Laser Demo Achieves First Light
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2nd Annual U.S. Army Space & Missile Defense Conference, Aug. 23-26, Huntsville, Ala. TheThe EagleEagle Volume 5, Number 7 Published in the interest of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command July 1999 Laser demo achieves first light WASHINGTON, D.C.In late June, the Tactical High Energy Laser, or THELs, advanced concept technology demonstration laser subsystem achieved Photo by LuAnne Fantasia first light at the TRW Capistrano Test Facility in California. Somewhere out on the edge of Texas and beyond, members of the TRW conducted a test to demonstrate the end-to- SMDC Battle Lab, Missile Defense and Technology Center, JLENS, Army Space end capability of the laser subsystem and demon- Command and 1st Satellite Control Battlion provided wide space and Theater Missile strate the laser optical control of extracting a high- Defense support during Roving Sands 99. Support ranged from systems currently energy laser beam. Subsequent laser subsystem fielded and ready to support current operations, to new concepts designed to support tests are planned before the laser subsystem is future warfighters. See inside pages 5-8 for a special section on the commands transported to White Sands Missile Range, N.M., for participation at Roving Sands 99. integration later this summer. The THEL demonstration was initiated after the White House announced in April 1996, that the United States and Israel would undertake a joint Army Family Action Plan effort to evaluate the effectiveness of a THEL to negate the threat posed by Katyusha rockets to populated areas in northern Israel. SMDC delegates represent families at Dr. Paul Kaminski, the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology, and Maj. Gen. Ilan Biran, director general of the Israeli Army Materiel Commands conference Ministry of Defense, signed a memorandum, formalizing the agreement, in July 1996. The Story & photos by LuAnne Fantasia Kathy Nelson said that participating in the Materiel agreement provides for development and functional Huntsville, Ala. Commands conference gave her, Flohr and Flowers testing of a THEL demonstrator, consisting of a excellent resources to bring back toSMDC. This pro- laser; pointer-tracker; and C3I, or command, control, You hear it all the time. The Army is family. Its true. gram truly does have the national levels interest. Ev- communications, and intelligence subsystems. A recent model of that kinship was when a civilian eryone is positive about the program and proactive. The U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense employee and two spouses from this command were Nelson is the wife of Lt. Col. Ron Nelson, commander Command is the executive agent of the joint THEL invited to participate as delegates for the Army Mate- at the High Energy Laser Systems Test Facility at White demonstration program for the Department of riel Commands Army Family Action Plan conference. Sands Missile Range, N.M. Defense. The Israeli Ministry of Defense has also When soldiers, family members and civilian employ- It was obvious that the leaders are supportive of designated a program office to oversee the joint ees throughout one of the Armys largest major com- finding a solution of all issues, she added. We all go development effort. TRW, Inc. was selected as the mands gathered to resolve identified problems and con- back to our communities and need to impress that some- primary civilian contractor to design, build, and cerns, Kathy Nelson, Gloria Flowers and Sue Flohr sat thing can and will be done, sooner or later. integrate the THEL demonstrator. at the table and participated as delegates. New benefits and privileges for civilian employees Using mature beam generation and beam pointing The Army family includes a lot of people, and this dont just happen, according to Gloria Flowers, the technologies to develop a THEL demonstrator, the program unites the entire family, Sue Flohr said. Flohr AFAP coordinator for Huntsville, who also attended program developers have driven an advanced is the wife of SMDCs deputy commanding general, the Army Materiel Commands conference as a delegate. concept technology demonstration, or ACTD, Brig. Gen. Steven Flohr. The AFAP is a 16-year-old, Many civilian employees are unaware that they program weapon system development from start to Armywide program, that affords soldiers, family mem- benefit from the Army Family Action Plan, too, Flow- hardware completion and achieving laser first light in bers and civilian employees the opportunity and a road ers said. She said the civilian leave transfer is a direct three years. map to effect significant changes. result of an issue presented through the program in the Under the current schedule the laser and pointer- Im excited about the power of this program, she past. She added that the question why cant military tracker subsystems will be transported to White said. I hope we can teach people in our command that service members do the same? is one currently being Sands Missile Range, N.M., to be integrated with with this program, issues are resolved. They can be worked in the Army Materiel Commands AFAP chan- the C3I subsystem later this summer. This ACTD resolved through local AFAP coordinators across the nels. has demonstrated the ability to cut through the command, or they can be resolved at command or Army Flowers said that although 98 percent of issues pre- traditional weapon developmental processes to levels. But, they will be resolved. sented through the program are resolved at the instal- provide a limited operational capability to the user in Flohr explained that currently there are [Armywide] lation or major command level, all issues get the ear of a very short period of time. AFAP issues being presented to Congress. There are decision-makers. issues with broad impact. There are some that are iso- (Press release from the Office of Secretary of lated and unique to the installation or command, and Defense.) there are many that we all have in common, she said. (See AFAP, page 9) July 1999 1 CommandingCommanding Generals Generals Comments Column Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensor, society which generally only and Missile Defense have contributed or JLENS, system for the first time respects bottom-line results. much to each success. For example, most transmitted information into the Joint Direct-hit kills are as bottom line as of the basic technology for PAC-3 and Tactical Information Distribution you can get. THAAD was developed at SMDC, and System, pulling data from surrogate • More importantly, for the first time the JLENS technology is managed by a radars into a prototype processor. It also the two intercepts enabled joint program office assigned to the com- operated for only the second time with developers to closely observe the mand. In addition, highly skilled SMDC a prototype processing station, a key end game. This is where the (matrix) personnel work in the PEO-AMD enabler in performing interoperability seeker acquires the target and after to support the accelerated advanced de- functions. Previously, the program took a series of incredibly difficult velopment of PAC-3 and THAAD. Fi- an important step on the road to funding technological steps, moves in for the nally, SMDC develops the HERA targets stability when the Pentagon designated kill. Analyzing end-game data is the used in the PAC-3 and THAAD tests. it as an Army Category II acquisition most critical factor in improving As much as we feel good about these program. these interceptors. recent successes, we know there is much I dont think I can overstate how im- • Most importantly, having these work to be done. There are more PAC-3 portant these successes are to actually concrete successes provides a and THAAD intercept tests scheduled fielding effective missile defenses. Here tremendous morale boost to the this summer, and JLENS will be attempt- are several reasons why: soldiers who man the Patriot and ing a Forward Pass next spring. In that Lt. Gen. John Costello • Much criticized hit-to-kill THAAD batteries. They have been experiment, it will attempt for the first time technology has now been waiting for too long to get the to use its radar to guide an air-directed Its a great time to be in the missile validated, despite the incredible weapons that will allow them to do surface-to-air missile to its target. Also, defense business. In the last several technological challenge of hitting what they have spent many years the National Missile Defense Ground months, weve witnessed several major a bullet with a bullet in scenarios training to do, that is defend their Based Interceptor will attempt its first successes in theater missile defense, or where the bullets are missile fellow warfighters and citizens intercept in the fall. This will be followed TMD. warheads hurtling towards each against missile attack. by several more attempts before a presi- • On March 15, during a seeker other at a combined speed of about Finally, JLENS achievements are the dential deployment decision next sum- characterization test, PAC-3, the Armys 4,000 meters a second. first tangible advances in cruise mer. • lower-tier TMD system, intercepted a Having successes in both the missile defense beyond the Obviously, we have many challenges Hera target. Then, on June 10, its upper- upper- and lower-tier program viewgraph stage of development. ahead of us. But now we also have some tier counterpart, THAAD, completely strengthens the case for the DoDs We in SMDC can feel an extra mea- real successes to motivate us to even destroyed another Hera target. Later that multi-tiered concept. sure of pride in these accomplishments greater achievements on the road to the • month, during the worlds largest air and Psychologically to everyone in the because the command, together with the ultimate goal fielding effective missile missile defense exerciseRoving Sands program, actual intercepts are Ballistic Missile Defense Organization defenses as soon as possible.