Briefings going high-tech with new touchscreen

[unhappycamper]

Briefings going high-tech with new touchscreen
By Patrick Winn - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Jan 14, 2008 6:24:24 EST

Many Air Force flight mission briefings still begin much as they have for decades.

The lead pilot writes mission details on dry-erase boards. The cutting-edge aircraft they’ll fly cost millions, but the briefing materials are sold at Office Depot for less than $75.

But that’s going to change, and soon.

Called the “Warfighter’s Edge,” or “WEdge,” that dry-erase board’s replacement amasses real-time weather reports, satellite photos and intricate mapping on a single computer screen. And despite its complexity, the software is essentially a highly modified take on Microsoft PowerPoint.

As early as March, WEdge will be tested at five bases: the New York Air National Guard base in Syracuse, Luke Air Force Base in Arizona, Hill in Utah, Whiteman in Montana and Barksdale in Louisiana.


Rest of article at: http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2008/01/airforce_briefings_080114w/



uhc comment: The WEdge is a product of the Air Force Global Cyberspace Integration Center in conjunction with the U.S. Air Force Academy Institute for Information Technology Applications:

http://www.gcic.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123074261



Warfighter's Edge, or WEdge, a new command and control tool designed to automate briefings for aircrews, organizes information and delivers it to users in a tailored, real-time format. (U.S. Air Force Photo)

11/1/2007 - LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. -- A two year effort for the Air Force Global Cyberspace Integration Center in conjunction with the U.S. Air Force Academy Institute for Information Technology Applications culminated Oct. 31 when the Warfighter's Edge, or WEdge, was initially released to the field.

WEdge, a base-level command and control tool designed to automate mission briefings for aircrews, is now fully operational and ready for distribution across all Combat Air Force units.

The original WEdge concept began as an initiative of the Command and Control, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Battlelab in 2005. Recognizing the utility of the system, Air Combat Command designated WEdge an Air Force system of record in 2006 and provided funding for the GCIC and IITA to fully develop the program. WEdge has since been undergoing certification and accreditation for use on Air Force networks.

Historically, aircrews used chalkboards or whiteboards to brief missions. In recent years, many units created digital, interactive briefing systems known as Briefing Room Interactive, or BRI. However, BRI systems were cumbersome and not deployable for combat because they relied on home station infrastructure and computer-savvy aircrew to operate them.

"WEdge was designed to require minimal training and to be easy to use," said Pat McAtee, GCIC WEdge program manager. "The presentation layer of the program uses Microsoft Power Point and leverages the knowledge and expertise many users already have."


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I can't find a cost for this thing.