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u.s. army soldiers test the ghost-x drone system during an exercise.

according to foreign media reports, in recent times, in addition to continuously strengthening and practicing combat concepts such as "multi-domain operations" and "joint all-domain command and control", the u.s. army has also conducted targeted tests on the concept of "contact transformation" in the field of weapons and equipment procurement and achieved the expected results. this concept may be promoted within the u.s. army in the future.

bottom-up transformation

in march this year, james rainey, commander of the u.s. army futures command, pointed out at a seminar that the iterative updates of technology have had a disruptive impact on the u.s. army's equipment, operations, and command. to meet the above challenges, the u.s. army has designed an experimental transformation plan with three stages, namely the "contact transformation" concept.

the first phase is expected to last two years. the main contents include providing special funds for front-line combat personnel at the brigade level and below to purchase the latest commercial technologies and products, and arranging them to conduct actual combat tests according to specific tasks. the test results will be fed back to the top of the us army, who will decide whether to promote the relevant technologies and products. this approach has changed the traditional model of the us army designing equipment from the top level and achieved a bottom-up transformation. the commercial technologies and products currently included in the test mainly include drones, anti-drone systems, communication networks and electromagnetic systems. the time windows for the second and third phases are set in the next 2 to 7 years and 7 to 15 years respectively, focusing on the upgrade of command and control systems and firepower systems.

with the introduction of the concept of "engagement transformation", the us army began to conduct targeted tests in exercises. recently, the 2nd brigade of the 101st airborne division of the us army, as one of the pilot units of the "engagement transformation" concept, equipped 50 small drones with commercial wifi equipment in an exercise at the johnson joint training center in louisiana to simulate the communication signals of ground forces, successfully attracting more than 50% of the opponent's firepower, and the effect exceeded expectations. this exercise has attracted much attention because the cost of installing wifi equipment on each drone is less than $100, but it has achieved battlefield effects that are difficult to achieve with equipment worth tens of millions of dollars.

in another exercise, the u.s. army used commercial network terminals to integrate the entire communication network of a tactical command post into an armored vehicle, reducing its detection signals by 75% and making it easier to conceal the command post. the u.s. army has used this as one of its strategies to deal with enemy drone attacks on future battlefields.

to achieve multiple goals

according to us media, the us army hopes to enhance the innovation, flexibility and adaptability of its troops by verifying and promoting the concept of "contact transformation", which is specifically reflected in three aspects.

first, accelerate the application of new technologies. on the one hand, the application of the concept of "contact transformation" helps shorten the procurement cycle of new technologies and equipment. according to the research report, according to the existing weapons and equipment procurement process of the us army, it takes at least two years from the concept of a new technology project to the application of equipment, and it is necessary to go through multiple steps such as demonstration approval, budget preparation and competitive procurement. however, the needs of the us army may have changed in two years. with the concept of "contact transformation", the us army can use special funds to directly purchase mature commercial technologies and products, while shortening the training cycle. gabe camarillo, deputy secretary of the us army for equipment and training, said that in the past, the army conducted centralized training only after the new equipment was in place, and commercial products are easy to operate and not confidential. soldiers can use them directly or explore them on their own, thereby reducing the overall training time.

secondly, improve the pertinence of equipment. randy george, chief of staff of the u.s. army, said: "the army's armored troops and artillery have different needs in electronic warfare. the troops deployed in the middle east and the philippines also have different needs for communication equipment. the army should determine the best configuration of troops and equipment in different battlefield environments based on the specific needs of each combat unit." to this end, the u.s. army needs to give priority to evaluating commercial technology products with high versatility and high modularity and use them as basic equipment; on the other hand, it needs to quickly configure other functional modules according to specific needs. for example, small portable drones are popular with brigade-level combat teams because of their easy operation and flexible deployment. infantry companies can convert small drones into simple suicide drones, and artillery companies can add camera modules to small drones to improve their reconnaissance effects.

finally, promote competition in the military industry. senior officials of the u.s. army believe that the current u.s. military industry groups that develop and produce land warfare equipment are insufficient in innovation, which will affect the future ground combat capabilities of the army. the army's main combat equipment, such as tanks, armored vehicles, and artillery, has a high threshold for research and development and requires long-term and stable research, demonstration, and investment. individual equipment, such as rifles, has a single procurement source and is highly exclusive. by introducing the concept of "contact transformation", the u.s. army can bypass a series of cumbersome processes and directly use mature products, while prompting related companies to connect their products with the needs of the army, further stimulating market vitality.

facing many challenges

analysts point out that at present, the "engagement transformation" concept promoted by the us army faces at least three challenges.

first, the procedure is questioned. us domestic analysts pointed out that the special funds allocated under the concept of "engagement transformation" by the us army are evading congressional review. although the traditional procurement process is complicated, by coordinating with suppliers on factors such as price, construction period, and confidentiality, corruption and security issues can be avoided to a certain extent. at the same time, projects that have been reviewed by congress can prevent duplication of construction between various military services, thereby avoiding waste of resources. however, there are regulatory loopholes in the specific use of the special funds allocated under the concept of "engagement transformation".

second, there are limitations on the objects. on the one hand, at this stage, the concept of "contact transformation" involves fewer types of equipment and a smaller scope, mainly targeting drones and electronic warfare equipment with low r&d costs and frequent technological updates. these equipment are not the main force on the ground battlefield, and are unlikely to become the decisive force in future ground operations. setting up special funds for these equipment is more like asking for money in disguise. on the other hand, the units currently participating in the pilot are at a lower level, and their decisions are mainly based on the feedback from officers and soldiers at the company level. they are more concerned about solving current specific problems, and generally do not consider the needs of campaign tactical operations and joint operations. their feedback on new technologies is not necessarily reasonable, and they cannot provide predictive solutions for the future development of equipment.

third, it is difficult to provide logistics support. according to personnel from the troops participating in the pilot, under the support of the "contact transformation" concept, the frequency of purchasing new equipment is very high, but the troops have not received corresponding maintenance support and training. moreover, commercial technology products were not originally designed for military purposes. the pilot units rotate every 6 months. this approach cannot fully test the durability of each product and its applicability in different environments. once these devices are promoted and used, they will bring great pressure to the logistics support system.