Agile C2 Mission Planning (Phoebe)
The Phoebe Agile Command and Control (C2) System has revolutionised Australian Defence Force planning. Phoebe was built by x-RD, as part of a consortium of sovereign Defence technology companies, and the Defence Science and Technology Group.
Challenge
Military forces conduct planning and synchronisation in a dispersed organisational model, within a Denied, Disrupted, Intermittent, and Limited communications environment. Planning is often conducted in spreadsheets and slide presentations, asynchronously emailed between various command structures to coordinate operations. Current processes are slow, difficult to update, and lack detail, including geospatial, temporal, and attribute specificity.
The ability to share operational plans, in real time, leads to a more efficient decision-making process. Combined with improvements to situational awareness, efficiencies in decision-making allow military forces to make decisions faster than their opponents can react, leading to decision superiority, outmanoeuvring their adversaries, and improving battlefield performance.
Solution
x-RD worked with a consortium of sovereign Defence-technology companies and DSTG to build the Phoebe Agile Command and Control System. Phoebe allows for operational planners to create and share plans, concepts, and missions in real time. Based on geospatial and temporal planning products, Phoebe provides commanders at all levels with the fidelity of data required to synchronise battlespace effects and stress test courses of action against tabulated data. Phoebe’s open system architecture supports future enhancements, including artificial intelligence for human-machine augmented decision making and integration with current and future decision support systems.
Impact
Phoebe is now used across Joint Operations as well as Army, Navy and Air Force demonstrating its value to the Defence mission.
In 2024 Phoebe was awarded with a VCDF commendation for its contribution.