Getting the Most Out of the MDO Range Guide
This analysis is pulled from the Multi-Domain Operations Range Guide for Company Grade through Field Grade Leaders (01 JUNE 2024), which the United States Army Intelligence Center of Excellence and the United States Army Cyber Center of Excellence put together. You can find this guide shared by the Center for Army Lessons Learned on LinkedIn. If you’re an Electronic Warfare (EW) or Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) expert in or support of the US Department of Defense, here’s what you should keep in mind as you read through this. What we've seen in recent conflicts/operations/wars really shows how much today's fighting relies on a very crowded and contested ElectroMagnetic Spectrum (EMS). That means we need a smart, coordinated way to train how we actually fight.
One thing that really stands out is how fast things can move. For example, the guide mentions it can be as quick as eight minutes from when an emission is detected in the EMS to when artillery might hit that location. That’s a serious point to consider. It means we have to be on top of our game in an environment where the EMS isn’t just background noise; it's a critical area of operations, just like land, air, sea, and space. Being able to see our own electronic footprint, manage our signatures, and at the same time mess with the enemy’s ability to do the same is incredibly important.
Weaving EW and ISR into MDO Training
The guide makes it very plain: for EW/ISR to really work in Multi-Domain Operations (MDO), they have to be part of the plan from the start. Think about these specific points as you look through the document:
Full Integration from the Get-Go: The document often points out that EW and Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) groups aren't always well connected with Brigade Combat Team (BCT) plans during Combat Training Center (CTC) rotations. The main reason is that they weren't properly mixed in during training back at their home base. This guide really pushes for including I&EW-specific tasks from the Military Intelligence Training Strategy (MITS) and Cyber ElectroMagnetic Warfare Training Standards (CEWTS) in every unit's training, so it becomes a normal part of how they do things.
Getting Home Station Training Right: Success here means making good use of what you have at your home station. The Mission Training Complex (MTC) can help you build scenarios and bring together Live, Virtual, and Constructive (LVC) training. The Foundry Program, run by INSCOM, is essential for intelligence readiness, giving you access to important databases, Intelligence Community (IC) credentials, and helping you train for new threats like counter-UAS, space, and cyber intelligence. Don’t forget Range Operations for access to training land and facilities, or the Training Support Center (TSC) for key Training Aids, Devices, Simulators, and Simulations (TADSS) like the IEWTPT. Spectrum Management is Key: Your live I&EW training won't happen without careful spectrum planning. The guide details how to request spectrum and, very importantly, Electronic Attack (EA) support. You must talk with your local Installation Spectrum Manager (SM) early and keep talking to them; the guide notes it can take more than 120 days to get frequency or EA requests approved. You'll need to list out every single thing that sends out signals, like radios, UAS links, threat emitters, jammers, radars, and mesh networks. You will also need their paperwork, such as a DD1494 or J/F-12, and put all of this into a detailed Concept of Operations (CONOPS). Pay close attention to the Frequency Assignment Lifecycle (Figure 1 in the guide) and the EA Request process (Section 14).
Advanced Systems for Real-World Training: The Intelligence and ElectroMagnetic Warfare Tactical Proficiency Trainer (IEWTPT) is a big one. It simulates the land, space, and cyber EW domains, feeding realistic data to intelligence systems to train everyone from individual soldiers to large units. It also lets you do simulated EAs, which gets around the long approval times for live EAs. When you connect IEWTPT with systems like the Expeditionary Live-Virtual-Constructive Command and Control (XLCC) and the Threat Battle Command Force (TBCF), you can create a synthetic electromagnetic environment that really challenges your teams. XLCC acts as the C2 center, pulling together LVC parts and tools like the ElectroMagnetic Warfare Planning and Management Tool (EWPMT). TBCF gives you a solid OPFOR C3 setup. The ElectroMagnetic Warfare Planning and Management Tool (EWPMT) is what commanders use to see and manage EMS effects. It lets you control EW equipment remotely and, very importantly, when used with IEWTPT, can control virtual and constructive gear. This helps commanders see their own EMS footprint and how the enemy sees them.
Building Strength in a Tough EMS Environment: You can’t hide if you don’t know what you look like in the EMS. The guide suggests checking your unit’s EMS signature with tools like Spectrum Guard or RFeye. This helps with Emissions Control (EMCON) and your Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency (PACE) plans. Getting Used to NAVigation WARfare (NAVWAR): Units need to train for times when GPS is out or unreliable. Government systems like Situational Training Electronic Attack Variable Emitter (STEVE) or NAVWAR Electronic Attack Trainer (NEAT), or commercial options, can mimic these conditions. The guide stresses that even low-power Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) denial can really slow down movement, delay calls for fire, and make direction-finding tricky. OPFOR with Real EA Power: It’s vital to train against an OPFOR that can use EA with systems like Tactical ElectroMagnetic Warfare System (TEWS), Versatile Radio Observation and Direction (VROD)/VMAX, or the Terrestrial Layered System Brigade Combat Team (TLS BCT) Manpack. Units need to practice fixing problems, spotting COMSEC issues, and using the terrain when they’re being jammed. ElectroMagnetic Protection (EP) as Second Nature: EP isn’t just something you do; it’s how you should always operate. This means EMCON, handling environmental effects, making sure gear works together without interference, electromagnetic masking, and EW reprogramming. Good EMCON, based on knowing what’s going on in the EMS, is key for Operations Security (OPSEC). Using Signal Emulators for Deception: You can use signal emulators like STRATOMIST, INVICTA, or commercial ones such as Motorola VQT2, CACI Magpie, to make the EMS crowded or to try and trick the enemy, which is Military Deception (MILDEC). Picking the right tools is important. Think about frequency range, power output, and if they can copy specific enemy signal patterns, like frequency hopping, to match the threats in your Area of Operations (AOR).
The Sensor-to-Shooter Link in Live Fire: The guide really wants to see ElectroMagnetic Spectrum Operations (EMSO) fully included in Live Fire Exercises (LFX). This means EW and/or SIGINT aren't just watching; they're actively finding targets. Emitters, ideally ones that can be destroyed and put in place safely with drones, act as High-Payoff Targets (HPTLs). They're found using the EMS, then targeted with lethal or non-lethal fires, and finally, Battle Damage Assessment (BDA) is done, maybe also using the EMS. Following the Rules of Engagement (ROE) for how accurately you need to find something before firing is critical.
Using the Integrated Broadcast Service (IBS): IBS is a key Department of Defense (DoD)-wide network that shares near real-time tactical and strategic intelligence and targeting data from many places. It's not a collection system itself, but it’s a vital way to get data to systems like the Tactical Intelligence Ground Station (TGS) at brigade/division or the Operational Ground Station at corps. You can get this feed over a network or over the air if you have the right crypto keys.
Detailed Points for Use Cases
The guide gives several MDO Collective Training Use Cases (Section 11 and Appendix A). As an EW/ISR expert, look closely at:
SIGINT Situational Training Exercise (STX): Notice the specific tasks like 34-TM-0713 Perform a (SIGINT) Survey or 34-TM-0700 Perform Voice Communications Intercept or Radio Direction Finding (RDF). See how the EMS environment gets more complicated from the crawl to the run phase.
EW Team STX: Focus on the FORSCOM CEWTS Tier 3 tasks, such as Conduct EW/Cyber Support Team (CST) Synchronization, Provide CST Support to EW Operations, and Conduct an ElectroMagnetic Operational Environment Assessment. Again, see how the difficulty ramps up in finding Signals of Interest (SOIs) and jammers, and doing EA.
Technical Control and Analysis Cells (TCAC) and Process Exploitation Dissemination (PED) Lane: Understand the process from setting up TSCIF communications, managing SOI lists, sorting out collection issues, to developing target nominations using all available SIGINT data.
MDO Targeting Lane: This is where a lot of pieces come together. It involves predicting enemy moves, developing targets for your High-Payoff Target List (HPTL)/High-Value Target List (HVTL), creating Target Information Folders (TIFs), and running sensor-to-shooter drills based on different kinds of intel like ELINT, MTI, and OSINT.
Mounted/Dismounted SIGINT/EW Team STX: This combined exercise detailed in Appendix A mixes MITS/CEWTS Tier III certification with an EW EA LFX. It requires teams to work together to find SOIs, locate jammers, and use EA to affect enemy communications. The example 5-day training model in Appendix A gives you a practical plan.
This MDO Range Guide is a very useful document. By going through it with these specific points in mind and understanding how they connect, EW/ISR professionals can really improve their unit's readiness for the electromagnetic challenges of today's conflicts.