DSEI discussion with Cate Pye, left, Richard Watts, and Air Marshal Paul Godfrey, right. Photo: Via Satellite

LONDON — The advance of space and cyber technologies is creating “an invisible front line” in the warfighting domain. Royal Air Force Air Marshal Paul Godfrey, who is serving as assistant chief of Space Operations for Future Concepts and Partnership, with the U.S. Space Force (USSF) said during the Space Forum at DSEI UK on Wednesday. Space, cyber and electromagnetic (EM) interference has created an “invisible front line” where it is difficult to attribute potential adversary action.

“When you see interference on a satcoms channel, do you rush to say that is jamming or is it someone else? It is so difficult to attribute potential adversary action. That is the context. You need to understand these domains,” Godfrey said.

Space networks are complex with assets in space and on the ground. There are numerous ways they can be attacked. Thanks to this new “invisible front line” a new response is needed from the likes of USSF and others. Godfrey, like others, highlighted the lessons learned from Ukraine. He said that Ukraine has demonstrated the need to move quickly and be agile in response to these threats. Ukraine has seen an acceleration in cyber and EM activity over the last few years, highlighting its importance in the warfighting domain.

A change of approach is needed, as even organizations like USSF can learn lessons as they procure space tech. Godfrey highlighted the agility of SpaceX as an example. “If you look at SpaceX, they fail, iterate, fail, iterate and then have success. In procurement for the USSF, they are looking at 80% solutions, rather than just building a big behemoth,” he said.

Cate Pye, partner and global lead for cyber for PA Consulting, added, “The speed of iteration is much faster in cyber. Cyber and EM is a technical solution, but there are people in there somewhere. The battlespace is now digital and we have to have the confidence to deal with that.”

Richard Watts, director for Business Development and Commercial, SiXworks (an IBM company), said the company is focused on the outcome, rather than the requirements.

“You have to build it, test it, and looking at what your adversaries might be doing. You don’t try and design the whole solution at the start. You accept you will make mistakes when designing the solution. This takes time,” Watts said. “In the world of cyber and EM, it is adversarial. When you get to Zero Day, everything you have done before is immaterial. You need a common understanding of risk.”

UK Defense Chief of Staff: Defense Needs a ‘New Relationship’ With Industry  

In a keynote address, Air Chief Marshal Richard Knighton, Chief of Defence Staff, highlighted the threats the United Kingdom now faces from adversaries. Knighton pointed to key lessons from Ukraine in terms of adapting quickly. He said “the pace of change will be critical.”

Knighton looked back to a speech he made at DSEI in 2019, when the U.K. had optimized its Armed Forces from what it saw in the Balkans, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Times have now changed. “Today, six years later, we need to be different for a different type of conflict. Russia has an economy on a full war footing. They are resurgent. Robotics and AI are being embraced. I have never known a more demanding security environment than what we have today. There is a lot to do on my ‘to do’ list,” Knighton said.

The U.K’s Defence Industrial Strategy is seen as important in building capability and its Defense Industrial base. Knighton spoke of the fact that throughout history, warfare has been a catalyst for transformation, and that it remains a “tragic and terrible testbed.”

He added, “I have witnessed the ingenuity of Ukraine’s people. It has driven innovation far beyond what we have seen in peacetime. I have seen the cleverest minds of Ukraine manipulating technology to overcome the numerical advantages that Russia has. There are lessons about how a nation adapts to an unrelenting enemy. History that tells us if we don’t win quickly, we need to sustain that fight. This is what Ukraine is doing. It is harnessing people and data, and building an ecosystem that is rapid and agile.”

One of the themes of DSEI is how governments need the help of industry to become more agile as they look to counter threats. Russia now has a war economy. Knighton said the U.K. needs to build a system that will drive rapid innovation. He spoke of a new relationship with the commercial industry.

“We have spent the last 25 years making our systems more efficient. We have prioritized cost. That approach will not deliver the rate of change we now need. It is a system optimized for the past, and not future needs. We need a new relationship with the industry. Industry is not one monolithic block. We have to open our systems and architectures to allow the best of the market to play. Ukraine works directly with the warfighters, and we can learn from that.”

Knighton said we are entering into an historical period for growth in defense spending. He called for modernization. “We need industry to be world class. Three and a half years on from Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, I am surprised I don’t see more stakeholders investing to grow new products across the enterprise. The modernization of the Armed Forces is urgent.”