US Army to Test Integrated Fires Capabilities Through Fiscal Year 2027

The U.S. Army will continue testing the compatibility of the Integrated Battle Command System with various sensors and shooters until at least fiscal year 2027 under the Integrated Fires Test Campaign.

Speaking at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium, Brig. Gen. Frank Lozano, the service’s program executive officer for missiles and space and a past Potomac Officers Club event speaker, said the campaign will help the Army achieve offensive and defensive integrated-fires capability goals.

The test campaign began in 2022 with the integration of RTX’s Patriot air defense system and a Sentinel A3 radar with the Northrop Grumman-built IBCS to determine whether the sensor and shooter can be managed in a unified network. This fall, the IBCS will be paired with RTX’s Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor prototype designed to enable 360-degree threat detection, Defense News reported.

The test campaign will involve Dynetics’ Indirect Fires Protection Capability in FY24, an upgraded Sentinel A4 radar in FY25 and the Army Long Range Persistent Surveillance system in FY26. Lozana said the ALPS sensor track threats using different signals, making it less detectable by adversaries.

The Department of Defense approved IBCS for full-rate production in April.