Photos: Air Force Will Take on Navy in Special Doolittle Raider Uniforms

Aug. 25, 2023 | By Greg Hadley

When Air Force takes on Navy for their annual football matchup on Oct. 21 in Annapolis, Md., the Falcons will be clad in special uniforms commemorating the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo, a seminal moment in airpower history.

The U.S. Air Force Academy’s special alternate uniforms, unveiled Aug. 15 as part of USAFA’s annual “Air Power Legacy Series,” feature design elements inspired by the daring 1942 mission in which 16 B-25 bombers, under the command of Lt. Col. James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle, flew some 750 miles from an aircraft carrier in the Pacific, delivering the first retaliatory strike on the Japanese homeland since the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor 132 days earlier.

Doolittle initially considered the raid something less than success. While the attack caused some damage and demonstrated Japan was not beyond reach of U.S. airpower, all 16 bombers were lost, and seven of his Airmen died or were executed after being captured. Four others spent the duration of the war as POWs. But the mission proved to be a major morale boost to the American public.

“You have struck the hardest blow of the war directly at the enemy’s heart. You have made history.”

THE DOOLITTLE RAIDERS pic.twitter.com/Vd4aHhv0jw
— Air Force Football (@AF_Football) August 15, 2023

Doolittle was awarded the Medal of Honor for planning and leading the strike, and the “Doolittle Raiders” became giants in the history of the U.S. Army Air Forces and the eventual U.S. Air Force. The new B-21 bomber was nicknamed “Raider” in their honor, and the last of the Raiders died in 2019.

The special uniforms feature a B-25 bomber on one side of its chrome-colored helmets, and the Doolittle Raiders patch on the other. The patch includes heraldry from the 17th Bombardment Group and the 34th, 37th, 89th, and 95th squadrons, and featuring the French phrase “Toujours au Danger”—“Ever into Peril.”

Players will be in white, with “Air Force” emblazoned across and players numbers numbers stenciled in a steel-and-rivet design. A patch signifying the tail number of one of the participating aircraft—players will sport different tail numbers—will be worn on each player’s chest, and the Raiders patch will be afixed to the shoulders.

“Toujours au Danger” will be reprised on one pants leg, while “Ever into Peril” will be on the other.

“The Doolittle Raiders are not just Air Force heroes, but American heroes,” said Dr. Patrick Donley, Director of the Doolittle Leadership Center at the the Air & Space Forces Association and a 1991 USAFA graduate. “The Air Force-Navy game is also an ideal forum to highlight the Doolittle Raid. First, it was a great, early example of successful joint warfare, requiring tremendous cooperation and trust-building between the Army Air Forces and the Navy. And second, the raid demonstrated boldness, courage, and innovation—traits that are vital for Airmen, Guardians and, really, the entire joint force today. Finally, the Raiders put their lives on the line to fulfill their duty, a remarkable and fearless demonstration of sacrificial, selfless leadership.”

Doolittle is closely tied to AFA’s own history, Donley added. He was AFA’s first president, and photos of him and of his Raiders in action still adorn the walls of AFA’s headquarters today. AFA’s Doolittle Leadership Center provides hands-on leadership training for Airmen, Guardians, and civilians at all levels.

This marks the eighth “Air Power Legacy Series” uniform USAFA has unveiled since the program started in 2016. The uniforms have commemorated everything from the Space Force to the Tuskegee Airmen, with s nod to Operation Linebacker II from the Vietnam War in between.

2022: Space Force

2021: B-52 Stratofortress and Operation Linebacker II

2020: Tuskegee Airmen

2019: C-17 Globemaster III

2018: AC-130 Spooky

2017: F-35 Lightning II

2016: Tiger Shark Teeth nose art

Army and Navy have also sported numerous alternate uniforms in the past decade, commemorating memorable operations, campaigns, units, and more.

Outstanding Airmen of the Year: SrA. Jacob J. Tawasha

Aug. 25, 2023 | By Patrick Reardon

The Air Force’s 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2023 will be formally recognized at AFA’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference from Sept. 11-13 in National Harbor, Maryland. Air & Space Forces Magazine is highlighting one each weekday from now until the conference begins. Today, we honor Senior Airman Jacob Tawasha, a Fire Team Leader for the 349th Security Forces Squadron at Travis Air Force Base, Calif.

Tawasha is a first-generation Arab American—his parents immigrated to the U.S. from Al-Karak, a small village in south Jordan, and he grew up learning Arabic from his mom. When he enlisted with the U.S. Air Force in 2019 and joined the 349th Security Forces Squadron at Travis, he had no idea his dual-language skills would end up breaking barriers during a deployment to the Middle East—much less, that he’d be teaching English to Jordanians to improve coalition interoperability.

“Once I heard that we were deploying to that area, I kind of got excited,” Tawasha said. “[But] I didn’t know going into this deployment that I was going to be so helpful … I thought I was just gonna go there and sit at a gate and check IDs for 12 hours a day. But that was not the case.”

Deployed to support Operation Inherent Resolve in 2022, Tawasha worked with a team to secure over 50 combat aircraft valued at more than $6 billion dollars. During his deployment, his bilingual skills resolved a longstanding border issue that had been preventing U.S. Air Force and Army convoys from transporting equipment between installations in neighboring countries.

“The Air Force and Army tried to [cross the border on the ground] multiple times before me, [but] the neighboring countries would deny them,” he said. “When they brought me along, what changed the whole game was me being not only an interpreter, but me being a first-generation Arab American. I was able to tell them, ‘hey, you know, it’s okay. This is what we’re doing, this is what we’re here for, and that’s why we’re transporting these items across the border to the base that’s already in your country.’”

With Tawasha’s help as a lingual intermediary, 11 convoys were able to cross international borders without delay or conflict. He was also selected to provide security for Exercise Agile Lion, safeguarding more than 100 personnel and protecting more than $2 billion in Air Force assets.

While deployed, Tawasha’s duty schedule was three days on, one day off. He volunteered 28 hours of his off-duty days to teach Arabic and English to Jordanian, German, and U.S. personnel at an undisclosed location.

“It’s hard to communicate and teach someone another language if you don’t know their primary,” Tawasha said. “I was able to break that and say, ‘Hey, let’s change up the training material and let’s do it like this.’”

By speaking the same language as the Wing’s Jordanian partners, Tawasha was able to directly improve the interoperability between U.S. forces and their allies working together on a single installation.

“When [our international partners] have someone in uniform speaking their language, that [tells] them, ‘Hey, you know what, they have a lot of cultural differences, they know what we’re about, because they understand our culture if they can speak our language,’” he said. “It shows them that we truly care and that we can trust one another.”

The 2023 Outstanding Airman of the Year award is not the first time Tawasha has been recognized for showing talent as a Multi-Capable Airman. Across 25 assignments and patrols, he was recognized by the Company Grade Officers’ Council’s “Above the Bar Award,” the First Sergeant Council’s “Diamond Sharp Award,” and was a two-time “Defender of the Month.” 

Tawasha said that his drive throughout all these accomplishments comes from a place of simplicity, humility, and hunger to set new goals—three qualities modeled for him by his parents.

“My [parents] grew up in a very poor environment,” he said. “My mom grew up with 10 other siblings in a one-bedroom apartment. So growing up, when my mom and dad explained these things to me, they wanted me to perform better both on the civilian side and when I joined the military side, and to better myself, so I can be better to them, for them—they didn’t immigrate to this country for me to slack off. I’m here to get the job done and to put my name out there for them.”

Meet the other Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2023 below:          

SrA. Ryan G. Hospelhorn

SrA. Kostiantyn Khymchenko 

Former Chief Scientists: Office Move May Hurt S&T’s Influence on Air Force Decision-Making

Aug. 25, 2023 | By John A. Tirpak

A number of former Chief Scientists of the Air Force are concerned that a planned office move for the position—away from the core work area of service leaders—will diminish its influence and send a negative signal to the scientific community, they told Air & Space Forces Magazine.

In the coming months, current Chief Scientist Victoria Coleman will move offices from the fourth floor of the E ring of the Pentagon, near the service’s Secretary and Chief of Staff, to the fifth floor on the D ring.

An Air Force spokesperson said the new offices are “67 percent larger” than the ones being vacated in the next few months, and that the move is one in a series affecting USAF leadership that started when the Department of the Air Force needed to find room for Space Force leaders.

“Office space assignments do not indicate the priority or importance of an office holder,” the spokesperson said.

The Air Force Chaplain organization is moving into the Chief Scientist’s office space, she said.

“No Chief Scientist would trade the E ring for a bigger office,” said Mark J. Lewis, who held the position from 2004-2008, and later served as the deputy undersecretary of defense for research and engineering, from 2018 to 2021.

While office location “might seem … a trivial matter, in this case, it is not,” he added.

The Chief Scientist position holds no direct authority over budget or programs but retains significant impact through “influence … with the Chief, with the Secretary, and with the rest of the Air Force leadership,” Lewis said. “That’s why the location … on the E ring, as a fully recognized member of the Air Staff, is so incredibly important.”

Any visitor to the office “knows immediately that this is an office with influence. Not because of controlled money [or] managed programs, but because of the access and position that an E ring office confers,” Lewis argued. That location “is a powerful symbol across the entire Air Force [science and technology] enterprise, telling the many scientists” in the Air Force Research Laboratory and various commands “that they have a voice and a spokesperson at the highest levels of the Air Force leadership.”

The post is a symbol of the Air Force’s “special commitment to science and technology,” he added.

The Secretary and Chief need “the unvarnished, independent, and objective analysis” that a Chief Scientist can offer, Lewis said, and “the value of the office has always been that the holder can speak the truth, without fear of retribution or reprisal.”

Two former Chief Scientists said the relocation may spell the end of that unique status.

Louis S. Metzger, who held the post from 1999-2001, echoed Lewis’s remarks that although the Chief Scientist “has no policy-making or fiscal authority or larger organization reporting to it,” the position’s “contributions are realized only through influence; in other words, by convincing others to take action.”

That influence is “enhanced by its access to the highest levels of Air Force leadership,” Metzger said, noting a track record of Chief Scientists who were able to wield their influence to benefit the Air Force.

“It would be unfortunate if the connection, real or perceived, between the [Chief Scientist] and top Air Force leadership is weakened in any way, as it could reduce [Chief Scientist‘s] beneficial impact going forward,” he said.

Michael I. Yarymovich, who served as the Chief Scientist from 1973 to 1975, said his position’s unique status as a civilian on the Air Staff, with a direct report to the Chief and Secretary, meant he could be completely frank with leadership. The Air Force especially needs candor now, at a time when it needs to reinvent itself and innovate, he said.

One former Chief Scientist who preferred not to be identified said they worried that move was prompted by “those who may not like an independent voice” on science and technology at the Air Staff table.

The Chief Scientist serves on the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board and most incumbents have developed technology forecasts, such as Technology Horizons, which look decades ahead to scientific developments that will affect how the Air Force operates in the future. The position also serves on the service’s Steering Committee and Senior Review Group.

The position—which is unique among the military services—got its start with Gen. Jimmy Doolittle, who served as “special assistant for scientific matters” under chief of staff Gen. Hoyt Vandenberg in 1951. Later that year, a civilian—Louis N. Ridenour—was appointed to the role.

The Air Force spokesperson said changing the location of the Chief Scientist’s office “will not result in a change in the frequency of contact” with the Chief and Secretary.

Though a floor away, “the new Chief Scientist office will actually be closer to the Secretary’s and Chief’s offices,” she said. There’s been “no change in the reporting structure or importance of the Chief Scientist,” she added.

Lewis said he and some other former Chief Scientists have discussed a letter to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall urging him to keep the position physically located where it is now.

Coleman has been Chief Scientist of the Air Force since April 2021. Previously, she served as head of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. She has not indicated any plans to leave the post, the Air Force spokesperson said.

MTS-3060A SmartCan™ – Empowering ACE and Multi-Capable Airmen

Aug. 25, 2023 | By Adam Wells and Stephen T. Sargeant

The Agile Combat Employment (ACE) operational concept, a proactive and reactive operational scheme of maneuver executed within threat timelines to increase survivability while generating combat power, provides a starting point for Airmen to codify best practices. However, this can be quite challenging for the aircraft armament maintainer when confronted with ineffective or outdated tools and test equipment. Maintainers understand the challenges of using outdated and/or less-capable test sets to support both legacy and Smart weapon systems on 4th and 5th generation military aircraft, including long test times, inconclusive results, utilization of multiple test sets, increased training demands, and a large logistics footprint.

Efforts to develop and field a next generation armament test set capable of addressing these short-comings have resulted in an exceptionally effective solution: the MTS-3060A SmartCan. The SmartCan is the most advanced handheld armament flightline test set available, capable of testing all Alternate Mission Equipment (AME) and Aircraft Armament Equipment (AAE) including pylons, launchers, bomb racks, POD interfaces and gun, and able to support 4th, 5th, and 6th Generation aircraft – today.

Unlike legacy handheld testers that are only capable of performing stray voltage and continuity tests, the Smart Can’s test capabilities enable full functional MIL-STD-1760 test to ensure that armament systems are ready to support Smart weapons before they are loaded. Simultaneous testing of multiple squib signals, combined with a unique cross-fire algorithm, delivers a robust test process that is superior to all O-Level armament test sets in service today. Coupled with munitions emulation communication channels supporting all existing weapons protocols, the SmartCan provides a full system test of all legacy and Smart weapons’ armament.

On-aircraft SmartCan demonstrations prove significant benefits for armament maintainers.

Developed in conjunction with armament maintainers and munition manufacturers, the ergonomic design, rapid test times, and ease of use all contribute to the proven success of the globally deployed MTS-3060A SmartCan in all flightline environments. Incorporating over 30 measurement channels, electronic loads, communications interfaces (MIL-STD-1553, MMSI, Ethernet, CAN Bus, RS-485), dedicated/continuous multiple squib circuit monitoring, and with audio and video signal generators, the SmartCan delivers functionality previously found only in larger, multi-box test sets.

The rugged, handheld construction of the SmartCan, when combined with the ability to operate in adverse weather conditions, enables field operation anywhere in the world, making it the ultimate tool for flightline armament test. The unique power management system utilizes just six standard or rechargeable AA batteries that allows operation of the SmartCan for over 40 hours, without the need to replace or recharge the batteries. An innovative calibration technique, utilizing NIST traceable high-precision references, has been incorporated into the design, eliminating the need to remove the SmartCan from the flightline for calibration, reducing down-time and support required from metrology, and simplifying logistics.

Test results and measurement variances for each weapon are displayed real-time for review, analysis, and fault isolation. Test log files can easily be moved or copied via the removable SD card for printing and analysis. This improved availability of data for analysis and predictive maintenance activities can ultimately decrease troubleshooting and repair times, enhancing mission readiness.

Live, on-aircraft demonstrations have yielded time savings as high as 89% per weapons station, over eight O-Level testers consolidated, true video and audio injection, six bomb racks tested simultaneously, and operationally representative weapons emulation. The chart below shows a few of the demonstrated improvements in setup and test times for F-16 pylons and launchers.

Advanced cybersecurity features and protections further differentiate the SmartCan, making this the most cybersecure O-Level armament test set available. Data encryption, a custom-developed operating system, NIST certified software enabling Test Program Set (TPS) development, and a removable hard drive all contribute to the security of the SmartCan.

The ability to streamline TPS development and release cycles is another key advantage of the SmartCan. MTS offers a TPS development suite, ATEasy® and SmartCanEasy™, to allow users to develop, create, and integrate their own test programs as new weapons enter their inventory. With this capability, armament test professionals can create and maintain test programs without the need for contractor support, greatly expanding the utility of the test set. The rapid, organic TPS development capability will allow the air forces to keep their support equipment software synchronized with the aircraft under the rapid software development model.

The SmartCan provides outstanding armament test capabilities for all armed aircraft and their armament systems, supporting warfighters deployed under the USAF’s ACE CONOPS, and enabling the creation of true Multi-Capable Airmen. One test set, all platforms, all armament systems.

Outstanding Airmen of the Year: SrA. Kostiantyn Khymchenko 

Aug. 24, 2023 | By Patrick Reardon

The Air Force’s 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2023 will be formally recognized at AFA’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference from Sept. 11-13 in National Harbor, Maryland. Air & Space Forces Magazine is highlighting one each weekday from now until the conference begins. Today, we honor SrA. Kostiantyn Khymchenko (or, “KK”), an HVAC Journeyman with the 633rd Civil Engineer Squadron at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va.

Khymchenko and his family are from Konotop, Ukraine, where he was a cadet in school and served as a Ukrainian border and customs protection officer after graduating. He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force just eight months after moving to the U.S. in June 2019 on a diversification visa.

“All my life, I just serve,” he said. “When I come here, at first, I wanted [to join the] Army, but obviously when all my friends found out I wanted [to] be military person [they were] like, ‘No, only Air Force.’”

In 2022, Khymchenko was selected for deployment in support of Operation Atalas Guardian. He was only given a day’s notice to pack and board a plane to Germany where, as a native Ukrainian speaker, he would lead eight translators in 50 multinational teleconferences and advise four general officers on partner-nation air defense. Khymchenko also was part of USAF’s “Grey Wolf Team,” a task force at Ramstein Air Base that advises Ukraine’s air force on their defensive campaigns against Russia’s invasion.

“I’m so proud and so grateful [for the Airmen and officers] who work over there right now,” he said. “They did amazing job. For real. They did everything like it was [their] native country.”

During his deployment, Khymchenko translated more than 30 tactical maps and transmissions from Russia, intel that provided Ukraine with the location of more than 400 sites and 1,500 real-time missile launch alerts. His contributions and determination increased the survivability of 40 aircraft, $2 billion in assets, and 8 million lives. Khymchenko said he was just doing his job.

“I was [only] tools [that helped],” he said. “I try to build friendship with our Ukrainian partner. And I think I was successful on this mission.”

Khymchenko said his mission and assignments were made infinitely more meaningful because as a USAF Airman, he was able to support a country he called home for nearly 30 years during its time of crisis.

“I tried to do best that I can do because I grew up in this country,” he said. “I have a lot of friends who [fight right now] and I have also friends who die right now … It’s very emotional. It’s almost like emotional stress, because you want to do something great. But same time, you cannot go over there and fight to help them. But you can help from, like, 603 AOC to help do something good.”

In return for his service, both Khymchenko’s home country and his new one showed their gratitude. He was coined by both the Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall and Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force JoAnne Bass, and he was presented with the Ukraine Support Medal by Ukraine’s Grand Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov. When they called Khymchenko’s name at the ceremony to come on stage and accept the award, he said he was shocked at the gratitude Reznikov showed him.

“I was so surprised, for real. I just forgot everything,” he said. “In Ukraine, when you get some awards, you need to salute, shake, take. But here it’s different. You need to shake, take, salute. And when I tried [to] salute when he gave me the award, and he began [to] hug me, I was so confused. … It was a very good memory [of] this mission.”

Stateside at Langley in his regular duty as an HVAC Journeyman, Khymchenko was named Wing Airman of the Quarter for the second quarter of 2022 for his leadership with 12 engineers to complete 742 jobs and respond to 36 emergencies, including the protection of a $10 million ISR server farm. His leadership earned him another coin, this one from the commander of Air Combat Command. 

“Every time when I go to job, I try to fix everything,” Khymchenko said. “Sometimes I stay late. Sometimes if I cannot fix it, when I come back home, I cannot sleep because [I’m still thinking] about the job. … It doesn’t matter if it’s some server, or it’s dorms, or it’s vehicle maintenance—[it’s all] important, because our primary job: take care of Airmen.”

When he considers his latest award of distinction as one of the 12 Outstanding Airmen of 2023, Khymchenko said he’s honored, but he also feels bad because there were so many other people—fellow enlisted Airmen, other members of the Grey Wolf Team, and his leadership—who were doing great work right alongside him.

“And also, all of my commanders here. I just did, like, 30 percent of this award—my leadership [did the rest],” he said. “And I so appreciate all the support.”

“[But] I want to thank my wife first of all, because when I went to deploy to Germany, [she took] care of our kids, and it was very hard,” Khymchenko added. Inspired by his model of service, his wife Dariia joined the Air Force in 2022. An Airman First Class, Dariia Khymchenko is a Contracting Specialist with the 633rd Contracting Squadron alongside her husband at Langley.

Meet the other Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2023 below:          

SrA. Ryan G. Hospelhorn

USAF Moves Officer Promotion Boards in 2024 to Line Up with Performance Report Dates

Aug. 24, 2023 | By Greg Hadley

A year after transitioning to standardized “static” closeout dates for officers’ performance reports, the Air Force will align its promotion boards with the change in 2024, the service announced Aug. 23.

With the move, officers will have a performance report within six months of promotion boards—the same as enlisted Airmen. To make that transition happen, some ranks will have two promotion boards scheduled in 2024, while others will have none.

Promotions boards for most major Line of the Air Force categories will shift back from the end of 2024 to January and February 2025, meaning those categories will have no boards in 2024.

Conversely, all lieutenant colonel categories will have their boards moved from the spring of 2025 to November 2024. For both majors and lieutenant colonel boards, the shift in schedule will not affect eligibility based on dates of rank and projected pin-on dates, a service release noted.

“Maximizing alignment of promotion boards to SCODs represents a strategic step toward enhancing our talent management decisions,” deputy chief of staff for manpower, personnel, and services Lt. Gen. Caroline Miller said in a statement. “This also provides transparency and consistency that are cornerstones of our promotion and evaluation system.”

The Air Force announced the move to static closeout dates (SCODs) in February 2022 and implemented them starting in October of that year:

Colonels by Feb. 28

Lieutenant colonels and majors by May 31

Captains by Aug. 31

First and second lieutenants by Oct. 31

The service similarly cited the importance of predictability and transparency in moving to SCODs. Miller’s predecessor, Lt. Gen. Brian T. Kelly, said it would give officers a “more complete understanding of their performance assessment, their strengths and weaknesses, and where they stand amongst their peers.”

The Air Force transitioned to static closeout dates for the enlisted force back in 2014, with officials saying at the time that they would ensure a level playing field for Airmen and free up time for raters. As far back as 2018, leaders said they were contemplating a similar change for officers.

The shift in schedule is just the latest change in the Air Force’s officer promotion boards—in January, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall announced a move to “unmask” advanced degrees for prospective majors and lieutenant colonels. The decision reversed an eight-year-old policy that hid those details from promotion board members. In a memo explaining the change, Kendall cited the value of advanced expertise in countering growing military threats from China and Russia.

Air Force Finds Elevated Levels of Toxic Chemicals at Minot

Aug. 24, 2023 | By Chris Gordon

The Air Force has found residue of a harmful and possibly carcinogenic substance at intercontinental ballistic missile facilities at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., it announced Aug. 24.

According to service officials, military bioenvironmental experts found elevated levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in an underground launch support building at the base.

The Air Force has now released findings on PCB levels at all three of its ICBM bases. Two—Minot and Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont.—had levels that exceeded the Environmental Protection Agency’s acceptable limit, while the third, F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo., had trace amounts of PCBs below the EPA’s acceptable limit.

Air Force Global Strike Command has ordered clean-ups for all three bases.

“Based on these survey results, I directed Twentieth Air Force to take immediate measures to mitigate exposure by our Airmen in all locations where PCBs were detected,” AFGSC commander Gen. Thomas A. Bussiere said in a statement, referring to the Numbered Air Force that oversees ICBM bases.

The Air Force is conducting extensive environmental testing at its ICBM bases as part of the Missile Community Cancer Study, which has two parts: environmental sampling of Active bases and an epidemiologic study of personnel who served in ICBM fields to assess cancer rates.

One of the purposes of testing was to search for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in launch control centers, the underground bunkers where missileers work in 24-48 hour shifts, and in other facilities.

PCBs are “probable human carcinogens” according to the EPA, which adds that they “have been demonstrated to cause a variety of adverse health effects.”

The findings at Minot were outlined in an Aug. 21 memo from Col. Tory Woodard, the commander of the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine (USAFSAM), which is leading the study on behalf of the service.

Three hundred total samples—air samples and swipe tests—were taken at Minot, with 30 returning traces of PCBs. The swipe tests involve gauze wetted with a solution run over surfaces and then analyzed for suspected contaminants. No air samples detected PCBs, Woodard’s memo states. Twenty-eight of the 30 samples that detected PCBs were below limits.

Two swipe samples, however, had levels above EPA limits—both in the same facility, a Launch Control Equipment Building (LCEB).

LCEBs sit alongside the underground Launch Control Centers (LCC) and provide mechanical support. Above-ground Missile Alert Facilities (MAFs) were also tested, but did not return traces of PCBs.

“We will begin immediately cleaning PCBs in all LCCs and LCEBs where PCBs were detected, regardless of whether they met EPA standards for mitigation,” Bussiere said of the Minot findings.

“Further rounds of testing for PCBs will take place in all these locations to help us measure the effectiveness of our mitigation efforts,” he added.

PCB production was banned in 1979, but the intercontinental ballistic missile facilities are decades old. An AFGSC official familiar with the study previously told Air & Space Forces Magazine the Air Force began phasing out PCBs at ICBM facilities in the 1980s, but the tests would ultimately determine how thoroughly that process was conducted.

Yet PCBs are far from the only—or main—concern of the ongoing Missile Community Cancer Study. There have long been concerns voiced by former missiles and other personnel stemming from their duties at ICBM bases. Those concerns were highlighted when a presentation detailing cases of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a blood cancer, at Malmstrom appeared online earlier this year.

Bussiere ordered a review of the issue, which led to the study, overseen by USAFSAM. Members of the study team carried out initial visits in February and March at the ICBM bases to understand what they should look for and where—ICBM silos are spread out over vast fields that reach into five states, with underground and surface support facilities. Among the potential dangers, the study teams found stickers indicating the presence of PCBs in older electronics—one reason PCBs have been an early focus of the study.

“These results are just the first part of an extensive survey taking place at all our missile bases,” Bussiere said. “As more results come, we will provide updates to our Airmen and families, along with the resources they need to understand the results. My absolute priority is to provide Airmen with a safe and clean working environment, so they can carry out our nation’s most important missions.”

In particular, researchers are still looking awaiting results from ground and water sampling at all three ICBM bases.

“Additional results for other environmental samples collected will be reported separately, as these are still being analyzed and are not yet available,” Woodard wrote in his latest memo.

US Will Train Ukrainian Pilots, Maintainers on the F-16 at Air National Guard Base

Aug. 24, 2023 | By Chris Gordon and Greg Hadley

The U.S. will train Ukrainian pilots and maintainers on F-16s at Morris Air National Guard Base, Ariz., in October, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder announced Aug. 24—the most direct American involvement yet in the international effort to equip and train Ukraine with fighter aircraft.

The Ukrainian pilots will also receive necessary English-language training at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, in September, Ryder said.

The 162nd Wing at Morris trains foreign pilots on F-16s on a day-to-day basis.

Ryder said the training “will include several pilots and dozens of maintainers” but said it was too soon to provide further information. Ryder indicated the U.S. and Ukraine had yet to iron out which pilots might come over to the U.S. and it was too soon to give a timeline on how long training might take. He did not say whether the U.S. would provide munitions for the F-16s, such as AMRAAM air-to-air missiles.

“A lot is going to depend on those individual pilots and the assessment in terms of where they’re at in that process,” Ryder said.

Last week, President Joe Biden’s administration gave the necessary official approvals needed for a consortium of countries led by Denmark and the Netherlands to start training Ukrainian pilots on the F-16. The U.S. also provided formal assurances that it will fast-track any requests from those countries to transfer their older F-16s to Ukraine that they are trading out for newer aircraft like F-35s. But the U.S. has a massive fleet of F-16s and as the plane is American-made, the U.S. is used to training new countries in how to operate the aircraft.

“We know that as the Danes and the Dutch prepare to train those pilots, at a certain point in time in the future, capacity will be reached,” Ryder said. “So preemptively, acknowledging that and leaning forward in order to assist with this effort is the impetus for why we’re doing this now.”

The 162nd Wing has trained pilots from 25 countries to fly the F-16 so far, according to the unit’s website. But Ryder noted that in addition to basic flying skills, there will be much to learn for Ukrainian pilots who have previously flown in Soviet-era aircraft using different tactics than Western pilots. Experts have said Ukrainian pilots need to be trained in Western tactics to be successful, especially to make the best use of U.S.-made aircraft. Ryder previewed some of the myriad of skills required.

“There will be additional training on air combat maneuvering, tactical intercepts, close air support, suppression of enemy air defenses, and then all of that leading up to your mission qualification training, which then allows your instructor to certify that you’re combat ready,” Ryder said. “So those are the kinds of things that go into training a fighter pilot.”

Earlier this week, Ukrainian president Volodomyr Zelenskyy visited the Netherlands and sat in an F-16 and praised the “breakthrough agreement” to provide the jets to Kyiv. The Pentagon’s announcement came on Ukrainian Independence Day.

“The United States is proud to stand with Ukraine, and we will continue to ensure that it has what it needs to fight for its freedom,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III said in a statement marking the occasion.

How China’s PLA Could Use Tech Like ChatGPT, And What Could Hold It Back

Aug. 24, 2023 | By David Roza

China’s People’s Liberation Army wants to be the first to capitalize on a range of military applications for generative artificial intelligence that could change warfare—but political, economic, and scientific challenges, some of which U.S. artificial intelligence developers also face, stand in the way.

“Overall, China understands the need to be a first mover (or close follower) in generative AI on the battlefield to ‘firmly grasp the strategic initiative of intelligent warfare and seize the commanding heights of future military competition,’” wrote Josh Baughman, an analyst with Air University’s China Aerospace Studies Institute, in a new paper published Aug. 21.

However, Baughman noted that Chinese policy makers, like their counterparts in the U.S., are wary of integrating the technology without careful testing.

“When we talk about generative AI in a military application, people’s lives are on the line depending on how we apply it,” Baughman told Air & Space Forces Magazine. “It’s high stakes, so absolutely you need to have that trust.”

Generative AI refers to programs “that can generate high-quality text, images, and other content based on the data they were trained on,” according to IBM. Perhaps the most notable application of generative AI is ChatGPT, a chatbot that can write poems, college essays, song lyrics, and other creative content.

Military planners around the world, including Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, predict the technology could help accomplish tasks and make decisions on the battlefield, though it may be a while before such systems can be relied on in high-stakes situations.

China’s PLA seems to be on the same page: Baughman cited several PLA media sources that generally agree AI will inevitably play a role in warfare, and it could prove decisive in seven key areas:

Human-machine interaction: Because it can understand both human language and machine language, generative AI could help analysts digest large amounts of information in a much smaller amount of time. The PLA predicts a ChatGPT-like program becoming a joint combat system that can plan tasks, assign objectives, and strike targets, Baughman wrote.

Decision-making: By processing large amounts of information, generative AI could help commanders select the best combat action plan faster and enable decentralized command for isolated troops.

Network offensive and defensive warfare: PLA media predicts generative AI could help hackers “design, write, and execute malicious code, build bots and websites to trick users into sharing their information, and launch highly targeted social engineering scams and phishing campaigns,” Baughman wrote. Such offensive tools may become so sophisticated that AI systems may be the only way to defend against them.

Cognitive domain: PLA media sources discuss using generative AI to “efficiently generate massive amounts of fake news, fake pictures, and even fake videos to confuse the public,” Baughman wrote.

Logistics: Generative AI could help allocate resources, manage warehouses, plan supply routes, and identify inefficiencies faster than before. It could also be used to predict future material demand and create a budget for procuring resources.

Space domain: Above the atmosphere, where objects move at several times the speed of sound, generative AI could help monitor satellite health. It could also help engineers design new launch vehicles and spacecraft.

Training: The PLA lacks real-world combat experience, but generative AI may help “quickly build combat simulation through simple human language descriptions,” PLA writers said, especially when combined with historical training data and fresh intelligence.

Challenges

Yet for all those possible applications, China also faces many challenges in developing generative AI for military purposes, some unique and others applicable to developers around the world, Baughman said.

Party rules: Generative AI requires large amounts of data, but some information is off-limits under the Chinese Communist Party. Article Four of the party’s regulations for generative AI says such programs should “adhere to the socialist core values, and must not generate content that incites subversion of State power.”

In his paper, Baughman cited a Chinese CEO joking that Chinese large language models cannot count to 10 since it would include the numbers eight and nine: a reference to the censorship of information about the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. However, while information restrictions could slow the growth of generative AI in some areas, it may not be relevant to all military uses.

“There is a party problem, but I don’t think it will be an issue for pure engineering or technical applications,” Baughman said.

Silicon shortfall: Generative AI requires immense computing power, and immense computing power relies on semiconductor chips. U.S. sanctions limit the Chinese chip supply, but workarounds and China’s long-standing efforts to build its own chip infrastructure cannot be discounted.

Corruption: The Chinese government is making enormous investments in AI, but much of it ends up with firms that have more political connections than technical competence, as Gregory Allen, an AI expert for the Center for Strategic and International Studies wrote in May. That problem may grow worse as U.S. sanctions prevent competition with exporters, Allen noted.

Data Sets: Baughman explained that building an effective military data set for AI requires accurate and precise data, and while this issue affects both Chinese and U.S. AI developers, the PLA may feel it more acutely due to a lack of real-world combat experience.

Optimization: Data must be properly labeled, adjusted, and interpreted to be useful. Baughman cited PLA media articles showing that “availability and interpretability of the data are poor,” and that interaction with professional users is not happening at a large enough scale to work in the field.

Trust: Both U.S. and Chinese policymakers fear losing control of battlefield AI, to the extent that PLA writers repeatedly stress the need to have a human in the loop of systems involving AI.

“The PLA most certainly wants to be the first mover on applying a more comprehensive application of Generative AI on the battlefield, but they will not do so until they can fully trust the technology,” Baughman wrote.

Still in the Race

Despite the challenges, China is at the same level or ahead of the U.S. in some areas of AI development, Baughman said. AI is a key element of the CCP’s grand strategy known as “Digital China,” a sweeping digital transformation designed to make Chinese society more efficient and competitive at the national level.

“China ties the advancement of these emerging technologies with the rejuvenation of China and with maintaining the legitimacy of the party,” he said. “It’s something of paramount importance.”

One military application of generative AI may already be within reach. PLA writers discuss using AI in the cognitive domain to “destroy the image of the government, change the standpoint of the people, divide society and overthrow the regime” through an overwhelming amount of fake news, videos, and other content targeting human fears and suspicions.

“That is not something years in the future, it is something they can do today,” Baughman said, “and the scale that they could do it at is just unreal.”

The threats will likely change fast as technology rapidly advances.

“Everything is going to be moving faster and evolving faster,” he said. “The United States has to be prepared for those major changes. Just look at how generative AI has transformed over the past six months or so. … From the military to the economy, it’s going to transform a lot of different things.”