{"id":114361,"date":"2014-04-22T15:36:25","date_gmt":"2014-04-22T15:36:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dronewars.net\/?p=5423"},"modified":"2014-04-22T15:36:25","modified_gmt":"2014-04-22T15:36:25","slug":"project-crossbow-how-a-norfolk-raf-base-plugs-into-the-drone-wars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/editorials\/project-crossbow-how-a-norfolk-raf-base-plugs-into-the-drone-wars\/","title":{"rendered":"Project Crossbow: How a Norfolk RAF base plugs into the drone wars"},"content":{"rendered":"

A map in the USAF\u2019s new \u2018RPA Vector Report\u2019 <\/a>released on April 4 2014 confirms that \u2018Project Crossbow\u2019 based at RAF Marham in Norfolk is part of the intelligence backbone guiding the growing use of US and UK drones.<\/p>\n

While British Reaper drones based in Afghanistan are being remotely controlled from RAF Waddington\u00a0in Lincolnshire, RAF Marham\u00a0near Kings Lynn\u00a0is home to\u00a0Crossbow,\u00a0a joint UK-US intelligence analysis\u00a0project<\/a>. Operated\u00a0by the RAF’s Tactical Imagery Intelligence Wing (TIW) but “under the tactical control” of a USAF Squadron, Crossbow\u00a0<\/span>receives and feeds information into the US Distributed Common Ground System (DCGS).<\/p>\n

\"rso-architecture2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

‘Remote Operations Architecture’ map showing\u00a0command & control connections and information feeds from US drones. Source:\u00a0USAF RPA Vector Report<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Distributed Common Ground System<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The Distributed Common Ground System<\/a> is the US military\u2019s key tool for collecting, analysing and distributing information and intelligence collected from U-2, Global Hawk, Predator, Reaper, MC-12 and what the USAF discreetly calls \u201cother ISR platforms\u201d (i.e. the Sentinel<\/a>).\u00a0 Other, more traditional\u00a0manned aircraft also feed intelligence from various electronic sensors into the DCGS.<\/p>\n

There are five military DCGS\u00a0core sites which receive, analyze and disseminate information from \u201cmultiple ISR platforms in multiple theaters of operation simultaneously.\u201d\u00a0 The core sites, which are in turn networked with more than 20 other specialist information processing sites, are located at Langley Air Force base in Virginia, Beale Air Force base in California, Hickam\u00a0Air Force base in Hawaii; Ramstein Air Base in Germany and Osan Air Force Base in South Korea.<\/p>\n

A sixth DCGS, developed and operated by the US \u2018intelligence community\u2019 is not marked on the map no doubt for national security reasons.<\/p>\n

This 20-second video\u00a0demonstrates how the communications network works:<\/p>\n