Last week, the Department of Defense (DoD) named seven U.S. military installations as the latest sites where it will conduct testing of the 5G wireless networks. This is the fifth generation standard for cellular networks, which the major wireless carriers began to deploy worldwide last year.
It is the planned successor to the 4G networks that provide connectivity to most current phones, and its main advantage is that it will have greater bandwidth and provide higher download speeds. Unlike the past mobile networks, it will be used in more applications including the delivery of Internet-based services directly to laptops and even desktop computers, but it could also provide the connectivity for autonomous vehicles and so-called “smart cities.”
Benefits of the Update
The DoD has noted how 5G can be used to provide smoother real-time communication with soldiers in the field, and thus improve intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) systems and processing of data. It could also enable new methods of command and control (C2), and even streamline logistics systems for greater efficiency. All radio frequencies can, in a way, be weaponized, but with speeds 10 to 20 times faster than 4G LTE 5G can be more easily used with weapon system.
“DoD recognizes that industry is driving 5G technology with massive investments in the many hundreds of billions of dollars,” said Joseph Evans, the DoD’s technical director for 5G, during a news conference at the Pentagon on Wednesday. “Because of that, DOD is working closely with industry partners to leverage those investments for military applications. In the coming weeks, the department will issue requests for proposals from industry from those industry partners to prototype and experiment at these Tranche 2 bases.”
New Test Sites
This second round of DoD testing, which is being referred to as Tranche 2, brings the total number of installations selected to host 5G testing to 12. The lucky seven locations include Naval Base Norfolk, VA; Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, HI; Joint Base San Antonio, TX; the National Training Center (NTC) at Fort Irwin, CA; Fort Hood, TX; Camp Pendleton, CA; and Tinker Air Force Base, OK.
“I am encouraged to hear that the Department of Defense (DoD) has named Naval Station Norfolk as one of the new sites to conduct experimentation and testing of fifth-generation (5G) communications technology,” Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Virg.) said in a statement. “DoD’s 5G program will allow our military to enhance our capabilities and maintain a technological advantage over near-peer adversaries, China and Russia.”
Selection Criteria
The DoD announced that the bases were selected for their respective ability to provide streamlined access to site spectrum bands, mature fiber and wireless infrastructure, access to key facilities, support for new or improved infrastructure requirements and the ability to conduct controlled experimentation with dynamic spectrum sharing.
The Trache 1 U.S. military installations, which were selected for many of the same reasons, included Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA; Hill Air Force Base, UT; Naval Base San Diego, CA; and Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany, GA. In May of this year, the DoD also announced that Nellis Air Force Base, NV had also been selected.
The new tranche builds on the DoD’s previously-announced 5G communications technology prototyping and experimentation. It is part of the platform’s development roadmap guided by the DoD’s 5G Strategy.
The DoD noted, “5G is a critical strategic technology: those nations that master advanced communications technologies and ubiquitous connectivity will have a long-term economic and military advantage.”
Specific Testing
The new round of opportunities will focus on the following areas:
- Ship-wide/Pier Connectivity at Naval Station Norfolk
- Enhancing Aircraft Mission Readiness at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam
- Augmented Reality Support of Maintenance and Training at Joint Base San Antonio
- Wireless Connectivity for Forward Operating Bases (FOB) and Tactical Operations Centers (TOC) at the NTC at Fort Irwin and Fort Hood, Texas
- Wireless Connectivity for FOBs and TOCs at Camp Pendleton
- DOD 5G Core Security Experimentation Network at Joint Base San Antonio and multiple remote locations
- Bi-directional Spectrum Sharing – DOD / Commercial at Tinker AFB
In the coming weeks, the DoD, which has said it recognizes that industry will play a key role in the development of leap-ahead 5G technology for both military and civilian uses, will issue requests for prototype proposals from industry partners.
“5G technology is vital to maintaining America’s military and economic advantages,” Evans added. “5G will be the advent of ubiquitous connectivity that is the conductivity of everything and everyone, everywhere, through wireless communications. It is a transformational technology. With this latest tranche of bases and experiments, DOD is ensuring that our military can make use of 5G capabilities based on the innovations from U.S. industries.”
