Sagem Défense Sécurité demonstrated the capabilities of advanced 'sensor to shooter' capabilities, as part of the Phoenix demo, coinciding with a recent “Battlespace Digitization” exercise held by the French Army 2nd Armored Brigade. Utilizing representative demonstration systems including digitized vehicles and infantry combat suites, the Phoenix project has been developed with private funding by Sagem, with the support of France’s defense procurement agency, the DGA, and French Army. Sagem is planning to conduct a follow-on Phoenix 2 exercise, in 2008to evaluate the progress and implementation of lessons learned in the current demonstration. (More...)

The exercise involved 'digitized vehicles' including a VAB armored personnel carrier fitted with a panoramic camera and internal data network and a VB2L light armored personnel carrier equipped with a workstation for image reception and a broadband wireless link. The infantry employed the FELIN infantry combat suites, equipped with digitized FAMAS assault weapon, day/night optronic sight and remote firing capability, soldier information network and GPS). A firing team using the MILAN anti-tank guided weapon was equipped with a remote firing station connected to the armored car via FELIN radio. Three reconnaissance robots were employed, along with an ODIN mini-UAV.

The goal provided an insight to the acquisition, exploitation and timely disseminated of battlefield imaging by the digitized combat group during high-intensity combat. Imagery and sensor data feeds collected by the different sources were sent to the armored vehicle, where the operator monitored all feeds and selected images for further exploitation, dissemination or employment of kinetic effects. Images were sent via a high speed wireless link to a relay placed several kilometers to the rear, before being conveyed by satellite link to the technical & operational lab of the DGA near Paris.

According to General Patrice Sartre, military advisor for Sagem Défense Sécurité the implementation of advanced sensor and effector integration provides coherent information flow reaching and supporting the lowest command echelons, by exploiting images collected by a wide variety of sensors.” The demonstration emphasized the necessity for a battlefield image support element, "the sole mission of this element is to manage the various sensors employed in the forward echelon, thereby relieving the combatants of this task,” General Sartre noted.

You are invited to comments and discuss this article on

Defense Update group on Facebook