Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) and the United States Space Force (USSF)

Prepared by the Flatter, Inc. Thought Leadership Team:

• General Robert Kehler, USAF (Ret.)
• Admiral Cecil Haney, USN (Ret.)
• General Frank Gorenc, USAF (Ret.)
• General Lori Robinson, USAF (Ret.)
• Admiral Michael Rogers, USN (Ret.)
• General Joseph Votel, USA (Ret.)
• General Robert Neller, USMC (Ret.)
• Admiral Kurt Tidd, USN (Ret.)
• Lieutenant General Susan Helms, USAF (Ret.)
• Major General James (Rev) Jones, USAF (Ret.)
• The Honorable George Foresman, DHS (Ret.)
• Dr. J.R. Flatter, Ph.D., USMC (Ret.)
• Dr. David Corderman, Ph.D., FBI (Ret.)

Problem Statement

There is an immediate requirement to define JADC2 as it pertains to designing and building the USSF.

Discussion

Senior Department of War (DoW) leaders have expressed a desire to increase the effectiveness and combat power of the joint force by integrating sensors, forces, and decision-makers across a common information technology (IT) platform. While each service has a different approach to such integration, all are facing the same problem—in a future conflict the Joint Force will face significant time, distance, and operational challenges from highly capable near-peer adversaries who will cross regional boundaries and operate in all domains (land, sea, undersea, air, space, and cyberspace) to deny access and prevent mission success. To address this problem, commanders must be able to “rapidly plan and execute operations using capabilities from all domains, Services, and allies in a synchronized, cooperative, and efficient manner.” Modeling and simulation and recent exercises have shown that commanders who can do this will have a decisive advantage.

JADC2 Operational Concept and Platform Requirements

Level	JADC2 Operational Concept	JADC2 Platform
Strategic	JADC2 requires mission guidance, authorities, and other mission specific guidance from the National Command Authority (NCA). JADC2 requires Commander's Intent and a selected Course of Action (COA) developed via the Joint Planning Process (JPP).	JADC2 requires a resilient IT infrastructure to transmit mission orders to service components for execution. JADC2 must blend together all relevant data with Multi-Level Security from appropriate joint sensors, joint platforms, agencies and whole of government sources to provide situational awareness and positively affect the outcome of the selected joint COA.
Operational	JADC2 provides strategic guidance to support service component operational planning needed for successful execution of the Joint COA in all domains. JADC2 includes the necessary Rules of Engagement (ROE) and Special Instructions (SPINS) to ensure successful execution by each service component.	JADC2 must connect to existing service component C2 and exchange relevant data at machine-to-machine speed. The JADC2 CONOP must address the processes needed to permit effective “at speed” C2 to support the mission even if the architectures become compromised.
Tactical	JADC2 must support with precision the kinetic/non-kinetic kill chain (Find-Fix-Track-Target-Engage-Assess). JADC2 must execute today's fight (Combat Ops) while facilitating Day 2/3/4/5 service component planning (Combat Plans).	JADC2 must share relevant data at machine-to-machine speed with service component architectures.

Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) is the evolving term of reference for such a capability. As DoW works to unleash the tremendous potential inherent with JADC2, clarity of vision and a well understood and widely accepted JADC2 Concept of Operation (CONOP) are required. With vision and an established CONOP, the supporting JADC2 platform can be developed and matured to meet mission requirements.

While the space domain presents unique operational demands, JADC2 must be built on a set of common guiding principles:

• The U.S. military fights jointly with forces assigned to COCOMs. Military services present forces to the COCOMs through component commands.
• Commanders use the commander-centric philosophy of mission command to establish trust, understanding and provide intent to subordinates who use initiative to operate at the speed of the problem.
• The COCOMs are interdependent; no single combatant commander will have the capability or expertise to manage a future campaign alone. Therefore, plans, operations, and effects must be globally integrated and synchronized.
• Historic COCOM relationships are evolving and C2 structures must be capable of evolving with them.
• USSPACECOM has unique awareness and battle management needs given the scope and characteristics of the space domain and the multiple military, civil, and commercial actors operating in it. While unity of command is preferred, it may not be feasible. At a minimum, unity of effort will be essential.
• Space capabilities are essential to every aspect of U.S. military operations. Therefore, the USSF and USSPACECOM must establish the mechanisms and adopt the standard organizational structures needed to enable the necessary integration with the other COCOMs.
• USSF and USSPACECOM require mechanisms to battle manage their assets – as do their Service and COCOM peers – at all levels of battle – be they strategic, operational, or tactical engagements. Concurrently, these peers also require the ability battle manage their forces with Space assets at the strategic, operational, and tactical levels.
• USSF and USSPACECOM can assist the DoW in establishing a common Joint/Universal “Annex K” JADC2 standards and requirements protocol so that interoperability is “baked in” across all Services and COCOMs.

JADC2 is not a program. Rather, JADC2 is a command and control concept supported by a technology-driven platform. For the purposes of this paper, JADC2 can be defined as “the means (or method) by which a COCOM Commander uses mission command principles to execute a DoW assigned mission within a Joint Area of Responsibility (JOA)”. JADC2 must function at the strategic, operational and tactical levels of planning and execution.

JADC2 must enhance the ability of commanders to execute the basic C2 functions outlined in JP 3-0: specifically, “the exercise of authority and direction by a commander over assigned and attached forces to accomplish the mission”. However, while US commanders have successfully conducted C2 in the land, sea, undersea, and air domains for many years, the introduction of space and cyberspace as warfighting domains has introduced significant new challenges (and opportunities). Command and control must become more agile, flexible, and inclusive to accommodate the unique attributes and accept the unique contributions of these domains so commanders can integrate and seamlessly shift the weight of effort across all domains while maintaining operational momentum in highly contested environments.

All services, including the newly established United States Space Force (USSF), must develop new CONOPs, enabling technologies, and capabilities to facilitate the JADC2 concept. These concepts must be fully aligned with the Joint Planning Process as described in JP 5-0, while enabling a shift from C2 as a “system of deconfliction” to a “system of integration” that allows commanders to sense, comprehend, decide, and act faster than the enemy. Of equal importance, the JADC2 concept must address and, if needed, revise today's decision-making processes, authorities, and organizational structures to meet new operational demands and take advantage of the opportunities available in the space and cyberspace domains.

The JADC2 concept must be enabled by a distributed and scalable platform with the following attributes:

• Distribute data and information at machine-to-machine speed to all organizations in the joint fight ranging from intelligence professionals to military commanders at all levels.
• Accept information from all domain platforms and sensors and include government and commercial communications capabilities.
• Accommodate software applications from government and commercial sources.
• Provide data for analysis, machine learning, cognitive processing and artificial intelligence.

In addition, the JADC2 platform must be enabled by a self-forming, self-healing assured network, capable of the latency and data-transfer rates needed to meet mission needs and objectives despite inevitable enemy action. Also, given the interdependent nature of the operational relationships between USSPACECOM, civil and commercial space operators, and the Intelligence Community, it will be necessary for the JADC2 platform to account for and enable the full mission integration of these entities.

While there is no direct civilian counterpart to the JADC2 platform, Office 365 (software platform), Amazon Web Services (cloud infrastructure platform), TD Ameritrade (data analytics platform), and Uber (transportation platform) are platforms that JADC2 needs to emulate. The competition in the commercial marketspace drives company innovation that leads to interoperability amongst the myriad of applications (apps) and programs available to the consumer. Instead, in the absence of competition to inspire innovation, a compelling Joint CONOP will be needed to inspire innovations within the DoW that will ultimately drive JADC2 platform investment and performance.

Just like the other services, the USSF will use and contribute to JADC2. As a user, the USSF will present space forces to COCOMs via a subordinate command that will serve as the space component command to COCOMs, including US Space Command (USSPACECOM). As a contributor, the USSF must clearly articulate COCOM requirements and develop and procure forces, capabilities, sensors, and networks that will provide information and services to the JADC2 platform. Concurrently, the USSF will need to execute operations as a supported and supporting command simultaneously.

In addition, the USSF must be prepared to contribute unique conceptual development to JADC2:

• A CONOPS for space operations in a contested environment.
• Space modeling and simulation tools.
• Gaming at Service, Joint and Combined levels.
• Service, Joint and Combined exercises that involve space.

Finally, the USSF must address a number of fundamental questions related to JADC2:

• Is the current USSF organization fit for purpose to gain and maintain space superiority, deliver space capabilities, and deny adversaries the use of space when required?
  • If not, how should USSF organize? What USSF organization will act as the service component to the COCOMs.
  • Can current USSF op centers deliver space component capability to the joint force while establishing space superiority?
• How should the USSF train?
  • Is USSF training able to develop tomorrow's Space warriors? If not, how should USSF develop warriors in the future? How can USSF develop space warriors who understand joint warfare?
  • Does USSF training inspire and build an effective warrior culture? If not, how should USSF build the warrior culture?
  • Is the USSF robust enough to participate in service/joint/coalition training venues? If not, how will the USSF present or simulate space capability into joint and coalition training?
  • Is the USSF able to effectively train/educate joint coalition partners as to USSF capabilities. How can the USSF help develop joint warriors who understand space warfare? Who will identify opportunities to extend DoW continuum of learning to include space capabilities and warfighting?
• How should the USSF equip?
  • Does the USSF have the equipment, authorities, TTPs and CONOPS to defend US space assets?
  • Does the USSF have the equipment, authorities, TTPs and CONOPS to conduct offensive operations in space?
  • How do USSF assets help the joint force gain space situational awareness?
  • How do Space assets help the joint force gain Joint AOR situational awareness in all domains?
  • How do USSF assets establish superiority and dominance in the space domain, and how do they support other COCOMs to do the same in the Joint AOR?
• How should the USSF organize its warfighting component to USSPACECOM?
  • Does USSF organizational structure align with and enable USSPACECOM mission needs?
  • Is the USSF organizational structure consistent with other joint (standard) organizational structures to permit ease of integration and flow of information?
  • Does the USSF organizational structure support flexible (and simultaneous) supported/supporting command relationships?
  • Will USSF organizational structures allow USSPACECOM to execute missions simultaneously?

The USSF will play an important role in JADC2 both as user (requirements) and enabler (domain expert). Understanding the purpose of JADC2, the unique demands and requirements levied by the space domain, the needs of USSPACECOM and the other COCOMs, and how each service can contribute to the platform concept will be critical for success.

Recommended Action

USSF partner with Flatter, Inc. to continue refining, improving, and communicating JADC2 as it relates to the design and build of the USSF.