USSOCOM
16
Special Operations Outlook
PEO FIXED WING PEO Fixed Wing (FW) delivers special operations manned and unmanned fixed-wing airpower capabilities. Overall, FW executed more than $2.4 billion in FY 2019 to develop, deliver, and sustain FW intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), strike, and mobility weapons systems in direct support of SOF operations worldwide. FW delivery of revolutionary ISR assets, MC-130J and AC-130J recapitalization, lethal munitions, and advanced technology ensures SOF mission success today and through tomorrow’s fight worldwide.
U.S. MARINE CORPS PHOTO BY SGT. ALLISON LOTZ
t Left: An MH-60M Black Hawk helicopter participates in an aerial refueling exercise. The medium assault MH-60M Blackhawk PMO continued the Block 1 modification, increasing payload availability and aircraft reliability, and providing better situational awareness for aircrews. u Right: U.S. Army MH-47G Chinook helicopter pilots perform preflight operations during Emerald Warrior 2013. The heavy assault MH-47G Chinook PMO awarded several major contracts to ramp up the MH-47G Block II Renew program to recapitalize the heavy assault fleet.
Find: Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance The Airborne ISR team fields and maintains a fleet of ISR manned and unmanned aerial systems. The manned aircraft include the U-28, MC-12 Javaman, DHC-8, and King Air aircraft. The unmanned platforms include the MQ-1C, MQ-9, and several variants of Group 1-3 systems.
Infiltrate: Mobility The MC-130J recapitalization program adds SOF capabilities to the service-common aircraft. Three mission systems provide electronic warfare, increased communications, terrain following radar, and enhanced situational awareness. The special mission processor ingests data from across the network for aircrew display, executing automated functions and increasing overall system performance. These integrated mission systems enhance MC-130J capabilities to conduct dynamic air-refueling, airdrop, insertion, extraction, and resupply missions under challenging conditions. The CV-22 is also undergoing updates with the terrain following radar, a color helmet-mounted display, and enhanced situational awareness capabilities.
U.S. AIR FORCE PHOTO BY STAFF SGT. ELIZABETH RISSMILLER
modification improves aircraft performance and situational awareness in the cockpit. • The medium assault MH-60M Blackhawk PMO continued the Block 1 modification. This modification increases payload availability, increases reliability for the users, and provides better situational awareness for aircrews. • The heavy assault MH-47G Chinook PMO awarded several major contracts to ramp up the MH-47G Block II Renew program that will recapitalize the heavy assault fleet. • SOCOM’s acquisition executive approved full rate production for the Silent Knight Radar (SKR) program. The SKR program will enter into a three-year multiyear procurement contract in 2021, increasing lethality by accelerating fielding within the current budget profile. SKR provides SOF aircrews with a common terrain following/terrain avoidance capability. • The Mission Equipment PMO continued development, testing, and integration of the Degraded Visual Environment Pilotage System (DVEPS) on the MH-60M and MH-47G. DVEPS fuses information from aircraft sensors with terrain elevation data to display real-time reference points, obstacles, and landing zone information to the aviator, providing aircrews situational awareness during all phases of flight and significantly increasing aircrew and passenger survivability. RW aligns its efforts with the National Defense Strategy by prioritizing delivery of more lethal, capable, survivable, and innovative weapons systems. The strategy also directs improvement and reform of business practices as a method to achieve greater warfighter lethality. This remains a complex problem, requiring industry and RW to collaborate in new, innovative ways. RW is interested in creative solutions from industry partners that: • Increase speed of responding to requests for proposal, reduce unproductive portions of procurement lead-time, and reduce lead times for weapon system procurement. • Maximize collaboration with industry using cooperative research and development agreements. • Integrate with the services to pursue future rotary-wing capabilities, to include supporting future vertical lift development. • Offer ways to hyper-enable aircrews through integrating federated, complementary systems to aid in rapid decisive decisionmaking (i.e. How can we make what we have more effective?). RW and industry must work together to increase responsiveness and relevancy by “moving at the speed of SOF,” in order to ensure the 160th SOAR(A) warriors are prepared for what they will confront on tomorrow’s battlefield.
