Rethinking Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance in a wireless connected world

The Air Force Research Laboratory Sensors Directorate, in Dayton Ohio, has a mission “To lead the discovery, development, and integration of affordable sensor technologies for our warfighters.” Within this functional mission, the USAF is witnessing a worldwide revolution in technologies related to Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions. While “commercial off the shelf” wireless components help the USAF rapidly create and field ISR capabilities in months that once took years, the universal availability of cell phone and publically interconnected cameras and sensors are forcing the USAF to rethink traditional ISR paradigms altogether. Our nation´s ability to deter international criminal and transnational violence will depend on our ability to produce a Globally Integrated ISR (GI-ISR) capability that rapidly provides decision makers with timely information.