FUTURE SOLDIER SYSTEMS
When infantry soldiers went to war during the 20th century they typically carried a rifle, helmet, ammunition, food and some spare clothes. While their 21st century counterparts might look back and appreciate the simplicity of such an outfit, few of them would be happy to lose the equipment innovations that have so measurably advanced 21st century ground soldier effectiveness. Soldier equipment modernization efforts—such as have been implemented in the US, UK, France, Singapore, Germany and elsewhere—have gone by a variety of names: Future Soldier, Future Force Warrior, Land Warrior, NETT Warrior and so on. A common theme among these modernization programs has been their “systems of systems” approach, which emphasises the blending of individual components into a complete integrated system. More recently, other models have emphasized a versatile power and networking backbone with the flexibility to accommodate a wide range of available device types—particularly as soldier operational requirements vary so significantly from one battle geography to the next.
