Changes the Army is making to the requirements for its future airborne signals and imagery intelligence collection program are driving the service to buy a more sophisticated system that calls for an aircraft with more performance. The adjustments to earlier plans are spelled out in an updated draft operational requirement document for the Aerial Common Sensor, which is to replace the RC-12 Guardrail and RC-7 Airborne Reconnaissance Low systems. The changes are the direct result of an assessment by service officials to determine how ACS would fit into the Army of the future, which calls for more mobile operations spanning a greater area. The changes also reflect shifts in the services threat perception. The modifications are now under review at the Pentagon and among the Army user community and there could still be slight adjustments, says Lt. Col. George Kunkel, who oversees ACS for the Army.
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