Land Information Warfare Activity
by Staff Sergeant Richard A. Sizer
Operations in the 21st century will be heavily based on
knowledge derived from relevant information and intelligence (RII)
collected, processed, analyzed and disseminated over a complex
global automated system of systems. The evolving military
information environment will fundamentally change the way we, the
Army, conduct operations in peace and in conflict. IO includes all
measures, both offensive and defensive, taken to achieve
information dominance. The Army will integrate IO into every aspect
of Army XXI.
General Dennis J. Reimer Chief of Staff, Army
To meet this military challenge and to
institutionalize the integration of information operations (IO)
throughout the force, the Army established the Land Information
Warfare Activity (LIWA) on 8 May 1995, as part of the U.S. Army
Modernization Plan. LIWA provides today's Army commanders an
immediate operational capability that may be called upon to
integrate the elements of IO and information warfare (IW) into
exercises, operational plans, and orders.
Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) recently distributed the
new Army doctrine, FM 100-6, Information Operations. It calls for
continuous military operations within the military information
infrastructure (MII) that enable, enhance, and protect the friendly
force's ability to collect, process, and act on information to
achieve an advantage across the full range of military operations.
IO includes interacting with the global information infrastructure
by exploiting or degrading an adversary's information and
decisionmaking capabilities. It also includes acquiring, using,
protecting, managing, exploiting, and denying information and
information systems. These activities take place within a
battlespace established by the MII.
IW has emerged as an essential joint war fighting mission area. The
explosive proliferation of information-based technologies
significantly impacts warfighting across all phases, the range of
military operations, and all levels of war.
The LIWA Mission
The mission of the LIWA is to provide IO and IW support to land
component and separate Army commands, both active and reserve, and
to facilitate planning and execution of IO. The LIWA is tasked to
provide the following types of support to the Army commander:
- Operational focal point for land IO and IW operational
support by deploying field support teams (FST) to the Land
Component Commanders (LCCs).
- Tailored IO and IW intelligence and counterintelligence
to support LCCs.
- Quick reaction area studies to support LCCs.
- Assistance in TRADOC development and integration of
doctrine, training, leaders, organizations, materiel and soldiers
(DTLOMS) requirements and tactics, techniques and procedures for
IO and IW.
- Operational insight, lessons learned, and recommendations
to TRADOC and HQDA on IO and IW requirements in the Army
Modernization Strategy.
- Assistance in developing and evaluating IO and IW system
performance in exercises such as the Advanced Warfighter
Experiments (AWEs).
- Other operational matters associated with IO and IW.
LIWA Organization and Challenges
The LIWA is specifically organized and equipped to provide tailored
IO support to the LCCs (see Figure 1). The LIWA provides commanders
with technical expertise and equipment that are not resident on the
command's general and special staff, and provides responsive
technical interfaces with other commands, Service components, and
IW centers. When deployed, the LIWA FST becomes an integral part of
the command's IO staff that synchronize and execute IO as part of
the overall operation. To facilitate special technical support, the
FST has a robust reach-back capability that supports the
warfighter. Employing both military and commercial communication
capabilities, the FST is electronically tethered to the LIWA
Support Center. The Support Center functions as the focal point
for the LIWA staff and coordinates intelligence, operations,
administrative support, and command functions.
The biggest challenge LIWA faces is in providing information
assurance and it requires a most diverse effort. It includes
expanding the recently established Army Computer Emergency
Response Team (ACERT) Coordination Center, mission support
operations, and vulnerability anal- ysis of the current and future
Army command, control, communications, computers, intelligence
(C4I) systems and networks. Support to Army XXI is a significant
part of this information assurance and command and control (C2)
protect effort. In C2 support of the Army digitization offices and
the HQDA Director of Operations, Readiness and Mobilization, the
LIWA is tasked to coordinate and oversee the multidisciplined
counterintelligence and operational security (MDCI/OPSEC) assess-
ment and force characterization of the new digitized force, Army
XXI. This MDCI/OPSEC assessment will focus on essential elements of
friendly information of the military automated information systems.
The LIWA will also coordinate and oversee all-source collection and
analysis efforts of the digitized force to determine the friendly
signature profile, and assess system vulnerabilities which may be
open to hostile exploitation and attack. Data collection for this
overarching effort will be coordinated during both unit training
activity at Fort Hood and during its AWE at the National Training
Center in early 1997.
Our reliance on technology creates dependency and vulnerability
throughout our basing and information support networks. This
generates requirements for defensive IW capabilities. However, the
same technologies also create vulnerabilities for our adversaries
we can exploit using offensive IW capabilities. When fully
developed and integrated, IW offers enormous potential to support
our warfighters.
LIWA's Operational Support Priorities
To assist the LIWA staff in focusing on Army priorities, the Vice
Chief of Staff for the Army has provided the following guidance and
operational support priorities:
- Contingency operations.
- Army XXI initiatives.
- Combat training center exercises (BCTP, CMTC, JRTC, and
NTC).
- Service school support.
- Routine operational support.
LIWA tasking for operational support must be
submitted through operations channels to the DA Staff, DAMO-ODI,
(703) 697-1119, or DSN 227-1119.
Conclusion
A comprehensive IW approach is essential to ensure warfighters have
the tools to exploit vulnerabilities while ensuring full access to
timely, accurate, and relevant information wherever and whenever
needed. The Army Staff, in conjunction with HQ TRADOC, has
developed an IO vision and strategy for the Army that address our
most urgent needs. Victory Through Information Dominance!
Staff Sergeant Sizer is currently NCOIC for the
Intelligence Support Division, LIWA. His assignments include
service with the 2d Combat Aviation Brigade, 2d Infantry Division
in Korea, and with the Center for Army Tactics at the U.S. Army
Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Staff
Sergeant Sizer has an associate of arts degree in Supervisory
Leadership from Hawaii Pacific University. Readers can reach him at
(703) 706-2266, DSN 235-2266/96 and via E-mail at
rasizer@vulcan.belvoir. army.mil.