Military Communications

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Military comms are activities, equipments, techniques and tactics used by the Military in some of the most hostile areas of the earth not only geographically but also from the point of view of the conditions of operations and equipment functionality like in battle fields, on land, underwater, air and whatever other conditions one can encounter. Military comms includes Command, Control, Communications and Intelligence which is also known as the C3I model. The Command here refers to the communication with the Highest Command in the country.

The first military comms tool was the communication automobile designed by the Soviet Union in 1934. The basics of the communications in the beginning was the sending and receiving of signals – which were encoded so that the enemy would not be able to get hold of any top secret communication. Then the advent of distinctive signals which lead to the formation of the Signal Corps, this corp., specialised in tactics of military comms. They evolved into a distinctive occupation where the signaller became a highly technical job where they dealt with all available communications methods including the civil methods.

In today’s world where war is to be avoided at all costs the role of the military comms is more intense, complicated, hi-tech, bordering on futuristic with the communication satellites, reconnaissance drones and aircrafts. Computers and their varied uses have revolutionised military comms. Fortunately these activities are not only related to action in combat but also gathering intelligence to prevent war.

There are 6 categories of military comms, the alert measurement systems, cryptography, military radio systems, nuclear command control and the signal corps. Another new concept is network-centric warfare.

The alert measurement systems – these are various state of alert or readiness for the armed forces used world over – be it a state of war, terrorism or military attack against a state. They are known by different acronyms or example – DEFCON, INFOCON and REDCON in the US military comms and BIKINI states in the British protocol.

Cryptography is the study of methods of converting readable messages into guised unreadable information, unless one knows of the methods of decryption. This military comms method ensured that the messages reached the correct hands and eyes or ears. Nowadays digital cash, signatures, digital rights management and intellectual property rights and secure electronic commerce are its new purviews. It is also being used in computing, telecommunications and infrastructure.

There are close to 97 different categories of military comms by radio. To name a few are ACP-131, AN/ARC-164, AN/ARC-5, HWU transmitter, Hallicrafters SX-28, SCR-197, SCR-203, SCR-270 radar, etc.

The latest and the most powerful of the military comms tactics is the network centric warfare or operations. This doctrine uses information technology to gain a competitive edge on war by information sharing. This information sharing improves situational awareness which in turn helps self-organisation, synchronisation, sustainable and speedy execution of commands this helps increase mission effectiveness. It establishes a network of well informed geographically diverse and dispersed forces. The network is linked by technology, organisations, people and processes.

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