How Should the Fires Network for the Future Force BDE Level UA be Structured?

A network is a system of sensors, information processing and decision-making centers, and firing platforms connected by communications lines. The concept of Network-Centric Warfare originated to solve operational level problems at the joint level. Networking fires at the brigade level unit of action could theoretically add to the efficiency and effectiveness of lower level tactical fires by giving units at all levels direct access to all available fires in the area of operations. This monograph constitutes an exploratory study of and preliminary analysis of the effects of networking all available fires at the brigade level UA. By carefully constructing and developing three courses of action, this monograph analyzes the effectiveness of support provided under three different fires intensity levels - low, medium, and high - with respect to five measures of effectiveness: responsiveness, effectiveness, efficiency, complexity, and the human dimension. Using operations research and systems analysis techniques to combine the different measures of effectiveness and the effects of operating under situations requiring different levels of fires intensity, the results suggest that the most fertile area for further research and development of fires networks is in the region of composite network structures that can exploit the advantages of both the flat and hierarchical structures while still making improvements in other areas that the other two are weak.

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