Air Force Reserve chief Lt. Gen. Charles Stenner on Tuesday articulated his three priorities for the National Guard and Reserve Equipment Account, a fund set up by Congress to enhance the relevance of gear for the reserve components. They are: precision engagement gear, in the form of additional Litening targeting pods; defensive systems, such as LAIRCM, which protects cargo airplanes against missiles; and personal protection equipment, ranging from helmets and body armor to sidearms. “You need to have the same stuff” as the active duty component to be relevant, Stenner said during his Air Force Association-sponsored Air Force Breakfast Series presentation in Arlington, Va. He noted that targeting pods have already dealt the Air National Guard and AFR back into the game in that regard.
The use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border this week—which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to abruptly close the airspace over El Paso, Texas—will be a “case study” on the complex web of authorities needed to employ such weapons near civilian areas and the consequences of agencies…
