The Army’s Program Executive Office for Command, Control, and Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T), which is tasked with the development and support of the Army’s network, is officially undergoing a rebranding to better align with its mission objectives.
Say goodbye to PEO C3T and embrace the new PEO C3N: Command, Control, and Communications – Network.
“This transition goes beyond mere rebranding; it marks our recognition of a changing environment and the necessity for evolution within our capabilities. Our network and command and control functions are more crucial than ever,” stated Lt. Gen. Rob Collins, principal military deputy to the Assistant Secretary of the Army, Army Acquisition Corps, and former PEO for C3N, in a press release.
This change follows nearly a year after the office was restructured to include various organizations from the PEO Enterprise Information Systems (PEO EIS), bringing together many of the Army’s enterprise and tactical network capabilities under a single entity.
“Last year, the Army made the decision to merge enterprise and tactical network efforts into one comprehensive portfolio. This resulted in a streamlined project aimed at developing a unified network as part of our network modernization strategy,” a spokesperson from PEO C3N communicated to Breaking Defense via email ahead of the announcement.
The decision to eliminate the “tactical” aspect of the name signifies the office’s commitment to creating a singular, cohesive network.
“Real-world operations in the Middle East continue to highlight the necessity for a unified network,” the press release emphasized.
“Events are unfolding at an unprecedented pace,” Collins added in the press release. “We must remain agile, mobile, and effective. While we still need to shoot, move, and communicate, we also have to ensure interconnectivity across land, sea, air, and cyberspace domains for our warfighters.”
Initially announced nearly three years ago, the Army’s unified network initiative aims to dismantle the numerous siloed legacy networks—primarily divided into tactical and enterprise segments—to establish a more integrated network.
“We cannot maintain separate and distinct tools for tactical and enterprise networks when we have opportunities to streamline and achieve the same objectives,” remarked Mark Kitz, program executive officer of C3N, in a recent interview with Breaking Defense.
“It’s an imperative task; we need to construct a more secure and integrated network,” he added.
At the start of this initiative three years ago, the Army operated 69 networks, with the objective of reducing that number to one by 2027. Recently, Lt. Gen. John Morrison revealed at a Defense News conference that the Army has successfully reduced its networks to just nine.
However, PEO C3N indicated in the release that the endeavor to create a unified network will never be considered “complete” due to ongoing technological advancements and the evolving nature of military conflicts.
