Why a Common Multi-Mission Weapons Platform Requires Action-Specific Authority at the Final Boundary Before Launch

This white paper examines the U.S. Army’s Common Autonomous Multi-Domain Launcher (CAML) and the growing need for action-specific execution authority in autonomous weapons systems. As CAML evolves into a modular platform capable of supporting multiple payloads, missions, and command structures, the paper argues that platform identity, network access, targeting data, and technical readiness alone do not authorize weapon employment. It explores how autonomous systems must preserve current authorization across mission changes, payload swaps, degraded communications, and command transitions, ensuring every launch remains tied to the exact mission, target, geography, timing, and command authority at the moment of execution.