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Show IGMTER 388th Fighter Wing (Poumm Supplement to Hilltop Times July 1993 72 9tb ACS leaps Into the 9Bs by SrA. Bob Crenshaw f Editor, Fighter Country ' Since becoming part of the 388th Fighter Wing more than a year ago, a lot of progress has been made in integrating the 729th Air Control Squadron in the mainstream of the wing's business. The progress most recently made is due to new equipment the air control squadron has received. This equipment drastically improves the 729th's ability to do their job air command and control. The 729th's mission is to use its radar and communications equipment to examine the airspace, looking for both the good and bad guys and determine what is going on. They also receive similar data from other sources such as AWACS and other command and control units like the 729th. After assembling all this information, the 729th people can see the big picture of what is going on in a battle. They can then send this information to other units who can use it for planning purposes, whether it's a local commander or someone halfway across the globe. The air control squadron was doing this with "Vietnam' ' era equipment and had limitations in what they could and couldn't do, according to Lt. Col. John T. Bowen, 729th ACS commander. The new equipment the squadron has received will make a difference similar to switching from Fighting SuperSabre to flying the flying an Falcon. The old equipment consisted of a radar, a large inflattent that housed the command and control able bubble-typ- e several and center, large, green boxes filled with electronic gear. "Previously, we had the capability to 'link' up a couple of different ways with aircraft such as AWACS," said Bowen. ' 'We would receive their information and send them ours. We then would manually assemble a bigger and bigger air picture." This air picture the 729th would assemble had to be constructed primarily with a large, glass plotting board. After receiving information from other radars, airmen would plot that information on a large map on the plotting board, writing backwards in grease pencils so that planners could see the information. They had to plot the information on a board because they could not see more than one source of information at a time. Communications between various units was also a problem. 'There were some folks out there, Air Force forward air control units predominately, who didn't have any electronic means of linking up with us," said Bowen. "They would have to do strictly voice telecommunications with us. They would have to look at their radar, see what they had showing and voice it to us over an HF radio or telephone. Then, we would have to manually put all that information in the system." Needless to say, this caused a delay in processing the information, in an age where split second relay of information can make or break a battle. Another problem with the old system, according to Bowen, was the amount of equipment the 729th had to lug around with them. Anytime someone developed a new data link system, or changed the way command and control was done, instead of purchasing a whole new system, the 729th would receive another large, green box of electronic equipment to be able to do their job. Now, those days are over for a while. Their new equipment consists of their radar, three operations modules and new digital communications equipment. "The new equipment has a tremendous computer and communications capability," said Bowen. "Now we can sit here in our boxes and link up with Army Hawk and Patriot and Navy ships. units, E--3 A AWACS aircraft, Navy We can even linkup with Navy fighter aircraft such as E-3- F-1- 00 L A F-- 16 F-1- 8s HP' i & muz 3""$jr st Lt. Kurt Barry, an air weapons director with the 729th Air Control Squadron, demonstrates the modular control equipment's finger on glass capability. This equipment enables users to interface directly with the screen by touch. I or 1 4s, in addition to our own units, and be able to see what they can. Then we put together one giant air picture of an entire theater. f 'We can sit in one box and put together one picture of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq, and see what everybody is looking at," he said. "Then, with our additional communications capability, we have the ability to take that composite air picture and send it anywhere we want. We can put it up to a satellite and send it to Washington D.C., right to the Pentagon, where some planner, with our capability, can sit in the Pentagon and watch an air battle over Iraq." This is done with only three boxes and one radar. Instead of a large plotting board, with a large map constructed from the many sources of information, computer screens have taken over. The information is available on one screen, all the information, from AWACS, fighters, ground units, etc. Since the amount of equipment the 729th has to deploy with has reduced, so will the time it takes to deploy, said F-- Bowen. "With the old systems we had, it would take us about 24 hours to get everything packed up," he said. "Then we would put it on the airplane, get it off, drive to the war, and then set it back up again. Setting it back up would take another 24 hours. "They haven't established the standards for the new system yet, but I would be comfortable to say we can cut those times down to six hours on each end," Bowen said. The 729th ACS commander also said he sees the possibility for more taskings for the squadron once everyone "gets smart" on the new system. "Similar equipment in Europe right now is at Aviano AB, Italy, and they're using it to monitor the situation in Bosnia predominantly getting AWACS pictures and putting it on the ground where the decision makers can see what'sgoing on," said Bowen. "I can see more taskings like that. I can see applications down south in the counter-dru- g war. Just about anywhere in the world where there's a problem and you want an air picture to see what's going on, I can see getting tasked for that." The new equipment will hopefully allow the 729th ACS to be more involved in our training and exercises, and Bowen stated that the 729th offered to run the air battle for the wing in the next operational readiness exercise, Phase II. But, there are a couple of glitches. "Normally, when we go to war, we work for an air operations center," he said. "That air operations center is located at AFB, Ariz., and they're not going to be playing in that exercise. They're the ones what would put out the air tasking orders and maintain a number of authorities on how the air battle is run. "For example, airplanes on the ground are placed on alert,' ' said the colonel. 'When the planes take offand bomb ir targets of opportunity or do some type of short-notibe the center air would mission, the probably operations would ones that ones to give the scramble order. They're the say, 'O.K., launch those two airplanes against this target, and launch those two airplanes against that target.' Without an air operations center playing, it limits what we can do as far as running the overall air battle." However, Bowen also said that many of the responsibilities of an air operations center would probably be decentralized to the 729th. Authority to identify targets -deterrnining who's the good guy and who's the bad guy and limited scramble orders over certain aircraft, bases or wings might be given to the 729th. "Where I would like to see us down the road, is to take as many of the authorities we might be given in a real world situation, and run that on our own," he said. "We would keep the wing informed, but take over scrambling their airplanes. We'd like to bring in an AWACS or something like that to run whoever the adversary is, probably the wing at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, and then play Hill AFB against Mountain Home AFB, where they have a command and control agency and we have a command and control Davis-Month- an ce air-to-a- agency." The 729th ACS is already becoming more incorporated into the wing's activities. A couple of 729th people went with the wing to Ecuador recently on an exercise, and a controller is deploying with the 34th Fighter Squadron to Combat Archer this month. "It gives other units a better understanding of what our business is, and certainly gives my folks a chance to get some quality training in a different type of environment," Bowen said. "I think when I send my folks down there, they're (other 388th units) more willing to actually work closely with them, figure out what we do, what will happen if we go to war, and find out our limitations in the ability to control jets," Bowen said. "I definitely think there's a benefit to both the wing, and to my squadron." Defense or the Department of the Air Force. Fighter Country ts a supplement to the Hilltop Timet, published by MorMedla, Unless otherwise indicated, all photos are U.S. Air Force photos. Advertiseexclusive under U.S. Air Force, Inc, a private firm In no way connected with the ments contained herein do not constitute an endorsement by the Department commercial written contract with the Ogden ALC Public Affairs Office. This for members of of Defense, the Department of the Air Force or Hill AFB, Utah. Everything enterprise Air Force newspaper Is an authorized publication to race, color, religion, sex or other the U.S. military services. 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