“Urgent task: 30 engineering and technical personnel will travel to a specific base overnight for support. Availability of spare transport aircraft slots must be matched… During the peak summer season, in a dispatch room of a certain air force brigade, the lightweight transport aircraft resource dispatch system suddenly displayed a command. The duty officer tapped the electronic screen, and the system automatically verified the personnel qualifications and intelligently matched the aircraft models. Within just a few minutes, a transportation plan was generated.”

The leader of the brigade told reporters that after the launch and trial operation of this lightweight transport aircraft resource allocation system, capacity planning solutions can be generated intelligently. The dispatchers only need to verify and check individual anomalous data within the solution, thereby facilitating the transition of military air transport and delivery from “manual capacity planning” to “intelligent capacity planning”.

“In recent years, the number of cross-regional training and exercise activities, as well as mobile missions, has continued to increase. The demand for air transport and delivery has surged significantly, making the traditional ‘human brain memory + paper-based records’ dispatching model increasingly inadequate.” According to the leaders of the brigade, in the past, due to the isolation of capacity resource data, there was a information barrier between the headquarters and various support units, making it difficult for departments to keep real-time track of each other’s task plans. This led to frequent occurrences of capacity conflicts and resource misallocation. Each time a mission was conducted, dispatchers had to cross-check information between different units, resulting in low efficiency and slow speed.

To overcome this challenge, the brigade established a specialized task force and set up research and development workstations directly on the dispatch frontline. Technicians followed the dispatch advisors throughout the entire process during the day, meticulously recording the various bottlenecks and obstacles faced by manual dispatch. At night, they focused on refining and debugging the code, simplifying the complex logistics allocation logic into an intuitive and convenient operation menu. After a period of continuous hard work, this dispatch system, tailored to meet real-world operational needs, was completed and put into trial use.

The reporter observed at the simulation drill site that, thanks to this “cloud-based dispatcher,” data on the capacity of various units could be shared in real-time, resources could be allocated uniformly, capacity matching and plan generation could be completed automatically, and the time required for task handling was significantly reduced, resulting in a marked decrease in capacity losses.

“This is a microcosm of how we have accelerated our digital and intelligent transformation to enhance the quality and efficiency of transportation and logistics support.” The leaders of the brigade told reporters that, in light of the accelerating evolution of information-based and intelligent warfare, they have consistently sought to enhance combat effectiveness through technological innovation, continuously fostered a cadre of military innovators, and accelerated the modernization of their units. In recent years, they have optimized force deployment, prioritizing skilled technical personnel for data and software teams; established “Digital and Software Co-creation” workspaces to conduct regular training in application development, data management, and other skills; actively engaged with higher-level authorities and neighboring units to undertake major projects related to digital and intelligent construction; and relied on actual combat and training missions to refine their personnel and continuously enhance the new domains and new quality combat capabilities of their units.

In order to stimulate the innovative and creative spirit of officers and soldiers in their respective positions, the brigade has also devised a series of incentive measures: establishing a mechanism for officers and soldiers to propose innovative projects, receive support for resources and implementation, and providing dual support in terms of funding and technology for “micro-innovation” projects that are practical and significantly enhance combat effectiveness; breaking down barriers related to positions, specialties, and organizational structures, and establishing a mentorship model where senior non-commissioned officers and technical personnel work together to tackle challenges; regularly organizing innovation exchange meetings to encourage officers and soldiers to propose ideas, innovate, and promote development based on their positional needs.

As a series of pragmatic measures took effect, a group of “military innovators” who are knowledgeable about equipment, operations, and technology emerged. Recently, Second Sergeant Liu Zhiqiang of this brigade led his team in developing a “equipment information resource allocation management system,” which significantly improved the efficiency of equipment maintenance. (Looking into the New Era)