Next-Generation Tech Tested At The British Army's Warfighting Experiment

Four years of experimentation by the British Army and industry partners have culminated in the last event of the Army Warfighting Experiment's Urban Series, designed to prepare the Army for future warfare in complex environments.

The Army Warfighting Experiment (AWE) has enhanced access to new technologies and spurred innovation since its inception in 2018. Specifically focused on low to medium Technology Readiness Levels (TRL), it allows the exploration of the possible and will help determine how the British Army wins wars in the future.

After months of planning, the fourth and final event in the Urban Series, Integrate 24, was designed to experiment with next generation systems and test their usefulness and capability against several tough criteria set by both military and non-military experts. 

It was undertaken with the support of more than 250 personnel from across defence, including the Field Army, Defence technology organisations, international allies, and industry partners.

Integrate 24 looked at managing networks and sharing data better, therefore enhancing decision making on the battlefield. It is vital that commanders on the ground get the right information at the right time to make the right decisions and Integrate 24 brought these novel technologies and networks to the forefront.

Colonel Timothy Wright, Assistant Head - Research and Experimentation, Army Futures, explained:

“AWE is the British Army’s annual event to explore the future of warfare, both new ways of fighting and the technologies that enable it.

“Integrate is much more focused on the impacts that software innovations can have on the battlefield, specifically how we can leverage software to support the unencumbered flow of data across the battlefield and enable increasingly complex data analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence for tactical advantage.” 

Integrate 24’s practical three-week exercise was held on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire and saw soldiers getting their hands on an array of complex specialised equipment ranging from tactical communications tools to Artificial Intelligence based counter-drone solutions. There was also more familiar remotely controlled engineering equipment.

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