12 Oct. 2005

NATO adopts standards for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance Key links The NATO Air Force Armaments Group In an effort to ensure interoperability, NATO has recently agreed on a standard architecture for air and ground intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) assets. The agreement is a result of the work of the NATO Air Force Armaments Group Air Group IV, which began in the early 1990s. Sharing intelligence The Groups research determined that the best way of ensuring intelligence interoperability within NATO-led operations was to establish standard interfaces between the various systems used. This allows each country to develop systems that meet their respective needs, while ensuring interoperability through the use of the agreed interfaces. To this end, the Air Group IV has developed the NATO ISR Interoperability Architecture (NIIA). It defines the interfaces between airborne surveillance platforms and the ground/surface systems, and the connectivity of the ground surface system with the rest of the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance infrastructure. The NIIA is defined in Allied Engineering Documentation Publication 2 and is widely accepted as the basis for present and future ISR interoperability of both manned and unmanned systems. The entire architecture is being formally incorporated into the NATO C3 Technical Architecture (NC3TA) as the ISR element. For further information on the NIIA, contact the Secretary of Air Group IV, Mr. Georges Thibaut, of the Air Armaments Section of the NATO International Staff.