One of the initial claims issued by the United States Navy in regards to the theory of a friendly fire shoot down is that the Aegis ship U.S.S. Normandy was too far away to see the 747.
It turns out that there is currently underway a program to allow the Aegis to engage targets beyond it's own radar horizon by electronically linking to radars on other ships and aircraft, and to employ weapons on remote platforms.
This system is called Cooperative Engagement Capability and allows for the total automation of the fleet defense systems.
In the summer of 1996, five ships where equipped with CEC: USS Eisenhower (CVN-69), USS Anzio (CG 68), USS Cape St. George (CG 71), USS Wasp (LHD-1), USS Lake Erie (CG-70). (Recently, it has been learned that the CEC systems have been removed from USS Lake Erie (CG-70), for reasons unknown.
CEC has been a USN acquisition program since 1992. In early 1994 after a series of preliminary trials, five CEC-equipped ships, including the amphibious assault ship Wasp (LHD-1) and the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, as well as P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft, verified the ability of CEC units to construct identical composite tracks and identification pictures independently, using data provided by SPY-1D, SPS-48C, SPS-48E, SPS-49, OY-88 and Mk23 TAS radars.
During 1995, CEC equipment on the Dwight D. Eisenhower and the USS Anzio, an Aegis-equipped cruiser with the SPY-1D radar, was used to demonstrate the ability of CEC-equipped units to detect, track and engage a theatre ballistic missile (TBM). The missile was detected upon launch by the Anzio's SPY-1D, and data was passed to other CEC-equipped units, which were then cued to acquire the target. CEC data was also made available in real time to a land-based US Army MIM-104 Patriot missile unit and a USMC MIM-23 HAWK battery AN/TPS-59 radar. Versions of CEC equipment are due to be fitted to all USN aircraft carriers and LHD and LHA amphibious assault ships; studies are examining the possible integration of other TBM-defense systems into CEC.
The Aegis-CEC system is being developed at the Aegis Systems Development Centers at Moorestown, New Jersey, and at Wallops Island, Virginia (until recently, claimed to be a purely NASA facility), and at Dam Neck.
This is the Aegis Systems Development Facility at Moorestown, New Jersey (near exit 4 of the Jersey Turnpike). This is the famous "Cruiser in a Cornfield". Note the simulated Aegis ship superstructure complete with phased array radar antennas.
A sunrise view of the Wallops Island facility. Note the
simulated Aegis ship superstructure on the right side of the roof of the building.
CEC coordinating with Patriot shore battery.
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[INLINE] _________________________________________________________________ Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC) The Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC) program allows the Battle Group surface ships and airborne elements to exchange integrated, fire control quality information in real time as both an electronic warfare countermeasure and an enhanced operating capability. The CEC program is actively implementing various aspects of the acquisition reform initiatives established by DOD policy. They have used a team approach supported by the program office, PEO(TAD)C, the prime contractor, E-Systems, the Technical Direction Agent, John Hopkins University/Applied Physics Laboratory and the Crane, Dahlgren and Port Hueneme Divisions of the Naval Surface Warfare Center. The CEC program's team has divided their acquisition reform efforts into three major thrusts: (1) Acquisition Streamlining; (2) Transition to a "Commercial Baseline"; and (3) Commercial Off-the-Shelf and Non Developmental Items (COTS/NDI) . These are all areas strongly supported by the Secretary of Defense, Dr. Perry. (1) CEC acquisition streamlining efforts concentrated on processes to speed up the overall acquisition effort. These included such things as: government-contractor teaming; eliminating paper Contract Data Requirements (CDRs) through on-line access to contractor data; eliminating lengthy paper publishing cycles through direct digital data transfer; and aggressively tailoring the DOD 5000.2 requirements to reduce the paper CDRs from 6440 to less than 300, a 95% reduction with a further reduction of program unique CDRs from 190 to 59. (2) To accomplish the transition to a "Commercial Baseline", the CEC program rewrote their system specification to a performance specification, eliminating specific design requirements. This allowed the reduction of MIL-SPECs in the system specification from 45 to 11. By incorporating commercial specifications and standards in the follow-on Statement of Work (SOW) and reducing "programmatic" MIL-SPEC requirements in the areas of quality assurance, reliability, logistics and manufacturing, the SOW MIL-SPEC usage fell from 84 to 11. (3) By basing the CEC system on open system architecture, the program was able to make maximum use of COTS electronic circuit boards. The upgrade path established for the CEC also allows the exploitation of next generation processing technology as it becomes available. The enclosure, microwave components and battery back-up technology are all NDI from existing military programs. The CEC program team acquisition reform effort has resulted in an integrated approach to improve the acquisition process, transition to a "Commercial Baseline" and fully exploit available COTs/NDI both now and in the future. For further information contact Mr. Michael O'Driscoll, PEO(TAD)C, at (703) 602-7413. (This article appeared in the Jan 95 Acquisition Reform Update Newsletter, vol 2. no.1.) _________________________________________________________________ [LINK]Acquisition Reform Office Alex Bennet, Webmaster Send comments to: [email protected] URL: HTTP://www.acq-ref.navy.mil/cec.html Last revision: 31 Jul 1995 Dynamic Systems Inc.
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A specific goal for C.E.C. was to allow the Aegis-C.E.C. system to detect and respond to sea-skimming cruise missiles which had proved to be such a threat against USS Stark.
As can be seen in the above diagram, a low flying cruise missile outside the radar envelope of the Aegis command ship is detected by the radar of a C.E.C. equipped P-3 patrol aircraft. Tested on present P-3c aircraft, the new Orion 2000 series now in development will be fully C.E.C. capable.
Office of Naval Research Summary of the Cruise Missile Defense ACTD Mountain Top Demonstration ___________________________________ In January 1996, the Navy and the Army demonstrated advanced, experimental capabilities in Cruise Missile Defense (CMD). In the CMD Phase I Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration (ACTD), also known as "Mountain Top", surface-to-air missiles were launched from an AEGIS cruiser to engage sea-skimming cruise missile test targets well beyond the ship's radar horizon. Concurrently, an Army PATRIOT missile battery conducted simulated engagements and missile seeker tests that demonstrated a robust potential capability to engage cruise missiles beyond line of sight of land based sensors. Approved by the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Advanced Technology) in May 1994, the CMD ACTD Phase I was a joint Army and Navy effort led by the Navy. The Chief of Naval Research, Rear Admiral Marc Pelaez, was the ACTD executing agent and Dr. Eli Zimet, Head of the Special Programs Department (Code 35) of the Office of Naval Research (ONR), was the overall demonstration manager. Rear Admiral Tim Hood, Program Executive Officer (PEO) for Theater Air Defense, and Mr. Mike O’Driscoll, Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC) program manager, were responsible for coordinating Navy activities. Brigadier General Dick Black, PEO for Missile Defense, and Mr. Dale Moore, Army Mountain Top Experiment (AMTE) program manager, were responsible for coordinating Army activities. The ACTD user sponsor and operational manager was the Commander-in-Chief, United States Pacific Command, Camp Smith, Oahu, Hawaii. The demonstration was conducted at the Navy’s Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF), Barking Sands, Kauai, Hawaii and surrounding sea areas and airspace. The focus of this ACTD was the detection of over-the-horizon cruise missile targets by an elevated sensor and target engagement by surface-based (sea and land) air defense systems. In practical terms, the extended horizon engagement concept involves deploying an airborne platform with a new surveillance and tracking radar to detect low-flying cruise missiles while they are still far beyond the horizon of protected areas and defending shooters. The airborne radar is envisioned to provide precision radar data for guidance of surface-to-air missiles launched from ships and land-based missile batteries to intercept cruise missile targets beyond the firing ship's horizon or battery’s line of sight. One of the technical challenges of achieving this capability was to develop a "networking architecture" to allow the individual radars and weapons systems onboard the firing ship or battery and airborne surveillance/tracking sensors to operate as a single composite air defense system. The networking architecture must meet the very stringent requirements necessary to transfer radar and missile status data with high accuracy and precise timing to provide for interceptor missile control and homing. This networking requirement was met by the Navy's Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC). CEC provides an identical, real time, fire control quality picture of the battle space as though it were viewed through the collective eyes of all participants in the CEC network. Other technical challenges were modifications to surface-to-air missile performance, missile control, and airborne radar. Required changes to Navy STANDARD missile terminal homing performance were incorporated in several of the latest SM-2 Block IIIA missiles specially modified for this experiment. At this stage in their development, the representative airborne elements have not been installed in aircraft. Representative airborne elements were installed on Kokee mountain in Kauai, Hawaii - thus the name "Mountain Top" - as a surrogate aircraft at 3800 foot elevation. The Radar Surveillance Technology Experimental Radar (RSTER) used in this demonstration was developed by the Navy in conjunction with the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, features advanced signal processing techniques, and was paired with an ADS-18S advanced phased array antenna mounted atop a 100 foot tower. A Navy Mark 74 Tartar missile fire control system used for target tracking and illumination was collocated with the CEC antenna on an adjacent tower. Equipment for these sensors was housed in buildings at the Kokee site. Navy Mountain Top culminated in missile firing tests conducted on 20-21 January 1996. The AEGIS cruiser, USS Lake Erie (CG-70), fired four STANDARD missiles and achieved four target kills at ranges more than three times greater than typically achievable with today's deployed systems. USS Lake Erie, equipped with CEC for this demonstration, was stationed approximately 30 miles downrange from the Kauai shore. A typical firing scenario began when a sea-skimming target launched from PMRF, was flown out beyond radar range, and turned back toward the ship or toward shore. The developmental radar at the Kokee site detected the target and provided tracking data to USS Lake Erie via CEC. USS Lake Erie evaluated the threat, completed fire control solutions, and ordered the target engaged while it was still well beyond the ship’s AEGIS SPY-lB radar horizon. That caused CEC to automatically cue the Mark 74 system tracking radar/illuminator at the Kokee site to acquire the target and provide radar position measurement data directly to the AEGIS Combat System via CEC. AEGIS used this remote composite track data for initialization, launch and midcourse guidance of a STANDARD missile. When the missile passed beyond the ship's radar horizon it was guided to the target by reflected signal energy from the tracking radar illuminator at Kokee. Because target tracking and terminal homing illumination were provided by the surrogate aircraft via CEC, the SM-2 could intercept a low-flying target at long range, thus dramatically extending the air defense horizon. The Navy achieved its Mountain Top objectives with all low-flying targets successfully engaged. The critical implication to future war fighting is the Navy's potential ability to project its power inland and defend forces ashore against low flying overland cruise missiles using existing AEGIS capabilities and advanced aircraft systems to greatly extend the ship's horizon . The Army Mountain Top Experiment (AMTE) also used surveillance and fire control data from the elevated sensors at the Kokee site. An Army PATRIOT battery, sited at the Department of Energy administered Kauai Test Facility located at PMRF, developed fire control and acquisition solutions on targets using Mark 74 track data transmitted from the CEC processor at Kokee via the Joint Tactical Information Distribution System (JTIDS). Since development of the PATRIOT Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) surface-to-air missile is only in the beginning stages, the AMTE team combined captive carry tests (CCT), consisting of a prototype PAC-3 seeker suspended from a test aircraft, with a real-time, high fidelity virtual engagement interceptor simulation called the Virtual Engagement Simulation Tool or "VEST". By combining the high fidelity attributes of both test tools, it was possible to perform a real-time, high fidelity, end-to-end demonstration without requiring a "Live-Fire" test. The AMTE is very possibly the first program to synchronize a high-fidelity simulation and CCT with a tactical air defense system in a real-time test environment. The AMTE program was completed on 26 January 1996. A combined total of 112 CCTs and virtual engagements were conducted, of which, 101 were classified as "successful", 2 classified "failures", and 9 classified as "no tests", for a spectacular 98% success rate. The AMTE proved that cruise missiles can be engaged beyond the line-of-sight of a ground-based air defense system sensor, and that this concept can be applied to battalion-based air defense doctrine, and systems that employ active-seeker interceptors. Following completion of the Navy and Army technology demonstration, an Enhanced Joint Exercise was conducted. The USS Lake Erie, Army PATRIOT Battery, and mountain top sensors were joined by additional units from the Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps to conduct a series of scenarios to collect data and demonstrate joint theater air and CMD operations. Two CEC-equipped AEGIS cruisers, USS Anzio (CG-68) and USS Cape St. George (CG-71) from the Atlantic Fleet, arrived near Kauai to join with USS Lake Erie in participating with the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, Hawaii and New Mexico Air National Guard, and US Customs Service units, in a series of joint-service littoral operational scenarios including more cooperative engagement SM-2 firings. A Marine Corps HAWK battery fired missiles to successfully engage several targets based on cueing of the fire control illuminators by the AEGIS SPY radars via CEC. An Air Force AWACS test bed aircraft collected radar data against the mountainous Kauai coastal terrain in conjunction with a CEC-equipped US Customs Service radar aircraft. Finally, as part of a separate demonstration effort, experiments were performed with a 32 meter tethered aerostat that provided infrared tracking data and also relayed CEC track data to cue the Hawk batteries. The highly successful Mountain Top ACTD and Enhanced Joint Exercise will be further evaluated to refine the development effort and move ahead towards achieving the vision for joint, extended-horizon cruise missile defense.
Orion with CEC phased array radar.
[INLINE] COOPERATIVE ENGAGEMENTS _________________________________________________________________ The fire control quality composite track provided by CEC allows an AEGIS ship to engage an attacker that its own radars do not hold, with initialization of the missile, calculation and uplink of guidance commands, and pointing of terminal illumination performed solely from the remote data. The CEC composite track also allows cueing of ships with other weapon systems, such as Seasparrow, providing earlier detection and engagement of attackers. Engage On Remore _________________________________________________________________ For Engage On Remote cooperative engagements, the CEC composite track formed from the remote data is provided to the firing ship's AEGIS Weapon System, which processes the target data normally, as though it were coming from ownship radars. The ship may fire on the attacker before it crosses the radar horizon, allowing intercept at the maximum possible range. Cooperative engagements may be conducted when the target is still beyond the horizon, when track has been denied by jamming, or when the firing ship's radars are not radiating. [INLINE] [INLINE] Cued Engage _________________________________________________________________ For Cued Engage, the CEC composite track is provided to Seasparrow as a precision cue, which assigns the Target Acquisition system and Fire Control Radar to acquire, track, and illuminate the target. The CEC cue allows earlier detection and tracking of the attacker, extending the intercept range closer to the ship's radar horizon. ______________________________________________________________________ Next page [LINK] Return to CEC Table of Contents page [LINK] Prev page ______________________________________________________________________ Updated: 10 Oct 1996 Webmaster [INLINE] Battle Space Extension through CEC _________________________________________________________________ CEC provides for a steady increase in weapons range by combining data from many sources to enable earlier detection through cueing and accurate and more continuous tracking with improved ID consistency. Extension of battle space through CEC remote data engagements was demonstrated repeatedly during formal Navy testing in 1993/94 at AFWTF and this capability was incorporated into the CEC IOC version. [INLINE] Extension of battle space using airborne sensors and illumination was demonstrated experimentally using sensors and illumination at an elevated land site at Kokee Park, Kauai, in February 1996 as an Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration. This capability can be incorporated into subsequent versions of CEC if suitable sensors and illumination become available. [INLINE] [INLINE] ______________________________________________________________________ Next page [LINK] Return to CEC Table of Contents page [LINK] Prev page ______________________________________________________________________ Updated: 10 Oct 1996 Webmaster [INLINE] Future Development _________________________________________________________________ Development of CEC beyond IOC includes application to Theater Ballistic Missile Defense (TBMD) and adaptation of the Common Equipment Set for integration with joint service sensor and weapon systems. Initial studies, including live missile firings based on display level CEC cues, have been done for Hawk. Initial analysis and studies for integration of CEC with the Arsenal Ship, Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft, Patriot, Aerostat, and Satellite systems are being or have been conducted. Other applications proposed for CEC include integration with THAAD/GBR, the Airborne laser, and CORPSAM/MEADS. [INLINE] [INLINE] Hawk _________________________________________________________________ Recent exercises demonstrated cueing of Hawk by CEC at the display level, resulting in successful live missile firings at PMRF in February 1996. Cues were provided both to the TPS-59 and to the Hawk High Power Illuminator, based on data from three AEGIS ships offshore. Additional studies are currently underway to provide direct integration. Theater Ballistic Missile Defense _________________________________________________________________ CEC contributes to TBMD by providing a continuous fire control quality track on the TBM from acquisition through splash. Although each ship is only able to maintain track for part of the TBM flight, the CEC composite track, based on all the data, is continuous. Cues based on the composite track allow the downrange ships to detect the target earlier and to maintain track longer. The CEC cues and relay of composite track data will also allow defending ships maximum battle space in which to engage TBMs when the SM-2 Block IVA missile becomes available. [INLINE] JTF-95 TBM Trackex _________________________________________________________________ This is the CEC composite track of a Sergeant missile launched from Wallops Island, Virginia, during Joint Task Force 95 exercises. Contributions to the track were made by USS Anzio, USS Cape St. George, USS Kidd, USS Eisenhower, the CEC Air Unit, and the CEC land site at Dam Neck, Virginia. Connectivity between the units was provided by the CEC Air Unit. [INLINE] USS Anzio has detected the target, and her data, distributed through the net, cues the other units for detection and formation of the composite track. CEC composite track and predicted impact are based on contributions from all the CEC units. The track is continuous from acquisition through splash. [INLINE] ______________________________________________________________________ Return to CEC Table of Contents page [LINK] Prev page ______________________________________________________________________ Updated: 10 Oct 1996 Webmaster
Initial Operational Capability Summary
Sensor issues in the littoral environment.
Passive Ranging and De-ghosting
Battle Space Extension Through CEC
Improvements in Track Accuracy.
Pacific Missile Range Facility (Kauai/MOUNTAINTOP)
CEC Integration with other missile systems and the
airborne laser.
Link to MHPCC MOUNTAIN TOP web page.
Associated Press Los Angeles Times Sunday September 8, 1996 Home Edition Part A, Page 10 Type of Material: Wire SHINNECOCK, N.Y.--Weeks after the TWA Flight 800 explosion and hundreds of miles away, an American Airlines pilot claimed that he saw a missile pass by his jetliner in flight, federal investigators said Saturday. The National Transportation Safety Board said the pilot on an Aug. 29 American Airlines flight from San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Boston said he saw a missile pass his Boeing 757 over Wallops Island, Va. NASA has a program for unmanned research rockets there. NTSB spokesman Peter Goelz said: "We're going to look into it. So far we have not been able to confirm anything." Military spokesmen have said repeatedly that no exercises with live weapons were being conducted in the area of Flight 800. [end excerpt] ********************* Just two days later, they decide to admit to missile test. 09/10/96 NTSB Reviews Rocket Launch WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. (AP) -- Federal officials are investigating the launch of a NASA rocket last month that hurtled past a Boeing 757, startling its pilot. The rocket missed the American Airlines jet by more than three miles, National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Peter Goelz said Monday in Washington. The 15-foot rocket, launched Aug. 29 from NASA's Wallops Island Flight Center on Virginia's Eastern Shore, carried classified research experiments for the Department of Defense. The pilot reported seeing a "missile," and the NTSB was looking into the matter because of heightened concern about air safety in the wake of the explosion of TWA Flight 800 off Long Island on July 17. One scenario being considered is the jumbo jet was downed by a missile. NASA spokesman Keith Koehler said he was confident the NTSB would conclude that NASA followed proper safety procedures and that the rocket posed no threat to the jet. The Wallops center, on a remote barrier island, has been launching rockets for decades into a zone of restricted air space that stretches over the Atlantic Ocean. Before each launching, Koehler said, NASA contacts the Federal Aviation Administration. The rocket in question had a routine flight and dropped into the water. Koehler said NASA radar detected no aircraft within the restricted zone.