Photo By Joseph Bullinger | N. Charleston, SC (March 18, 2025) Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Atlantic...... read more read more
NIWC Atlantic Conducts Wartime Readiness Experiment
CHARLESTON, S.C.--A naval experiment in Charleston, South Carolina, tested state-of-the-art technologies on land, sea and air. The four-day experiment ran from March 17 to 20 and stress-tested technology used for a variety of essential Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) capabilities, including those connected with autonomous aircraft, vehicles and unmanned maritime vessels.
The annual technological experiment hosted by Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Atlantic is known as the System of Systems Naval Integration Experiment (SoSNIE). This is the seventh year the command has hosted an event that continues to grow its presence within the military technology community.
A “system” in this context can refer to a type of software, a piece of hardware, a digital program, a unique technological communication method, and more. The systems tested at SoSNIE are in direct support of the warfighter and the defense of the United States of America, making SoSNIE critical in technological innovation and development within the Department of Defense.
Each year, NIWC Atlantic creates an environment of field testing for SoSNIE at its Small Autonomous Unmanned Systems Research (SAUSR) Range and, this year, also at its labs located on nearby Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina.
Ashlee Landreth, NIWC Atlantic Expeditionary Warfare department head, explained that the focus of the 2025 SoSNIE centered on testing technology for environments during wartime. “[We have always been] focused on 'fight tonight' Program of Record (PoR) systems," she said. "So, if we were to go into a conflict scenario, [we are testing how we would] take the existing systems that we have today, and how they would work when they are integrated across the joint force.”
The U.S. Navy is currently in a readiness posture, preparing for a possible conflict with China by 2027. This preparation is a direct result of a military strategy released by China’s President Xi Jinping stating that Chinese forces will be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027.
The potential invasion may escalate tension in this area of responsibility, compelling the Navy to prepare for possible engagement should it be necessary. “As we advance to more of a great power competition environment, the need for the tri-service maritime strategy — Marine Corps, Navy, Coast Guard — all being one naval service is that much more important. So, we are focused on those threads that address interoperability gaps,” Landreth explained.
The threads Landreth referred to are “mission threads,” which, in this context, is a term to describe different scenarios where systems are needed to realize an operational use case.
“Every year, we try to grow with the number of systems that are participating — with the end in mind of focusing on [full closure of] naval integration mission threads,” Landreth said.
The ultimate goal of SoSNIE is to achieve two primary outputs: engineering change proposals (ECPs) that address interoperability gaps for the program office and generating new ideas in the fields of science and technology (S&T) and research and development (R&D) spawned by extensive observation.
One unique aspect of the experiment this year was the addition of the Navy and Marine Corps Small Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program Office, PMA-263, which experimented with their VXE30 Stalker system. This tactical drone runs on either a fuel cell or a rechargeable battery, giving it the power to handle long-distance missions. A two-person team can set it up and have it flying in just 20 minutes. Everything fits into ruggedized containers small enough to be easily transported in a pickup.
Another technology tested was a portable biometric, access-control system called Gatekeeper On The Move (GOTM) Space Truncated Identity Collections (STIC). It has the ability for face, finger and eye recognition.
Valerie Plucinski, a NIWC Atlantic engineer and GOTM STIC project lead, said experimenting with their capability is important because it can be used to reveal persons of interest to the warfighter, enabling them to accurately and quickly identify any threats that cross their path. “SoSNIE gives us the opportunity to prove our technology and add value to our project and the warfighter.”
GOTM STIC was tested at SoSNIE entry control points to simulate down-range environments. “So far, the biggest takeaway for us is that we can interface with more projects than we thought possible," she said. "We have also overcome some major hurdles ... to continue providing capabilities to the warfighter.”
SoSNIE creates an environment where engineers and scientists can be out in the field working alongside the warfighter assessing the systems they have been working on in labs. This collaborative opportunity enhances the understanding of outcomes and lessons learned between the interconnected realms of civilian and military operations.
Sgt. Evan Pelobello, a U.S. Marine Corps data systems administrator, said his experience testing technology at SoSNIE was useful because it demonstrated how Navy, Marine Corps and Army systems integrate. "It’s very good when our systems get to communicate with each other and all of the entities within the DoD,” he said.
At SoSNIE, Pelobello experimented with connecting POR systems to Tactical Entry Point (TEP) kits via the Marine Corps Enterprise Network (MCEN). “At the end of the day it’s for command and control. We want to get all of the information down to the warfighter so they can fight,” he said.
“We are a safe environment to experiment [in]," explained Jason Brooks, NIWC Atlantic's SoSNIE technical lead. "You can meet whatever objective you want to meet without worrying about an exercise scenario where everything is scripted.” Brooks pointed out a key difference between military exercises and experiments. Most exercises have a scripted scenario that all players must adhere to. Whereas an experiment like SoSNIE allows scientists and engineers to develop and shift their scenarios based on the testing needs of that technology.
The 2025 SoSNIE consisted of approximately 45 systems using four unmanned surface vessels, five unmanned aerial systems, and manned aircraft, including a U.S. Army AH-64E Apache v6 attack helicopter from McEntire Joint National Guard Base, in Richland County, South Carolina, and a C-17A Globemaster from the 437th Airlift Wing at Joint Base Charleston. NIWC Atlantic also received significant support from the 628th Air Base Wing at Joint Base Charleston through landing and refueling operations; and safety and security measures such as electromagnetic radiation calculations and bomb sweeps. The event attracted approximately 240 active participants and attendees, including several military distinguished visitors.
A talented team of NIWC Atlantic engineers and scientists led by Brooks and Matt Lane spent months planning and organizing the event and have hope of continuing on their growth trajectory into 2026. “Going forward, we want to maintain this open [environment] for the engineers," Brooks said. "I also think we need to take it to the next level where we create objectives across all of SoSNIE and meet higher level objectives that may be useful to the warfighter.”
About NIWC Atlantic
As a part of Naval Information Warfare Systems Command, NIWC Atlantic provides systems engineering and acquisition to deliver information warfare capabilities to the naval, joint and national warfighter through the acquisition, development, integration, production, test, deployment, and sustainment of interoperable command, control, communications, computer, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, cyber and information technology capabilities.
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| Date Taken: | 03.26.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 03.26.2025 15:23 |
| Story ID: | 493793 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 391 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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