Battle Labs DARO sponsored the first joint-Service UAV Battle Lab Symposium 16 – 17 April 1997. Representatives attended from five of the Army’s Battle Labs, the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center (NSAWC), the Marine Corps Warfighting Lab, and the Air Force’s UAV Battlelab; also from the Services’ UAV staff and program offices, and from other labs. The Services’ battle labs exist to infuse operational thinking into critical mission areas. By focusing on innovative concepts supported by technology, they hope to generate imaginative and “out-of-the-box” ideas from the field — from the warfighter — and conduct operationally oriented experiments and demonstrations. Current UAV activities among the battle labs are summarized below. Army Battle Labs. The Army established its battle lab organization in 1992. While the Battle Command Battle Lab (Ft. Huachuca, AZ), or BCBL(H), had the lead on UAV activities in the Task Force XXI operational exercise (see pp. 7-8), no one Army lab is in the lead for UAVs. Specific activities include examining UAV operations: Integrated with manned aircraft; As rear-area security platforms; Supporting deep strike operations and their battle damage assessment (BDA); As airborne communications nodes; As platforms for chemical/biological and mine detectors. Additional BCBL(H) initiatives involve: The Combat Synthetic Test and Training Assessment Range (CSTTAR), which tests video and data transfer between the MUSE and the Army’s All-Source Analysis System’s Remote Work Station (ASAS RWS); and An experimentation program to examine and assess UAV tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP) used by Army tactical units. Navy. The NSAWC, at NAS Fallon, NV, is developing Navy UAV CONOPS (see p. 9). Marine Corps Warfighting Lab. The Comman-dant established this lab at Quantico, VA, in 1996. Its UAV initiatives have focused on tactical support for lower-echelon units via small UAVs, such as the Dragon Drone, Pointer and Sender UAVs. In addition, the Marines are examining UAV dispensing of leaflets and non-lethal agents, such as pepper spray and tear gas. Air Force Battle Labs. The Air Force has established six battle labs this past year. The UAV Battlelab, which stood up officially on 1 July 1997 at Eglin AFB, FL, already has three initiatives underway: Demonstrating UAVs as long-endurance threat warning and location platforms to support Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) operations; Flying a QF-4 drone with a Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) aboard, to show UAV compatibility with airspace safety requirements; and Exploring UAV support for “bare base” security operations, where quick perimeter surveillance and threat detection could be vital precursors to more permanent measures. This third initiative is a cooperative effort with the Force Protection Battle Lab, which stood up in June 1997 at Lackland AFB, TX. This battle lab’s two-year UAV security demonstration project is looking more broadly at local area surveillance, detection of explosives, and lethal and nonlethal ways of neutralizing threats. DARO plans to convene another joint-Service UAV Battle Lab Symposium in 1998, again to share ideas and foster synergies from complementary activities.