The HMS C3IS Jasmine combat management system has been used by the Polish army for three years now. Experience gained during that time encouraged the idea to develop the system’s functionality.

The network-centric system supports command and combat management processeson the operational and tactical level, starting from battalions, through regiments and brigades, up to divisions and corps. HMS C3IS Jasmine allows for digital visualization of the operational situation or exchange of operational and tactical information (including logistics and intelligence) between command echelons. The solution is fully automatic, ensures reliability and promptness due to the application of suitable, NATO standardized, communication protocols and technical solutions.

In July 2018, the Armament Inspectorate of the Polish Ministry of Defense, responsible for the procurement of equipment and armament for the army, signed a contract with Teldat, on the strength of which the Polish army procured HMS C3IS Jasmine. The contract covers an unlimited license granted to the Polish Armed Forces to use the system inside and outside Poland. If the Polish Armed Forces are obliged to provide such military equipment to the allies, HMS C3IS Jasmine may also be used by armies of NATO member states or countries taking part in the Partnership for Peace program. The license also grants temporary access to the system to Polish public authorities in a crisis situation.

For the Polish army, the procurement of Jasmine was a real breakthrough, as it had not had any network centric command support and combat management system to manage tactical echelons, units and detachments of land forces, although the first steps towards purchasing such a system were made already in the middle of the last decade.

According to experts, any ICT solution is best developed while in use. Military specialists have no doubt that after three years of using HMS C3IS Jasmine, the Polish army has gathered enough feedback and experience to try and develop its functionality. Even more so that the North-Atlantic Alliance is continuously working on developing command support and combat management systems.

What functionalities should be added to HMS C3IS Jasmine? We asked this question to representatives of the two most important command structures in our army – the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces and the Armed Forces General Command, as well as the user who has worked with HMS C3IS Jasmine in our security system for the longest time – the War Studies University (Akademia Sztuki Wojennej – ASzWoj). The University has had an educational and training laboratory for the system since 2011, and in 2020 it opened two more at the University OfficerTraining Center.

Specialist Modules

LtCol Bartosz Biernacik, PhD, of the ICT Center at the Institute of Information Activities of the War Studies University’s Military Faculty emphasizes that HMS C3IS Jasmine, just as any system of this type, is never a finished creation, and requires regular updates. He also adds it is wise to watch what our allies are doing in the field. “NATO is constantly trying to reach the highest possible interoperability of ICT systems, particularly combat support systems, with other systems of the same class, as well as combat management systems,” says LtCol Biernacik. “This offers a chance to exchange information in real time or close to real time, and accelerates the flow of data from the moment of, for example, detecting the enemy, to the moment of deciding on possible ways to strike, transferring the decision and later executing the attack itself.”

The head of the lab which has been using HMS C3IS Jasmine for many years to train the Polish army’s command staff, thinks that first and foremost, the system should be supplemented with specialist modules created according to the army’s requirements. “I mean modules intended for specialists in particular branches of the armed forces, such as reconnaissance,artillery, air defense, logistics, communications and ICT or engineering. It would enable them to instantly share the results of, for example, performed calculations, in the command support system,” he says.

Another direction of the modification should be the creation of simulation mechanisms in HMS C3IS Jasmine, which would allow for testing ready operation variants and the concepts of securing them. “A simulation built into the system will significantly increase the efficiency and quality of command, and shorten the decision-making process for the commanders. Now, in the 21st century, the time of increased activity in cyberspace, we have very little time to transfer orders to subordinates, and our response needs to be of the highest standard,” emphasizes LtCol Biernacik.

Ensuring Interoperability

It is highly likely that in the next few years our army is going to develop HMS C3IS Jasmine in the directions indicated by the scientific environment working for the army and most experienced in using the system. “The modification of HMS C3IS Jasmine used by the armed forces will cover planning the use of subordinate forces and arms, including support on command posts of organizational cells of other service branches, and ensuring automatic and secure data exchange with cooperating ICT and battlefield simulation systems,” explains Col Joanna Klejszmit, the Spokesperson for the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces.

The representatives of the General Staff also indicate that the development of HMS C3IS Jasmine’s functionality will be a response to the requirements included in the interoperability standards agreed upon within the context of NATO’s Federated Mission Networking (FMN) concept and the experiences gained from using the system. The Polish Armed Forces joined the work within the FMN initiative in 2015. Defining, and later implementing interoperability requirements and standards in accordance with this concept has been spread over several years. “We will also plan new requirements for HMS C3IS Jasmine in this context,” adds Col Klejszmit.

She emphasizes that the army is continuously gathering findings and experiences necessary to determine the direction of the modifications and changes that are to be introduced in HMS C3IS Jasmine. “Currently, we mainly focus on training instructors and operators of the system, analyzing its practical applications in individual services and branches of the armed forces during the implementation period. It is assumed that operational use of the system in the Polish Armed Forces will be reached by the end of the year. Until then, we can collect a massive set of conclusions from the time of using the system and express the need for its modification and development,” says Col Klejszmit.

The representatives of the Armed Forces General Command see the future of the HMS C3IS Jasmine system in a very similar way. They emphasize the Polish army is still in the phase of collecting findings and experiences from its use. “After every exercise, for example Dragon 2021, the operational community of the Polish Armed Forces submits their findings and remarks concerning the functionalities and capabilities which should be added to the system,” emphasizes Col Marek Pawlak, the Spokesperson for the Armed Forces General Command. He adds the HMS C3IS Jasmine software is used at the operational and tactical level (from brigade level up) in ICT systems of the Ministry of National Defense. Col Pawlak says that some improvements have already been introduced in the HMS C3IS Jasmine system, as requested by the administrator.

Keep Improving

When it comes to the use of HMS C3IS Jasmine, the Polish army is in a very convenient situation. It is true that compared to other NATO states, we introduced a tactical and operational level command support and combat management system for the land forces quite late, but the solution is considered a very good product even by the competition. “HMS C3IS Jasmine is one of the best, if not the best system of this type in Europe, and maybe even in the world,” told the journalists Piotr Wojciechowski, the President of WB Electronics, referring to the capabilities of the Polish defense industry as regards military ICT systems.

Now, the Polish Armed Forces have to make sure the system is used according to its capabilities, efficiently and continuously developed and adjusted to their needs, so as to have the most current and up-to-date version of the operating system.

Versatile use

* supports the command of operational (tactical) level military structures, their activity and joint activity, also due to functionalities useful on the level ofdetachments;
* creates an up-to-date picture of the operational (tactical) situation and an action plan consistent with NATO standards;
* integrates and cooperates with other systems (also allied, due to, i.a., the implementation of NATO standards), including:
– command, communications and warfare, air defense;
– reconnaissance (surveillance), due to, i.a., the use of information collected from all accessible battlefield sensors, also on chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats, using standardized NATO reports;
– simulation and training;
* monitors the position of own and allied forces, including detachments;
* creates and distributes command documents;
* enables quick exchange of information in the form of text messages;
* enables terrain analysis – measuring distance, area, azimuth, marking out visibility zones, flood zones, creating a terrain profile;
* enables automatic aggregation of information on subordinate units.