THE APEX TIMES
Lockheed Martin uses Valiant Shield to demonstrate software-driven command-and-control integration at scale
At the Valiant Shield 2026 exercise in the Pacific, Lockheed Martin said it demonstrated command-and-control and battle management capabilities designed to unify sensors and weapons across multiple mission sets, using software to speed integration and decision-making for U.S. and coalition forces.
Lockheed Martin said it demonstrated what it called rapid, software-driven integration for command and control and battle management during the U.S.-led exercise Valiant Shield 2026, held in the Indo-Pacific region. The company described the work as a first-of-its-kind approach to unifying sensors, weapons, and command-and-control systems across multiple operational domains to enable faster, more coordinated decisions by operators.
In the exercise, Lockheed Martin supported U.S. and coalition forces by demonstrating command-and-control (C2) and battle management for converged fires, Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD), and long-range targeting. Converged fires generally refers to coordinating different types of weapons and sensors to engage targets using a common decision process, while IAMD is the effort to defend against aircraft, ballistic missiles, and other threats through the coordinated use of multiple sensors and intercept or engagement options.
The company said its demonstrations focused on “operational advantage” through integration, a theme echoed by Joe DePietro, Mission Integration Command and Control vice president and general manager. DePietro said the demonstrations show the value of combining modern software and digital technologies with operational experience, aiming to move faster from innovation to mission impact. He also said the capability foundation is already being applied in real-world operations, according to the company.
One of the demonstrations described by Lockheed Martin was tied to what it called the Guam Defense System battle manager, where it said it provided recommendations for ballistic, hypersonic, and air defense engagements across joint IAMD forces in the exercise. The company characterized the ability to provide these recommendations across those threat categories as a “first of its kind” capability, tying the work to coordinated decision-making in a contested environment.
Lockheed Martin said it used its CommandIQ (R) C2 integration platform to enable the Guam-related demonstration. The company described CommandIQ as a software-based integration approach that supports connecting and orchestrating different systems so they can share data and enable coordinated action, rather than having separate command-and-control silos that must be manually reconciled.
For the long-range targeting demonstration in what Lockheed Martin called a “commercial track custody” context, the company said it leveraged the CommandIQ platform along with Aegis Guam and the TPY-6 radar. It said the setup enabled coordinated decision-making at multiple classification levels, with an emphasis on improving speed, precision, and interoperability for joint and coalition forces in a region marked by distance and complexity.
Lockheed Martin framed the demonstrations as especially relevant to the Indo-Pacific, calling it one of the most challenging operational environments. DePietro said strategic advantage there will belong to forces that can rapidly integrate, scale, and field best-of-breed capabilities ahead of evolving threats, a statement the company tied directly to the ability to connect sensors, systems, and operators with speed, confidence, and precision.
Beyond the exercise-specific demonstrations, Lockheed Martin linked Valiant Shield 2026 to broader trends in defense modernization, including interoperability, software-driven capability, integration, and real-time data sharing in contested environments. The company said it has supported U.S. and allied missions in the Indo-Pacific for decades and is working alongside customers to deliver and evolve technologies designed to address emerging operational challenges.
The release did not provide detailed performance metrics, such as integration time reductions, latency measurements, success rates, or specific interfaces beyond naming key systems and the CommandIQ platform. It also did not describe whether the demonstrations are directly tied to a new contract award, an acquisition milestone, or a specific deployment timeline. As a result, observers may need follow-on information from program offices or subsequent exercise reports to quantify how quickly the integration can be scaled and fielded.
Why It Matters
- Exercise reporting like this can announcement where defense prime contractors are investing in software integration, particularly around C2 and battle management that connect multiple sensors and engagement pathways.
- Lockheed Martin’s emphasis on rapid integration and multi-domain interoperability aligns with broader defense efforts to reduce decision cycle time in contested air and missile defense scenarios.
- By highlighting hypersonic and long-range targeting use cases, the demonstrations underscore how contractors are positioning their architectures for future threat mixes, even if detailed metrics are not disclosed.
- For customers and coalition partners, the value of such demonstrations typically depends on interoperability across differing classification needs and system mixes, which the company indicated it addressed in at least one scenario.
Key Facts
- Lockheed Martin said it demonstrated command-and-control (C2) and battle management for converged fires, Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD), and long-range targeting during Valiant Shield 2026.
- The company said the work unified sensors, weapons, and C2 systems across multiple mission sets to support faster and more coordinated decision-making for U.S. and coalition forces.
- Lockheed Martin said a Guam Defense System battle manager demonstration provided engagement recommendations for ballistic, hypersonic, and air defense threats across joint IAMD forces.
- The company said it used its CommandIQ (R) C2 integration platform for the Guam-related demonstration and described it as enabling coordinated decision-making.
- Lockheed Martin said a long-range targeting demonstration used CommandIQ, Aegis Guam, and the TPY-6 radar, and described it as operating at multiple classification levels in a commercial track custody context.
- Lockheed Martin framed the demonstrations as relevant to software-driven agility and integration needed for contested environments in the Indo-Pacific.
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