The conflict between Ukraine and Russia has ushered in a new era of combat. A defining characteristic of Ukraine’s resistance has been the deployment of drone warfare on an unprecedented scale. To stay ahead of the curve, the Department of Defense has announced a new and expanded policy that clearly states the Pentagon is taking this next-generation military technology seriously and thinking hard about what it means for the future of warfare.
While the Pentagon’s embrace of new technologies is promising, old equipment and organizational issues, particularly antiquated thinking around spectrum policy, stand in the way of America’s technological dominance on the battlefield and private-sector innovation.
If our military is going to meet the needs demanded by today’s dynamic security environment, then there are some things the Department of Defense can do to adjust its approach to spectrum policy, the invisible airwaves behind radio frequencies and wireless communications.
The first is to get its spectrum house in order and become more efficient. Different bands of wireless spectrum have other properties, such as the ability to transmit over long distances or through solid objects and are used for different applications. The military currently uses spectrum for various forms of wireless communication, navigation, intelligence gathering, and electronic warfare.
But spectrum is a finite resource, and the global consumption of wireless data continues to increase exponentially. The Pentagon needs to be agile in its spectrum strategy. While policy adjustments for new drone technology show promise, a 2021 study from the Hudson Institute found that the Pentagon’s radio frequencies are clogged by old equipment on life support.
The Pentagon has known for years that it has a spectrum problem. In 2020, it issued its Electromagnetic Spectrum Superiority Strategy report, which stated, “The rapid rise of mobile broadband technologies continues to transform national economies and connect people around the world. However, new commercial technologies have resulted in increased demand for bandwidth, competing with (the Defense Department) for essential access.” Continuing to rely on legacy equipment that clogs up the spectrum is an untenable posture in today’s technological environment.
The second task the Pentagon needs to accomplish as part of its spectrum strategy is to ensure its financial house is in order by identifying valuable spectrum resources that could be repurposed and auctioned to the wireless industry. This can generate billions of dollars in revenue that could be earmarked for modernization needs. In his bid to gain the House speaker’s gavel, Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California agreed to a deal that put the Pentagon’s budget in the crosshairs. If the new GOP House majority is going to cut $75 billion in military spending for 2024, spectrum revenue equipment will be critical to filling some of these budget gaps.
A recent study found that the federal government has access to 12 times the amount of key mid-band spectrum compared to wireless carriers. While maintaining national security is paramount, all of this spectrum is not mission-critical. In a tight budgetary environment, the Pentagon should be realistic about which bands it needs now and in the future and which ones it can vacate. With these bands transitioned to high-power commercial operations, they can be auctioned for licensed use.
A single auction in 2021 generated more than $80 billion. This revenue could go a long way to funding next-generation technology and other modernization priorities for the Pentagon. Maintaining an adequate licensed spectrum pipeline for private-sector mobile wireless networks is critical to ensuring the United States can continue to build the most secure, robust and innovative networks as it competes with China for global tech leadership.
Finally, the Pentagon should continue to work with wireless companies to maximize the full capabilities of 5G technology. The low latency and high speed of 5G will enable new use cases for the military. For instance, the different layers of a 5G network allow the military to conduct operations in a “gray zone” alongside normal commercial traffic.
To date, the military has leveraged 5G by partnering with wireless companies to build private networks that improve logistics throughout the bases in its portfolio while continuing to conduct research programs that advance 5G communications. The military should rely on the expertise of industry leaders to power the next generation of military technology. And it should further these mutually beneficial partnerships, not adopt more draconian approaches like forced sharing of commercial spectrum.
The current threat environment demands innovative policies that leverage the capabilities of next-generation technology. To lead in this new era of combat, our military needs to adopt an approach to spectrum policy that is strategically and financially sound. By working with wireless leaders, the Pentagon can meet these challenges and be ready to deploy on the 21st-century battlefield.