Future Combat Systems: Machines+Mind+Warrior (18+1+1)
 Future Combat Systems (FCS) is the centerpiece of the U.S. military's drive toward transformation into an agile, network-centric, full-spectrum-dominant Future Force. The current engagement forced the military in 2004 to speed up its efforts to realize this vision and to roll out some of its aspects piecemeal rather than the one-fell-swoop approach first established. The modernization program was originally envisioned as a system of systems that would consist of 18 manned and unmanned systems, the network (18+1), and, most crucially, the warrior (18+1+1).
The hardware component of the 18+1+1 formula consists of an array of networked manned and unmanned systems, including:
- UGS—unattended ground sensors
- NLOS-LS—non-line of sight launch systems
- IMS—intelligent munitions systems
- UAVs—unmanned aerial vehicles
- unmanned ground vehicles: ARVs—armed robotic vehicles, SUGVs—small unmanned ground vehicles, and MULEs—multifunctional utility/logistics and equipment vehicles
- manned ground vehicles, including MCSs—mounted combat systems, ICVs—infantry carrier vehicles, NLOS-C—non-line of sight canon, NLOS-M—non-line of sight mortar, RSVs—reconnaissance and surveillance vehicles, C2Vs—command and control vehicles, MV-T and E—medical vehicles for treatment and evacuation, and RMVs—recovery and maintenance vehicles.
These technologies, linked by the network, would give warfighters unmatched information superiority and unassailable dominance of the battlespace.
The network, a vast, global grid of information and communication, when and if it is realized, will work as the mind of FCS. It is hoped that it will give warfighters a 360°, 4-D understanding of the battlespace, enabling key information to flow instantaneously from the individuals on the ground throughout the linked web of dispersed warfighters. This flow of information would offer sharpened situational awareness and opportunities for self-synchronization, thus ratcheting up the tempo of operations. The speed and accuracy of such operations would enhance mission effectiveness and disable the opponents' ability to respond.
The human element of FCS is the warfighter, whom the other two components serve. The goal of the program is to provide everything warfighters need to become systems of systems themselves. In development are initiatives to outfit the warfighter for maximum lethality, survivability, and the highest achievable human performance. Each thing warfighters wear, carry, and consume is considered part of a subsystem. For lethality, troops will be equipped with helmets that include multipurpose, lightweight components for vision, information, and communication. For survivability, their uniforms will offer more flexible and lighter-weight protection from enemy fire, as well as temperature control and sensors that will monitor their health and well-being. One of the most vital and ambitious goals is to lighten the warfighter's load from its current weight of more than 100 pounds to less than 40. Even MREs (meals, ready-to-eat) are being refashioned to be better-tasting and to supply warfighters with higher levels of nutrition for mission-level performance and endurance.
Whether FCS will survive intact until its target fruition date of 2014 is in question. The program's systems will be introduced in a series of Spin Outs beginning in 2008 and continuing at two-year intervals. Each Spin Out will allow evaluation of the selected systems, while bringing immediate benefits to warfighters on the ground and speeding technology maturation through use and refinement in the field.
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