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Brig. Gen. Collins Takes the Reins of the Army’s Tactical Communications Effort

Leader will continue PEO C3T’s robust modernization of the Integrated Tactical Network.

Program Executive Office Command Control Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T), through its Program Manager Tactical Network, equips a brigade combat team in the 82nd Airborne Division with the an inflatable satellite communications system known as T2C2. Brig. Gen. Robert Collins, USA, takes over as the new PEO C3T on June 1 and says he will continue the key efforts to modernize the service's tactical communications. Credit: U.S. Army photo by Amy Walker, PEO C3T

With key knowledge of the Army’s necessary sensors, intelligence and electronic warfare capabilities, Brig. Gen. Robert Collins, USA, today steps into the role of Program Executive Office Command Control Communications-Tactical, or PEO C3T. Gen. Collins replaces newly promoted Lt. Gen. David Bassett, USA, who becomes the director of the Defense Contract Management Agency.

Gen. Bassett and Maj. Gen. Peter Gallagher, USA, director, Network-Cross Functional Team (N-CFT), have spent the last two years aggressively pursuing a comprehensive modernization effort to create an integrated tactical network that can support soldiers fighting anywhere at anytime against near-peer adversaries in a contested environment. The approach rolls out innovative tactical communication and network solutions every two years, beginning with Capability Set 2021.

Gen. Collins will continue those efforts, bringing in principles such as open architecture, improved acquisition, development security operations, or DevSecOps, from leading the Army’s Program Executive Officer (PEO) for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (IEW&S), he told SIGNAL Magazine in a recent interview.

“One of the things we really pushed into is open systems architecture,” he noted. “I think that predicting the future is not an easy endeavor, and so making sure that we are prepared for the unknown [through] open systems architecture [is important]. It is really everything from increasing competition and preventing vendor lock, which will really allow us to flex and adapt new technologies and address new threats as they emerge. And underpinning all that is a focus on making sure we maintain a very innovative culture that embraces change and agility, with things such as DevSecOps.”

Gen. Collins also is a PEO that emphasizes leadership, he said. “I am one that distinguishes between management of cost schedule and performance, and leading and leadership, and the things that are required to implement change and having a culture that fosters that,” the general stated. “I suspect some of those certainly, the leadership aspects, the innovative programmatics, the open systems architecture, integrating capability and really working with all of our key stakeholders, will be several things that I'll take into my new job as PEO C3T.”

Before joining PEO C3T, Gen. Collins had been PEO IEW&S since May 2019.

“I've been very proud of the PEO IEW&S team and all that they continue to do for force protection and Army readiness, as well modernization,” Gen. Collins said. “And I do feel fortunate that I've been able to establish a healthy network of experts here within the intel electronic warfare and sensing community. I think all of that information will be a benefit as I move over on the network side.”

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