Has The U.S. Military Lost Its Edge In Electronic Warfare?

Army Rangers set up radio communications before live-fire training at a range on Fort Hunter Liggett, Calif., Jan. 26, 2014. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Teddy Wade

Loren Thompson, Forbes: Electronic Warfare: How The U.S. Army Could Lose Its Next War

The digital revolution has transformed America’s Army. In the years since 9-11, Army ground and aviation units have acquired a host of new sensors and communications systems that allow soldiers to quickly establish information dominance in the fight against terrorists. Those units now train on the assumption they can run rings around any enemy when it comes to knowing what is happening in the fog of war, and using that knowledge to defeat elusive adversaries.

There’s only one problem: in future wars, the Army is likely to face enemies far better equipped than it is to seize control of the electromagnetic spectrum and exploit it to tactical advantage. Two decades of fighting rag-tag terrorist groups with scant resources has dulled its edge in electronic warfare, while countries like Russia and China have worked hard to maintain and expand their capabilities.

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WNU Editor: If the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria are any indication, the Russians have mastered this capability .... Look Who's Complaining: US Lags Behind Russia in Electronic Warfare (Sputnik). More here .... Electronic Warfare: Russian Gains Threaten to 'Disconnect' U.S. Forces (Dave Majumdar, National Interest).