U.S. Air Force plans "summit" on ground tracking

By Andrea Shalal-Esa

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Air Force, moving aggressively to beef up intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations, plans a "soup to nuts" review next week of how it tracks moving targets on the ground.

Lieutenant General David Deptula, Air Force deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, on Monday said he would convene a "summit" of senior Air Force officials about the various weapons that allow U.S. forces to track militants and vehicles on the ground.

The move follows the Pentagon's decision last year to cancel a space-based radar program that would have dramatically improved the military's ability to keep track of ground movements, even through bad weather. Lockheed Martin Corp and Northrop Grumman Corp were vying to build the nine-satellite system that was valued at over $30 billion.

Funding has also been scaled back in recent years for the Multi-Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program program being developed by Northrop Grumman.

The actively electronically scanned array radar is slated to go aboard the new Block 40 version of Northrop's high-altitude Global Hawk unmanned surveillance plane, but delays in testing of the radar have caused a 30-month plus delay in the testing schedule for the new aircraft.

Some lawmakers are considering cutting funding further, given the delays, but industry officials say that funding cuts would only exacerbate the delays.

Brigadier General Veralinn Jamieson, director of strategy, integration and doctrine, said Air Force officials recently spent a full week trying to better understand the military requirement for tracking of moving objects on the ground.

Ultimately, she said they concluded the that what was needed was not only radars, but also video feeds, intercepted communications, and intelligence gathered by other weapons.

She said the effort could lead to a formal analysis of alternatives for how best to meet the tracking requirement -- one of many that have seen increased demand in recent years.

Space, cyberspace and airborne systems would all see increased demand in coming years, Jamieson said, noting the service was trying to encourage military commanders to look more broadly at their needs and the capabilities that were available, and focus less on specific weapons platforms.

"We're in the middle of a cultural shift for the Air Force," Jamieson said.

OVERLAPPING CAPABILITIES

Defense Secretary Robert Gates had been critical of the Air Force's lack of support for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan through unmanned systems, but recently praised a sharp increase in patrols by unmanned spy planes over the region.

Deptula said the Air Force first began a drive to improve its intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance work in late 2005, but still struggled with overlapping capabilities fielded by various military services.

He said the service had developed an online tool that would let commanders submit detailed lists of requirements and should result in a better overview of needs, capabilities and costs.