Q&A: Rear Admiral Victor G. Guillory
Providing Funding, Program and Policy Oversight for Surface BMD
Rear Admiral Victor G. Guillory
Director, Surface Warfare Division
N86
Chief of Naval Operations Staff
Ashore, Guillory’s assignments include a recruiting tour in his hometown of New Orleans and several Washington-area assignments in the Bureau of Naval Personnel, the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations as the Surface Warfare Division Branch Head for Combat Systems, and as the assistant Deputy Director for Surface Ships. He also served in the Joint Staff as the J-3, Current Readiness Branch Chief. Guillory assumed command of Amphibious Force, U.S. 7th Fleet and Amphibious Group 1 in October 2004. During this tour he served as the deputy commander of U.S. Naval Forces for Combined Support Force 535 (Southeast Asia Tsunami Relief Operations) in early 2005.
In December 2006, Guillory returned to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations as the Deputy Director of Surface Warfare (OPNAV N86B). He assumed the duties as director of Surface Warfare in October 2007. Guillory is a graduate of the National Defense University (Industrial College of the Armed Forces), and his personal awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, two Meritorious Medals, the Navy Commendation Medal with Gold Star and Combat “V” and various campaign medals.
Q: What are the U.S. Navy’s three top priorities for FY09 with respect to enhancing sea-based BMD?
A: Our first priority is to deploy joint, interoperable, Aegis BMD ships that allow the Navy to seamlessly conduct “in stride” BMD operations across the globe. Therefore, it is imperative that we focus our capitalization and resource efforts on systems that ensure that the Navy formidably contributes to the national and regional defense missions as an integral element of the Ballistic Missile Defense System. Although this core mission is a relatively new one for the Navy, BMD confers similar operational attributes to other warfare areas. Sovereign Navy warships are mobile, flexible and operate on the high seas free of host nation restrictions and constraining logistic tails. Our current deployment cycles posit Aegis BMD-capable ships in precisely the theaters of operation that we, as a nation, are most concerned with. The Navy has also consistently demonstrated that we can quickly surge additional capability should the situation require. In sum, Navy BMD flexibly integrates into the overall BMDS to provide defense of the homeland, regional friends and allies, joint forces ashore and our forces at sea.
Our next priority is capability. The Navy is one tool in the nation’s BMD toolbox in the collaborative air-, land-, space- and sea-based BMD network. Each domain has its own advantages, but it is vitally important that our BMD capability complements other national and service capabilities within the BMDS.
Investing in and installing advanced technology to our existing and programmed Aegis ships is the cornerstone of our efforts to build BMD capability across the Aegis fleet. This is fundamental in not only pacing the threat but leveraging key technologies to advance the threat. Bolstering capability involves the design and integration of Aegis BMD into the Navy’s Aegis Modernization Program [A-MOD], coupling BMD hardware and software upgrades to planned hull, mechanical and electrical [HM&E] upgrades. The A-MOD program is scheduled to complete critical design review in 2009 and enter the fleet in 2012. This program provides a comprehensive and extensive mid-life upgrade for our Aegis cruisers and destroyers to ensure they remain capable and relevant throughout their entire expected service lives. The Navy and the Missile Defense Agency [MDA] are collaborating to ensure that BMD is developed and included in the open architecture combat systems upgrade for A-MOD. We are consistently involved in that development to ensure the engineering is synchronized across the program. For BMD, the outcome of this modernization effort will be BMD-capable ships to meet the chief of Naval Operations’ operational vision: that BMD will be conducted “in stride” by our multimission Aegis fleet. This approach will provide operational flexibility to our combatant commanders in the joint war fight.
Our third priority is to increase Aegis BMD ship capacity. We need to respond to real-world demands now, and, equally, be postured for the future. There is an increasing demand for Aegis BMD capable ships from the combatant commanders above our existing BMD capable force structure. Over the last eight to 10 years, in concert with the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization [BMDO]—now the MDA, the Navy has developed a Ballistic Missile Defense capability leveraged off of the Aegis weapons system and Standard Missile technology. As a result of this effort today, we have 15 destroyers and three cruisers with operationally capable BMD systems. In the long run, our basic strategy is to incorporate more BMD capacity into the fleet through the Aegis Modernization Program. In the near term, the Navy, working in concert with the MDA, has funded and is working toward the installation of BMD capability on three additional east coast Aegis ships. These ships, USS The Sullivans [DDG 68], USS Vella Gulf [CG 72], and USS Monterey [CG 61], will increase the number of Atlantic fleet BMD capable ships from two to five by January 2010 and our overall number of BMD capable ships to 21.
BMD capability is a function of ships and missiles. Therefore, as we bring more ships on the line with BMD capability, we will also need to pair more missiles with the vertical launchers available. On the development front, Navy continues to support both intraservice and interservice testing through operational ballistic missile events. We have dedicated one of our frontline cruisers, USS Lake Erie [CG 70], to the BMD test mission, and the success we have enjoyed on the test range is unparalleled in a missile development effort of this complexity—14 of 17 direct hits against threat representative BMD targets in space, and two for two in the atmosphere in the terminal BMD mode.
As you saw in the press in February 2008, Lake Erie, assisted by a capable interagency team of scientists, engineers and industry experts, was able to quickly adapt to a different mission and destroy a deorbiting satellite that contained a fuel cell containing toxic chemicals. The flawless execution of this short notice tasking from the president is testimony to the operational flexibility that I mentioned previously. Admiral Bob Willard, the commander of the Pacific Fleet [COMPACFLT], is a prime mover on BMD matters for the Navy, and the COMPACFLT staff, in collaboration with the Naval War College and Naval Warfare Development Command in Newport, R.I., have sponsored a series of integrated air and missile defense [IAMD] war games where Navy, Air Force and Army operators examine BMD operational concepts. The most recent of these games, IAMD War Game III, was conducted in December 2008 in Honolulu.
On the operational side of the Navy, Vice Admiral Sam Locklear, the commander of the Third Fleet, is developing operational concepts that have Navywide applications and can be adjusted for specific areas of operation and operational situations. In his role as the operational agent for Sea Shield, Admiral Locklear is developing concepts across a broad range of initiatives including a focus on BMD. In 2008, Senior Leadership Seminars were held in the 5th, 6th and 7th Fleets, and a 3rd Fleet operational event is scheduled for 2009.
I know that is a detailed answer to your question, but this is an area that I am excited about. Navy BMD is at sea today; it works well, contributes to the joint fight and provides value to our friends, allies, deployed forces and the nation.
Q: Briefly describe the significant, programmed and funded BMD mission upgrades for the CG-47 and DDG-51 classes of ships.
A: Aegis BMD upgrades fall into two distinct categories. As I mentioned previously, the initial Aegis BMD upgrades were funded and developed by MDA and consist of Aegis BMD unique equipment installed in 15 DDGs and three CGs. These cruisers and destroyers comprise a ready fleet to respond to the nation’s BMD mission requirements today. The nation needed BMD capability and, because of the inherently flexible capability and margin that was incorporated into the Aegis Combat System during its development, we were able to adapt Aegis in this mission area, an area that was not even imagined when USS Ticonderoga was commissioned in 1983. Working closely with MDA, we took the existing computing plant and combat system and refocused it on the BMD mission—and it works. This is a real tribute to the visionaries who conceived Aegis, and a testimonial that the nation invested wisely in the Aegis Fleet.
The five Aegis BMD ships in the Forward Deployed Naval Force in Japan, for instance, have been on alert for the BMD mission since 2004 when the president declared an initial operational capability. The second category of Aegis BMD upgrades, jointly funded by MDA and the Navy, is scheduled to be installed in cruisers and destroyers in conjunction with the Aegis Modernization program that begins shipboard installations in 2012 and will deploy on ships in the 2013 to 2014 time frame. This will provide an open architected, integrated BMD capability within the Aegis Combat System. Placing BMD in an open architecture environment will provide a flexible and affordable means of ensuring that we pace the threat in this rapidly evolving mission area. Software upgrades every two years will provide updates that are necessary in a technology arena that is complex and rapidly changing. Upon completion of Aegis Modernization, our goal is to have in stride BMD capability in every deploying Aegis ship.
Q: Please update us on the status of DDG 1000 and CG(X). What sea-based BMD capabilities will these new classes of ships provide the operational commander?
A: The design for DDG 1000 includes no organic ballistic missile defense capability. However, DDG 1000 will be a multimission surface combatant that is tailored for land attack and littoral dominance and will provide forward presence and deterrence. It will operate with a strike group or as an integral part of a joint or combined expeditionary force. DDG 1000 introduces valuable technological advances that provide essential risk reduction. DDG 1000 is currently in the early stages of construction.
The Next Generation Cruiser, CG(X), is the follow-on to the Ticonderoga-class cruisers and will be capable of executing traditional cruiser missions such as enhanced command and control, surface warfare, undersea warfare, strike and maritime interception operations. Like today’s cruisers, CG(X) will be capable of operating independently or as part of a strike group. CG(X) will provide combatant commanders with a sea-based contribution to mid-course and terminal phase BMD of Naval and joint forces as well as a robust air breathing threat anti-air warfare role. CG(X) is envisioned to be netted with sea-based, ground-based and space-based ballistic and cruise missile defense assets and will leverage from the Aegis BMD program as well as enterprise solutions in combat systems and network systems development. As such, CG(X) will be the premier IAMD ship, offering evolved and enhanced capability over what is in the fleet today.
Q: Briefly discuss the programmed and funded upgrades for the Standard Missile 2 [SM-2] and Standard Missile 3 [SM-3] families of missiles that will provide an enhanced BMD killer capability.
A: The Navy has funded modification to the SM-2 Block IV missile that provides it with a near-term sea-based terminal ballistic missile defense capability. The SM-2 Block IV, an existing extended range anti-air warfare [AAW] weapon, had a limited production run in the 1990s, and the remaining inventory has been made available for modification. This modification provides capability to counter ballistic missiles threatening sea and air points of debarkation in overseas theaters. As with the exo-atmosphere [in space] testing with the SM-3, we have had two successful ballistic missile kills in two attempts with the modified SM-2 Block IV missile in the endoatmosphere. In the fleet today we have the SM-3 Block IA missile, the first improvement to the original Block I initial deployment rounds. The Block IA missile incorporates lessons learned from hardware and software development and multiple test events, making it the first spiral of improved capability in the SM-3 family. The Block IA missile is deployed today, ready for use by the combatant commanders as needed.
MDA is responsible for the development of the SM-3 that is currently undergoing two distinct upgrade efforts. The first, the SM-3 Block IB, provides additional discrimination, and additional kill vehicle divert capability will be available in small numbers in 2011. The second, the SM-3 Block IIA, is being co-developed by MDA and the government of Japan, and its development ends in 2015. The SM-3 Block IIA consists of an upgraded propulsion stack that will provide increased speed and an upgraded kinetic warhead, increasing our ballistic missile defense battlespace.
Q: What is the Navy’s vision for a next generation, sea-based missile that will support BMD?
A: The Missile Defense Agency has two separate missile initiatives that, if managed and engineered properly, should result in nextgeneration missiles that are far more capable than the current seabased missiles.
The first effort is a far-term sea-based terminal missile that will be reviewed and pushed forward for development beginning in the 2010 time frame. Currently there are two competing missile alternatives. Navy has supported MDA in requirements definition of the more capable sea-based missile.
The second MDA effort for the next generation is referred to as the Kinetic Energy Interceptor [KEI] Program. This effort was stood up to develop more powerful land-based and sea-based boosters for missile defense applications. MDA initially is developing a land-based version of this missile, with the expectation that a maritime version will be made available soon after the introduction of the land-based missile. The Navy has participated in two studies exploring the technical feasibility of a maritime KEI missile.
Q: Briefly describe how onboard command and control, battle management capabilities [C2BMC] are being modernized to allow ships to remain integrated with other services’ BMD units.
A: The Navy is committed to being integrated in the MDA Ballistic Missile Defense System. Since the establishment of the Aegis BMD program, the Navy has installed a number of onboard systems to support the BMDS C2 architecture. MDA is working closely with the Navy to identify C2 requirements, and the Navy has been able to reallocate resources to support these requirements. The Navy Space and Warfare Systems Command [SPAWAR], the organization responsible for developing and installing maritime C2 systems, has personnel dedicated to supporting the BMD mission. SPAWAR and Aegis BMD hold regular meetings to review the status of ship system equipment requirements.
During my watch, the Surface Warfare Directorate [OPNAV N86] established the Maritime Integrated Air and Missile Defense Planning System [MIPS] program to provide Navy fleet commanders the ability to conduct operational air and missile defense planning. Besides being a planning tool, MIPS also provides a real-time operations monitoring capability. Since the MIPS program was established in 2005, 13 systems have been installed and delivered to ships and fleet commands. We are looking to upgrade the system with a capability to exchange data with the Aegis BMD mission planner and MDA’s C2BMC system. MIPS effectively provides the Navy’s operational commanders with the means to conduct physics-based BMD planning at the operational level of war and to interface automatically with both strategic and tactical-level planning systems.
I would further add, in response to fleet requirements, the Navy has also procured a BMDS C2BMC suite for use in the Pacific Fleet headquarters, and we have laid the groundwork to procure an additional suite for the Navy’s European headquarters. These suites will enable Navy insight into the global BMD asset management system providing real-time knowledge of the operational status of the worldwide BMDS.
Q: Anything else to add?
A: MDA’s Aegis BMD Program Directorate has successfully developed a robust BMD capability that we have introduced into our Aegis Fleet, and credit is due to the three Navy admirals that have led this effort inside MDA since 2002: Rear Admirals Bill Cobb, Kate Paige and Brad Hicks. Additionally, I would be remiss if I did not mention real Navy pioneers in the BMD arena, notably Vice Admiral Rod Rempt, who really conceived of the Navy BMD effort and led it for 10 years, and before him Rear Admiral Wayne Meyer, the “Father of Aegis,” whose foresight led the Navy to develop and build the most technologically advanced warships that have ever put to sea. Each of these admirals has done tremendous work for the Navy and the nation in this regard, and I am grateful for their efforts. Navy BMD capability has added increased mission requirements during a period of increased operational tempo, and due to our success in system testing and real-world performance, the combatant commanders have registered an acute demand for more Navy BMD capability. Admiral [Gary] Roughead [chief of Naval Operations] is committed to incorporating this capability into our multimission ships, giving our Navy the ability to execute this important national mission while continuing to execute the traditional Navy maritime mission set.
The February 2008 shoot-down of the satellite that I mentioned earlier illustrates the ability of our Navy to deploy an operational capability and further demonstrates that we have yet to reach the full potential of this system.
Last, I cannot forget the most important aspect—people. The Navy has begun to develop a cadre of BMD-experienced officers and sailors who have executed the mission during both testing events and during real-world operations.
Thanks for the opportunity to answer your questions and provide a glimpse of where we are today, and more importantly, what lies ahead just beyond the horizon in this important warfare area. ♦