On 8 November 2022, Northrop Grumman announced that their Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) command and control (C2) system was ready to be fielded, having completed its Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E) phase. This marks the final step before the US Army can take the decision to move the programme from low-rate initial production (LRIP) to full-rate production (FRP), allowing the system to be fielded worldwide.
The IOT&E phase began in January 2022, at the White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) in New Mexico and involved 10 months of testing by the US Army under realistic operating conditions. During this phase, IBCS facilitated detection, tracking, and interception of various representative threats, including a tactical ballistic missile and two cruise missile surrogates during while operating under jamming conditions. IBCS is a C2 system designed around an open system architecture, enabling the integration of different radars and weapon systems into a network to allow sensor-to-shooter functionality among a range of platforms and sensors used for air and missile defence, in line with the US DoD’s Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) concept. IBCS is managed by the US Army Program Executive Office (PEO) for Missiles and Space, based at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
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