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The use of technology has at this time become intertwined with most of the things that we do, regardless of whether we are civilians or members of the military. It is therefore no longer a surprise that the iPhone craze can reach beyond consumer use and also have applications in military operations.

Military contractor Raytheon showcased new iPhone apps that will bring the popular smart phone in to the military world during the Intelligence Warfighting Summit in Tucson.

One app is called the One Force Tracker, which can provide live data that tracks the location of allies and enemies on real-time maps. In addition, the app will enable units to communicate with each other. The provision of such abilities to members of a team in combat or rescue missions, regardless of whether they are military, police, firefighters or emergency response teams, will allow them to be entirely aware of what they are up against and make informed decisions, according to a spokesman from Raytheon.

Another app consists of an air-traffic simulator that is not unlike Flight Control, a game on the iPhone. The objective of this app, also from Raytheon, is to provide air-traffic controllers with a way to “repetitively practice aspects of their training anytime, anywhere”. One such aspect is called vectoring multiple aircraft, and the Raytheon app enables air-traffic controllers to practice how to maintain safe air speed and distance between units.

If and when the iPhone and these useful apps make it to war, however, tweaks will need to be done to the iPhone itself to make it war-ready – such as a “ruggedized” phone case that can accommodate a larger battery for an extended battery life for the device despite having to multitask.

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