Accountability software tracks troops in combat zone.(Brief Article)

The new Deployed Theater Accountability Software (DTAS) System, developed by the Army Human Resources Command (HRC), provides U.S. commanders with up-to-the-minute headcount information on the 170,000 Soldiers, Marines, Government civilians, and contractors serving in Afghanistan, Kuwait, and Iraq. DTAS allows users to retrieve information generated days, hours, or minutes earlier by tactical units on the battlefield. Fielding of the system began in October 2004. Partnering with the Army, the Marine Corps' 2d Expeditionary Force in Iraq is also using DTAS; Navy and Air Force units in the area of operations may follow suit soon.

According to Lieutenant Colonel Terri Campbell, head of the Design and Development Branch of the Adjutant General Directorate's Field Services Division of HRC, DTAS was designed with "the absolute bottom line that accountability is the foundation for any support or service that the deployed commander needs to succeed operationally. If you don't know who ...