Arlington, VA | May 26, 2026 — The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies announces a new entry in its Forum Paper series, The Tactical C2 Imperative: Building a Resilient, Mobile Command and Control Grid, by Lt Col Daniel Longstreet, USAF.

Advancements in China and other adversaries’ long-range strikes, electronic warfare, and proliferated unmanned capabilities can now hold U.S. fixed C2 nodes, which are predictable, targetable, and sustainment-intensive, at risk. These threats could collapse U.S. situational awareness and decision speed at the moment they matter most. Current modernization efforts, including the E‑7 and future space‑based capabilities, promise a robust theater-level sensing, communication, and command framework, but the Air Force must complement them with a mobile, federated C2 grid that distributes sensing and communications across maneuverable airborne and ground nodes to fully realize the value of these assets at the tactical edge. This comprehensive approach integrates three mutually reinforcing layers: tanker-hosted Battlefield Airborne Communications Nodes to provide resilient standoff bridging; low-cost aerial vehicles with modular sensor and communication payloads to create a meshed “inside fight” network; and mobile ground sensors to close gaps and reduce reliance on fixed infrastructure. Together, these elements create a resilient transport backbone that degrades gracefully under attack and preserves decision advantage.

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