Pentagon Experts Call for More Practical AI to Manage Mundane Tasks

July 17, 2024 | By Unshin Lee Harpley

A pair of chief information officers for Pentagon organizations argued for a more practical approach to artificial intelligence focused on things like streamlining organizational tasks across the Defense Department.

“AI will most impact what is seemingly least compelling from the clickbait headline perspective,” Air Force Maj. Michael Kanaan, the military deputy CIO of the Pentagon’s Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office, told the Defense Innovation Board during a July 17 meeting. “The most profound AI impacts will inevitably be—whether professionals from all walks of business learn it sooner or later—in the back-office functions, at least in the short term. But it’s an area overlooked for its lack of glamour compared to warfighting applications.”

Implementing AI does not have to be a sweeping endeavor or focused on the biggest problems, Kanaan said as part of a presentation on “Aligning Incentives to Drive Faster Tech Adoption.” Instead, he listed off a wide range of simpler tasks where the technology could assist service members.

“Personnel generating templates, intelligence analysts doing language translation, pilot scheduling sorties, logisticians, depot maintenance and review, auto form, budget, finance acquisition professionals’ redundancies,” Kanaan said. “Install Python for better pivot tables, and speech writers, quit writing speeches from nothing, chaplains have better sermons.”

In recent years, the Pentagon has launched several efforts to implement different AI programs for everyday tasks. Last year, the Navy deployed an AI program called “Amelia” to handle common tech-support questions. Soon after, the Department of Defense launched a generative AI task force known as Lima to assess, integrate, and manage AI tools, including large language models.

The department’s latest tech leap saw the Air Force launch its own free generative AI chatbot called “NIPRGPT” last month. Tailored for Airmen and Guardians, the software helps them with communications, task completion, and online coding on a secure Pentagon network. The platform interacts with users in a “human-like” manner to answer questions, offering direct access to leadership for clarity without the usual barrage of emails.

“These tasks that clutter the mission offer a lower barrier to entry and present less risk,” said Kanaan, suggesting that AI usage for such problems doesn’t require extensive training of the technology or any major changes to existing processes.

Alexis Bonnell, CIO of the Air Force Research Laboratory, which helped develop NIPRGPT, also emphasized the need to reduce mundane, repetitive tasks to free up resources and energy for more innovative endeavors across the department.

“I’ve learned that toil eats purpose faster than mission can replace it,” Bonnell said at the July 17 meeting. “One of the ironies I found as a leader coming back in is how much toil is removed from my experience … Without taking away all the extra (toil), it becomes very different to do something new or novel.”

However, there are still questions about how useful AI can be and how successfully the Pentagon is adopting it; some experts have raised concerns about the training and operating costs associated with the platform, urging the DOD to establish a long-term budget plan to effectively mature the technology. They have also questioned whether the Air Force and Pentagon may be better off leveraging existing commercial software such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT instead of creating their own systems.

For now, NIPRGPT is a work-in-progress, as the department is gradually advancing the platform through user feedback and vendor discussions.

Besides focusing more on smaller tasks, Kanaan also cautioned against implementing sweeping policy changes or new frameworks based on exaggerated expectations surrounding AI, which could impede progress.

“There exists a prevailing human bias for action and novelty, particularly related to AI, for ‘more change, more policy,’ that leads to misconceptions like the need for entirely new cyber risk frameworks for rhetoric to completely overhaul the rules of engagement for warfare,” said Kanaan, adding that this is usually “spurred on by the overestimation of AI capabilities, or just simply sci-fi imaginations.”

Amid Standards Push, ACC Considers New Rules for Beanie, Fleece Wear

July 17, 2024 | By David Roza

Air Combat Command is considering a supplement to dress and appearance standards that would limit the use of cold weather clothes such as beanies and fleeces to only certain colors, places, and times of year for Airmen assigned to ACC.

The supplement, which is still in draft form and has no expected date of implementation or publication, is part of a wider push at ACC to pay closer attention to military standards.

“The supplement is aligned with ACC’s efforts to recommit to high standards of conduct, dress and appearance, physical fitness, and customs and courtesies,” a spokesperson for the institutional command told Air & Space Forces Magazine.

The document was posted to the unofficial Air Force subreddit on July 15. If implemented, it would add on to Department of the Air Force Instruction 36-2903, which lays out dress and appearance standards for Airmen. The spokesperson cautioned that the supplement, which is dated May 20, is still being reviewed by staff at ACC and its numbered Air Forces, so the regulations are subject to change.

Three of the proposed regulations involve the use of watch caps, also known as beanies, which would be authorized only between October and March each year. Only coyote brown watch caps would be authorized for use with the Operational Camouflage Pattern (OCP) uniform, while black watch caps would be authorized only with the formal Class A and B uniforms or with physical training gear. Sage green watch caps would not be authorized.

The proposed regulations are slightly different from the wider DAFI, which also authorizes black watch caps with OCP; sage green watch caps with physical training gear; and coyote brown watch caps with physical training gear. The shorthand for the new rules would be coyote brown for camouflage uniforms, and black watch caps for anything else. But the wider DAFI does not specify the October-to-March timeline as the ACC supplement does.

Another potential change involves the coyote brown fleece jacket. While the wider DAFI says the fleece “may be worn indoors or outdoors,” the ACC supplement would authorize the fleece only outdoors.

Other proposed changes include:

Squadron commanders can approve wear of “distinctive scarves” authorized by their wing commanders where it is practical and appropriate.

Lanyards, access passes, restricted area badges, common access cards, and identification badges cannot be worn outside of the restricted area and must be stowed in a secure area when not being worn.

ACC members on a profile limiting them to wear tennis shoes while in OCPs must wear dark colored shoes (black or navy blue, for example).

Airmen can wear only one earpiece while in uniform when performing official duties except for physical fitness, where both earpieces are authorized.

U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Christian Wylie, a 673d Communications Squadron Radio Frequency Transmission Systems technician, demonstrates how to create a radio circuit on the High Frequency Global Communications System at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Jan. 24, 2022. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Samuel Colvin)

The regulations involving beanie and fleece use caught some criticism from Airmen on Reddit, where users pointed out that cold weather persists earlier than October and past March at some ACC locations and especially for ACC Airmen assigned to bases in Alaska, North Dakota, Idaho, and Colorado.

Others noted that indoor data centers are often kept cold to help prevent computers from over-heating. There are about 1,000 data centers across 185 Air Force and Space Force bases, Winston Beauchamp, the deputy chief information officer at the Air Force, told Federal News Network in April.

The Department of Defense also has a checkered reputation when it comes to building maintenance, with Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James C. Slife saying in April that elements of base infrastructure “are essentially on hospice care.” Heating and air conditioning units are often broken in junior enlisted housing, the Government Accountability Office noted in September.

The ACC spokesperson said the supplement would apply to all Active, Guard, and Reserve Airmen assigned to ACC, but “waivers may be approved to make adjustments based on local conditions and specific mission requirements.

“An essential element of being part of this elite team is the high standards we hold as an institution,” the spokesperson added. “Adherence to higher standards of conduct, dress and appearance, physical fitness, and the observance of customs and courtesies is critical to our identity as military members.”

The pushback on Reddit comes on the heels of earlier announcements by Air Combat Command boss Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach. Starting in June, the general ordered the nearly 80,000 Airmen under his command to face inspections to make sure they are meeting Air Force dress and appearance standards, citing “a discernible decline” in the commitment and enforcement of those standards.

“What I learned many years ago is if you pay attention to the details, when it gets hard and you need to do something difficult, because you’ve been disciplined to pay attention to the details, you can be good and you can succeed,” Wilsbach noted last week, saying he faced his first open ranks inspection since college earlier this month.

“If we police ourselves, we won’t have to worry about this, but we’ll be paying attention to the details and it will allow us to have discipline to do some very difficult things,” he said.

USAF Sending B-52, Fighters, and More to Major Air Shows in UK

July 17, 2024 | By John A. Tirpak

The U.S. Air Force will be well represented at the world’s biggest military airshow and one of its largest airshows of any kind, running back to back in the coming weeks.

U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa announced the lineup of flying and static displays for the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford, running July 19-21, and the Farnborough International Air Show organizers announced U.S. Air Force participants in that event, which runs immediately after RIAT.

This year’s RIAT, which celebrates the 75th anniversary of NATO, will include:

F-35A Lightning II and F-15E Strike Eagle fighters from the 48th Fighter Wing at RAF Lakenheath

F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany

KC-135R Stratotankers from RAF Mildenhall

C-130J Hercules and C-21A Learjet from the 86th Airlift Wing at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.

At the Farnborough show, which runs July 22-26, organizers say the Air Force will send:

B-52 Stratofortress

F-15E Eagle

C-130J Hercules

MQ-9 Reaper

Home bases of the Farnborough display jets has not yet been disclosed.

Boeing will fly the F-15QA, on which the U.S. F-15EX is based, at Farnborough to demonstrate its “combat capabilities,” the company said.

“RIAT is the world’s largest military airshow held annually at RAF Fairford, England, bringing together military and political leaders from around the world,” a USAFE/AFAFRICA release stated. The Air Force’s participation “demonstrates U.S. commitment to our allies and partners, while also reinforcing the strength and unity of NATO.”

The Army and Navy will also deploy aircraft to Farnborough, to include a P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, a CH-47F Army transport, and an AH-64E attack helicopter.

The U.S. typically sends a senior Department of Defense and Commerce delegation to Farnborough to meet with fellow armaments directors and discuss potential arms sales, some of which may be announced at the event. U.S. Senators attending the 2024 Farnborough show will include Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.); Jerry Moran (R-Kans.); John Boozman (R-Ark.) Katie Britt (R-Ala.); Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.); Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and John Kennedy (R-La.).

USAF F-16s Deploy to Poland and Bulgaria

July 17, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

U.S. Air Force F-16s deployed to Bulgaria and Poland this week, putting fighters in multiple locations in eastern Europe and in relatively close proximity to Ukraine, which just started to receive F-16s of its own.

Six F-16s from the Oklahoma Air National Guard’s 138th Fighter Wing arrived at Łask Air Base, Poland, on July 16, while six F-16s from the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base, Italy, landed at Bezmer Air Base, Bulgaria, the same day.

The Oklahoma F-16s are in Poland as part of a rotational detachment of the 52nd Operations Group—in 2011, the U.S. and Poland signed an agreement establishing a continual detachment of U.S. aircraft in Poland, primarily of F-16s and C-130s.

Six U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons assigned to the 138th Fighter Wing at Tulsa Air National Guard (ANG) Base, Oklahoma, will began operations at Łask Air Base, Poland, July 24, 2024, for the latest cycle of the 52nd Operations Group Det 1 Aviation Detachment Rotation (ADR). Photo By MSgt Juan Vasquez

This latest deployment is a “long-planned, bilateral training between U.S. and Polish air forces to enhance partner interoperability, maintain joint readiness, and preserve a rapid response capability essential to ensuring peace and stability in the region,” U.S. Air Forces in Europe stated in a release.

Łask is located around 200 miles from Poland’s border from Ukraine and has hosted a steady rotation of USAF fighters since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began. Most recently, four F-35s from RAF Lakenheath, U.K., deployed there in April as part of the NATO air policing mission.

The Aviano F-16s are in Bulgaria for Thracian Viper, a biannual exercise in the Balkan state. Forces from Romania, Greece, Croatia, and Italy will also participate. Bulgaria is slated to get F-16s of its own in 2025, buying the newest Block 70 aircraft from Lockheed Martin, and the exercise will give its Soviet-era fighters an early chance to integrate and work with F-16s.

Bezmer is less than 250 miles from southern Ukraine and close to the Black Sea.

The U.S. Air Force has upped its presence throughout eastern Europe and NATO’s eastern flank over the past several years, policing the airspace for Russian incursions while the war in Ukraine rages on. Other deployment locations have included Romania and Estonia.

Meanwhile, countries in the region like Poland and Bulgaria have sought to upgrade their air forces with new fighters. While Bulgaria is buying 16 F-16s, Poland is purchasing F-35s. Norway, the Netherlands, and Belgium have all pledged F-16s to Ukraine and are in the process of buying F-35s as well.

At the recent NATO summit in Washington, D.C., officials announced that F-16 deliveries to Ukraine are underway, and the Ukrainians will start to fly them operationally this summer.

Fighters from Around the World Join in on Massive Exercise in Australia

July 16, 2024 | By Unshin Lee Harpley

Australia’s ‘Pitch Black’ air combat exercise kicked off this week with an array of fighters that marks its biggest iteration ever since starting in 1981.

“With approximately 140 aircraft and over 4,000 personnel from 20 nations participating, this year’s iteration of exercise Pitch Black is the largest participation in its 43-year history,” the Australian Department of Defense said in a statement.

The three-week exercise, running from July 12 to Aug 2, is primarily based at Royal Australian Air Force bases Darwin and Tindal in the country’s Northern Territory, strategically located for the host nation’s defense cooperation with regional partners.

The U.S. Air Force sent six F-22 Raptors from the 27th Fighter Squadron at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., to Tindal earlier this month.

“This will be the first time the F-22A has participated in this exercise,” a Pacific Air Forces spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine. The spokesperson explained that the Air Force deployed Raptors to Tindal during the previous iteration of the exercise in 2022, but the F-22s did not participate in the joint fighter training.

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Austin Diaz, 27th Expeditionary Fighter Generation Squadron crew chief, starts up a stored energy system to supply air to an F-22A Raptor during Exercise Pitch Black 2024 at Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Tindal, Australia, July 15. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Andrea Posey

Among the 20 participating nations, 16 countries are deploying aircraft for combat training, while four will contribute personnel to observe and contribute to the exercise.

“For the first time, aircraft and personnel from Philippines, Spain, Italy, and Papua New Guinea and embedded personnel from Fiji and Brunei will participate in the exercise,” the Australian statement noted.

The Philippines, making its debut at the biennial exercise, sent FA-50PH Fighting Eagle aircraft to join the event last week, landing at Darwin, marking the first deployment of that air force’s aircraft for an internationally hosted exercise outside their own territory.

“The big thing that we’ll take away is a strong friendship with the Philippines and exercises like this will continue to strengthen that,” Australian Air Commodore Pete Robinson, who is leading the exercise, said in a statement. “We’ll walk away with a stronger partnership together.”

Additionally, the exercise will feature aircraft from France, Germany, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and the United Kingdom, along with personnel from Canada and New Zealand.

Italy, another first-timer in the combat training, has sent six F-35A and F-35B aircraft, four Eurofighters, a KC-767 refueling aircraft, and an E-550 Conformal Airborne Early Warning aircraft as a command-and-control platform, along with approximately 400 air force members.

The continued presence of the German, French, and Spanish air forces will be evident in the coming weeks as part of their Indo-Pacific fighter deployment mission called Pacific Skies. The initiative spans five exercises, starting with Arctic Defender in Alaska earlier this month. They will maintain their fighter commitment in the area with the Rim of the Pacific exercise in Hawaii, followed by two additional exercises in Japan and India throughout August.

This year’s Pitch Black serves as a platform for several NATO members to train for the first time with the alliance’s partner nations of the region. The European nations’ concerns over China’s military ties with Russia have prompted NATO to increase its focus on Indo-Pacific partnerships. At its 75th summit in Washington, D.C., last week, the 32 member states called China to “cease all material and political support to Russia’s war effort,” casting direct blame on Beijing for its role in Russia’s ongoing conflict in Ukraine for the first time.

“What happens in Ukraine today can happen in Asia tomorrow,” outgoing NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said July 11.

On top of fostering new partnerships, the training will immerse advanced fighter jets in complex scenarios, focusing on tactical execution of large force employment, offensive counterair, and ground operations.

“We’ll see the complexity rise throughout the exercise,” explained Robinson. “So relatively simple to start with, but the last week of the exercise, it’s fairly complex, building on all the lessons learned over the three weeks to be able to do those complex tasks.”

New Engine Core Upgrade for F-35 Powerplant Passes Preliminary Design Review

July 16, 2024 | By John A. Tirpak

Pratt & Whitney and the F-35 Joint Program Office have completed the preliminary design review of the Engine Core Upgrade of the fighter’s F135 engine, the company said this week, adding that the ECU is “on schedule and exceeding expectations.” Pratt is a subsidiary of RTX.

The review “was a successful first step toward the capability the ECU will provide in meeting the challenging performance and durability requirements of the F135,” F-35 propulsion program manager Navy Capt. Mitchell Grant said in a press release. The ECU will “ensure that the U.S. and our international partners remain well-positioned to outpace adversary threats,” he added.

The Engine Core Upgrade will give the F-135 “increased capability and performance,” Pratt F135 vice president Chris Johnson said.

Critical design review is anticipated to take place in mid-2025, and the upgraded engine is supposed to be ready for fleet use in 2029.

The 2024 defense appropriations bill included $497 million to do detailed design work on the ECU.

The ECU was the propulsion choice made by the Pentagon after a long debate about whether to pursue more powerful Adaptive Engine Transition Program (AETP) engines developed by Pratt and GE Aerospace. Because the AETP engine was designed for the Air Force’s F-35A variant, that service would have had to bear the development cost alone, and Secretary Frank Kendall said in March 2023 that USAF couldn’t afford a unique engine. It was “the right decision,” Kendall said at the time, but one he said he’d like “another shot at,” given the advances the AETP engine would have offered in thrust and range.

An ECU would still have been necessary for other users of the F-35, and if the Air Force had pursued an AETP engine, two logistics trains would have been required to support the powerplants, which would not have much in common. “Commonality” has been the watchword of the F-35 since the program’s inception, and any user requiring unique equipment, software, or sustainment has to “pay to be different.”

Besides cost, the main attraction of the ECU is its compatibility with all three variants of the F-35. Either of the AETP engines would have required extensive new engineering and development to make them work with the short takeoff /vertical landing F-35B and carrier-capable F-35C.

Instead, the AETP technologies are being carrier over to the Next-Generation Adaptive Propulsion (NGAP) engine which will power the Next-Generation Air Dominance platform. Both Pratt and GE Aerospace are again working on that program. The NGAD will use a smaller engine than the F135, so a direct transfer of that powerplant won’t work with it.

The ECU is needed because the F-35 Block 4 upgrade will require more power for electronic warfare and to run the improved fighter’s more powerful processors. But it will also need more cooling capability, because the upgraded electronics will run hotter than on previous F-35 models.

To that end, the Joint Program Office is likely to release a request for proposals in the near future for a new Power and Thermal Management System. Government sources said that after long discussions with industry—notably with Honeywell, which makes the existing thermal management system, and Collins, which has developed an Enhanced Power and Cooling System (EPACS) for the F135 at its own expense—the JPO will probably pursue a competition for a new cooling system. The expense of a competition would be justified by reducing wear-and-tear on the F135 engines and getting more service life out of them.

Can JADC2 Help the Air Force Build a New Nuclear Command and Control System?

July 16, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

The Pentagon’s plans to invest billions of dollars to upgrade and modernize nuclear command, control, and communications can benefit from the work now being done to create a sweeping joint all-domain command and control (JADC2) system linking sensors to shooters in every domain, a top Air Force general said July 15.

Lt. Gen. Andrew J. Gebara, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration, noted the connection during an AFA Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies Aerospace Nation interview. Yet even as analysts agreed, serious questions about how to defend the NC3 network, which some have called the “fourth leg” of the nuclear triad, loom ahead.

“When I was a lieutenant, we would have a completely separate NC3 system from our conventional command and control systems,” Gebara said. “And at the time, we would just put a multibillion dollar satellite up into GEO orbit and then just not think about it anymore because it works pretty well and no one can get after it. That’s not the world we live in today. And so we need to leverage the benefits we’re gaining out of joint all-domain command control.”

Those benefits mean ensuring that if one means of getting a message through fails, another can be found.

Conincidentally, a new report from the Atlantic Council, released the same day, comes to the same conclusion: “The highly integrated nature of modern command, control, communications, and battle management (C3BM) systems necessitates the integration of NC3 capabilities into a broader system-of-systems across the C3BM enterprise,” wrote analysts Peter L. Hays and Sarah Mineiro.

JADC2, often referred to now combined JADC2 (adding a C in front of the acronym) is an ambitious effort to connect sensors and shooters across the globe in different domains, transmitting data at lightning speed to accelerate decision-making.

Similarly, nuclear leaders want to apply that same kind of thinking to new NC3 solutions, potentially leveraging commercial as well as military components to ensure resiliency under attack. According to budget documents, the Air Force plans to invest some $68 million in research and development into “leveraging emerging commercial-based technologies” for NC3.

Gebara noted that NC3 isn’t going to be a single system. “It’s really several hundred nodes that all make up one large system,” he said. “It isn’t one radio that you can just mass produce and give to everybody, because there’s different ways the message has to get through, whether it’s from space, whether it’s terrestrial, whether it’s what have you.”

Yet while JADC2 and NC3 “must be developed in synchronization,” according to Pentagon budget documents, there are clear differences about the needs.

“I think there will always be a human in the loop for nuclear command and control,” Gebara said. “There’s going to be a lot less automation in nuclear command and control than you might see in conventional [JADC2].”

Lt. Gen. Andrew J. Gebara, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration on Monday, July 15, 2024, at the Air & Space Forces headquarters in Arlington, Va. Photo by Mike Tsukamoto/Air & Space Forces Magazine

“The modernization of NC3 systems must continue to meet unique requirements for positive and negative control, unlike any other command-and-control system,” Hays and Mineiro wrote. “The recognition of these unique requirements drives special emphasis on understanding deterrence scenarios and objectives, technical capabilities, and potential commercial contributions.”

The Atlantic Council report noted that while JADC2 can emphasize speed and experimentation, NC3 demands a more cautious approach.

Space will play a key role in both efforts—the Space Development Agency’s Transport Layer will be the “backbone” of JADC2, and the Space Force plans to invest billions of dollars on a new NC3 satellite constellation called Evolved Strategic SATCOM to succeed the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite constellation.

Given that the Air Force manages both the land and air legs of the nuclear triad and that 75 percent of NC3 systems reside within the Department of the Air Force, the two services must work closely together, Gebara said.

“We’ve been side-by-side, shoulder-to-shoulder for years. I think it’s actually only growing stronger,” Gebara said. “We have reinvigorated what I call the Nuclear Oversight Council. So this is a Secretary of the Air Force-led, co-chaired by the two service chiefs, four-star-level conference that happens three times a year, that is dedicated to the nuclear mission space.”

Hays and Mineiro see risks ahead, both in growing threats in space and Space Force plans for proliferating military satellites in low-Earth orbit. They want greater study of “the nuclear surety implications for the current exploration of disaggregation as a means to ensure resiliency.” The want any satellites supporting NC3 in low-Earth orbit to be hardened against nuclear attack.

Recent revelations that Russia is developing a nuclear weapon for space underscore the risk posed by such weapons. “A high-altitude nuclear detonation (HAND) would raise the peak radiation flux in parts of the Van Allen radiation belts by three to four orders of magnitude,” the Atlantic Council report says. That could “cause the failure in weeks to months of most if not all LEO satellites not specifically hardened against this threat, result in direct financial damages probably approaching $500 billion and over $3 trillion in overall economic impact, and present daunting response challenges, since the attack would be outside of any state’s sovereign territory and not directly kill anyone,” the authors wrote.

The Space Development Agency, which is fielding the proliferated space architecture in LEO, is not planning such nuclear hardening, at least not publicly. SDA Director Derek M. Tournear has said the organization’s satellites will not be hardened against such an attack, but rather only hardening sufficient to ensure operational effectiveness in that orbit. Some of those satellites are meant to be used for missile warning/missile tracking, which could contribute to NC3.

The unique function of nuclear command and control is what makes the stakes so high. “It is absolutely critical that the President has the ability to get a hold of those nuclear forces at all times, in all situations, no matter where he is, what time of day, what time of night, what type of weather, what type of threat,” Gebarra said. “The president of the United States has to be able to talk to a second lieutenant in the missile field in single-digit minutes in order for the system to work.”

CSAF Wants Airmen to Read Up on Drone Warfare, George Marshall, and More

July 16, 2024 | By Greg Hadley

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin wants Airmen to study up on drone warfare in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, citing their “transformative impact” on modern warfare, as part of the latest installment of his Leadership Library.

Specifically, Allvin is recommending a report from the think tank Center for a New America Security released in February, one of four new additions to his list of books, films, podcasts, and papers for Airmen to peruse.

“Evolution not Revolution: Drone Warfare in Russia’s 2022 Invasion of Ukraine,” by Stacie Pettyjohn, CNAS

Pettyjohn, a senior fellow and director of the Defense Program at CNAS, previously worked at the RAND Corporation where she served as the director of the strategy and doctrine program in Project AIR FORCE.

Her report on drone warfare relies on secondary sources, interviews with experts, U.S. officials, and NATO leaders, and analysis and “provides an insightful analysis of the changing character of war, focusing on the role of drones in modern warfare,” Allvin wrote. “As Airmen, it is crucial to stay informed about the latest technological advancements and their implications for the battlefield.”

Pettyjohn reached several conclusions in her report, including the importance of drone stacks over drone swarms, the use of long-range “kamikaze” drones,” and emerging counterdrone systems. Such insights come at a key time for the U.S. Air Force as it works on Collaborative Combat Aircraft, the autonomous drones meant to fly alongside manned fighters, and also seeks to counter growing drone threats around the world.

“George Marshall: Defender of the Republic” by David L. Roll

Roll has written several books about World War II-era leaders, including President Harry Truman, Defense Secretary Louis Johnson, and presidential adviser Harry Hopkins. Allvin, however, is recommending Airmen read Roll’s 2019 biography of Army Gen. George Marshall, who went on to serve as Secretary of Defense and Secretary of State and played a key role in the reconstruction of Europe after World War II.

“By examining Marshall’s leadership style and decision-making process, Airmen will gain valuable insights into strategic planning and crisis management,” Allvin wrote. “This work will aid Airmen seeking to better understand the complexities of leadership and the importance of character in shaping outcomes. General Marshall was clearly an extremely effective leader in a time of consequence.”

“Leading Change,” by John P. Kotter

Kotter, a management consultant and a professor at the Harvard Business School, is considered an expert in organizational leadership, and his book “is a must-read for Airmen seeking to drive meaningful change and innovation,” Allvin wrote. “Drawing on real-life examples, Kotter outlines a multi-step process that enables leaders to navigate the complexities of change and overcome resistance. By understanding the nuances of change management, Airmen will be better equipped to create a more agile and adaptive force.”

Kotter has published more than half a dozen books on organizational change and leadership, but “Leading Change” was his first. Allvin’s selection dovetails with his mantra of “Following Through” on major changes the Air Force has initiated in the past several years.

“Unveiling the Motivation Vacuum in the Workplace,” from At the Table with Patrick Lencioni

A podcast episode that “offers practical strategies for leaders to enhance motivation, retention, culture, and productivity,” Allvin wrote. “The key to success lies in aligning individual and team goals while fostering resilience. This episode provides valuable insights into the challenges of maintaining motivation in the workplace and offers actionable solutions for leaders to create a more driven and productive team.”

Like Kotter, Lencioni is a management consultant and author.

Schneider Electric Transforms Yokota’s Power Grid with Self-Funded Energy Upgrades

July 16, 2024 | By Patrick Reardon

Yokota Air Base’s location in Japan gives the U.S. Air Force a strategic operational advantage of rapid response within the Indo-Pacific region—but it’s also a location fraught with weather events that threaten the installation’s power grid. With tsunamis, typhoons, and earthquakes comes the risk of losing primary power, leaving critical infrastructures out of operation and in the dark.

To manage this risk at Yokota Air Base, the Air Force turned to Schneider Electric, the global leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, to execute one of the largest resilience-focused performance contracts ever undertaken by the Department of Defense. Construction on the comprehensive project began in January 2021 and was implemented in November 2023. The improvements delivered through an Energy Savings Performance Contract (ESPC) includes $406 million of guaranteed energy savings over the course of the 25-year contract—meaning it requires no upfront investment from Yokota Air Base or U.S. taxpayers.

“[Yokota Air Base] leveraged funds that they’re already budgeting—that’s the benefit to doing an Energy Savings Performance Contract,” said Meghann Ison, Schneider Electric’s project development manager.

Schneider Electric has executed five other ESPCs with the Air Force over the last five years. Each one uses Schneider Electric’s off-the-shelf technologies but is customized for the specific mission needs of the base. Yokota Air Base needed uninterrupted, base-wide power and continuous service to thermal loads, even during emergencies and power disruptions. Schneider Electric’s solution included a new 10-megawatt combined heat and power plant as an alternative source of primary power, along with a new-and-improved “intelligent” microgrid equipped with across-the-board automation systems.

“By tying those three main automation systems together—building automation, process automation, electrical automation—they have a wealth of information because it’s all digitally connected and inter-networked together,” said Jeff Worley, Schneider Electric’s global solution architect on the Yokota Air Base ESPC. “They have a single pane of glass to view those systems from various places across the base—having that eco-structure of a digital ‘internet of things,’ if you will, is a big advantage to them.”

Ison and Worley estimate Schneider Electric’s upgrades will reduce Yokota Air Base’s energy and water costs by nearly 30 percent, translating to $12.3 million in annual savings. Schneider Electric reports that the state-of-the-art improvements will conserve more than 30 million gallons of water, 75 million kWh of electricity, and 33,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

Completing the project didn’t come without technical, logistical, and language barriers. Not only was Schneider Electric challenged with an OCONUS project, but also with getting equipment from around the world to Yokota Air Base during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“These projects are the ultimate team sport,” Worley said. “It was not just the team of a hundred Schneider Electric people from all over the world that helped with this, but it was also the facilitation of the Air Force Civil Engineering Center (AFCEC) and Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), the local squadron of engineering on the base, and just keeping that mission in front of us. That if the base has no power, they have no technology. And if they have no technology, they cannot complete the mission. And that was the rallying point for us through the project.”

Installing a brand-new power plant at one of the Air Force’s largest and busiest bases presented another challenge. Transferring Yokota Air Base’s critical loads from the old system to the new one required a complete shut-down of utility power in 750 buildings on base—including air traffic control towers and other mission-critical infrastructures. But Schneider Electric’s “islanding” test proved that the base could operate independently of the utility and critical operations wouldn’t be interrupted, even during a blackout.

“It was very satisfying how quickly the engines were able to add load,” Worley said. “We had the base from total blackout to restored 10 megawatts of power in 30 minutes. And even we didn’t know it would do it that quickly.”

Ison added that Schneider Electric will continue to play an important role in Yokota Air Base’s new resiliency measures throughout the ESPC’s entire 25-year lifecycle. She said Schneider Electric personnel will remain on base as augmented support to Yokota Air Base’s Civil Engineer Squadron.

“We have several full-time employees on site day after day to ensure that those sources are up and running, and the base has a resilient, secure power solution,” Ison said.

Learn more about how Schneider Electric’s innovative solutions and energy performance contracts are posturing Air Force installations around the world for better resiliency and readiness.