NATO confirms SitaWare Headquarters C2 system to reach FOC by March 2026

The Italian Army operating SitaWare HQ, known internally by the army as Imperio, during Exercise ‘Cursor 2023'. (Italian Army)

Full operating capability (FOC) for SitaWare Headquarters (HQ), NATO's new command-and-control (C2) software for land forces, will be achieved by March 2026, a representative from the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA) confirmed to Janes on 30 June.

The software will be delivered under NATO's Future Land C2 (FLC2) project, also known as Project Demeter. NATO selected Denmark's information technology (IT) solutions company Systematic GmbH to provide its SitaWare HQ software following a bidding process in 2023.

SitaWare HQ enables NATO land forces to share accurate, real-time data in contested environments, according to NCIA. The software was selected “due to its most closely aligning to the NATO capability requirements, including interoperability”, said the NCIA representative.

NCIA announced in an 18 June press release that it was marking initial operational capability (IOC) for Project Demeter in partnership with Systematic GmbH. The software's installation, testing, and training of land forces have taken place at Allied Land Command in İzmir, Türkiye, and Joint Force Command in Brunssum in the Netherlands. As of 18 June, SitaWare HQ was installed at the Joint Warfare Centre, Joint Force Command Naples, and Joint Force Command Norfolk, according to the NCIA.

FOC will be declared once installations and testing at all sites are completed, with an expansion of interoperability with other NATO software capabilities and “the delivery of tailored training material”, the NCIA said in June.

Project Demeter is aimed at strengthening NATO's C2 capability in the land domain and its compliance with the alliance's Federated Mission Networking (FMN) standards.