The Navy’s Program Executive Office for Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence (PEO C4I) will begin limited procurement and fielding of unclassified wireless networks onboard Navy surface ships starting this summer, according to the sea service.

Once accomplished, shipboard wireless networks will allow sailors greater mobility and enhance their ability to multi-task and conduct shipboard business more efficiently, the Navy said.

While wireless networks are common in the commercial arena, until now, bringing the capability to the Navy has proven problematic based on the cost, the processes involved to meet the Navy’s stringent security requirements, and the time it takes to develop, demonstrate and test a product within the minimum two-year acquisition cycle to rapidly deploy a capability, the Navy added.

The implementation of unclassified wireless networks capitalizes on commercial efforts and incorporates commercial best practices. The new capability will be delivered as part of ongoing installations to avoid the cost of installing network cables to the desktop. Introducing wireless networks at sea will allow sailors greater flexibility, enhanced mobility, and provide a foundation to allow new and innovative capabilities to be brought to the shipboard environment, the Navy said.

“The mission of the PEO is to provide our Navy and Marine Corps warfighters with the capabilities they need to fight and win,” Chris Miller, program executive officer for C4I, said.

“Incorporating wireless technology at sea will allow them greater access to those capabilities and enhance their overall mission effectiveness.”

The shipboard network environment aboard Navy surface ships will use Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 802.11 technology to provide Navy personnel with an unclassified wireless network interface.

The wireless infrastructure will provide an extension of the unclassified Integrated Shipboard Network System (ISNS). Multiple sailors will be able to share the capacity provided by a single wired network connection by using an unclassified wireless access point, into which the wired ISNS connection terminates. This eliminates the cost associated with providing wired network access to each sailor, the Navy said.

Though the network will be unclassified, information assurance will remain a top priority, the Navy noted. The system was designed to meet or exceed all Department of Defense security standards for unclassified wireless technology, including “Defense in Depth” best practices and a Federal Information Process Standards 140-2 Level 2 accredited encryption module. Authentication protocol will ensure the network is only accessible to valid wireless client devices and dual security layers will ensure that no unclassified wireless data can be captured and deciphered. In addition, a Wireless Intrusion Detection System will be included in the system design to identify invalid wireless activity and alert network administrators to the nature and location of the activity, the Navy said.

In a related effort, PEO C4I’s Tactical Networks Program Office successfully leveraged the wireless network technology and effort to develop the Wireless Reach Back System. The system provides a secure wireless link for the transmission of data supporting multiple mission sets. The system is currently employed by Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure teams to transmit biometric and intelligence data between vessels of interest and the on-scene commander during Expanded Maritime Intercept Operations, and to provide non-government officials internet connectivity during disaster and humanitarian relief efforts, the Navy added.