Brain Injury Triage] system, which combines an Infrascanner (brain hematoma detector) and a ballistic protected oxygen pack (combat critical care). It is a truly A. Combat Gauze can help to stop hemorrhaging when a tourniquet can’t be used. unique triage system,” Stewart explained.

B. The Mojo Dart is used as a decompression needle to treat casualties with tension pneumothorax (chest wounds).

The TBIT System has an InfraScan C. The Combat Application Tourniquet (C-A-T) is easily applied. detector, a handheld device that peers 3.5 D. The CRoC, or Combat Ready Clamp, applies pressure to awkward areas of the body where a tourniquet centimeters into the brain and looks for cannot be used to halt bleeding. brain hematoma with near-infrared light.

He emphasized that ADS Medical, whose specialists are recently It can thus spot the invisible brain injuries, for example from improretired medics and corpsmen, works closely with customers to create vised explosive devices (IEDs), of walking wounded. Oxygen can then solutions to advance the combat casualty care of the military. be administered immediately to save endangered brain tissue and the Some firms make very specific devices for battlefield care, such as soldier can be provided a Computerized Tomography (CAT) scan.

Combat Medical Systems. “Some of our products would be Combat Marines have field-tested the detector and Stewart has been demGauze, Mojo Dart, Sentinel Chest Trauma Kit, Combat Read Clamp onstrating the entire kit to Special Operations Command officers.

(CRoC) and Battle Wrap,” explained CMS Marketer Meghan Goslin.

ADS Medical has also created a state of the art hypothermia kit, Combat gauze is recommended by the Committee on TCCC the Hypothermia Active Re-warming Casevac System (HARCS). It as first-line treatment for life-threatening hemorrhage in wounds has a thermal blanket that can connect to a 2590 or 5590 battery and not amenable to tourniquet placement. Simplicity and an advanced provide continuous temperature delivery from 98.6 F to 105 F for up hemostatic agent are combined in Combat Gauze, and it is the first to seven hours. “It is the first blanket you can put in direct contact hemostatic gauze to stop arterial and venous bleeding rapidly, Goslin with the skin of an unconscious patient, eliminating the possibility of said. Combat Gauze can be used on any size or shape of wound and is burn,” Stewart said. easily inserted and removed.

HARCS also has an APLS stretcher, or absorbent patient litter Mojo Dart is a unique decompression needle that increases system, and a waterproof bag. The entire kit is jumpable and can suit successful management of casualties with symptoms of tension many scenarios, including diving, maritime and service on the back of pneumothorax. Its durable, easy-open case with flanges contains the HMMWVs in all environments. SOCOM staff is testing and evaluating sterile 14-gauge, 3.25-inch tension needle with catheter for chest it now. In the future, the kit will provide a rigid stretcher, a “game decompression. changer,” according to Stewart.

20 | SOTECH 10.9

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CMS’s Sentinel Chest Trauma Kit is a low-volume, low-cube, chest-wound kit for treatment of open and sucking chest wounds and tension pneumothorax. It contains a Mojo Dart, two Sentinel occlusive chest dressings to seal entrance and exit wounds using a dual-vent system and extreme-strength adhesive. Goslin said Sentinel fits nicely in individual first-aid kits.

Battle Wrap is a compression wrap that allows visualization of bleeding and provides pressure with no slipping. Flexible and extremely strong, Battle Wrap has unique adhesive properties that do not leave residue on skin.

CRoC is approved for use on the battlefield to control difficult hemorrhage in the inguinal area. Cleared by the FDA, CRoC is recommended by the CTCC and is currently used by select medics in Afghanistan.

“We are looking to obtain clearance from the FDA for CRoC to be used to control difficult bleeds in other parts of the body,” Goslin said. “We have a lot of data to that shows that CRoC is effective for these other areas.”

Seemingly simple, tourniquets are a critical part of wound care, whose quality is carefully examined because it is so important to safe and effective use. The U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research (USAISR) in 2004 studied seven tourniquets available on the market. The resulting “Laboratory Evaluation of Battlefield Tourniquets in Human Volunteers” found three of the seven, including the Combat Application Tourniquet (C-A-T) available from North American Rescue, to be 100 percent clinically effective in occluding blood flow.

The USAISR recommended the C-A-T as the field tourniquet of choice because it was less painful, easier to use, and smaller and lighter than the other field-suitable tourniquet. The Committee on TCCC and Army SOCOM reviewed the study, with the result that the C-A-T was recommended by the committee as the tourniquet of choice and Army SOCOM began issuing it as part of the Tactical Combat Casualty Transition Initiative.

In 2008, The Journal of Trauma Injury, Infection, and Critical Care released a study of casualty data on 232 battlefield casualties that arrived at a combat support hospital in Baghdad during a sevenmonth period in 2006. It concluded that morbidity risk with tourniquet use was low and that the risk-benefit ratio was positive. The majority of these patients received the C-A-T tourniquet. The study found the C-A-T to be the best pre-hospital tourniquet.

As the U.S. military’s primary tourniquet, the C-A-T continues to prove itself as the safest and most effective pre-hospital tourniquet, said Ricardo Flores, director of military products at North American Rescue and former senior medic, U.S. Army Rangers. Partly this is because the C-A-T strikes the ideal balance in applied pressure, high enough to be effective yet not so high as to endanger safety.

Uniquely, the C-A-T places a tightening strap within a sleeve, a “strap within a strap,” Flores said.

This more evenly distributes circumferential force around the limb, thus requiring less pressure to succeed.

Tourniquets save more lives on Ricardo Flores the battlefield than any other procerflores@narescue.com dure or device. The leading cause of preventable death on the battlefield is extremity hemorrhage, which www.SOTECH-kmi.com

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What does Celox™ Rapid offer?

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SOTECH 10.9 | 21

special section: SOF medicine is primarily treated with tourniquets. “The C-A-T clearly plays a role in reducing preventable battlefield death,” Flores said.

Philips Healthcare makes the HeartStart MRx monitor and defibrillator, the IntelliVue MP2 compact transport monitor and the HeartStart FR3 automated external defibrillator (AED), explained Marketing Manager Victoria Maude. She said Philips monitors and defibrillators offer best-in-class advantages to military care, can withstand harsh battlefield and transport conditions, Victoria Maude and meet military standards for victoria.maude@philips.com rotary and fixed wing transport.

The HeartStart MRx is portable, rugged and includes Philips’ SMART Biphasic therapy. It has excellent battery-powered operating time, fast time to shock, night-vision capability and a large color display. “It is designed to meet stringent test requirements, including explosive atmospheres, vibration, mechanical shock, extreme hot and cold storage limits and electro-magnetic compatibility,” Maude said.

The IntelliVue MP2 provides hospital-quality monitoring on the battlefield. It is light, flexible and durable and can withstand rain, shock, vibration, high humidity and temperature. The MP2 electronically records electrocardiogram, blood oxygen saturation, normal blood pressure and exhaled CO2 with industry-leading measurements. Weighing only 3.3 pounds, the MP2 has a hot-swappable battery and 3.5-inch touchscreen for battlefield use as well as a night-vision goggle display filter for nighttime flying.

The HeartStart FR3 AED makes life saving faster and easier. It is the smallest and, at 3.5 pounds, one of the lightest professional AEDs. The FR3 has a long-life battery, can be configured for operation in 12 different languages and performs over 90 daily, weekly and monthly self-tests with visual and audible alerts, including pad integrity to signal that it is ready when needed.

“Having worked with the military for over 20 years, Philips understands the unique care environment that military professionals face and leads the way with innovations in emergency care,” Maude stressed. Philips equipment captures data at point of injury and transports this data back to care facilities.

And no effective care can be given unless medical staff can see clearly what they are doing. Jameson’s PAXLight is a light-emitting diode (LED) field-hospital light that is available in both medical and dental models. LED technology is cool to the touch and does not project heat on the patient. In addition, it offers an exceptionally long life, noted Jameson Marketing Manager Cathey Hayes. PAXLight is designed for field conditions, is compact and resistant to both sand and splashes. An optional battery base operates the light in the event of a power outage.

Designed for easy transport and one-man setup, Jameson’s expeditionary shelter lights have been used by the U.S. Marine Corps, Army, Air Force and Navy. The product line includes LED protected against electromagnetic interference (EMI), as well as general purpose, fluorescent and energy-efficient LED lights. EMI-protected lights do not compromise peripheral electronics, communications equipment, computers or medical equipment, Hayes explained.

Jameson will be introducing direct-current-powered LED shelter lighting and a modular LED lighting system in the coming months.

22 | SOTECH 10.9

Physician Honored for Pinpointing Warriors’ Medical Problem The Sergeant Thomas Joseph Sullivan Center announced that its 2012 Award for Excellence in Post-Deployment Health Science is being awarded to Dr. Robert F. Miller, a lung specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

Miller is one of a group of lung specialists across the country dedicated to uncovering how airborne exposures in the Middle East theater may be causing chronic illnesses in post -9/11 veterans.

The story started several years ago. Servicemembers returning from theater were having trouble passing fitness tests at Fort Campbell, Ky. They passed normal lung function tests, yet were short of breath. In other contexts, unexplained health problems such as these have been interpreted as psychological in origin when physical explanations have not been found. In this case, military physicians collaborated with Miller, who performed surgical lung biopsies, an unconventional but in this case revealing move.

The lung biopsies made it clear that physical causes were at the root of the servicemember’s health problems. The procedure uncovered a rare condition called constrictive bronchiolitis, which is a narrowing of the tiniest and deepest lung airways. This debilitating disease, rarely if ever seen in young persons, has now been associated with dust and smoke inhalation in the Middle East theater.

These exposures have been associated by health advocates with other post-deployment illnesses, including cancers, that have led to tragic early deaths.

“The Sergeant Sullivan Center honors those physicians, like Dr. Miller, who look for physical causes for physical health problems, even when the search is difficult,” said Peter Sullivan, a founding board member of the center. “Our own son, Sergeant Tom Sullivan, was referred for psychological counseling when he was physically sick with unexplained health problems. What our son needed was a doctor like Dr. Miller, who looked for answers before giving up.”

An innovator in development and manufacture of expeditionary lighting solutions, Jameson’s expertise in energy-efficient lighting and electromagnetic emissions reduction has made the company a leading supplier to the advanced military medical community and to the emergency-service providers in the United States. O

For more information, contact SOTECH Editor Dave Ahearn at davea@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.sotech-kmi.com.

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More SOF lives are saved despite shortage of medical personnel during rapid op tempo.

The quality of medical care for special operators has improved from 20th-century levels thanks to improved research and training, even as SOF organizations face a shortage of medical personnel that is compounded by the strong demand for special ops missions worldwide, including missions in austere locations far from permanent medical facilities.

Those are some of the findings of senior SOF medical leaders, who participated in a Special Operations Technology roundtable.

At a time when stupendous defense spending cuts may total $1 trillion over the next 10 years, and when a drawdown of regular forces in theater means even greater demands on special forces, there

nonetheless is an unwavering resolve to maintain the highest quality of medical care for wounded, sick and injured special operators, a dedication that was voiced repeatedly by these medical leaders: • Army: Colonel Peter J. Benson, Command Surgeon, U.S. Army Special Operations Command • Navy: Captain Barbara Drobina, Force Medical Officer for Naval Special Warfare • Marine Corps: Captain Scott A. Cota, Surgeon, Marine Special Operations Regiment, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command

What are the leading SOF medical care challenges facing your organization, and how are you addressing them?

Colonel Benson: There are a number of medical challenges facing Army Special Operations Command as we move toward our future in the Defense Strategy. Foremost is maintaining the health and wellbeing of USASOC’s soldiers and families. In USASOC, the soldier is the weapons platform and is the command’s most valuable asset. A decade of combat operations has had its inevitable effects on USASOC’s soldiers. Preserving the mental and physical health and maximizing functional human potential is central to maintaining mission readiness. Ensuring the USASOC’s units are fully integrated www.SOTECH-kmi.com

into the Army’s medical systems and Army installations supporting programs is critical. Each soldier must be fit and healthy, and have the programs like USASOC’s Human Performance Program THOR3 to help them maximize their potential, mentally, physically and spiritually.

A healthy and grounded soldier, trained and equipped, is the foundation of mission success.

Second, producing the best-trained SOF medical providers with the most up-to-date tactical clinical skills for the battlefield is an enduring and challenging mission. Current operations have seen the SOTECH 10.9 | 23

special section: SOF medicine employment of the full range of SOF medical skills, from the treatment of penetrating torso injuries and complex blast trauma, to primary care and veterinary skills and public health and sanitation.

Keeping the JFK Special Warfare Center and School abreast of the most recent developments in clinical treatment, medical technology and devices, like ultrasound use and improved regional anesthesia, while at the same time inculcating lessons from recent operations, is vital to keeping USASOC’s medics at the cutting edge. Another major challenge is maintaining our capabilities while trying to catch up with medical manpower requirements.

Third, a critical challenge is working with the conventional force and SOCOM to ensure that future operations are appropriately medically supported. Future operations will likely be in smaller units, and geographically dispersed. The ability to deploy small, agile surgical units and to provide critical care casualty evacuation is not assured.

Finally, in the last decade, expansion of USASOC and its missions, especially in the JFK Special Warfare Center and School, has not been matched with sufficient medical staff. USASOC has seen a great expansion in its forces, which has been appropriately weighted to the combat operational force. Additional personnel at the Special Warfare Center and in some of USASOCs’ units supporting echelons will help sustain current medical supporting capabilities into the future.

To provide a more sufficient medical capability to the special operations force generation capacity, perhaps 150 medical personnel are needed across USASOC’s various commands and elements.

Captain Drobina: Naval Special Warfare’s (NSW) challenges are similar to that of the other SOCOM components—a high operational tempo that demands its own dedicated medical assets while meeting our garrison medical requirements. However, presently our main challenges are to maintain the training and qualifications of all of our health care providers and the development and enhancement of our combat SEAL medics.

To meet the training challenges, we are actively using the cornerstone medical training of advanced tactical provider [ATP] and ATP refresher. But we are also exploring alternatives such as our own military treatment facilities [MTFs] and emergency departments and clinics, as well as our own operational clinics. We are also reaching out to our reservists who can offer civilian training with a military understanding.

Our other major challenge is the development and enhancement of the Naval Special Warfare SEAL medic. Our combat medics are primarily selected on a volunteer basis. Still, being a health care provider is not the primary vision of the SEAL medic who just achieved the dream of becoming a Navy SEAL. But the combat medic is the cornerstone of our combat care. We are faced with the dilemma of maintaining motivated medics while allowing them to still be a SEAL operator. We achieve this by providing additional medical coverage when available—assisting the medics in obtaining purposeful,

beneficial training opportunities both inside and outside of the military. Once again, we are looking toward our MTFs to provide training opportunities in both emergent and non-emergent medical care.

With close, developing relationships with Navy medicine via the MTFs, Naval Special Warfare will meet the demands of our challenges. We will be able to produce a SEAL combat medic that is competent in battlefield medicine and combat care.

Captain Cota: As the newcomer to Special Operations Command, MARSOC medical assets are in a rapid growth phase during this time of sustained high operational tempo. These two factors have combined to stress our medical department and personnel. It is this issue that presents both a challenge and an opportunity to develop innovative ways to mitigate resourcing and deployment to dwell [time] issues. This requires appropriately resourcing missions with the properly trained medical support and providing quality medical care in garrison.

Our U.S. Navy hospital corpsmen are organic members of the Marine special operations team, providing tactical medical care in the deployed setting. These highly trained Fleet Marine Forces Reconnaissance Independent Duty Corpsmen [HM 8403] must complete a rigorous training program. Navy Field Medical Technicians [HM 8404] must complete Basic Reconnaissance School, U.S. Army Basic Airborne School, Marine Combatant Dive School, Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman Course, U.S. Army Special Operations Combatant Medic Course, or SOCM, and the Special Operations Independent Duty Corpsman [SOIDC] course. It requires more than two years of training in order to field a highly capable SOIDC who is comparable to the Army’s special forces medical sergeant [18 Delta].

Upon graduation of the latter two courses, the member must then pass the advanced tactical paramedic examination.

MARSOC SOIDCs require parallel growth increases consistent with the growth of MARSOC at both the operational and tactical levels. The true challenge is to mitigate the timeline necessary to get SOIDCs trained, proficient and fully qualified before deploying, coupled with the Navy’s SOIDC manpower shortage.

MARSOC has prioritized this issue and it is being mitigated by several bridging solutions. MARSOC has secured more seats at Basic Reconnaissance School, SOCM and the SOIDC course. This increased throughput will enable us to meet our future requirements.

Academic and physical training prep courses have been developed in order to decrease attrition rates at Basic Reconnaissance School and the SOCM course.

MARSOC’s most critical asset is its people. Providing our combat medics with quality medical training and equipment is paramount.

Our critical skills operators and special operations capability specialists are multi-dimensional warriors deserving of the highest quality medical care available. Providing them with the highest quality medical care ensures the continued success of MARSOC.

What SOF medical research is ongoing in your organization?

Captain Drobina: Medical research supported by NSW is focused to improve the operational capability and performance of 24 | SOTECH 10.9

the operators and their unique missions. Currently we are working with Navy researchers at the Naval Health Research Center to www.SOTECH-kmi.com

identify unique neurocognitive factors and profile of the elite performers. Not all operators are the same, and understanding what factors make up the best of the best may lead to enhanced training and performance in the future. We are also working with the University of Pittsburgh to determine the human performance characteristics of our operators, and comparing that to elite athletes. The purpose is to determine if these characteristic differences are an advantage or disadvantage in the environment and mission we operate in. These characteristics are also being evaluated against the type of musculoskeletal injuries sustained to determine if they are related and can be modified.

Another research project supported by SOCOM is the development of an underwater physiological monitoring system to initially be used in the training environment. Surface physiological monitoring of swimmers by trainers may allow trainers to identify those characteristics of successful performers in the water versus those struggling, and allow for improved teaching strategies to maximize everyone’s overall performance. Additionally, SOCOM is supporting a study to evaluate the injury profile of special boat operators due to their unique physiological stressors.

The goal is to determine the optimal human performance profile to mitigate injury. We are always looking for the right tools to optimize and sustain the physical and mental performance of every operator.

Captain Cota: Again, because we are new to SOF and new in developing our support systems, we currently have no medical research projects underway. However, in lieu of existing medical research projects, MARSOC is positioning to network with DoD and academic institutions. Through planned organizational growth and development, MARSOC medical will eventually evolve to appropriate staffing levels and a level of sophistication necessary to conduct our own research and development programs. Near future opportunities that exist include partnerships with Navy Medicine and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency [DARPA]. We will further seek opportunities to enhance our medical capabilities to maintain the

health and welfare of MARSOC warriors and their families through technological advances.

Colonel Benson: One of the most important initiatives in USASOC has been a treatment protocol for the fielding of freeze dried plasma [FDP] to specific units within USASOC. Historical experience with severe combat trauma has documented the lethal combat trauma effects of coagulopathy [an impaired ability of blood to form clots], acidosis [increased acidity of the blood], and hypothermia [too-low body temperature]. Recent research has revealed that many of our historical strategies regarding treatment have not only been ineffective, but may have been harmful. Currently, the practice of hypotensive resuscitation—controlling hemorrhage while minimizing fluid use—avoids crystalloids which might dilute blood clotting factors. Anti-fibrinolytic medications stabilize formed clots but have no effect on coagulopathy from consumption of clotting factors or hemorrhagic loss. The limited- or non-availability of fresh whole blood, or blood products such as fresh frozen plasma to the SOF medic in the field made an alternative critical.

FDP is a shelf-stable, purified product made from the pooled human donor plasma. The great advantages of FDP are that it is very easy to mix and administer in the field, and provides repletion of normal clotting proteins in normal ratios, as well as providing circulating volume. This is a tremendous step forward in providing the SOF medic with a means to treat traumatic coagulopathy in the field. When combined with the administration of the antifibrinolytic medication tranexamic acid, or TXA—which prevents the breakdown of established blood clots—FDP may be ideal for the resuscitation of severe traumatic casualties outside rapidly available blood products or a future blood substitute. USASOC has an FDA-approved investigational new drug treatment protocol for limited fielding of a French Military Health Services-produced FDP until an FDA-approved-U.S.-produced FDP is available. This initiative holds tremendous promise in changing the paradigm for traumatic hemorrhagic coagulopathy and volume loss in the combat setting.

Tactical combat casualty care [TCCC] has been a game changer that grew out of this past decade of conflict in Afghanistan and Iraq. Can you tell us what other protocols/systems will be fielded, and as well, how will you preserve the lower death rates among casualties, given the reduction in available assets going forward?

Captain Cota: SOF Truth: Competent special operations forces cannot be created after emergencies occur.

MARSOC medical will adapt to the changing environment and must continue to build strong relationships within the Department of the Navy and with our sister services’ SOF medical capability to maintain the stellar track record of combat lifesaving care in the field. The requirement to clearly understand the effect/timing that unit movement will have on the medical capability and medical care continuum is vital in the area of operations. The MARSOC medical section stresses the need to develop tactical medical support relationships in the field down to the lowest levels. There is also a high level of emphasis placed on staying ahead of the change, so that we can adapt our limited resources to maintain a high level of care.

Because we do not have a large footprint, our top priority is to ensure that MARSOC medical continues to train TCCC across the www.SOTECH-kmi.com

spectrum of our deploying forces, looking for innovative solutions to expand that base care under evolving operational requirements, and constantly seeking to exploit elevation of care opportunities in the field. MARSOC medical understands that this requires outside-thebox thinking, capability optimization and full spectrum networking.

Our medical system has adopted this culture of care. Through a highly selective interview process, we train to the highest level, equip to the highest technology, and man with the right mix of specialties to ensure providers in the organization can multitask to the highest level. We recently adapted the SOCOM TCCC casevac kit for isolated environments and are looking to build some internal structure to support training for en-route and emergency lifesaving care. The key for MARSOC medical to preserve lower mortality rates lies in our risk mitigation planning, resource allocation and optimization of training.

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special section: SOF medicine MARSOC’s Marines and sailors leverage their services’ ethos as agile expeditionary warfighters to provide SOCOM with an enhanced capability to conduct full spectrum special operations worldwide. Our teams must be scalable and capable of executing independent operations with unprecedented speed and versatility in austere conditions against a wide range of adversaries. Our ability to screen, assess, select and train our people to operate forward of the front lines—from the tactical to strategic levels simultaneously— while continually and holistically evaluating problems and challenges, comprehending the situation, and making critical decisions in a timely and effective manner, is the hallmark of our organization. We are committed to developing medical personnel who have the ability to operate effectively and thrive in complex, uncertain and asymmetric environments.

Colonel Benson: The advent of and widespread training in the concept of tactical combat casualty care as a unit or organizational response to a casualty event has made a seminal difference in casualty survival on the battlefield. TCCC is continually refined and updated for effectiveness and trainability. Clinical aspects, such as the most appropriate technique for definitive airway management by a SOF medic, receive ongoing evaluation. TCCC in its current state is fairly mature, but it requires ongoing re-validation for effectiveness and trainability, based on combat experience and outcome data. The feature in our treatment system that bears discussion is the ability to

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support a more responsive and proximate damage-control surgical resuscitative capability.

Operations in Afghanistan and Iraq were generally well supported by rapid evacuation to a surgically capable asset. TCCC has enabled thousands of lives to be saved, casualties that were then evacuated to higher levels of care. But after operations in Afghanistan and outside its mature HSS architecture, it is unlikely that SOF will be supported with such a robust structure. TCCC must be integrated with properly positioned, and available surgical support to replicate the lower KIA [killed in action] and DOW [died of wounds while in a treatment facility] rates as currently seen. This will require medical units or capabilities organic to or in direct support of SOF operations that are able to supply a high level of critical care casualty evacuation, either by fixed or rotary wing, as well as light, small footprint, surgical assets. These units or elements must be specifically trained and equipped to support the range of SOF operations in a decentralized, dispersed and often unsupported operational setting.

As the Army downsizes, SOF operations will continue and grow. The goal in the future is to ensure that the tremendous level of integrated medical support seen in current operations can made available in a SOF-capable element.

Captain Drobina: Tactical combat causality care techniques and equipment continue to dominate medical care on the battlefield.

Recently, each SEAL team received TCCC casevac sets. The sets facilitate the rescue, recovery and evacuation of trauma causalities.

The sets also allow for the stabilization of casualties in the case of delayed patient transportation. The sets allow for involved medical care in remote and austere settings. The use of these sets is directed towards the special operations forces medics who are certified as advanced tactical practitioners. These medics must also attend additional training specific to all of the casevac set components before the sets are issued to the teams. Other medical providers involved with the SEAL team [physicians, physician assistants and independent duty corpsmen] may also attend the training to become familiar with the sets.

The casevac sets are composed of extraction equipment and high angle rescue equipment; advanced monitoring equipment to include external defibrillation and cardiac monitoring; advanced airway capabilities; and equipment to store, transport, warm and transfer blood.

These sets are designed to provide advanced medical care for two critically injured or ill patients for up to 24 hours. Treatment capabilities include the management of life-threatening hemorrhage, shock, burns and pain management.

Each component of the casevac sets can function independently or they can be used in conjunction with one another. The combat mission determines what components of the sets are taken forward.

These casevac sets will bridge the medevac/casevac gap when theater and environmental conditions do not permit a rapid evacuation. These sets will be a great asset in the reduction of morbidity and mortality in the operational theater. O

Visit www.soldiertechnologyus.com Today or Call +1 (888) 482.6012 For more information, contact SOTECH Editor Dave Ahearn at davea@kmimediagroup.com or search our online archives for related stories at www.sotech-kmi.com.

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SOTECH RESOURCE CENTER Advertisers Index ADS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 www.adsinc.com/medical Ceradyne. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 www.ceradyne.com/products/defense.aspx CSSS.Net. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 www.csss.net Persistent Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 www.persistentsystems.com

Revision Military Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C4 www.revisionmilitary.com/batlskin Skedco. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 www.skedco.com Soldier Technology 2013 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 www.soldiertechnologyus.com TSSi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 www.tssi-ops.com

Calendar December 15-18, 2012 Special Operations Medical Association Conference Tampa, Fla. www.specopsmedassociation.org

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January 15-18, 2013 Shot Show Las Vegas, Nev. www.shotshow.org

January 28-30, 2013 NDIA SO/LIC Washington, D.C. www.ndia.org/meetings/3880/

January 28-31, 2013 Soldier Technology US Arlington, Va. www.soldiertechnologyusa.com

SOTECH  10.9 | 27

INDUSTRY INTERVIEW

Special Operations Technology

Pete Campbell Medical Sales Manager ADS Medical

Pete Campbell is the medical sales manager at ADS. Campbell graduated from Radford University in 1992 with a degree in sociology and later earned his master’s degree in human development from George Washington University. With over 10 years of medical sales, training and management experience at companies like Eli Lilly, GlaxoWelcome, GlaxoSmithKline, Depuy Orthopaedics, Campbell leads the ADS Medical team in providing state-of-theart equipment and solutions to the medical warfighters in an effort to help them prevent injury and save lives.

Q: Please tell us about ADS Medical and your organization’s relationship with the SOF community.

A: ADS Inc. has been providing timely and cost-effective solutions to our SOF community for over a decade. Our medical product line grew out of requests from our customers to help them procure medical equipment in theater and in garrison. Many of our first medical solutions were created for the SOF community, and they continue to be a major focus of our attention and efforts.

Q: How do you field requests from the SOF medical community?

A: ADS Medical is comprised of a team of dedicated professionals, many of whom are retired military medical personnel. Moreover, several of our team members were special forces medics and corpsmen. It is from that knowledge platform that we can identify current issues and offer unique 28 | SOTECH 10.9

solutions, whether that is a specific product or a custom kit to meet the demands of any mission.

Q: In the face of tightening budgets, how is ADS Medical helping to increase the SOF medic’s effectiveness, lighten his equipment load, and maintain his technological edge?

A: Our team is largely comprised of former operators, so cube and weight are always crucial factors that determine which products we promote and which solutions we believe will work in the austere environments our customers work in. In addition to products, we also provide multiple procurement solutions to our customers so that they can maximize their budgets while continuing to provide the level of care our warfighters deserve.

Q: What new technologies are coming that will change the way medicine is practiced at the tactical edge?

A: Many of the new technologies that we promote provide cost savings. One product is the CCMD kit with cardiac science. The CCMD kit provides cardiac diagnostic information to field units. Until now, this level of care was limited to robust medical treatment facilities and large deck Navy vessels due to the lack of portability of the ECG machine. The CCMD kit now provides in-the-field diagnostic information to rule out cardiac-related chest pain versus non-cardiac-related chest pain, saving lives and saving thousands of dollars by avoiding unnecessary medevacs.

Q: One of your most exciting products is Celox Rapid. Can you tell our readers what makes this product unique and why it should be a part of every SOF warrior’s kit?

A: SOF operators require a hemostatic agent that is faster to pack and a product that can achieve hemostasis reliably with a short to zero compression. They also need a product that has a trend to higher hemostasis and decreases secondary blood loss compared to other products. This is a product that also adheres to wet tissue significantly more than other products, and—once in place—a product that maintains hemostasis throughout transports without re-bleeding. SOF operators need a hemostatic agent that can stretch shrinking budgets. Compared to other products, Celox Rapid is a better-value product that outperforms other hemostatic agents.

Q: Anything else our SOF community should know about your organization?

A: We have three warrior expos scheduled for 2013, and we would like to extend an invitation to everyone in the SOF community.

They are strategically located in San Diego, San Antonio and Virginia Beach, Va., to reduce travel time for our customers. There will be a major focus on introducing new medical technologies, products, and training to our medical customers that attend. Please join us as our success depends on candid input and feedback from you.

Our ADS Medical team is honored every day to work with men and women that take care of our warfighters. We thank you for your service and your expertise. O www.SOTECH-kmi.com

D u a l L a n g u a g e A r a b ic - E n g l i s h Edi t i o n — M idd l e E a s t D i s t r i b u t i o n

Next Issue

February 2013 Volume 11, Issue 1

Cover and In-Depth Interview with:

Michael Sheehan Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict

Features ■■ Ground Mobility Vehicle Special operators need to move swiftly but safely wherever their mission dictates, and the GMV permits them to do that. We give you test drives in vehicles being proposed for this critical requirement.

■■ Battlefield Logistics Any organization with tens of thousands of people scattered across the globe must have a cutting-edge logistics system that knows what warriors need before they need it, ensuring that they are well equipped. This also involves keeping track of a galactic-scale number of items, ranging from gloves to weapons.

■■ Sensor Systems In an era where the nature of combat has changed and the enemy can appear from any direction at any time, sensor systems are crucial, warning of impending threats.

Examine advanced sensor systems and discover how they work.

■■ Joint Threat Warning Systems Special operations forces gain a guardian with the JTWS, which provides life-saving situational awareness with a four-part asset: One is body worn or team transportable, another is an air variant, yet another provides geo-location intelligence, and there is a maritime variant. It all adds up to a cocoon of safety.

Special Section: Special Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Exploitation A warrior who knows what the enemy is about to do can defeat that foe every time.

We examine ISR systems that permit special operators to learn the secrets of their opponents and exploit that knowledge to prevail on the battlefield.

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