An Autonomic System for Close Air Support

Close Air Support (CAS) planning in the past has been primarily a mission preplanning activity. Due to the types of military operations being conducted, the need for CAS is becoming harder to predict than in past operations. For immediate CAS requests, as many as 15 steps need to be followed, many of them using voice communication via radios in noisy environments. This often results in delays due to repeating of requests and misunderstandings. The proposed autonomic close air associate would allow for faster and more effective CAS operations with less fratricide and collateral damage. This unobtrusive associate is based on an autonomic aiding agent that provides links to other warfighters, information systems, and unmanned sensors and systems and provides a shared situational awareness between all parties involved in CAS.