NATO EMPHASISES THE IMPORTANCE OF FREQUENCY SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT
“Electromagnetic emissions do not respect national boundaries or operational boundaries within a Joint Operational Area (JOA). Failure to properly manage the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS) within the operational environment could result in loss or degradation of important Communications and Information Systems (CIS), weapons, intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance systems.”
Battlespace Spectrum Management (BSM) can be defined as “the planning, coordination and management of the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS) through operational, engineering and administrative procedures. It enables military electronic systems to perform their functions within intended environments without causing or suffering harmful interference.”
“Electronic Warfare (EW) is a military action that exploits electromagnetic (EM) energy to provide situational awareness and achieve offensive and defensive effects. EW, the conduct of Electromagnetic Operations (EMO), is Warfare in the Electromagnetic Environment (EME)”
The Electromagnetic Environment (EME) is a manoeuvre space defined as, “The totality of electromagnetic phenomena existing at a given location.” The EME is a local operational environment that connects all other physical and informational domains within the Battlespace of Area of Operation (AOO).
“Potential adversaries operate within the EME as well and may seek to exploit or interfere with Alliance use of it. Non-combatants also use the EME as an everyday capability for purposes such as emergency services, personal or business communications, navigation, and entertainment. The increasingly dense utilisation of the EME drives the important requirement to actively avoid undesired conflicts across the domain. This need for deconfliction between friend, adversary, and neutral use is a concern for operation planners at all levels, land, sea, air, and joint.”
“In the JOA, the concurrent use of the EMS by the military and many civil elements, including the media and IOs/NGOs, implies that the EMS cannot be controlled by any one user. However, it can be managed to minimise conflict between users. Therefore, spectrum managers must exercise authority over all operational users to coordinate all friendly use of the EMS effectively, within constraints applied from non-military usage and spectrum availability.”
FEATURES OF ELECTROMAGNETIC ENVIRONMENT
Intensified Struggle in Electronic Environment
The value of digital information has increased to the level that all potential adversaries are planning and acquiring countermeasures in physical, electromagnetic and cyber dimensions. Ongoing military operations in Ukraine have demonstrated both the effects of, and ways to use, countermeasures in an electromagnetic environment. “Electronic Warfare, EW ” or “Radio-Elektronnaya Borba, REB ” are widely used operational means to achieve surprise or advantage over the opponent. Both the nation and its Defence Forces need to be more skilful in operating through the electromagnetic spectrum and sustaining their freedom of operation. A resourceful adversary can create an electromagnetic effect lethal against modern, digitalised forces. Without the mobility ensured by wireless communications and the awareness guaranteed by information flow, modern troops become isolated, ineffective components. The electromagnetic spectrum has become a possible point of weakness for the modern fighting force.
Pervasive Usage of the Electromagnetic Spectrum
eGovernment and smart governance programs are building a more efficient, information-intensive public sector in the UAE. The electromagnetic spectrum is needed extensively to support mobile and information-rich government and civilian functions. The economy is increasingly digitalised, driving commerce and value creation. The private sector needs more bandwidth to keep up with competition for the attention of information-hungry consumers. The main wave in transformation towards an information society with digitalisation and the Internet of Things is taking place within the next few years.
The Armed Forces are quickly building more digitalised forces with transceivers distributed to all warriors, unmanned vehicles, and autonomous electronic systems. The mobility of defence requires more wireless connections within the area of operation shared with all other critical and essential national defence operators.
Complexity of Electromagnetic Environment
The traditional way to assign radio spectrum based on dedicated channels of 25 or 50 kHz bandwidth is not sufficient in the modern electromagnetic environment. Wider frequency bands are used to spread the transmission and minimise the probability of interception. Higher power and smaller cell sizes enable digital wireless connections throughout the battlefield. Emission modulation methods have moved well beyond FM and AM transmissions.
MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES
The current International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) approach to Frequency Management is based on bands or channels defined by frequency, power distribution over the spectrum, location, and time. The ITU-published Radio Regulations (RR) allocate the frequency spectrum for different uses, such as satellite, air, fixed, or mobile. These allocations vary based on regions. Regional TRAs such as CEPT may further allocate spectrum usage and define their boundaries. Ultimately, the electromagnetic spectrum is a matter of national sovereignty. National TRAs manage their Electromagnetic Environments within their nations' geographical boundaries and agree on frequency usage adjacent to their borders. National TRA’s allocate channels or bands to different telecommunications operators and other stakeholders. Allocations may be based on technical and financial research, “match show” comparisons of acquirers, auctions, or market approaches. In all cases, frequencies are allocated to a certain time and location.
The military has long been the widest user of EMS with official status. As a result, the military has enjoyed exclusive frequency bands like VHF 30–88 MHz combat network radio, where spread-spectrum methods like frequency hopping have been utilised. This exclusivity has, though, been limited over the past 30 years, particularly in Europe, forcing NATO to constrain its land operations in exercise areas. As a result, military and civilian frequency use is increasingly shared, and interference constraints are becoming more sensitive. The military is also using frequency bands allocated purely for civilian purposes as it adopts more Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) transceivers. In particular, in frequency bands such as HF, propagation has been global from the very beginning. Thus, the 3–30 MHz band has not been allocated to a definite system or user, but everyone using the band must cope with the natural and man-made noise that comes with it. HF radios now include automatic link-establishment features that search the entire band for the best channel and agree on a link with other stations. HF band has also been the first to evidence ultra-wideband usage, where transmission uses the entire available band and advanced modulation techniques.
There are four distinctive ways to manage military frequency spectrum: per Force, per Region, per System or per Mission.
Management of Military EME per Force
Electromagnetic Environment of a Nation can be defined as the essential and critical frequency usage that needs to be protected. Other frequencies are allocated to a maximum available number of independently operating Joint Task Forces freely moving throughout the whole National AOO. The allocation per force is typical for Defence Forces preparing for modern, mobile operations anywhere within the boundaries of national sovereignty. This allocation optimises flexibility, low probability of detection or interception, emission control and enables deception for the Joint Task Force as described in Figure 1. It allows the JTF to confront its adversaries with maximum operational freedom while preserving the essential spectrum for protected entities.
The process of JTF-divided spectrum management may follow the sequence:
- Define national critical spectrum usage and create some phases of intensity that can be controlled by legislation
- Provide these critical bands and channels as constraints to Military usage of EMS
- Define average Joint Task Force and its essential transceivers
- Assign frequency packages with constraints to each JTF
- Provide sufficient competence for each JTF to manage their EME and Emission Control (EMCON)
- Define processes to avoid interference when two or more JTF are operating in dense AOO
- Monitor the behaviour in National EME and wargame for alternative options
- Extend the current spectrum management process to reach 20 years towards the future, as targeted by ITU and TRA decisions.
Management of Military EME per Region
If the area of national interest can be divided into standing, regional combatant commands, it is possible to apply more geographically tailored EMS management. Each Combatant Command establishes EMS management within its Area of Responsibility, i.e., EME. The regionally distributed spectrum management is followed in U.S. Commands and in National Defence, which is divided into more autonomous regions of Defence . Spectrum usage is tailored to the specifics of current and planned operations within the AOR and requires only TRA-level governance at the national level. The EMS is planned alongside other military planning, including Electronic Warfare and EMCON issues. The national level must manage future capabilities and their spectrum requirements. Force Elements (FE) receive region-specific frequency allocation tables, and Combatant Command manages all flexibility in close coordination with other regional stakeholders, as depicted in Figure 2. When FE’s move from one region to another, they change their frequency usage from the boundary onwards.
The process of regionally divided spectrum management may follow the sequence:
- Develop the spectrum-use plan when creating and testing current or future operational plans.
- Prepare a joint restricted frequency list in cooperation with J2, J3, and J6.
- Periodically update and distribute the joint restricted frequency list as changes emerge in organisation, geography, doctrine and technical systems
- Provide administrative and technological support for military spectrum use
- Exercise frequency allotment and assignment authority by assigning frequency bands and channels to each requiring FE.
- Establish and maintain the shared database necessary for planning, coordinating and controlling spectrum use.
- Analyse and evaluate potential spectrum-use conflicts.
- Assist and coordinate the resolution of spectrum-use conflicts.
- By J5 guidance, coordinate military spectrum use with National TRA, Coalition partners, critical infrastructure service providers, etc.
- Receives, reports on, analyses, and attempts to resolve incidents of unacceptable electromagnetic interference.
Management of Military EME per System
In the absence of the above structures, military spectrum may be allocated following National TRA methodology. Each system or operator requires bands or channels as needed, and the EMS Authority allocates them with constraints on frequency, power, location, and time. The system owner or operator manages further allocations and spectrum operations in EME. The EMS Authority follows a simple asset management process, for example:
- Maintain a spectrum management database,
- Define the spectrum requirement,
- Identify the available spectrum,
- Assign available bands and channels to operators,
- Monitor frequency utilisation,
- Resolve interference incidents,
- Acquire more spectrum assets for the future.
Management of Military EME per Mission
Most NATO countries focus more on projecting military force outside their sovereign state. The expeditionary operations call for mission-defined EMS management. Since AOO does not allow long-term EME preparation, Battlespace Management preparations begin only after the mission is defined. Management is based on principles of sovereignty, interaction, and delegation. The EMS is a sovereign asset. It requires cooperation between Host Nations, friendly and neutral parties, and International TRA organisations. Shared use of EMS and cooperation in shared EME require interaction between parties. Depending on the degree of variety in joint and combined operations, planning can be centralised, but Force Elements should be delegated the frequency of use.
The EMS Authority is following, for example, the following EMS management process:
- Establish interaction with
o Network Operation Centre for CIS operations,
o J2 for ISTAR operations,
o EW Coordination Cell,
o Force Protection entities for electronic countermeasures coordination,
o Tactical Data Links Operation Centre,
o J3 for lethal effects on the EMS users,
o Media and Information Operations for broadcast requirements, and
o Maritime, Land and Air Components for other requirements.
- Initial planning of the mission identifies the Joint information exchange requirements and needs for EMS.
- Contact the TRA of the Host Nation, neighbouring nations and possible regional ITU entities to find out the correct authorities for spectrum-use allocation.
- While improving the EMS utilisation plan (as part of the Battlespace management plan), more requests for frequency allocations are produced to the appropriate TRA parties, and their decisions are collected into the EMS plan.
- Provide fragmentation orders as needed to operating centres and components.
