AC Summer 08 WIN-T Online - United States Army Signal Center of ...

IGFC M6 visiting Baghdad Signal University.
without a brigade headquarters.
It is safe to say these individuals
do not clearly understand the
benefits a signal brigade brings to
the fight. The two ESBs in Iraq are
currently providing JNTC teams to
three divisions, the Marine Expeditionary
Force, and several corps
separate brigades. The corps assigns
these teams in different proportions
from complete companies to individual
CPN teams. Often these
teams are assigned for temporary
missions that last only a few months.
After the mission is complete, the
team returns, its personnel and
equipment are reset, and it is prepared
for a new mission. At any
given time, Task Force Thunderbird
has multiple teams traveling to new
locations, returning from completed
missions, and others training in
preparation of future requirements.
A TTSB is designed to battle command
multiple ESBs and complete
these personnel, logistics, and
operational readiness related
missions; the corps G6 is not. While
the corps G6 is focused on corps /
division level operations, the Signal
brigade staff is focused on asset
management and operational
readiness of ESBs. ESBs benefit from
the processes, staff expertise, and
technical support provided by the
TTSB that can only be acquired by
continuous training and readiness
oversight.
Part of the technical expertise
Task Force Thunderbird brought to
Iraq was network optimization. The
Task Force Thunderbird engineering
section led the CNOSC’s efforts to
improve an already mature network.
Quickly identifying an opportunity
to decrease the power needed for
satellite terminals, the Task Force
installed the larger 16’ Lightweight
High-Gain X-band Antenna. The
immediate impact was a reduced
strain on the tactical signal network.
Another network optimization effort
included removing all older AN-
TRC 190 radio systems, which
possessed only 2 MB of throughput,
from the corps tactical network and
replacing them with newer versions
with four times the throughput. In
some cases, the CNOSC helped
identify locations that would benefit
from the receipt of an even more
capable 16 MB radio system. They
identified locations that were near
bandwidth saturation and developed
multiple solutions to alleviate
network congestion. The CNOSC
engineering section also championed
the use of Quality of Service statements
for high priority services,
ensuring mission critical information
arrived at its destination above all
other traffic. These successful
network optimization efforts were
the result of close coordination
between the CNOSC engineering
section and the various division
engineering sections. This coordination
has led to increased communications
capabilities and a much
better understanding of the tactical
58 Summer 2008
network and processes necessary to
develop future engineering solutions.
One additional skill set that the
TTSB brings to the corps fight is
specialized signal training. Task
Force Thunderbird re-established the
Baghdad Signal University, which
had been set up and run by the
previous Corps Signal Brigades
during their rotations. BSU provides
all US and Coalition Military, as well
as DoD Civilians in theater, an
opportunity to receive training on
Basic and Advanced Networking,
and Fiber Optic Installation. At the
request of the corps and division
G6s, Task Force Thunderbird added
Very Small Aperture Terminal
training to the curriculum and will
also start training antenna installation
and safety. These two courses
represent the continuous dialog
between all signal organizations and
a successful effort to remain current
in tactical communications. Task
Force Thunderbird worked closely
with the Iraqi Ground Forces Command
G6, MAJ Debbie Bowker, and
developed training for the Iraqi
Ground Forces Command Soldiers.
Courses were translated into Arabic
and BSU developed an aggressive
program of study that matched the
abilities of the IGFC Soldiers. MAJ
Bowker of the IGFC said “TF
Thunderbird’s Baghdad Signal
University, has developed a strategic
partnership with the Iraqi Ground