The specialised CBRN, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear units are required to operate in high-risk areas in teams while wearing specific personal protective equipment (PPE) to deal with the hazard.
What are the main tasks of military personnel working in the field of CBRN?
There are two main types of CBRN specialties. The tasks focus on special reconnaissance, on armoured vehicles or on foot, and decontamination to enable a unit that has suffered a CBRN attack to return to the battlefield. For example, personnel can decontaminate army vehicles of all sizes, or even small areas of land that have been affected by chemicals.
To be able to carry out these risky operations, soldiers are equipped with heavy or light gas-tight decontamination clothing (DC), with ballistic protection, self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), to protect themselves and also to detect, analyse and carry out field operations.
Full duplex communication for performance
During a vehicle decontamination operation, the communication system must facilitate the use of technical equipment and personal weapons. Hands-free and full-duplex communication (constant and open microphone communication) between the various teams involved becomes essential in order to coordinate operations and be able to carry them out successfully.
The same is true when entering a noisy contaminated building, soldiers must remove all background noise to be able to communicate remotely. The sound of the voice must be loud and clear in order to avoid any unnecessary movement or the need to make gestures or even shout to be understood. Effective communication can reduce the time required to perform an operation by several tens of minutes. Some of them can extend over 1 km, so the range of the walkie walkie in an open ground or through reinforced walls should not be interrupted in order to ensure constant communication.
Safety of equipment and teams involved: an imperative
While noise is one of the negative factors in the effective completion of a task, a failure to adequately protect communications data can have serious consequences. A communication device that provides secure communication through encryption is essential in the military.
Although a communication device is above all a powerful tool for the success of operations, it allows the personnel involved to remain in constant contact and thus increase their personal safety and efficiency. Pairs can work together, help each other, alert each other to any imminent danger.
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