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88-653: A Radio Battalion consists mainly of signals intelligence and electronic intelligence operators organized into smaller tactical units with different roles. Basic collection teams consist of 4–6 operators using specialized equipment based in HMMWVs . A variation on this is the MEWSS (Mobile Electronic Warfare Support System), which is an amphibious light armored vehicle equipped with similar electronic warfare equipment. MEWSS crews serve dual roles as electronic warfare operators and LAV crewmen. Radio Reconnaissance Platoons serve in

176-526: A special operations role where the use of standard collection teams is not possible, such as covert infiltrations or tactical recovery of aircraft and personnel (TRAP). In June 1943, 2nd Radio Intelligence Platoon was activated at Camp Elliott, California . The unit took part in the Battle of Guadalcanal and the Battle of Peleliu . The 3rd Radio Intelligence Platoon was also formed in June 1943 and took part in

264-426: A central point, or perhaps to a distributed system in which all participate, such that the information can be correlated and a location computed. Modern SIGINT systems, therefore, have substantial communications among intercept platforms. Even if some platforms are clandestine, there is still a broadcast of information telling them where and how to look for signals. A United States targeting system under development in

352-565: A combat area nor being awarded the Purple Heart Medal automatically makes a service member eligible", and specific sailors and marines may receive the ribbon in recognition of individual actions or various minor operations. In 2017, sailors from USS  Nitze , USS  Mason , USS  Ponce , and USS  San Antonio were awarded the Combat Action Ribbon after their ships were fired upon by rebels off

440-472: A confirmation, followed by observation of artillery fire, may identify an automated counterbattery fire system. A radio signal that triggers navigational beacons could be a radio landing aid for an airstrip or helicopter pad that is intended to be low-profile. Patterns do emerge. A radio signal with certain characteristics, originating from a fixed headquarters, may strongly suggest that a particular unit will soon move out of its regular base. The contents of

528-462: A designated combat zone does not qualify a service member for the award. Only one Combat Action Ribbon is awarded to a service member per theater of war. The CAR is a positive assessment of a service member's battle effectiveness during a combat engagement within a specific theater of war and is not awarded for additional combat interactions therein. Colloquially speaking, it's one CAR per war. A military member who serves in special operations, who by

616-458: A different ECCM way to identify frequencies not being jammed or not in use. The earliest, and still common, means of direction finding is to use directional antennas as goniometers , so that a line can be drawn from the receiver through the position of the signal of interest. (See HF/DF .) Knowing the compass bearing, from a single point, to the transmitter does not locate it. Where the bearings from multiple points, using goniometry, are plotted on

704-524: A ground or surface engagement. The Combat Action Ribbon will not be awarded to personnel for aerial combat, since the Strike/flight Air Medal provides recognition for aerial combat exposure; however, a pilot, flight officer/navigator, or other crew member forced to escape or evade, after being forced down, may be eligible for the award. Direct exposure to the detonation of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) used by an enemy, with or without

792-640: A lower level, German cryptanalysis, direction finding, and traffic analysis were vital to Rommel's early successes in the Western Desert Campaign until British forces tightened their communications discipline and Australian raiders destroyed his principle SIGINT Company. The United States Department of Defense has defined the term "signals intelligence" as: Being a broad field, SIGINT has many sub-disciplines. The two main ones are communications intelligence (COMINT) and electronic intelligence (ELINT). A collection system has to know to look for

880-407: A map, the transmitter will be located at the point where the bearings intersect. This is the simplest case; a target may try to confuse listeners by having multiple transmitters, giving the same signal from different locations, switching on and off in a pattern known to their user but apparently random to the listener. Individual directional antennas have to be manually or automatically turned to find

968-509: A message written in the new ADFGVX cipher , which was cryptanalyzed by Georges Painvin . This gave the Allies advance warning of the German 1918 Spring Offensive . The British in particular, built up great expertise in the newly emerging field of signals intelligence and codebreaking (synonymous with cryptanalysis). On the declaration of war, Britain cut all German undersea cables. This forced

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1056-648: A particular signal. "System", in this context, has several nuances. Targeting is the process of developing collection requirements : First, atmospheric conditions, sunspots , the target's transmission schedule and antenna characteristics, and other factors create uncertainty that a given signal intercept sensor will be able to "hear" the signal of interest, even with a geographically fixed target and an opponent making no attempt to evade interception. Basic countermeasures against interception include frequent changing of radio frequency , polarization , and other transmission characteristics. An intercept aircraft could not get off

1144-493: A public function "to advise as to the security of codes and cyphers used by all Government departments and to assist in their provision", but also with a secret directive to "study the methods of cypher communications used by foreign powers". GC&CS officially formed on 1 November 1919, and produced its first decrypt on 19 October. By 1940, GC&CS was working on the diplomatic codes and ciphers of 26 countries, tackling over 150 diplomatic cryptosystems. The US Cipher Bureau

1232-401: A radar is operating. Once the radar is known to be in the area, the next step is to find its location. If operators know the probable frequencies of transmissions of interest, they may use a set of receivers, preset to the frequencies of interest. These are the frequency (horizontal axis) versus power (vertical axis) produced at the transmitter, before any filtering of signals that do not add to

1320-401: A safe distance from the user of the transmitter. When locations are known, usage patterns may emerge, from which inferences may be drawn. Traffic analysis is the discipline of drawing patterns from information flow among a set of senders and receivers, whether those senders and receivers are designated by location determined through direction finding , by addressee and sender identifications in

1408-404: A sensor is unique. MASINT then becomes more informative, as individual transmitters and antennas may have unique side lobes, unintentional radiation, pulse timing, etc. Network build-up , or analysis of emitters (communication transmitters) in a target region over a sufficient period of time, enables creation of the communications flows of a battlefield. COMINT ( com munications int elligence)

1496-426: A tactical SIGINT requirement, whereas the larger aircraft tend to be assigned strategic/national missions. Before the detailed process of targeting begins, someone has to decide there is a value in collecting information about something. While it would be possible to direct signals intelligence collection at a major sports event, the systems would capture a great deal of noise, news signals, and perhaps announcements in

1584-478: A tank battalion or tank-heavy task force. Another set of transmitters might identify the logistic net for that same unit. An inventory of ELINT sources might identify the medium - and long-range counter-artillery radars in a given area. Signals intelligence units will identify changes in the EOB, which might indicate enemy unit movement, changes in command relationships, and increases or decreases in capability. Using

1672-411: A vehicle. If these are regular reports over a period of time, they might reveal a patrol pattern. Direction-finding and radio frequency MASINT could help confirm that the traffic is not deception. The EOB buildup process is divided as following: Separation of the intercepted spectrum and the signals intercepted from each sensor must take place in an extremely small period of time, in order to separate

1760-578: Is Amplitude comparison . An alternative to tunable directional antennas or large omnidirectional arrays such as the Wullenweber is to measure the time of arrival of the signal at multiple points, using GPS or a similar method to have precise time synchronization. Receivers can be on ground stations, ships, aircraft, or satellites, giving great flexibility. A more accurate approach is Interferometer. Modern anti-radiation missiles can home in on and attack transmitters; military antennas are rarely

1848-417: Is a sub-category of signals intelligence that engages in dealing with messages or voice information derived from the interception of foreign communications. COMINT is commonly referred to as SIGINT, which can cause confusion when talking about the broader intelligence disciplines. The US Joint Chiefs of Staff defines it as "Technical information and intelligence derived from foreign communications by other than

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1936-415: Is acquired by a given country. Knowledge of physics and electronic engineering further narrows the problem of what types of equipment might be in use. An intelligence aircraft flying well outside the borders of another country will listen for long-range search radars, not short-range fire control radars that would be used by a mobile air defense. Soldiers scouting the front lines of another army know that

2024-451: Is authorized for wear, with each additional CAR award signified with a 5 ⁄ 16 inch gold or silver star device attached to the center of the ribbon. For example, two CAR awards are signified with the CAR and the addition of one gold star device. Three awards are signified with the ribbon and two gold star devices. In full dress uniform medals are worn on the member's left side. The CAR

2112-646: Is authorized for: Other minor operations and specific actions may allow the award, as determined by the Commandant of the Coast Guard. Only one award per operation is authorized. Initially, all other similar military awards from other services were required to be converted to the Coast Guard Combat Action Ribbon in order to be worn on the Coast Guard uniform, but the policy was modified effective January 1, 2009 to allow wearing

2200-450: Is authorized. This listing is not all-inclusive, as the Combat Action Ribbon has been awarded in minor operations, as well as for specific actions. The Combat Action Ribbon is currently authorized with a U.S. Navy/Marine Corps design, and as of 2008, a U.S. Coast Guard version. The Navy CAR covers the Navy and Marine Corps since the establishment of the CAR in 1969. Additionally, the award

2288-619: Is awarded the Air Force Combat Action Medal (AFCAM), which includes both full and miniature size suspension medals and a ribbon. The Combat Action Ribbon is worn in order of precedence on a member's " ribbon rack " displayed on the left (or right) side of a service member's uniform. The outermost blue stripe is always to the wearer's center, with the central colors in order of red, white, and blue (left to right when worn on left side of uniform; right to left when worn on right side of uniform); only one Combat Action Ribbon

2376-455: Is awarded to members who have actively participated in ground or maritime combat. Satisfactory performance under fire with the enemy is required. From 2009 forward U.S. Coast Guard members will receive the CGCAR regardless if a member is operating in conjunction with or under the control of the U.S. Navy. Those USCG members awarded the U.S. Navy CAR prior to 2009 are authorized to continue wearing

2464-491: Is in the general area of the signal. The owner of the transmitter can assume someone is listening, so might set up tank radios in an area where he wants the other side to believe he has actual tanks. As part of Operation Quicksilver , part of the deception plan for the invasion of Europe at the Battle of Normandy , radio transmissions simulated the headquarters and subordinate units of the fictitious First United States Army Group (FUSAG), commanded by George S. Patton , to make

2552-433: Is the act and field of intelligence-gathering by interception of signals , whether communications between people ( communications intelligence —abbreviated to COMINT ) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ( electronic intelligence —abbreviated to ELINT ). As classified and sensitive information is usually encrypted , signals intelligence may necessarily involve cryptanalysis (to decipher

2640-421: Is therefore worn on the right side of the uniform. The CAR is the highest rated ribbon-only award in the U.S. military decorations order of precedence and is superseded only by medals of meritorious achievement and combat valor. An individual whose eligibility has been established in combat in any of the following listed operations may be authorized award of the Combat Action Ribbon. Only one award per operation

2728-537: The North Sea . The battle of Dogger Bank was won in no small part due to the intercepts that allowed the Navy to position its ships in the right place. It played a vital role in subsequent naval clashes, including at the Battle of Jutland as the British fleet was sent out to intercept them. The direction-finding capability allowed for the tracking and location of German ships, submarines, and Zeppelins . The system

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2816-532: The post office and Marconi stations, grew rapidly to the point where the British could intercept almost all official German messages. The German fleet was in the habit each day of wirelessing the exact position of each ship and giving regular position reports when at sea. It was possible to build up a precise picture of the normal operation of the High Seas Fleet , to infer from the routes they chose where defensive minefields had been placed and where it

2904-1011: The 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade under the command of Brigadier General Miller abroad the U.S.S Blue Ridge and other naval ships. Several members were authorized the Combat Action Ribbon during this period. April 1975 Elements participated in evacuations in Southeast Asia. May 1975 Elements participated in the recovery of the SS Mayaguaez. Unit Commanders 1stLt Marcus J. Couts 09112/0200 USMC 14 June 1943 – 5 May 1944 2ndLt Walter C. Smith 010462/0225 USMC 6 May 1944 – 27 January 1945 2ndLt Jack Evans 043139/0225 USMC 28 February 1945 – 8 March 1945 Capt Marcus J. Couts 09112/0225 USMC 28 May 1945 – 28 September 1945 LtCol John K. Hyatt, Jr. ?-1973 LtCol Carl W. Kachaukas 1973-? Casualties World War II Signals intelligence Signals intelligence ( SIGINT )

2992-631: The Battles of the Kwajalein Atoll and Okinawa . General Alfred M. Gray Jr. , who served as the 29th Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1 July 1987 until his retirement on 30 June 1991, is considered the founding father of post-war Marine Corps signals intelligence (SIGINT). In 1955 then Captain Gray was tasked with forming two SIGINT units, one to be assigned to Europe and the other to

3080-549: The British forces in World War II came under the code name " Ultra ", managed from Government Code and Cypher School at Bletchley Park . Properly used, the German Enigma and Lorenz ciphers should have been virtually unbreakable, but flaws in German cryptographic procedures, and poor discipline among the personnel carrying them out, created vulnerabilities which made Bletchley's attacks feasible. Bletchley's work

3168-609: The British were the only people transmitting at the time, the British did not need special interpretation of the signals that they were. The birth of signals intelligence in a modern sense dates from the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905. As the Russian fleet prepared for conflict with Japan in 1904, the British ship HMS Diana stationed in the Suez Canal intercepted Russian naval wireless signals being sent out for

3256-548: The COMINT gathering method enables the intelligence officer to produce an electronic order of battle by traffic analysis and content analysis among several enemy units. For example, if the following messages were intercepted: This sequence shows that there are two units in the battlefield, unit 1 is mobile, while unit 2 is in a higher hierarchical level, perhaps a command post. One can also understand that unit 1 moved from one point to another which are distant from each 20 minutes with

3344-607: The Coast Guard in the rank of captain and below, "who have actively participated in ground or maritime combat." The Coast Guard ribbon is retroactive to 1 May 1975 (during the Vietnam war Coast Guard members were awarded the Navy Combat Action ribbon). Coast Guardsmen in Vietnam riverine warfare operations were deemed eligible for award of the Navy Combat Action Ribbon. Air combat does not meet

3432-572: The Combat Action Ribbon after their ships were fired upon by Houthi rebels during the 2024 missile strikes in Yemen and shooting down drones in the Red Sea for the time period of October 2023 to April 2024. In October 1999, World War II and Korean War veterans became retroactively eligible for the Navy Combat Action Ribbon by Public Law 106-65 on 5 October 1999, which permitted the Secretary of

3520-528: The Combat Action Ribbon or other awards of this nature. The Navy's Combat Action Ribbon ("CAR") was established during the Vietnam War by a Secretary of the Navy Notice, dated February 17, 1969, with retroactive award to 1 March 1961. The Navy CAR is awarded to members of the Navy and Marine Corps (and Coast Guard, when operating under the control of the Navy during a war or national emergency), with

3608-438: The German defense think that the main invasion was to come at another location. In like manner, fake radio transmissions from Japanese aircraft carriers, before the Battle of Pearl Harbor , were made from Japanese local waters, while the attacking ships moved under strict radio silence. Traffic analysis need not focus on human communications. For example, a sequence of a radar signal, followed by an exchange of targeting data and

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3696-515: The Germans to communicate exclusively via either (A) a telegraph line that connected through the British network and thus could be tapped; or (B) through radio which the British could then intercept. Rear Admiral Henry Oliver appointed Sir Alfred Ewing to establish an interception and decryption service at the Admiralty ; Room 40 . An interception service known as 'Y' service , together with

3784-575: The Navy (SECNAV) to award the Combat Action Ribbon to a member of the Navy or Marine Corps for participation in ground or surface combat during any period on or after 7 December 1941, and before 1 March 1961, if the Secretary determines that the member has not been previously recognized in an appropriate manner for such participation. Two specific blocks of time were later designated by then SECNAV Danzig : Dec. 7, 1941 – Apr. 14, 1946 (World War II), and June 25, 1950 – July 27, 1954 (Korean War) In 2009,

3872-404: The Navy award, or at the member's option can choose to wear the CGCAR. Eligibility for the CGCAR also includes personnel having direct exposure to the detonation of an enemy's improvised explosive device , and to personnel who served in clandestine/special operations and were restricted in their ability to return fire, where the risk of enemy fire was great. The Coast Guard Combat Action Ribbon

3960-630: The Pacific area, chosen from Marines undergoing Manual Morse intercept training. Captain Gray established the Pacific team at NSG Kamiseya, Japan in May 1956. In 1958 then-Captain Gray was assigned to Hawaii to form and activate the 1st Radio Company, a tactical signals intelligence (SIGINT) unit, where he would serve from September 1958 to May 1961. From World War II until the early 1960s, various units performed radio intercepts, growing from platoon to company and, in 1964, to 1st Radio Battalion. Sub-units of

4048-1074: The Solomon Islands (Guadalcanal) 31 July 1944 Reassigned to the 1st Marine Division, Fleet Marine Forces August 1944 Relocated to the Carolina Islands September 1944 Participated in the Battle of Peleliu 2nd Radio Separate Intelligence Platoon 20 October 1944 Redesignated 2nd Separate Radio Intelligence Platoon November 1944 Relocated to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Territory 8 March 1945 Deactivated 24 May 1945 Reactivated at Wahiawa, Hawaii Territory 28 September 1945 Deactivated After deactivation on 28 September 1945, personnel were assigned to other Radio Intercept Platoons, which were located in Naval Radio Stations in Guam and in China. They remained there during part of

4136-548: The U.S. Army, Air Force, or Space Force, may be authorized to wear the Combat Action Ribbon upon application to the Department of the Navy (or Department of Homeland Security, as applicable). After the destroyer USS  Cole was attacked by suicide bombers in 2000, the entire crew of the ship was awarded the Combat Action Ribbon a year later. In January 2013, the awarding criteria were expanded to include dangerous exposure to IEDs, mines, and scatterable munitions, be it

4224-480: The U.S. Coast Guard began awarding a Coast Guard Combat Action Ribbon (CGCAR), that is stylized similarly in design to the Navy Combat Action Ribbon. Prior to 2008 Coast Guard members awarded the Combat Action Ribbon received the U.S. Navy CAR because in times of conflict and war the Coast Guard in combat areas typically operated with or under the U.S. Navy. For example, in the Vietnam War's Operation Market Time

4312-545: The U.S. Coast Guard had at any one time approximately 1,200 Coast Guard members participating in brown water navy riverine warfare operations. Those Coast Guard members were awarded the U.S. Navy Combat Action Ribbon by the Commander U.S. Naval Forces Vietnam. The U.S. Coast Guard Combat Action Ribbon (CGCAR) was established by the approval of the Secretary of Homeland Security on 16 July 2008, in ALCOAST 361/08. The CGCAR

4400-453: The actual information is at 800 kHz and 1.2 MHz. Real-world transmitters and receivers usually are directional. In the figure to the left, assume that each display is connected to a spectrum analyzer connected to a directional antenna aimed in the indicated direction. Spread-spectrum communications is an electronic counter-countermeasures (ECCM) technique to defeat looking for particular frequencies. Spectrum analysis can be used in

4488-645: The army in France in 1915. By May 1915, the Admiralty was able to track German submarines crossing the North Sea. Some of these stations also acted as 'Y' stations to collect German messages, but a new section was created within Room 40 to plot the positions of ships from the directional reports. Room 40 played an important role in several naval engagements during the war, notably in detecting major German sorties into

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4576-401: The award arising from combat action in which all participated. A military member does not automatically qualify for the Combat Action Ribbon. The CAR is awarded after the service member's command takes into consideration the evidence and specified criteria. The evidence must show a service member was engaged in direct combat, not indirect or in an area where combat is occurring; mere presence in

4664-431: The award. The ribbon is awarded to members of the Navy and Marine Corps with a rank no higher than captain and colonel, respectively. The U.S. Navy first authorized the Combat Action Ribbon on 17 February 1969. The Navy ribbon was originally retroactive to March 1961; in 1999 it was made retroactive to 7 December 1941. The Coast Guard Combat Action Ribbon was authorized on 16 July 2008, and may be awarded to members of

4752-788: The battalion were deployed to Vietnam from 1965 to 1975, including participation in evacuation efforts during the Fall of Saigon . In the early 1980s, 2nd Radio Battalion was part of the multinational peacekeeping force in Beirut , Lebanon. More recently, Radio Battalions served in Operation Desert Storm , Somalia , Kosovo , the 2003 Invasion of Iraq , and the 2004 Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah . Radio Battalions also send detachments to augment intelligence efforts at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base , Cuba, and at other bases throughout

4840-506: The broader organizational order of battle . EOB covers both COMINT and ELINT. The Defense Intelligence Agency maintains an EOB by location. The Joint Spectrum Center (JSC) of the Defense Information Systems Agency supplements this location database with five more technical databases: For example, several voice transmitters might be identified as the command net (i.e., top commander and direct reports) in

4928-578: The coast of Yemen in 2016, one of the few instances in the 21st century when U.S. Navy sailors aboard a commissioned warship were awarded the ribbon for combat occurring at sea. In 2005, the crew of the USS ; Kearsarge were awarded the CAR as well. In 2024, sailors from the destroyers USS  Carney , USS  Mason , USS  Gravely , USS  Laboon , USS  Thomas Hudner , USS  Cole , Cruiser USS  Philippine Sea and Carrier USS  Dwight D. Eisenhower were awarded

5016-634: The command of Captain John K. Hyatt, Jr. 17 September 1963 Redesignated as 1st Radio Company, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. 1st Radio Battalion 14 July 1964 Redesignated as 1st Radio Battalion, FMF at Kaneohe Bay under the command of Major Henry Vod der Heyde. February 1967 Deployed to Danang, South Vietnam as Sub-Unit One. 1 March 1969 Sub-Unit one merged into 1st Radio Battalion, FMF, Camp Horn, Danang, South Vietnam October 1970 Elements (Sub-Unit 2) assisted US Army unit in Udorn, Thailand. An Army Unit Commendation

5104-571: The criteria for the Combat Action Ribbon; naval aviators , naval flight officers and enlisted naval air crewmen, while in the performance of aerial flight, are instead eligible for consideration for the Air Medal . For a military member to be awarded a Combat Action Ribbon evidence must establish the member engaged the enemy, was under hostile fire, or was physically attacked by the enemy. The service member must have demonstrated satisfactory performance under enemy fire while actively participating in

5192-446: The decision to target is made, the various interception points need to cooperate, since resources are limited. Knowing what interception equipment to use becomes easier when a target country buys its radars and radios from known manufacturers, or is given them as military aid . National intelligence services keep libraries of devices manufactured by their own country and others, and then use a variety of techniques to learn what equipment

5280-767: The detonation of such or direct action taken to disable, render safe, or destroy such; servicemembers may be deemed eligible if the IEDs are detonated or specifically emplaced by the enemy. Previous eligibility applied only to exposure to IEDs actually detonated by the enemy. Eligibility under this criterion is retroactive only to 7 October 2001. Blanket lists of units and operations whose members or participants are deemed to be "in-combat", and thus potentially eligible, can be found in OPNAVNOTE 1650 (for specific units and ships) and in chapter 2, appendix E, of recent SECNAVINSTs (for specific operations and ships) though, "Neither service in

5368-469: The different signals to different transmitters in the battlefield. The complexity of the separation process depends on the complexity of the transmission methods (e.g., hopping or time-division multiple access (TDMA)). By gathering and clustering data from each sensor, the measurements of the direction of signals can be optimized and get much more accurate than the basic measurements of a standard direction finding sensor. By calculating larger samples of

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5456-542: The early China Occupation, and most of them returned to the United States near the end of January and February 1946. 1st Radio Company 15 September 1958 Reactivated at Camp Smith, Territory of Hawaii as 1st Radio Company. June 1959 Relocated from Camp Smith to Kaneohe Bay, Marine Corps Air Station. 1st Composite Radio Company 8 September 1959 Redesignated as 1st Composite Radio Company. 2 January 1962 Deployed to Pleiku, South Vietnam as Detachment One under

5544-512: The fronts, that we won the war!" Supreme Allied Commander, Dwight D. Eisenhower , at the end of the war, described Ultra as having been "decisive" to Allied victory. Official historian of British Intelligence in World War II Sir Harry Hinsley argued that Ultra shortened the war "by not less than two years and probably by four years"; and that, in the absence of Ultra, it is uncertain how the war would have ended. At

5632-486: The grade of captain/colonel and below, who have actively participated in ground or surface combat. Marines, Navy sailors, or Coast Guardsmen who are awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge , Combat Medical Badge , Combat Action Badge , or Combat Action Medal while assigned to United States Army , United States Air Force , and United States Space Force units, or who earned such for prior service in

5720-420: The ground if it had to carry antennas and receivers for every possible frequency and signal type to deal with such countermeasures. Second, locating the transmitter's position is usually part of SIGINT. Triangulation and more sophisticated radio location techniques, such as time of arrival methods, require multiple receiving points at different locations. These receivers send location-relevant information to

5808-409: The immediate presence of enemy forces, constitutes active participation in a ground or surface engagement. Eligibility under this criterion is retroactive to 7 October 2001. The Combat Action Ribbon is awarded to individuals only. The CAR is not awarded to a military unit, station, or group, although multiple individual service members (e.g., those stationed on a boat or warship) may be nominated for

5896-500: The importance of interception and decryption firmly established by the wartime experience, countries established permanent agencies dedicated to this task in the interwar period. In 1919, the British Cabinet's Secret Service Committee, chaired by Lord Curzon , recommended that a peace-time codebreaking agency should be created. The Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) was the first peace-time codebreaking agency, with

5984-448: The information being transmitted. Received energy on a particular frequency may start a recorder, and alert a human to listen to the signals if they are intelligible (i.e., COMINT). If the frequency is not known, the operators may look for power on primary or sideband frequencies using a spectrum analyzer . Information from the spectrum analyzer is then used to tune receivers to signals of interest. For example, in this simplified spectrum,

6072-451: The intended recipients". Combat Action Ribbon The Combat Action Ribbon ( CAR ) is a United States Navy , United States Coast Guard , and United States Marine Corps military decoration awarded to United States sea service members "who have actively participated in ground or surface combat." Coast Guardsmen, Navy sailors, and Marines active in clandestine, stealth or special operations are deemed eligible for consideration of

6160-541: The late 1990s, PSTS, constantly sends out information that helps the interceptors properly aim their antennas and tune their receivers. Larger intercept aircraft, such as the EP-3 or RC-135 , have the on-board capability to do some target analysis and planning, but others, such as the RC-12 GUARDRAIL , are completely under ground direction. GUARDRAIL aircraft are fairly small and usually work in units of three to cover

6248-564: The message need not be known to infer the movement. There is an art as well as science of traffic analysis. Expert analysts develop a sense for what is real and what is deceptive. Harry Kidder , for example, was one of the star cryptanalysts of World War II, a star hidden behind the secret curtain of SIGINT. Generating an electronic order of battle (EOB) requires identifying SIGINT emitters in an area of interest, determining their geographic location or range of mobility, characterizing their signals, and, where possible, determining their role in

6336-410: The message, or even MASINT techniques for "fingerprinting" transmitters or operators. Message content other than the sender and receiver is not necessary to do traffic analysis, although more information can be helpful. For example, if a certain type of radio is known to be used only by tank units, even if the position is not precisely determined by direction finding, it may be assumed that a tank unit

6424-641: The messages). Traffic analysis —the study of who is signaling to whom and in what quantity—is also used to integrate information, and it may complement cryptanalysis. Electronic interceptions appeared as early as 1900, during the Boer War of 1899–1902. The British Royal Navy had installed wireless sets produced by Marconi on board their ships in the late 1890s, and the British Army used some limited wireless signalling. The Boers captured some wireless sets and used them to make vital transmissions. Since

6512-634: The mobilization of the fleet, for the first time in history. Over the course of the First World War , a new method of signals intelligence reached maturity. Russia’s failure to properly protect its communications fatally compromised the Russian Army ’s advance early in World War I and led to their disastrous defeat by the Germans under Ludendorff and Hindenburg at the Battle of Tannenberg . In 1918, French intercept personnel captured

6600-521: The nature of their mission, are restricted in their ability to return fire, and who are operating in conditions where the risk of enemy fire was great and expected to be encountered, may be eligible for the Combat Action Ribbon. The Combat Action Ribbon is a ribbon-only decoration in contrast to military branches that award a badge or medal. Compare: the U.S. Army awards the Combat Infantryman Badge , Combat Action Badge , or Combat Medical Badge . U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force combat participant

6688-461: The other side will be using radios that must be portable and not have huge antennas. Even if a signal is human communications (e.g., a radio), the intelligence collection specialists have to know it exists. If the targeting function described above learns that a country has a radar that operates in a certain frequency range, the first step is to use a sensitive receiver, with one or more antennas that listen in every direction, to find an area where such

6776-417: The sensor's output data in near real-time, together with historical information of signals, better results are achieved. Data fusion correlates data samples from different frequencies from the same sensor, "same" being confirmed by direction finding or radiofrequency MASINT. If an emitter is mobile, direction finding, other than discovering a repetitive pattern of movement, is of limited value in determining if

6864-509: The signal direction, which may be too slow when the signal is of short duration. One alternative is the Wullenweber array technique. In this method, several concentric rings of antenna elements simultaneously receive the signal, so that the best bearing will ideally be clearly on a single antenna or a small set. Wullenweber arrays for high-frequency signals are enormous, referred to as "elephant cages" by their users. A more advance approach

6952-451: The stadium. If, however, an anti-terrorist organization believed that a small group would be trying to coordinate their efforts using short-range unlicensed radios at the event, SIGINT targeting of radios of that type would be reasonable. Targeting would not know where in the stadium the radios might be located or the exact frequency they are using; those are the functions of subsequent steps such as signal detection and direction finding. Once

7040-458: The story of Operation SALAM , László Almásy 's mission across the desert behind Allied lines in 1942. Prior to the Normandy landings on D-Day in June 1944, the Allies knew the locations of all but two of Germany's fifty-eight Western Front divisions. Winston Churchill was reported to have told King George VI : "It is thanks to the secret weapon of General Menzies , put into use on all

7128-551: The world. In Afghanistan, Radio Battalion proved especially effective against improvised explosive devices. 1st Radio Battalion, reformed in August 2004, is based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton , California, and supports the I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). The battalion maintains four companies: Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and H&S Companies. 1st Radio Battalion was first based at Marine Corps Base Hawaii , Kāneʻohe Bay , and operated out of there for several decades until it

7216-446: Was authorized. April 1971 Redeployed to Marine Corps Station, Kaneohe, Hawaii. April 1971 Sub-Unit 2, 1st Radio Battalion deactivated and merged back into 1st Radio Battalion, FMF, Kaneohe, Hawaii. Major L. K. Russell was in command of Sub-Unit 2 and LtCol Ed Resnick was the 1st Radio Battalion Commander. Shortly thereafter, date unknown, LtCol John K. Hyatt, Jr. took command. April 1972 Elements returned to South Vietnam in support of

7304-686: Was essential to defeating the U-boats in the Battle of the Atlantic , and to the British naval victories in the Battle of Cape Matapan and the Battle of North Cape . In 1941, Ultra exerted a powerful effect on the North African desert campaign against German forces under General Erwin Rommel . General Sir Claude Auchinleck wrote that were it not for Ultra, "Rommel would have certainly got through to Cairo". Ultra decrypts featured prominently in

7392-558: Was established in 1919 and achieved some success at the Washington Naval Conference in 1921, through cryptanalysis by Herbert Yardley . Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson closed the US Cipher Bureau in 1929 with the words "Gentlemen do not read each other's mail." The use of SIGINT had even greater implications during World War II . The combined effort of intercepts and cryptanalysis for the whole of

7480-507: Was made retroactive to 7 December 1941. Prior to 2008, eligible U.S. Coast Guardsmen were awarded the Navy Combat Action Ribbon (because in most conflicts and wars Coast Guard members usually operated with or under the U.S. Navy). From 2009 forward, Coast Guard members who engage in combat are now awarded the Coast Guard Combat Action Ribbon. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard veterans are advised to submit requests about eligibility or other matters to their respective branches to inquire about

7568-422: Was reformed at Camp Pendleton. Chronology and Summary of Operations 2nd Radio Intelligence Platoon What is now 1st Radio Battalion began as 2nd Radio Intelligence Platoon, activated during World War II on 14 June 1943 at Camp Linda Vista, Camp Elliott, California. 14 June 1943 Activated and designated 2nd Radio Intelligence Platoon December 1943 Relocated to Pacific Theater January 1944 Participated in

7656-494: Was safe for ships to operate. Whenever a change to the normal pattern was seen, it immediately signalled that some operation was about to take place, and a warning could be given. Detailed information about submarine movements was also available. The use of radio-receiving equipment to pinpoint the location of any single transmitter was also developed during the war. Captain H.J. Round , working for Marconi , began carrying out experiments with direction-finding radio equipment for

7744-690: Was so successful that by the end of the war, over 80 million words, comprising the totality of German wireless transmission over the course of the war, had been intercepted by the operators of the Y-stations and decrypted. However, its most astonishing success was in decrypting the Zimmermann Telegram , a telegram from the German Foreign Office sent via Washington to its ambassador Heinrich von Eckardt in Mexico. With

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