Closing the targeting loop

In most NATO force structures, the targeting process still runs outside the command-and-control system. Target nominations travel by voice or formatted message. Target lists are maintained in spreadsheets or standalone tools. Status updates between echelons depend on manual reconciliation. The result is a process that cannot keep pace with the operational tempo it is supposed to support.

This is not a technology gap in the traditional sense. The effectors exist. The sensors exist. What is missing is the connective tissue: a targeting workflow that is embedded in the same environment where commanders plan operations, maintain situational awareness and make decisions. As long as targeting runs parallel to C2 rather than inside it, every engagement carries an overhead of manual coordination that slows the cycle and increases the risk of error.

What a modern targeting process requires

The problem is architectural. Targeting involves multiple echelons, from tactical observers identifying targets to headquarters staff processing, prioritising and assigning them for engagement. Each handover between echelons and between systems introduces delay. When time-sensitive targets emerge, that delay is the difference between a relevant engagement and a missed opportunity.

A targeting capability that meets today's operational requirements needs to do three things. First, it must sit within the C2 platform, not alongside it, so that targeting decisions are informed by the same operational picture and intelligence feeds that drive every other command process. Second, it must connect the sources of new targets to the staff workflow, so that a target identified in the field or by a collection asset arrives without re-entry or translation. Third, it must give staff immediate visibility of the entire targeting pipeline, so that bottlenecks are identified before they become operational problems.

From concept to capability

This is the approach we have taken with the Joint Fires and Targeting capability in SitaWare. In January, SitaWare Headquarters 6.22 introduced the Target Application: target lists, nominations, engagement assignment and status tracking within the operational C2 environment. That release established the targeting workflow at headquarters level.

The last release in July extends in two directions. SitaWare Headquarters 6.23 introduces the State Board, a visual overview of the targeting pipeline where targets are organised by processing state. Staff see at a glance which targets are initiated, pending approval, accepted or completed, and can manage the workflow directly from the board. Colour-coded engagement status on each target card provides a second layer of information without requiring staff to open individual records.

At the tactical level, SitaWare Frontline 3.11 and SitaWare Edge 3.11 now enable mounted and dismounted units to nominate targets directly from the map or from existing symbols. The same capability serves the intelligence collection effort, where assets such as UAVs and electronic warfare systems are frequently the source of newly identified targets, particularly High Value Targets. Nominations include location, target type, required effect and timing, and are shared across the tactical network the moment they are submitted. The target appears on the headquarters target list without manual re-entry and supports the identification and prioritisation of High Value Targets at the point of observation.

The road ahead

The last releases establish the foundation: a targeting process that connects the tactical level to the headquarters within a single C4ISR platform. Subsequent releases will deepen this integration, including the ability to share engagement and processing status back to Frontline and Edge, and to attach supporting files and information to targets at every echelon.

The broader ambition is straightforward. If targeting is genuinely a command function, it belongs inside the command system. Everything we build in this space follows from that principle.