[Infowarrior] - Army's New Manual Emphasizes eWar

[Richard Forno]

http://www.military.com/news/article/armys-new-manual-emphasizes-ewar.html

February 26, 2009

Army's New Manual Emphasizes eWar

Associated Press

FORT LEAVENWORTH, Kan. - For the first time since the end of the Cold  
War, the Army is updating its plans for electronic warfare, calling  
for more use of high-powered microwaves, lasers and infrared beams to  
attack enemy targets and control angry crowds.

The new manual, produced at Fort Leavenworth and set for release  
today, also is aimed at protecting Soldiers against remote-controlled  
roadside bombs and other nontraditional warfare used by increasingly  
sophisticated insurgents.

"The war in Iraq began to make us understand that there are a lot of  
targets that we should be going after in the offensive or defensive  
mode to protect ourselves," said Col. Laurie Buckhout, chief of the  
Army's electronic warfare division in Washington, D.C.

The 112-page manual, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated  
Press before its release at the Association of the United States Army  
meeting in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., doesn't offer specifics on new  
equipment or gadgetry but lays out in broad terms the Army's fear that  
without new equipment and training, U.S. forces may be at a deadly  
disadvantage.

The Army has let its electronic warfare capabilities lapse since the  
early 1990s, when nascent insurgencies were less sophisticated and  
less deadly. Army patrols currently rely on specially trained Air  
Force and Navy members whose electronic expertise helps sniff out  
improvised explosive devices, which have killed more than 1,700 U.S.  
troops since the war began.

The new doctrine directs the Army, which has put a premium on fighting  
insurgents in Iraq's most populous cities, to use technology that can  
distinguish enemy threats from common technologies such as radios or  
cell phones used by civilians or friendly forces.

It also calls on the Army to develop and deploy directed-energy  
weapons, which would produce a concentrated beam of electromagnetic  
energy or atomic or subatomic particles to blind, disrupt or destroy  
targets. Such technology could be used in a variety of attack modes  
against enemy equipment, facilities or personnel.

Among the first tangible changes: The Army is in the process of  
training 1,500 Soldiers and officers in electronic warfare at Fort  
Sill, Okla., by September 2010, giving the military its largest  
electronic warfare cadre.

The cost to implement the doctrine is unclear. Army officials say  
funding for development and training will likely come from internal  
budget shifts, though they don't rule out asking Congress for money  
down the road.

Roadside bombs weren't seen as a top threat when U.S.-led forces  
invaded Iraq in 2003. But insurgents, resigned to losing head-on  
fights with American troops, increased their use of the devices and  
changed the dynamics of the war.

IEDs are assembled from a variety of explosives, such as plastics or  
mortar shells, then detonated with a radio signal. In many cases, an  
IED explodes beneath a vehicle when the bomb is literally called by an  
insurgent.

The ease with which IEDs are built has a sparked urgency for the  
Army's new effort. Also, developing the doctrine and training Soldiers  
positions the Army to adapt to changing technologies and streamline  
its approach by reducing reliance on other branches, officials say.

"We had this capability since we had radios but let it lapse," said  
Lt. Col. Fred Harper, capabilities manager for the Army's computer  
network and electronic warfare activities. "We didn't have (an enemy)  
that had the capabilities. That whole environment has changed."

Barry Watts, a senior fellow with the Center for Strategic and  
Budgetary Assessments in Washington, said the Army is smart to develop  
its own electronic warfare capabilities but questions how fast the  
service can get up to speed, "Especially when they have been out of it  
for a long time."