Where the Army Stands in Its Unified Network Mission

The Unified Network Plan is the U.S. Army’s roadmap to get all of its systems and devices to communicate and interoperate seamlessly. It is part and parcel with Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control, or CJADC2, the Department of Defense-wide effort to likewise unite technologies across all domains (land, air, sea, space) and with Project Convergence, the Army’s experimentation initiative to make CJADC2 a reality.

The first iteration of the Unified Network Plan, dubbed AUNP, was released in 2021 and an updated version was issued in March. Both versions are highly concerned with moving the Army from a network-centric to data-centric operation, which is a passion project for Lt. Gen. Jeth Rey, deputy chief of staff, G-6, who has been working toward this goal since his time leading the Army Futures Command’s Network Cross Functional Team.

Lt. Gen. Rey will be a keynote speaker at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2025 Army Summit on June 18, where he’ll be giving the GovCon audience the latest updates on AUNP and the Army’s journey toward interoperable tech systems. It’s imperative you attend if you’re an industrial base member who currently or is looking to do business with the Army. Register here!

POC had the chance to speak to Lt. Gen. Rey ahead of his appearance at the Army Summit about his approach to partnership and where exactly the service stands in its unification quest.

Commercial-First

Lt. Gen. Rey said that the Army’s work with the private sector “isn’t optional, it’s essential. We need industry at the table, every step of the way.” The Army is embracing a newfound interest in commercial products (in what Rey calls a “commercial-first approach”) and in return, he asks that companies develop and create products with warfighters in mind.

He and colleagues believe that, due to their expertise, industry has the ability to spot problems that the military can’t see and can help fix them before they proliferate.

“We must innovate, adapt and integrate…This will help the Army keep its edge on the edge of the battlefield and be more lethal,” Lt. Gen. Rey proclaimed.

Unified Network Progress

The DSC G-6 told us that he just completed a 100-day initial assessment on the current state of the unified network that looked at “the ability to integrate emerging technologies, maximize buying power and use data-driven tools to optimize resource allocation.”

After the assessment, Lt. Rey determined the service is “well on the road” to unified network modernization.

Linking the unified network mission with the Army’s more recently announced transformation initiative, Lt. Gen. Rey said he is “excited to continue to modernize the network as part of the Army Transformation Initiative to build a more robust and lethal Army.”

Hear Lt. Gen Rey paint a fuller picture of what the assessment entailed, as well as the cybersecurity aspects that are an important part of the AUNP 2.0, at the 2025 Army Summit on June 18. Cybersecurity organizations, take note — zero trust is a central aspect of the plan, so be sure to attend to learn what cyber tech the Army needs to achieve a secure, data-centric architecture.