Protection of tactical units in the course of operation: methodological aspect.

Analysis of the recent war conflicts clearly demonstrated well-seen tendency to increase the role of lower level tactical units (LLTU) in modern combat that is characterized by high density of various fire weapons and massiveness of their employment as well as by fleeting nature. (1) This fact brings them to the level of high priority destruction objectives, thus tightening requirements to their protection. As it was mentioned previously (2) integrated protection of LLTU against airborne threat, artillery, cluster weapons and reconnaissance and sabotage groups in the course of combat activities can be provided by mobile collective protection complex (CPC) capable of suppressing and destroying simultaneously all targeting devices of attackers and high-precision weapons (HPW) delivery means as well as guiding and targeting devices of guided and unguided weapons. CPC located on a special carrier in the vicinity of combat and marching formations of LLTU will possess such capabilities.

To bring scientific ground to composition and ways of mobile CPC combat employment it is necessary to solve a whole bunch of methodological nature tasks that were mentioned in brief prevously. (3) We think that now it is worth going into details of the most important methodological aspects of the above-mentioned problem. In particular we shall discuss descriptive model of CPC; validating methods of acceptable variants of its composition as well as methods of evaluating CPC effectiveness under various conditions of military conflict.

When developing a descriptive model of CPC it is necessary to start with the fact that accomplishment of combat missions by collective protection complex is a block of interlinked informational and physical processes. At the same time, information processes are linked both to receiving information from intelligence and external sources and to it further processing and transforming into control commands. Correspondingly, physical processes are aimed at realizing various jamming and firing methods of affecting the enemy on the basis of processed control commands.

In consequence of the above-mentioned it is quite logical to build and evaluate operation of LLTU collective protection complex on the basis of two stratums: the stratum of information processing and control, and the stratum of physical process of affecting the enemy. The stratum of information processing and control has its own functional hierarchy that is determined by the necessity to make a decision of various significance when processing information. Therefore it is proposed to study the process of information processing and generating control commands also at two levels (Fig. 1): adaptation, i.e. selection of affecting methods in accordance with the developing situation; and selection, i.e. determination of parameters and characteristics for the affecting way selected.

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

At the adaptation level commands are generated that determine the nature and method of affecting the enemy on the basis of analysis of detected threats and combat environment. At the same time, to adequately select a way of affecting the enemy it is necessary to obtain information about the stages of opposing task force activities (detection, preparation for fire, target designation, etc.); performances of enemy attack weapons as well as environmental conditions (wind speed, time of a day, etc.). Results of analysis of received and available information about conditions, threat nature and intelligence, jamming and fire support efficiency are used at this level as a basis not only for generating type of suitable fire impact on the enemy (fire damage or electro-optical suppression) but also for determining exact methods of affecting the enemy for providing maximum protection.

At the level of selection commands are generated that determine usable and variable parameters of fire damage or electro-optical suppression. Besides, a list of measured current parameters of carriers, delivery means, firing points, weapons and electro-optical reconnaissance and control means is formed. To our opinion the following is required at this level for informational support of control commands: to perform measurements of spatiotemporal parameters of weapons carriers, delivery means and firing points, subversive groups; to update their status; to measure current parameters of electro-optical reconnaissance and control means (spatiotemporal, frequency, etc.), as well as firing and jamming impact. Besides, it is necessary to update environmental conditions. Unlike the previous one, information for the level of selection can come only from own means of complex and it is necessary for controlling parameters of selected methods of firing and jamming impact on the enemy.

Use of the present descriptive model of CPC makes it possible to see functional and informational, internal and external complex interlinks and on the basis of their analysis to reduce the procedure of validating reasonable variant of mobile LLTU objects protection complex, as well as thanks to preliminary selection of acceptable means already at a stage of generating possible compositions of CPC. That is why the present model is the most important component of the developed method of validating acceptable variants of CPC composition.

In accordance with this method it is proposed to execute validation of acceptable variants of CPC composition in three stages (Fig. 2).

At the first stage countermeasures subsystems are formed. As initial data they use numerous types of attacking objects and countermeasures for them. At the beginning of formation process significance features (efficiency, cost, covertness, etc.) are determined for the available countermeasures. They may have binary values (0 or 1). Then use of descriptive model of CPC on the basis of significance features helps to calculate priority ranks of countermeasures to affect single attacking objects of the enemy. On this basis definitely recessive means (of low priority rank) are omitted and dominating ones are emphasized. The latter form subsystem of countermeasures on the following principle--each subsystem of countermeasures should provide a possibility to suppress or destroy any attacking object of the enemy.

To provide the employment of countermeasures included in the formed acceptable subsystems information requirements are determined at the second stage. For this purpose numerous information parameters (characteristics, methods, volumes) are used as initial data. Informational requirements are determined on the basis of the analysis of CPC descriptive model operation relative to each acceptable variant of countermeasures subsystem. It is accomplished by not taking into further consideration those informational parameters whose values are not required to characterize the operation of at least one means of the formed countermeasures subsystems. At the "output" of this stage a certain amount of informational parameters corresponds to each acceptable variant of the countermeasures subsystem.

[FIGURE 2 OMITTED]

At the third stage informational support subsystems are formed. They can implement the relevant variants of informational requirements in combat environment. The general process of implementing this stage is identical to the first stage and includes the following steps: determination of significance features, calculation of priority ranks, omitting definitely recessive means and emphasizing dominating ones in order to include appropriate information support subsystems.

The results of the accomplished stages determine the acceptable variants of CPC composition. Each variant includes countermeasures and information support subsystems, which operate in a wide range of tactical conditions.

It is proposed to select an appropriate CPC composition variant on the basis of methods of efficiency evaluation for each of the acceptable variant. When performing this evaluation we consider the level of reducing damage inflicted by the enemy on protected unit or the level of prevented LLTU losses in the battle to be the quantitative parameter of CPC efficiency in combat environment.

Average amount of missed and hit combat elements of opposing parties, with CPC used or without it, can be determined by means of combat simulation model designed on the basic principles of accomplishing tactical missions by LLTU in relevant typical combat situations. This model takes into account important aspects of functioning of all opposing parties objects: order of using all types of rounds and their consumption, impact of deliberate jamming at various stages of objects functioning (detection, targeting, etc.), parameters of space maneuver as well as changes in weapons and materiel quantity during combat.

In accordance with the above-mentioned facts the LLTU battle simulation model can reflect the following types of conflicts: "LLTU--enemy airborne threat", "LLTU--enemy delivery means with small-size munitions," "convoy of trucks and armor vehicles on the move--enemy reconnaissance and sabotage group."

Such simulation model will have a three-level structure (Fig. 3).

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At the upper level of the simulation model the control of the combat itself is performed: initial data is input, variables are initiated, scheme of developing hostilities between the objects in a typical combat situation is implemented, combat termination conditions are checked and data for analyzing CPC combat efficiency is prepared.

At the intermediate level current status and functioning stages of opposing parties' objects in combat are depicted (search, detection and preparation of impact on the enemy, jamming enemy systems and intelligence, targeting and guiding devices, use of weapons, maneuvering). Flowchart of objects status (Fig. 4) constitutes the basis for such depiction.

Depending on peculiarities of the object its current status will be determined by a set of quantitative and qualitative characteristics (hit or missed; object coordinates; type, performances and number of weapons, etc.), calculated at the lower level. To do this it is necessary to evaluate efficiency of HPW and unguided weapons employment; CPC radar and electro-optical intelligence means operation. Besides, algorithms of selecting objects for suppression and destruction as well as method of affecting the opposing party object are implemented at the lower level.

In general, to implement both efficiency evaluation method and combat simulation model when selecting an appropriate variant of composition of LLTU collective protection complex, it is necessary to set exact parameters of the typical combat situations relevant to modern war conflicts. It is also required for developing methods of CPC combat employment when protecting LLTU in the course of accomplishing tactical missions assigned to them.

NOTES:

1. Voennaia mysl', No. 3, 2005, p. 24.

2. See: Yu. Ye. Donskov, V.A. Tatarchukov, A.V. Zagorudko, "Protection of Tactical Units in a Combat Operation (Battle)" (this volume, pp. 70-74).

3. Ibidem.

Col. Yu.Ye. DONSKOV (Ret.)

Doctor of Military Sciences

Col. V.A. TATARCHUKOV

Candidate of Military Sciences

Lt. Col. A.V. ZAGORUDKO