The first Capability Set, Capability Set 13 (CS 13) will begin to field to eight brigade combat teams in 2012. CS 13 is the first fully-integrated suite of network components fielded as part of Capability Set Management and as a result of the Army’s new Agile Process. CS 13 delivers an unprecedented integrated network solution capable of supporting mission command requirements for the full range of Army operations, and an integrated voice and data capability throughout the entire BCT formation.

CS 13 addresses 11 critical Operational Need Statements submitted by theater, giving commanders and Soldiers vastly increased abilities to communicate and share information. Significant capability enhancements include Mission Command on the Move, allowing leaders access to network capabilities found in Tactical Operations Centers while mounted in combat vehicles; and delivering the Network to individual Soldiers at the squad level.

CS 13 is composed of WarfighterInformation Network-Tactical (WIN-T) Increment 2, Joint Capabilities Release/Blue Force Tracking 2, Joint Battle Command-Platform (starting 3QFY13), Company Command Post capabili-ty, Mission Command Common Operating Environment v1.0 and tactical radios that include the AN/PRC-117G (ANW2), the JTRS RiflemanRadio and HMS Manpack and Soldier Radio Waveform appliqué radios. Nett Warrior will provide situational awareness and networking down to the squad leader level, while individual Soldiers will be connected with the Rifleman Radio.

CS 13 took shape over the course of three NIEs, from June 2011 to June 2012. The NIE events are managed by a TRIAD of organizations, the Brigade Modernization Command, the Army Test and Evaluation Command and the System of Systems Integration Directorate. The NIEs have not only allowed for Soldier-driven evaluations and assessments of network technologies, they have also aided the Army in development of Tactics, Techniques and Procedures for CS 13 capability. Lessons learned from the NIEs have been applied as the Army works to field,train and sustain the Capability Set and as each NIE is completed the Army will continue to refine this process.

During the least three NIEs, the Army evaluated more than 115 systems from government and industry, leveraging the 3,800 Soldiers of the 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division (2/1 AD) executing realistic mission threads in the punishing terrain of White Sands Missile Range, N.M. Test data and Soldier feedback from the NIEs – each iteration building on results from the previous event – enabled the Army to establish an integrated network baseline based on a hybrid integration of satellite-based communications and terrestrial networking radios. The full brigade-level CS 13 architecture was validated and finalized during NIE 12.2, the largest NIE accomplished to date, which required 2/1 AD to execute combined arms maneuver, counterinsurgency and stability operations in a hybrid threat environment.

Fielding CS 13 is a total Army effort, spanning dozens of commands and locations and requiring constant coordination between network and vehicle Project Managers, production facilities, brigade staffs, and fielding and training professionals. Similarly, resourcing for each of those elements has been carefully synchronized as part of the Army’s capability set fielding plan.

The Army will field CS 13 to 8 Infantry Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs) from 2012-2013. Three brigades are deploying or preparing to deploy to Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), one is a forward stationed brigade in Korea and the last is 2/1 AD - the NIE evaluation brigade. In October, CS 13 was fielded to the 3rd and 4th BCTs of the 10th Mountain Division, stationed at Fort Drum, NY, and Fort Polk, LA, respectively. 3/10 and 4/10 will undergo several months of New Equipment Training (NET) prior to deploying with CS 13 equipment in 2013.