This March, military free-fall training brought students from the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School to Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona. They completed jumps at the Phillips Drop Zone while practicing airborne skills under realistic conditions. BlackOhm Sigma was used during the event to provide real-time visibility of personnel throughout airborne operations.
Participants jumped from altitudes ranging from 9,500 to 25,000 feet. Training took place under both day and night conditions, with students carrying weapons and combat equipment. They all wore Sigma tracking devices that provided personnel location, descent, speed, and other data as students operated across these demanding training conditions.
The training covered every phase of the operation, from jumpmaster pre-inspections and aircraft preparation to free-fall descent, canopy control, landing, and equipment recovery. Students also practiced managing combat loads and specialized equipment throughout the event.
Operations across a large drop zone demand 360-degree coordination and continuous personnel accountability. Leaders must maintain awareness across all 3 phases: aircraft exit, landing, and recovery. The sequence can span up to 25,000 feet and involve multiple jumpers, equipment loads, and landing locations. Teams must locate any personnel outside the planned area and confirm the safe recovery of 100% of students and equipment. Following the training, BlackOhm received positive feedback from students and cadre on Sigma and its value for personnel tracking and accountability.
The Special Operations Center of Excellence
The U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School is the Army’s Special Operations Center of Excellence at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. It prepares Soldiers for careers in Special Forces, Civil Affairs, and Psychological Operations. Approximately 3,100 students are enrolled in its programs on any given day. The school offers more than 40 unique courses, ranging from entry-level training to advanced warfighter skills for experienced officers and noncommissioned officers.
BlackOhm Sigma Supports Airborne Personnel Tracking
BlackOhm Sigma adds near-real-time position and location awareness to military free-fall training procedures. The wearable platform supports an eight-path communications architecture that can use commercial cellular networks, private LTE networks, satellite direct-to-cell, non-terrestrial networks, LoRa, Bluetooth, and global data routing. It is designed to operate in GPS-denied or degraded environments and provides more than 14 days of battery life with hot-swappable battery capability.
Authorized leaders can organize jumpers by team, monitor landing locations, establish geographic boundaries, and receive mission-specific alerts through a centralized interface. If personnel land outside the planned drop zone, current and historical location information can help recovery teams prioritize searches and confirm accountability. The system can also preserve movement records for route reconstruction and after-action review.
