Editor’s Note
The Daily Report will not publish Monday, Jan. 16 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. We'll return to your inboxes Tuesday, Jan. 17.
US and Japan Agree to Protect Each Other in Space, Citing Chinese Threat
The U.S. and Japan are expanding their security commitment into space as part of a series of new actions aimed at bolstering the countries' defenses against China and other threats in the Pacific. U.S. officials said “attacks to, from, or within space” could lead to the invocation of Article V of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty, in which the two countries could “act to meet the common danger” if either country is attacked on Japanese territory.
Saltzman Keeps His Focus on Developing Operational Concepts and Tactics
With the Space Force still maturing early in its fourth year of existence, Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman wants to hone in on developing the service’s essential warfighting processes—and making sure Guardians can perfect them through practice. In a pre-recorded interview with the Space Force Association streamed Jan. 12, Saltzman listed the growth of “resilient, ready, combat-credible forces” as a top priority for his tenure as CSO. And to get that, he emphasized the importance of investing in testing, training, and planning.
Air Force Reveals New Jolly Green IIs Made First Combat Saves
The Air Force's new HH-60W Jolly Green II combat rescue helicopter has made its first two combat saves during its inaugural combat deployment, but the service isn't giving many details about the action which led to the combat recovery of the injured personnel, whose lives were saved by the pararescue crew around the Horn of Africa.
New Rules for Vaccine Refusers After DOD Lifts Its COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate
Thousands of Airmen and Guardians who remain unvaccinated against COVID-19 no longer have to get the shots—and those who faced disciplinary action for failing to get vaccinated will have their records wiped clean. Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III formally rescinded the Pentagon’s vaccination requirement Jan. 10, as required by the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act passed late last year.
Radar Sweep
In a First, South Korea Declares Nuclear Weapons a Policy Option
The New York Times
President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea said for the first time on Jan. 11 that if North Korea’s nuclear threat grows, South Korea would consider building nuclear weapons of its own or ask the United States to redeploy them on the Korean Peninsula. Speaking during a joint policy briefing by his defense and foreign ministries on Wednesday, Mr. Yoon was quick to add that building nuclear weapons was not yet an official policy. He stressed that South Korea would for now deal with North Korea’s nuclear threat by strengthening its alliance with the United States.
NASA, Northrop Drawing Up the Future of Drone Cargo Jets
Defense One
The military has used drones to carry cargo and supplies since the first K-Max flights over Afghanistan in 2011. But integrating unmanned aircraft into commercial airspace has been a much bigger challenge. Weapons maker Northrop Grumman is working with NASA to develop the architecture to allow fleets of drone cargo jets to criss-cross America’s skies. It’s part of the Pathfinding for Airspace with Autonomous Vehicles project, which itself is part of NASA’s Air Traffic Management-eXploration, or ATM-X, effort.
US Space Force Considers a Second NOAA Weather Satellite
SpaceNews
The U.S. Space Force is holding discussions with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration about replacing a geostationary weather satellite over the Indian Ocean. In 2020, the U.S. Air Force began collecting weather imagery with the former GOES-13, a Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite NOAA launched in 2006 and retired in 2018. That satellite, renamed Electro-Optical Infrared Weather System-Geostationary (EWS-G), provides imagery in support of U.S. Central Command.
How Biden’s Microchip Ban Is Curbing China’s AI Weapons Efforts
Defense News
Mounting tensions with China have spurred a new push in Washington to lessen U.S. reliance on East Asia—the global epicenter of semiconductor production—for the vital microelectronics needed to create both conventional arms and the artificial intelligence algorithms integral to building the weapons of the future. But a similarly urgent effort the U.S. government is undertaking to slow China’s advancements, including new restrictions that limit Beijing’s access to these highly sophisticated chips.
Though ‘Born Digital,’ Space Force Needs 7 Years to Fully Mature, Deputy CTIO Says
Breaking Defense
Like most startup firms, the Space Force will need years, seven in this case, to fully mature and transform into a modern, digitized force, according to the service’s deputy chief of technology and innovation (CTIO). “We are not where we need to be as a digital service by any means,” Col. Roy Rockwell told the GovConWire DoD Digital Modernization Forum today. “We still have a long way to go. And by year seven, I really think we’ll be punching at our weight.”
Late Pentagon Chief Ash Carter Honored as ‘Force of Nature’
The Associated Press
President Joe Biden honored the late Ash Carter, the former defense secretary who opened the way for women to fight in combat and for transgender personnel to serve, as a “force of nature” at a memorial service Jan. 12 at Washington National Cathedral. “His genius was evident,” Biden said. “His integrity unfailing. And his commitment to service before self was literally inspiring.”
Military Spouses Can Now Apply for ‘Game Changing’ Employment Program
Military Times
Military spouses can now apply for the new paid fellowship program in which they will be placed with civilian companies seeking full-time employees. The Military Spouse Career Accelerator Pilot program is free to employers, and spouses will be paid by the Defense Department during their 12-week fellowships. It’s open to spouses of currently serving members of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Space Force, to include Active, Reserve, and National Guard components.
Troops Saw More UFOs, But New Pentagon Report Provides Few Answers
Military.com
Nearly 250 service members reported seeing UFOs since the spring of 2021 and many of those incidents remain unexplained, according to a joint report released by the Pentagon and intelligence community on Jan. 12. The figures are part of the latest update mandated by Congress after interest in UFOs—now called unidentified aerial phenomena, or UAP—surged to its highest point since the 1960s following military videos captured by Navy personnel leaked in 2017 showing unknown objects.
What Is That? Space Force Uniform Insignia Made of PVC, Not Thread
DOD release
Since 2019, The Institute of Heraldry at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, has been working with Space Force leaders to create insignia for seals, badges, chevrons and other uniform accessories to differentiate the newest branch from the rest of the force. The biggest difference in some of these accessories is that they're a completely different material than the embroidered pieces on the uniforms of the other services. Tom Casciaro, chief of The Institute of Heraldry's technical and production division, said they were initially going to use the standard textile procedures they use for other branches, but they weren't able to because of the intricacy of the Space Force's approved designs.