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However, with many terrorists now operating in urban environments and enjoying easy access to emerging technology and communications, force protection today demands technologically advanced solutions.  

"Force protection" is the measure or combination of measures employed to minimize the vulnerability of personnel, facilities, equipment and operations to any threat and in all situations. Whereas this once meant providing soldiers and vehicles with more armour, and the promise of robust retaliation should an attack take place, today's strategy sits at the tactical level, influenced by guerrilla tactics, terrorist activities and insurgency, each as unpredictable and unorthodox as the other. This drastic shift requires a change in force protection no less radical. A far more technologically sophisticated, varied and multi-layered approach must be adopted. While such an approach must rely on traditional tactics - disrupting the enemy's resources and planning, and targeting its funding and leadership - the way in which it does so is changing.

To hold all the cards

"The best chance of conducting operations successfully is by having ‘ownership' of the land for which you are responsible, and that means knowing exactly what is going on within it," explains Mike Shaw, key account leader for counter-terrorism and national security for Thales in the UK. "It means having access to better, more detailed information encompassing the complete electromagnetic spectrum to detect threats, and then being able to translate that information around the battle-field so you can react appropriately." Shaw admits that as soon as a way of countering a threat is found, terrorists will find a new type of technology, because advanced technologies are available commercially and the rate of change is more rapid than anything that has been seen previously. "Keeping one step ahead of the game is a serious challenge, and the increasingly sophisticated devices terrorists use demand an even more sophisticated response," he says. "It's a never-ending challenge, but it's one that is overcome when the forces on the battlefield, government and industry all work together."

A co-ordinated response

In order to stay ahead of the pace of change, Thales is working to bring together pieces of the puzzle. The company has a wide range of capabilities offering three distinct categories of force protection technology to combat guerrilla tactics and weaponry - sensors, decision-making systems and effectors. Different combinations can be tailored to the unique objectives and concerns of the personnel, vehicles or bases in question. Among the many force protection strategies on offer, the FIST (Future Integrated Soldier Technology) initiative, being developed by Thales with the UK MoD, is perhaps the best known. The FIST programme, among other things, addresses the effective management of power and weight. This has led Thales to independently develop STORM-H, a lightweight wearable inhibition product no larger than a radio, which a dismounted soldier can use to address multiple simultaneous threats. Combining enhanced range and battery life, STORM-H also allows updating and interoperability with other battlefield equipment. Similarly, VTID (Vehicle Technology Integration Demonstrator) is a UK MoD research programme aimed at increasing the survivability of vehicles and their crews. VTID boasts sophisticated sensor systems, processing and effectors, within an open architecture which promises great versatility for all types of utility, heavy and reconnaissance vehicles that fall under the UK MoD's current and future vehicle programmes, such as FRES.

Protecting home base

While protection for vehicles and forces on patrol is vital, military bases remain tempting targets for enemy forces. Perhaps the technology most striking for its efficacy and its cost-effectiveness is that of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), according to David Beatty, vice-president of strategy and business development with Thales' Air Systems activity. Beatty explains that many threats are posed by relatively unsophisticated elements - mortars, rockets and RPGs - but that doesn't mean they are any easier to combat: "Specialised UHF or radar technology around an army base may alert you to any threats within a 10- or 20-kilometre zone," he says. "However, surface-based sensors are always going to have geographical and electromagnetic limits."

Spoiled for choice

Ultimately, force protection strategies depend on what needs protecting (personnel, vehicles or bases) and the threats being faced. Whatever the threats, or perceived threats, faced on land, sea or air, Thales will bring to bear its combination of systems-based expertise, technological excellence and domain knowledge to provide the most appropriate solutions.