Communications, Radar & Electronic Warfare (201.. - Index of

Non-Communications Electronic Warfare 343out only when the threat arises; it must be can'ied out over many years in order to gleanthe vital information that arises from active electronic collection (Measurement andSignature Intelligence; MASINT), Human Intelligence (HUMINT), COMINT,IMINT and open source material. When collected over time, this information cangrow into a database of the Electronic Order of Battle (EORBAT) used by all friendlysystems to identify enemy threats and to counter them.MASINT is covered later in this section. HUMINT is a resource that cannot beoverlooked. While except in the most important cases most human intelligenceagencies will be focussed on different targets, principally those of strategic importance,there is still the potential for a wealth of data to be obtained. Information can bereadily obtained from defectors and refugees who happened to work on systemdesign or operation and in many cases the subject will be very keen to help.Information can also be obtained using legal means from captured enemy forces.It is not very uncommon for documentary evidence to be handed over in return formoney or extraction from an unfriendly country. Data collected from HUMINTsources is likely to be fragmentary (except in the case of documents), but it all adds tothe picture.COMINT will help to identify a number of important informational factors. Thisincludes the location and disposition of enemy command and control systems. Thiswill also be true for radar-related systems such as air defence and offensive missilesystems. Many fixed installations will have landlines rather than radio communications;these can be intercepted by using Special Forces tapping into the linesthemselves, or it may be that part of the system uses microwave links at some pointallowing interception. As an alternative, the original landlines can be disrupted. Thisforces the enemy to use radio command and control as a backup. Mobile systems mayuse landlines or radio communications. If radar systems have a dedicated communicationsnet assigned to them, it provides a useful method of localising the radars,associated missile systems and their command and control nets. This is because thecommunications nets are likely to be tested and used far more regularly than theradars themselves.IMINT is the process of determining enemy disposition by photographic methods.This was famously demonstrated during the Cuban missile crisis of the early 1960s,where over flights by US U2 aircraft showed the construction and preparation of Sovietnuclear missile silos in Cuba. IMINT is good at identifying platforms, constructionsand large equipment. To be useful for technical analysis, a resolution of about10 centimetres or better is required, however for force disposition analysis a resolutionof a metre or so in fine. Many people believe that satellite systems can pinpoint anytarget at will; the truth is far different. In fact, it is more like finding a needle in ahaystack. Although satellites can cover vast swathes of area, they cannot do it at therequired resolution. In general, satellite and aircraft systems need to be cued by othermeans. This is relatively easy in a limited combat zone, but not when looking forsystems more widely distributed. Other methods such as HUMINT or COMINT can