Nestled in the center of the world's
technology epicenter is the California Air National Guard's 129th
Rescue Wing. Search and rescue is the wing's primary mission,
which often involves low-tech but courageous life-saving actions.
The mission is about to get a high-tech boost from an innovative
communication system called the Situation Awareness Data Link, or
SADL. A test version of the system recently was installed and
evaluated on a 129th RQW MC-130P Combat Shadow tanker.
Similar to the Link 16 format used by other Air Force platforms,
such as the F-15 Eagle, SADL is a military communications system
that supports the exchange of tactical information between air and
land assets in near real time. Operators can digitally access this
information from command and control systems instead of receiving
verbal reports and then annotating the information on paper. The
system is already in use by A-10A/C Thunderbolt IIs and some F-16C
Fighting Falcons.
"When the 129th Rescue Wing responded to crises such as the
California wildfires and Hurricane Ike last year, a significant
observation was the need for a self-contained airborne network
capability to facilitate digital communications between rescue
aircraft, pararescue forces and distant command centers," said Lt.
Col. Steve Butow, 129th Operations Group deputy commander. "These
rescue forces will no longer be constrained to voice only
communications in their life saving mission."
Also recognizing this need for digital airborne communications
were participants in the Guard and Reserve Weapons and Tactics
Conference, or WEPTAC, which takes place annually at the Air
National Guard and Air Force Reserve Test Center, or AATC, in
Tucson, Ariz.
"The Situation Awareness Data Link was on the primary objective
list during WEPTAC the past four years," said Maj. Jose Agredano,
129th Operations Group chief of tactics and 2008 WEPTAC chairman.
"We were able to bring the major players together last year and
brainstorm a walk-on solution." The service's need for the system
coupled with the 129th RQW's operational experience provided
momentum for generating a solution at WEPTAC.
"The data link is one of the Air Force's highest priorities for
today's joint fight," Colonel Butow said. The 129th RQW was one of
three units evaluating a more permanent SADL solution. The 129th,
along with C-130 Hercules from the West Virginia Air National
Guard's 130th Airlift Wing in Charleston and Air Force Reserve
Command's 910th Airlift Wing from Youngstown-Warren Air Reserve
Station, Ohio, participated in an operational utility evaluation
with the AATC at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., April 13 to
17.
"The exercise was a huge step for not only this unit but for
every unit that participated," said Tech. Sgt. Elliott Paige, a
130th Rescue Squadron radio operator with the 129th RQW. He was the
first 130th RQS radio operator trained on SADL and coordinated the
SADL channels with the Western Air Defense Sector for training here
and at the evaluation.
"There were Reserve and Guard units working side-by-side to
prove the interoperability of this highly capable system, and
develop (tactics, techniques and procedures) and a working solution
for aircrews operating this system," Sergeant Paige said. After
testing SADL at Davis-Monthan, 129th RQW operators came home with a
sense of accomplishment and are excited about the positive impact
SADL will have on future missions at home and abroad.
"Rescue MC-130Ps will serve as a digital gateway for other
military aircraft and land forces during disaster response
operations such as a Bay Area earthquake response," Colonel Butow
said. "It is only fitting that Silicon Valley's specialized rescue
force be amongst the first to go digital." In the coming years,
HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters and the Guardian Angel pararescue
weapon system also will be equipped with SADL. All three rescue
weapon systems will have the ability to share digital information,
which will enhance the unit's ability to save lives.
"SADL will revolutionize rescue," Major Agredano said. "The
possibilities are endless." [ANN Salutes Capt. Alyson M. Teeter,
129th Rescue Wing Public Affairs]