The proliferation of highly capable electronics and advanced military weaponry could dull the edge U.S. ground forces have over their enemies in future ground conflict, but precision-guided small arms could sharpen the Army’s lethality, if not reverse that trend, a new think tank study finds.
A litany of procurement programs and government and private laboratory efforts are on the cusp of bringing precision weaponry to the individual soldier. Paul Scharre, senior fellow and director of the Future of Warfare Initiative at the Center for a New American Security, says in a study on ground forces the adoption of precision small arms is key to the success of ground forces in future wars.
Weapons like the already-fielded Switchblade hand-launched kamikaze drone exemplify the level of technological sophistication now available to individual troops, Scharre says. At less than 6 pounds, the tube-launched Switchblade can be carried on patrol and then launched to spy on enemy positions before turning into a laser-guided missile.
Army officials have their eye on firearm technologies that can make an expert marksman out of any untrained shooter. Projects are underway to develop and evaluate a bullet that can change trajectory mid-air and a rifle with an integrated fire-control system that compensates for human error.
The EXtreme ACcuracry Tasked Ordnance (EXACTO) program headed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency created a laser-guided .50 caliber round that can maneuver mid-flight to hit a laser-designated target. The munition has been successfully tested on a firing range.
Another precision firearm technology surfaced in the commercial world and quickly gained government attention. The TrackingPoint precision-guided firearm has an integrated electronic fire-control system that fires a round when the rifle is optimally aimed at a pre-determined target, regardless of when the shooter pulls the trigger. “The result is that an untrained shooter can hit within a half-inch of his or her aimpoint at 1,000 yards,” Scharre says.
Raytheon [RTN] has scaled down the basic technology of a guided missile into a projectile that can be fired from a standard 40mm grenade launcher. The new 17-inch, 1.7-pound Pike munition was successfully fired twice recently during flight tests at Mile High Resources, Texas. Both rounds landed within kill range of their targets after flying 2,300 yards, according to the company. The munition is accurate enough to be used against both fixed and slow-moving targets.
The Army also has been weighing the utility of a smart grenade launcher that can fire projectiles set to detonate at a certain distance, which allows targeting of enemy troops behind cover. The XM25 counter defilade target engagement system is a handheld grenade launcher with an integrated laser range finder that sets smart grenades to explode at a range beyond a barrier concealing an enemy, say inside a window or on the other side of a boulder.
While the Army and Marine Corps altered its tactics and adopted new equipment fairly swiftly in response to specific threats in Iraq and Afghanistan, ground forces will have to evolve and adopt such technologies more quickly in the future or risk both lives and mission success, Scharre writes.
“The rapid diffusion of information technology connects and empowers civilian populations, upending traditional relationships between people and authority,” the report says. “The U.S. military needs ground forces that can rapidly adapt to changing events on the ground, troops who understand the strategic ramifications of their actions, and acquisition processes that equip them with the right tools for each mission and environment.”
U.S. ground forces also need active protection systems that reduce the threat to vehicles of shoulder-fired weapons like rocket-propelled grenades without weighing them down with armor. ecently awarded Lockheed Martin [LMT] $8.5 million in contracts to develop an open-architecture controller to coordinate systems that protect armored vehicles from incoming enemy rockets.
The Army is currently developing a modular active protection system (MAPS), which will protect ground vehicles from incoming threats the same way the common infrared countermeasures system (CIRCM) will protect rotorcraft from laser-guided weapons.
The service recently awarded Lockheed Martin [LMT] $8.5 million in contracts to develop an open-architecture controller to coordinate systems that protect armored vehicles from incoming enemy rockets.
“While active protection systems have limitations, they are an important component of holistic, layered vehicle protection,” Scharre writes. “Counter-drone capabilities, both kinetic and non-kinetic, will also become increasingly important, including for on-the-move defense against enemy drones. U.S. ground forces also will need to modernize their communications, electronic warfare, and fires capabilities to operate against modernized Russian ground forces.”
The ubiquity of smartphones allows anyone in a conflict zone to generate and distribute real-time intelligence. In future ground operations, U.S. troops must therefore assume their position, strength and capabilities are known to the enemy at all times, the report says.
Enemy forces can then deploy improvised explosive devices in their path and increasingly bring technologically advanced weapons like man-portable air defense (MANPAD) weapons and unmanned aircraft to bear. The collapse of the Libyan state and civil war in Syria have allowed the proliferation of military-grade weapons throughout the Middle East and Africa, including “tens of thousands of extremely lethal” anti-tank munitions, Scharre writes.
Around 90 countries and unaffiliated militant groups now possess at least rudimentary drone technology and 30 countries are working to arm unmanned aerial systems (UAS), the report says. Those systems could be made to carry air-launched munitions or could be turned into flying IEDs.
“Non-state actors possess increasingly advanced weapons, such as anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs)…and low-cost commercially available drones,” Scharre writes. “These will allow them to contest U.S. forces for control of terrain and impose heavy costs on militaries advancing into these low-end anti-access/area denial environments. Increasingly sophisticated rocket propelled grenades (RPGs), heavy machine guns, and MANPADS are similarly making their way into the hands of non-state actors.”