$30 Billion F-35 Deal Will See Prices Rise, Deliveries Dip

$30 Billion F-35 Deal Will See Prices Rise, Deliveries Dip

Jan. 3, 2023 | By John A. Tirpak

The unit cost of F-35 fighters will creep up in a $30 billion, three-lot deal announced Dec. 30, driven by a more sophisticated product, inflation, and lower U.S. sales volume, while annual deliveries will slip.

Meanwhile, some F-35s remain grounded and others undelivered following the crash of an F-35B on Dec. 15.  

The deal, which defines production for Lots 15 and 16 and sets options for Lot 17, calls for 398 F-35s to be built over the three years, including foreign orders. The agreement calls for 145 aircraft in Lot 15, 127 aircraft in Lot 16, and up to 126 in Lot 17, which will include the first airplanes delivered to Belgium, Finland, and Poland.

The open-ended Lot 17 allows for 23 more jets than the Pentagon originally planned. When the “handshake deal” on the three lots was announced in July 2022, Pentagon acquisition and sustainment chief William LaPlante said it was “based on” as many as 375 jets.

Either way, however, deliveries are declining—the Lot 12-14 deal, inked in 2019, covered 478 aircraft. The Air Force has requested fewer F-35s in the last couple of years, saying it prefers to wait for the all-up Block 4 model of the jet in order to avoid modifying older aircraft to the more capable configuration later. The other services have followed suit. Making up for some of the deferral of purchases, though, has been strong international sales of the F-35. Congress has also added back some of the jets the services did not request.

The agreed Lot 15-17 numbers average 132 airplanes per year; well below the 156 per year predicted by Lockheed Martin CEO Jim Taiclet in an investors’ call a year ago. Lockheed is anxious to avoid a boom-and-bust cycle of production, as it plays havoc with workforce and economic materials purchases.

In a January 2022 investor call, CFO John Mollard said “the last thing you want is a sawtooth pattern” of up-and-down production rates.

In a statement announcing the deal, F-35 Joint Program Office director and program executive officer Lt. Gen. Michael Schmidt said the deal “strikes the right balance between what’s best for the U.S. taxpayers, the military services, allies, and our foreign military sales customers.”

The unit cost of the fighters will average about $75 million a copy, but that is without the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine. With the engine, the last three-lot deal achieved a unit cost below $80 million per jet. The JPO did not provide Air & Space Forces Magazine an all-up cost for the fighters in Lots 15-17.

For the airframe and mission equipment only, the Lot 15-17 cost of F-35s ranges “from $70.2 million to $69.9 million for the F-35A, $80.9 million to $78.3 million for the F-35B, and $90 to $89.3 million for the F-35C,” a Lockheed spokesperson said.

The A model is a conventional takeoff type, while the B is short takeoff/vertical landing version and the C is configured for aircraft carrier operations. It has larger wing and tail surfaces and other structural differences to make it capable of withstanding carrier takeoffs and landings.

From Lot 14 to 17, “the F-35A aircraft vehicle cost, on average, only increased 6.5 percent; less than the rate of inflation,” the Lockheed spokesperson added. The Lot 15 airplanes are already in early stages of manufacture.

The agreement represented the longest period of negotiation on an F-35 lot to date. The “handshake deal” was reached ten months after it was expected to be concluded—when it had already been under negotiation for more than a year—which former JPO officials said was due to extensive bargaining over inflation, labor costs for Lockheed, lingering supply chain effects from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the uncertainties attending the services’ planned buys. The final deal came after a further five months of haggling.  

Lockheed has been warning for two years that Lot 15 and later lots would cost more due to the greater capability being built into the jet. Another factor has been the slower sales growth for the U.S. services, which are the biggest customers for the fighter.

Lot 15 is the first that will include Tech Refresh 3 (TR-3), which is a suite of more powerful processors and other capabilities that make the Block 4 version of the F-35 possible. Other improvements in Lot 15 include a panoramic cockpit display and a more powerful memory.

As part of the Block 4 upgrade, some 75 changes are in the works. These include new or additional weapons, communications and networking upgrades, electronic warfare improvements, cockpit and navigation enhancements, and “radar and [sensor] fusion updates,” the Lockheed spokesperson said.

After 141 aircraft delivered in 2022, the worldwide F-35 fleet now numbers 894 airplanes. Lockheed officials have said they are contemplating a celebration at their Fort Worth, Texas facility in late summer, when the 1,000th F-35 will roll off the assembly line.

Lockheed was due to deliver 148 F-35s in 2022, but the Dec. 15 crash of an F-35B caused the government to stop accepting deliveries of the fighter. The mishap aircraft suffered an engine problem in vertical landing mode; video of the accident became a viral sensation last month. The pilot survived a low-altitude ejection. The jet had not yet been transferred to the government at the time of the crash.

The halt meant that Lockheed fell seven aircraft short of its planned deliveries in 2022, even though the aircraft were finished. The accident stopped both final test flights and acceptance flights.

There are now nine aircraft waiting for final test and delivery.

An Air Force spokesperson said that a “small number” F-35As in USAF service are grounded until a technical compliance/technical directive is completed. While she did not provide details, a TC/TD usually means that a part or system must undergo inspection, and if a problem or faulty part is found, be replaced.

A government source said the problem seems to be engine-related, and so far, only jets with “a few dozen” flying hours or less are being inspected for the problem.  

“The scope and duration” of the effect on the USAF F-35A fleet “are to be determined based on additional ongoing analysis,” the Air Force spokesperson said. She did not say how many F-35As are affected, or whether they are in a single unit or dispersed across the combat air forces.

RC-135 Takes Evasive Maneuvers after ‘Unsafe’ Chinese Fighter Intercept

RC-135 Takes Evasive Maneuvers after ‘Unsafe’ Chinese Fighter Intercept

Jan. 3, 2023 | By Chris Gordon

The American and Chinese militaries are trading blame after a close call between two warplanes over the South China Sea on Dec. 21, as a Chinese fighter jet came within a few yards of a U.S. Air Force RC-135 Rivet Joint over the South China Sea, according to the U.S.

On Dec. 29, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) released a statement that alleged a Chinese People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN) J-11 fighter “performed an unsafe maneuver” and came within 20 feet of the American reconnaissance plane.

INDOPACOM said the U.S. aircraft was “lawfully conducting routine operations” in international airspace over the South China Sea at the time of the incident.

“The PLAN pilot flew an unsafe maneuver by flying in front of and within 20 feet of the nose of the RC-135, forcing the RC-135 to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision,” U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement.

The Pentagon later released a video of the incident.

A PLA spokesperson said the incident occurred near the Paracel Islands, which China calls the Xisha Islands. The U.S. did not specify where the incident took place or provide details of the plane’s flight path. The PLA reportedly claimed the RC-135 altered its flight and veered toward the Chinese fighter.

On Dec. 31, the PLA released a short video shot from the J-11, which can be seen closing in on the slower, less maneuverable RC-135.

The Chinese video, which the Pentagon has not commented on, shows the fighter jet flying alongside and then in front of the RC-135V Rivet Joint, tail code 64-842.

The Rivet Joint carries a mission flight crew of 21 to 27 people, according to the Air Force, and is used for signals intelligence. The planes are based at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., but are often forward deployed. The J-11 is a Chinese-made fighter derived from the Russian Sukhoi Su-27.

China claims most of the South China Sea as its own and has built up militarized islands in the region, but its claims are disputed by many of its neighbors. The U.S. has entered what China claims as its airspace before, claiming it is conducting lawful, safe activities. U.S. warships also sail so-called “freedom of navigation” missions near China, including through the Taiwan Strait that separates the self-governing democratic island of Taiwan from the mainland.

After a visit to Taiwan this past summer by then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, China has increased the number of aircraft and warships crossing over the median line between Taiwan and the mainland. China has also intercepted Canadian and Australian aircraft operating near China.

In late December, the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning operated for two weeks in the Western Pacific. Japan said it had to scramble fighter jets to monitor Chinese activities.

“We’ve seen a sharp increase in the number of dangerous PLA intercepts of U.S. and allied forces—including Canadian aircraft—that were operating lawfully in international airspace over the South and East China Seas,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III said in a Nov. 19 speech in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

During a meeting a few days later with Wei Fenghe, China’s Minister of National Defense, Austin “raised concerns about the increasingly dangerous behavior demonstrated by PLA aircraft in the Indo-Pacific region that increases the risk of an accident,” according to a readout of the meeting from Pentagon spokesperson Brig. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder.

In 2015, a similar incident took place involving an RC-135 and two Chinese JH-7 aircraft, though officials said at the time there was no imminent threat of a collision.

U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and the Pentagon did not immediately reply to a request for comment regarding China’s characterization of this latest incident or provide details on what steps might be taken in response to the Chinese intercept.

INDOPACOM said in its statement the U.S. “will continue to fly, sail and operate at sea and in international airspace with due regard for the safety of all vessels and aircraft under international law.”

“We are focused on how we can manage this broad bilateral relationship—arguably the most consequential bilateral relationship in the world—constructively and responsibility,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Jan. 3 in response to questions about America’s relationship with China.

Major and LTC Boards Will Now See When Candidates Have Advanced Degrees

Major and LTC Boards Will Now See When Candidates Have Advanced Degrees

Jan. 3, 2023 | By Greg Hadley

Department of the Air Force officers are about to get credit for their academic achievements: For the first time in years, Air Force and Space Force promotion boards will be told which able to see which candidates for major and lieutenant colonel have advanced academic degrees. 

The move to “unmask” advanced degrees went into effect Jan. 1 by order of Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, reversing 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. 

“To do this effectively, we need leaders and supporting staff throughout the DAF at all levels who have deep expertise in emerging technologies and their applications to military operations,” Kendall said. “We must also have leaders with expertise in the cultures of our potential adversaries. Such expertise and associated critical thinking skills are developed from many sources and experiences, including advanced academic degree programs.” 

Advanced degrees are required for promotion to colonel, and Kendall acknowledged that including those credentials in past reviews for advancement to major or lieutenant colonel had effectively raised the bar. Before that change, “an advanced degree, any advanced degree, was considered necessary for promotion to major or lieutenant colonel,” he said.

That perception was not based policy, however, which is why advanced educational achievements were removed from board consideration in 2014. At the time, then-Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III said his aim was to reinforce the importance of job performance for and ensure “the decision to delay completion of an advanced academic degree will not affect [an officer’s] ability to serve a full career in the Air Force.” 

In reversing the policy, however, Kendall emphasized that advanced degrees re “neither a requirement for promotion to major or lieutenant colonel nor a guarantor of promotion.” 

“The DAF will continue to value both operationally and educationally derived experience and expertise and will always value high levels of performance,” he added. 

Kendall also urged officers not to pursue advanced degrees to “impress a promotion board or check a perceived box.” He said he would instruct promotion boards to value “specific” degrees and military training and operational experience. 

According to the most recent Department of the Air Force data, more than three-quarters of Active-duty majors and 97 percent of lieutenant colonels in the Air Force and Space Force possess at least a master’s degree, compared to just 40 percent of captains. But not enough of those advanced degrees are in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. A recent report by the Air Force Research Laboratory found that half of all department jobs requiring advanced STEM degrees were either vacant or filled by someone with a lesser credential. The report also noted that there are fewer general officers with advanced STEM degrees today than at any point in the past 30 years. 

Pentagon and Air Force policy leaders have warned this lack of technical expertise poses a long term threat to military capability, noting that the U.S. military neither competes effectively for talent with the private sector nor competes numerically with international competitors like China, which has placed greater emphasis on developing a technically skilled workforce.  

Former Air Force chief software officer Nicolas M. Chaillan wrote in September 2021 of his frustration with the service’s practice of putting officers inexperienced in software development in charge of large information technology projects and missions. He said their lack of background inevitably led to problems. 

“Please stop putting a major or [lieutenant colonel] (despite their devotion, exceptional attitude, and culture) in charge” of technical projects affecting millions of users, Chaillan wrote, “when they have no previous experience in that field. We would not put a pilot in the cockpit without extensive flight training; why would we expect someone with no IT experience to be close to successful” running a major IT program?”

Just in Time for Christmas, Congress OKs $858B Defense Bill

Just in Time for Christmas, Congress OKs $858B Defense Bill

Dec. 24, 2022 | By Greg Hadley

Congress officially averted a government shutdown Dec. 23, passing a $1.7 trillion omnibus spending package including $858 billion for defense, 10 percent more than Congress approved for 2022. The Senate passed the measure 68-29 on Dec. 22 and the House voted 225-201, sending the bill to President Joe Biden. 

The government had been operating on continuing resolutions since Oct. 1, freezing spending at fiscal 2022 levels. Pentagon leaders frequently lament that CRs delay new program starts, reduce their buying power, and add uncertainty that undermines military readiness and modernization. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told lawmakers in a recent letter that 61 new programs and 28 military construction projects would be held up by a CR.  

Now President must sign the measure for it to become law. On Dec. 23, Biden officially signed the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, which cleared Congress on Dec. 15. Following speculation that Biden might veto the bill over its repeal of the Pentagon’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, the White House confirmed the president will sign that measure. 

The NDAA is the Pentagon’s annual policy bill, and generally sets upper spending limits for particular programs and accounts. Sometimes, however, the appropriations bill exceeds those amounts as the later, and therefore superseding legislation. That’s what happened this year, as the spending bill added $150 million on top of the $4.09 billion the NDAA authorized for Air Force F-35A procurement. The result means USAF may buy as many as 11 fighters more than were requested in the president’s budget submission. 

More immediately, though, the appropriations bill includes an extra $2 billion for the Air Force’s classified program budget and an extra $600 million for the service’s HH-60W Combat Rescue Helicopter program—USAF had planned to cut the helicopter from a fleet of 113 aircraft to 75, which the service said stems from changes in the way combat rescue will have to be accomplished in the future. 

The bill also includes funding for a 4.6 percent pay raise for service members, the Pentagon’s largest in 20 years. 

Appropriators appeared to bar any modification to how the Pentagon structures or presents funds for the National Intelligence Program, which seems to preserve a generations-old practice of funneling “pass-through” spending through the Department of the Air Force budget en route to national intelligence agencies. Pass-through funds are never touched by the Air Force however, and inflate apparent spending levels to make the department’s budget appear larger than it is.

The Air & Space Forces Association and other critics have said that distorts the common understanding of how DOD funds are divided, and some lawmakers pushed to end the practice. The appropriations bill does not shut the door entirely, however, allowing that the Secretary of Defense and the Director of National Intelligence can still “study and develop detailed proposals for alternative financial management processes.” 

Any study would need to take into account counterintelligence risks and be certified by affected intelligence agencies that any changes would “help achieve auditability, improve fiscal reporting, and will not adversely affect counterintelligence,” according to the bill. 

Operation Christmas Drop 2022 Wraps Up: ‘Best Thing I’ve Ever Done in the Air Force’

Operation Christmas Drop 2022 Wraps Up: ‘Best Thing I’ve Ever Done in the Air Force’

Dec. 22, 2022 | By Chris Gordon

The U.S. and partner nations delivered supplies from the sky in December, concluding the 71st iteration of Operation Christmas Drop on Dec. 13 after over a week of airdrops of more than 75,000 pounds of supplies to remote islands in the western Pacific.

The exercise delivers supplies such as food, fishing equipment, school books, medical gear, clothes, and other items to 57 remote locations in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau, according to the Air Force. It is the longest-running Department of Defense humanitarian mission. In 2022, 209 bundles were delivered to around 22,000 remote islanders, Pacific Air Forces said.

The effort was not just an American one. Drawing on their air forces’ commonality in operating the C-130, the U.S., New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, and Australia came together and participated in air drops operating from Anderson Air Force Base, Guam.

“Everybody can speak that same language, ‘Hey, we’re going to go out and deliver these goods, and it‘s going to be awesome,’” Capt. Andrew Zaldivar, Operation Christmas Drop mission commander, told Air & Space Forces Magazine. “And I think that is something that I know people understand.”

U.S. personnel included Airmen from the 374th Airlift Wing from Yokota Air Base, Japan; the 36th Wing, Andersen Air Force Base, Guam; and the 15th Wing from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. Partner nations brought eight C-130s, according to PACAF.

Zaldivar explained that Operation Christmas Drop is a nearly year-long effort “starting pretty much the day after the drop.”

Starting in January, coordination begins with the mission commander and PACAF, which handles the invitations to partner countries. In its 71st year, the Air Force knows when and how certain aspects of the operation need to be done.

“It takes about a year for all information to get to where it needs to be,” Zaldivar, a pilot with the 36th Airlift Squadron, said in a phone interview from Japan.

The Air Force works with a private organization dedicated to the effort that collects supplies as part of the Denton Humanitarian Assistance Program. That program allows the U.S. military to transport and drop privately donated aid for free. The supplies are tailored to the needs of the island—Bruce Best, or Brother Bruce as he is known, connects with the remote islanders. Best is a researcher at the University of Guam who has been associated with Operation Christmas Drop for nearly 40 years.

Beginning in December, the Air Force and partner nations began practice drops. A few days later, the mission started.

“It is a very challenging task,” said Zaldivar, who also helped plan 2021’s operation. “But I told this to many people, and I am not lying when I say that this is the best thing I’ve ever done in the Air Force, the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done. When you drop those bundles, and then you see the children running to it and waving, it is just a feeling unlike any other thing I’ve ever had. It’s incredible.”

According to Zaldivar, the planes are loaded with two to 10 bundles of aid, and aircraft fly between two and four different islands per sortie, with islands ranging from 800 to 2,500 miles away from Anderson. A typical day included about two U.S. aircraft and two to three allied aircraft, which the nations rotate by day, he said, and trips took around four to nine hours round-trip. What are known as low-cost, low-altitude airdrops (LCLA) occur at around 300 feet.

“It takes the whole village to really make this happen,” Zaldivar said. “It really helps just bring everybody together. And also feel really good about it.”

The last flight of the 2022 operation was to Chuuk in the Federated States of Micronesia in a C-130J, callsign SANTA 67.

“One of our folks from a partner nation came back, and they were saying, ‘Hey, we dropped our bundle.’ Some of these islands have radios so that they can talk to us, they got all the children around the radio, and they screamed ‘Merry Christmas!’” Zaldivar recalled. “That was just like a feeling they’ve never experienced. I think the feedback has been overall very, very, very positive, and very rewarding.”

Brown Visits Baltics with Focus on Air Policing Mission

Brown Visits Baltics with Focus on Air Policing Mission

Dec. 22, 2022 | By Greg Hadley

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. continued his sweep through Eastern Europe this week, visiting Latvia and Lithuania from Dec. 19 to 21. In talks with military leaders there Brown focused on integrated air and missile defense, a key concern for the Baltic states given their proximity to Russia. 

In Latvia, Brown met with Minister of Defense Inara Murniece, Chief of Defense Lt. Gen. Leonīds Kalniņš, and Air Force Commander Col. Viesturs Masulis. In Lithuania, he spoke with Chief of Defense Lt. Gen. Valdemaras Rupšys and Air Force Commander Col. Antanas Matutis. He previously visited with Poland Air Force and military leaders, discussing future U.S. force rotations and the soon-to-be-delivered F-35s with Polish defense leaders, according to a readout of his visit. 

Latvia and Lithuania have smaller air forces than Poland does, possessing a combined inventory of less than 30 aircraft and no fighter jets. But both countries are modernizing—on Dec. 20, Latvia received two UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters from the U.S. to add to its air force, and the Lithuanian Air Force is scheduled to receive the first of four Black Hawks in 2024. 

According to separate readouts provided by the USAF, Brown discussed modernization and “integrated air and missile defense,” Lithuania having announced a deal just a week ago to purchase High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems from the U.S. Latvia is seeking to do the same. 

The HIMARS system is now highly coveted, with Ukraine having demonstrated the system’s prowess in its defense against Russian invaders, using the guided weapon to strike targets behind enemy lines. 

Without fighter aircraft, Latvia and Lithuania rely on NATO for help patrolling their skies as part of the alliance’s Baltic Air Policing mission. Polish and French forces recently took over that mission, but U.S. Airmen and aircraft have performed it recently, as well. 

“Brown … thanked Lithuania for its support of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing missions at Siauliai Air Base, which are critical to regional security and stability,” according to the USAF readout. American F-35s deployed to Siauliai this past February ahead of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Both Latvia and Lithuania have sent military aid to Ukraine in its fight against Russia, a fact for which Brown thanked them during his visit. 

During his trip, Brown also met with the U.S. ambassadors to both countries and DOD personnel serving at the embassies. 

Air Force Conducts ‘First of Its Kind’ Combat Refuel of CENTCOM Drone

Air Force Conducts ‘First of Its Kind’ Combat Refuel of CENTCOM Drone

Dec. 22, 2022 | By Chris Gordon

The U.S. Air Force refueled and relaunched an MQ-9 Reaper using a technique to support aircraft away from traditional airbases for the first time in combat, the service announced Dec. 21. The aircraft also used satellite communications to reduce the number of personnel required to support the mission.

The move marks the latest push in the Air Force’s concept of Agile Combat Employment, in which Air Force personnel and equipment counter threats to central operating bases by dispersing and operating instead from numerous locations.

“A Forward Arming and Refueling Point, or FARP, accomplishes this by allowing aircraft to prepare for their next mission without having to return to an established base,” the 361st Attack Squadron said in a news release. “The operation is the first of its kind to take place in a combat area of responsibility.”

The unusual mission occurred Dec. 10 in Southwest Asia, in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. An MQ-9 flown by the 65th Special Operation Squadron at Hulbert Field, Fla., was refueled by an HC-130J Combat King II. The Reaper was then relaunched to continue combat operations. The aircraft was remotely piloted and conducted ground operations via SATCOM Launch and Recovery, a capability demonstrated by MQ-9 manufacturer General Atomics in 2017.

“Until recently, this operation would have been impossible,” the release from the 361st Attack Squadron said. “SATCOM Launch and Recovery allows the Mission Control Element to conduct ground operations, taxi, takeoff, and land via satellite communications. This capability significantly reduces logistics and airlift requirements when the asset forward deploys and changes the way that Remotely Piloted Aircraft warfare is conducted.”

The U.S. military did not disclose the location of the Forward Arming and Refueling Point mission. According to the Department of Defense, photos of the mission were taken by an Airman assigned to the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing, which is an Air Forces Central (AFCENT) unit that supports Operation Inherent Resolve, the counter-ISIS campaign in Iraq and Syria. The refueling specialists were from the 26th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron.

361st Expeditionary Attack Squadron personnel “were able to refuel and prepare the aircraft for the 65 SOS to continue flying combat operations,” the release said, adding that the FARP specialists arrived aboard the HC-130.

The 361st Expeditionary Attack Squadron operates and maintains drones, including the MQ-9, in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. ISIS’s self-declared caliphate was destroyed in 2019, but the U.S. and its partners have continued their efforts to hunt down remnants of the terrorist organization and to prevent the militants from attempting a comeback.

According to the Air Force, the MQ-9 refueling and relaunching mission occurred at night on Dec. 10 at an undisclosed air base. In the early morning hours of Dec. 11, U.S. Special Operations forces conducted a helicopter raid in eastern Syria, killing two ISIS officials. It was unclear if the operations were connected, and CENTCOM did not immediately provide further details about the FARP mission.

The U.S. has been conducting numerous operations against ISIS this month after briefly pausing combined operations in Syria after Turkey began targeting the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in airstrikes.

Including the Dec. 11 operation, CENTCOM said it has conducted nine partnered operations against ISIS in Syria since resuming operations.

“The U.S. remains committed to countering the global threat from ISIS in partnership with local forces,” CENTCOM spokesman Col. Joe Buccino said in a statement on U.S. operations released Dec. 16. “ISIS continues to pursue an aggressive operational agenda, including external attacks that threaten U.S. allies and partners in the region and beyond. American forces remain in Syria partnered with local forces to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS.”

Around 900 U.S. troops are in Syria. Air Forces Central supports the operations in missions flown by drones and manned aircraft. CENTCOM said the recent operations have required extensive planning and have not injured or killed any U.S. troops or civilians.

“The Air Force is always developing ways to act faster and more effectively around the world,” the 361st Attack Squadron said.

Boeing Offers First Glimpse, New Details about KC-46 Tanker’s RVS 2.0

Boeing Offers First Glimpse, New Details about KC-46 Tanker’s RVS 2.0

Dec. 22, 2022 | By Greg Hadley

Upgraded cameras that can support refueling under covert conditions. A projection display incorporating a curved mirror to create a more immersive experience for boom operators. Enhanced processing power and new fiber optic cabling. Boeing lifted the veil from its long-awaited Remote Vision System 2.0, offering a glimpse at enhancements for the KC-46 tanker, even as delivery of the new optical systems remains years away. 

Boeing, Air Force, and Collins Aerospace officials shared the vision with a small group of reporters at Boeing’s Everett, Wash., facility this month, divulging a prototype RVS 2.0 display, diagrams detailing the planned system, and side-by-side video comparing the RVS 1.0 and 2.0 cameras. The video comparison suggests the new camera system overcomes the issues that plagued the original camera system, including blurriness and distortion, a lack of depth perception under certain conditions, and blackouts and whiteouts caused by sudden changes in lighting. Boeing funded the visit by Air & Space Forces Magazine. 

Lt. Col. Joshua M. Renfro, from the Air Force’s KC-46 Cross Function Team, hailed RVS 2.0 as “the future” and a “quantum leap” in camera technology. But the Air Force and Boeing acknowledge that future is still far off. In October, they announced another 19-month delay, pushing operational use of RVS 2.0 to October 2025. By then, it will be more than five years after Boeing and the Air Force agreed on the plan for fixing the troubled Remote Vision System.

RVS 2.0 must still complete its critical design review and win Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness approval. The preliminary design review was completed in April.

Details of what costs Boeing or the Air Force will bear also remain unclear. Boeing vice president and KC-46 program manager James Burgess said only that the two sides have “reached agreements.” Burgess said the upgrade is “a much more advanced system for sure,” and noted that “computing technology has come a long way over the last 10 years.” 

Cameras

The changes in RVS 2.0 start with the cameras on the boom itself and the panoramic camera on the fuselage. The original RVS used black-and-white cameras. Those on the boom were positioned at an angle, resulting in distortion at the edges of the image. The new system will have two, 4K color cameras. Distortion is eliminated and the change will not affect the aircraft’s moldline, officials said. 

The new cameras will be able to adjust as needed to changes in light and shadow, ensuring operators see a clean, well-defined image, officials said. “The dynamic range of these cameras is phenomenal,” said Boeing Test & Evaluation chief boom operator Ernest Burns. “They’re able to adapt to that changing environment. Air refueling is always a changing environment. You never have the same conditions.” 

That dynamic range means no more “whiteouts” or “blackouts” under difficult conditions. In addition, both the boom and panoramic views will also have upgraded Longwave Infrared (LWIR) cameras, able to detect and capture infrared radiation. Boeing calls this a “game changer,” because it enables “covert refueling” without the use of visible light. 

“If we tried to have external light, visible light on with the receiver coming up on vision goggles, it would bloom up the goggles, it just doesn’t work that way,” Burns said. “To have the boom operator wear night vision goggles and try to refuel, you would not have the depth perception required. They just don’t make night vision goggles with that kind of depth perception. So the best way to do that is to have LWIR cameras and a covert capability in the airplane with zero visible lights on using the LWIR cameras.” 

Boeing officials shared video from the LWIR camera and let reporters wear night vision goggles to experience the KC-46’s infrared lights from the perspective of a receiver aircraft. 

While the LWIR camera lacks some of the contrast and clarity of the color cameras, Burgess said the new LWIR cameras have three times the resolution of the original night-vision cameras, which Air Force officials have said lack the fidelity to conduct refueling operations in blackout conditions. 

It’s not yet clear, however, if the Air Force will certify RVS 2.0 for covert refueling. There are still “operational restrictions” on the technology as it exists today, Boeing officials said. 

The Air Force has not yet validated the upgrades.  “We have to see RVS 2.0 in the Air Force testing system,” Renfro said. “Boeing’s done a lot of work in that, but we haven’t seen on the Air Force side through developmental tests or IOT&E. So until we get to that point, I can’t really say what it’s going to deliver us in terms of combat capability. But we’ll put it through the paces, and I have every confidence it’ll bring us quite a bit.” 

Better Vision

Improved image processing is part of the package. A second video processing unit, fiber optic connections, and a new, larger Aerial Refueling Operator Station (AROS) enhance the boom operator’s experience.

At the most basic level, the screen operators will look at is larger and in color. Whereas the current system shows images smaller than their real-life size—about a 0.65-to-1 ratio—the new one will display at a 0.96-to-1 ratio, Burns said. 

But it won’t just be a bigger screen. The monitor will be mounted higher and at an angle, facing the same way as the boom operator, who then looks at a curved mirror that reflects the image, wearing the same 3-D glasses that operators use for the current system.

“What we have in 1.0 is a direct view. So you’re looking directly at an LCD monitor, which is projecting in 3D,” Burns said. The 2.0 version uses a projection system and a curved mirror to “reflect that LCD in three dimensions off of that mirror to provide that immersive experience for the operator.” The pay-off is more pronounced depth perception 

Boeing and Air Force boom operators “chose this type of design together,” Burns said. “We all looked at multiple different concepts: direct view, indirect view, projector, LCD, all of that. And we all came together, it was unanimous, really, we absolutely love this.” 

The higher-mounted screen expands the space needed to accommodate the boom operator. Boeing is adding a center console between the two main operator seats, providing operators with more storage space, which they had asked for. To make room, Boeing and the Air Force agreed to remove a third seat from the station. 

“It was a deliberate tradeoff,” Burgess said. “Air Force engineers and operators said ‘Hey, we’d rather have the added functionality in the AROS station than that third seat.’” 

Other tweaks allow boom operators to adjust positioning of their seat and controls. Collaboration between the Air Force and Boeing teams has been exceptionally close, Burns said. “We have been lockstep [since] day one designing the AROS,” he asserted. ” It started literally with cardboard mockups, then we advanced to Styrofoam mockups, we cut out the panels in paper, and we literally pinned them on the Styrofoam mockups and redesigned how the station would look.” 

Now as the they wait on FAA certification, the tanker team must also overcome supply chain issues. “A big part of the delay just had to do with availability of hardware … to build up the cameras and display boxes that are required for lab testing,” Burgess said. “The hardware that goes into the lab, the electronics that go into the labs … it’s early versions of the hardware that go on an airplane…. It requires a pedigree of hardware to go into the lab that’s close to the pedigree required for flight, just because it’s all part of the chain of certification.” 

With lab and flight testing still to come and the actual fielding of the system several years down the road, several key details about RVS 2.0 remain unsettled, such as whether the Air Force will prioritize delivery of new KC-46s with the system or retrofits of already-fielded aircraft. Renfro said that question is still under consideration.  

Meanwhile, boom operators have found workarounds to make RVS 1.0 effective, allowing Air Mobility Command to declare the aircraft ready for operational taskings worldwide. Those solutions won’t have an impact on the upgrade, however.  

“RVS 2.0 is part of the long-term vision for this tanker. It’s where we need to be,” Renfro said. “I’m not going to presume to understand all of the pieces and parts that go into making it a reality. But I know that it will show up, and it will be amazing, and we’re going to employ it to the max extent possible. Until then, we’re going to keep using the KC-46 along the methods that we’ve used so far and give combat capability to the warfighter.” 

In this two-dimensional representations of a three-dimensional immersive vision system optimized for dynamic range in operational environmental conditions, a KC-46 refuels an F-16 at night. Image courtesy of Boeing.
In Poland, USAF’s Brown Talks F-35 and Future Force Rotations

In Poland, USAF’s Brown Talks F-35 and Future Force Rotations

Dec. 21, 2022 | By Greg Hadley

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. met with his counterparts in the Polish military this week to discuss U.S. force rotations and Poland’s future F-35 fighters. He also visited with USAF Airmen deployed there. 

Brown met with Chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces Gen. Rajmund Andrzejczak and the air chief, Inspector of the Air Force Maj. Gen. Jacek Pszczola, during his Dec. 18-19 trip. 

He also spoke with several Commander of the General Command of the Armed Forces Gen. Jaroslaw Mika, his deputy commander, Maj. Gen. Cezary Wiśniewski, and Deputy Commander of the Armed Forces Operational Command Maj. Gen. Dariusz Malinowski. 

According to a readout provided by the Air Force, Brown’s discussions focused on support for Ukraine in its defense against Russia’s invasion and Poland’s “vital role in helping the Ukrainian people.”  

The meeting comes some nine months after Poland’s government offered to transfer its MiG-29 fighters to the U.S., presumably for transfer to Ukraine, in exchange for an opportunity to buy used American aircraft. The Pentagon rebuffed that idea as “untenable.” But Poland has become a critical staging ground and logistics hub for the billions of dollars’ worth of military and humanitarian aid pouring into Ukraine from the U.S. and its NATO allies, including Poland, which has donated weaponry of its own. 

“The two sides agreed on the importance of continuing to coordinate closely on Ukraine security assistance,” according to the USAF readout. 

Brown praised Poland as a “critical NATO ally.” U.S. Air Force fighters have operating at Lask Air Base, about 100 miles from Warsaw, for months now. F-16s from Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, deployed there in January before Russia’s invasion even began, and F-35s from the Vermont Air National Guard followed in February. In August, those F-35s were replaced by F-22s from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. Those jets returned home earlier this month. The Air Force has not publicly announced any replacement. 

U.S. fighters operating from Lask supported NATO’s air policing and air shielding mission, responding to threats along the alliance’s eastern border. 

The Polish air force is anticipating getting the first of 32 F-35A fighters in 2024. The new F-35s will increase opportunities for the U.S. and Polish forces to operate together; Brown and his counterparts discussed “future opportunities to integrate and train together,” the readout said. 

Before leaving Poland, Brown also met with the U.S. Ambassador to Poland Mark Brzezinski.