Air Force Magazine
Daily Report for Jan. 31, 2020

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Edited by Amy McCullough with Rachel S. Cohen, Brian W. Everstine and John A. Tirpak

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Lockheed Martin Potentially Mixed Up Structural Fasteners in Most F-35s
By John A. Tirpak

Fasteners may have been installed incorrectly on all but a handful of F-35s ever
built, but Lockheed Martin believes it's probably not worth it to go back and
change out the wrong parts for the right ones. The fastener issue, first
revealed by Pentagon acquisition and sustainment chief Ellen Lord in December,
affects far more airplanes than initially suggested.

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Experiments Take Root Across the Air Force
By Rachel S. Cohen

When the Air Force Research Laboratory’s experimentation office was chartered
in 2016, the idea of ‘try before you buy’ hadn’t picked up much speed.
Nearly four years later, the office is using momentum and top cover from
leadership to institutionalize experiments as regular practice in the Air Force.
It’s looking for new ways to collaborate across the service, getting involved
in the Pentagon’s joint all-domain command and control vision, and launching
inquiries into electronic warfare and bulk munitions.

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Empowering Disaster Response and Recovery From Space
When a natural disaster or emergency occur, an immediate and seamless response is necessary to
save lives. Operational and situational awareness becomes increasingly important to responders.
If critical infrastructure is down in the disaster zone, then the systems and networks required for
powering the relief efforts are compromised. Ground operations must look to space to solve their
communication needs. Read the full story.
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Tally of Brain Injuries from al-Asad Attack Continue to Rise
By Brian W. Everstine

The total number of U.S. forces suffering traumatic brain injuries following the
Jan. 7 ballistic missile attack on al-Asad Air Base in Iraq continues to rise,
with 64 troops now having been diagnosed with TBIs, the Pentagon announced Jan.
30. Senior officials initially said no U.S. forces were injured when a volley of
Iranian ballistic missiles impacted the air base. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
of Staff Gen. Mark Milley told reporters that brain injuries are not
“necessarily instantaneous, so [it's] not a surprise” that the numbers
continue to rise. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said the U.S. military is still
working to deploy a Patriot missile defense battery to the Iraqi base following
the attack, though he acknowledged it has been a slow process. U.S. Central
Command has said the system is needed, and that request has been supported by
the Pentagon, Esper said. However, the deployment needs to be approved by the
Iraqi government.

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AFRICOM: U.S. Forces Were Not Prepared for Manda Bay Attack
By Brian W. Everstine

U.S. and Kenyan forces were unprepared at the Manda Bay airstrip and Camp Simba
when al-Shabab attacked on Jan. 5, leading to the deaths of three Americans and
the destruction of six aircraft, the head of U.S. Africa Command said Jan. 30.
Al-Shabab was able to breach the base’s perimeter and penetrate the airstrip
in an effective attack, Gen. Stephen Townsend told the Senate Armed Services
Committee. Since the attack, AFRICOM has deployed a response force of about 120
infantry soldiers to the base to shore up defenses. They’ve been “working
hard since 6 January, putting in the appropriate level of defenses. I’m
confident that by the time they’re done, Manda Bay will be much more properly
defended,” Townsend said. The base is home to the 475th Expeditionary Air Base
Squadron. It also serves as a training site for Kenyan forces and a launching
point for AFRICOM air operations in the region, especially into Somalia.


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SOUTHCOM Only Getting 20 Percent of Needed ISR
By Brian W. Everstine

Only one-fifth of US Southern Command's intelligence, surveillance, and
reconnaissance requirement is being met, and much of that doesn't even come from
military hardware. SOUTHCOM boss Adm. Craig Faller told the Senate Armed
Services Committee on Jan. 30 that of the roughly 20 percent of his overall ISR
requirement, the bulk comes from Customs and Border Protection assets, such as
the agency’s small MQ-9 Predator B fleet. Only about 8 percent of SOUTHCOM’s
overall ISR need is met by US military assets, Faller said. “ISR is a key part
of the intel picture, it is a global demand and we’re short in this
hemisphere,” he said.


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Radar Sweep

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AFA PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE: Questions and Answers on the Space Force

In his latest column, Air Force Association President, retired Lt. Gen. Bruce
“Orville” Wright, catches up with retired Maj. Gen. Tom “Tav” Taverney,
a former vice commander of Air Force Space Command who currently serves as
chairman of the board of AFA’s Los Angeles-based Schriever Chapter, to get his
take on the U.S. military’s sixth service and its significance to the nation
and the U.S. Air Force.

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F-35’s Gun That Can’t Shoot Straight Adds to Its Roster of Flaws

Add a gun that can’t shoot straight to the problems that dog Lockheed Martin
Corp.’s $428 billion F-35 program, including more than 800 software flaws. The
25mm gun on Air Force models of the Joint Strike Fighter has “unacceptable”
accuracy in hitting ground targets and is mounted in housing that’s cracking,
the Defense Department’s test office said in its latest assessment of the
costliest U.S. weapons system.

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Esper Sends Pentagon Brass Themes for Fiscal 2021 Budget Testimony

The guidance—which directs Defense Secretary Mark Esper's top brass on themes
they should include in their testimony to lawmakers—focuses on modernization,
strengthening partnerships with allies, reforms, and supporting personnel.

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‘Unbelievably Ridiculous’: Four-Star General Seeks to Clean Up Pentagon’s Classification Process

Gen. John Hyten, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Jan. 29 at an
AFA breakfast event that he hopes to see “significant improvement” this year
on loosening classification standards in the infamously overclassified Pentagon.

Defense News

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Acting Navy Secretary Hints at Fewer Aircraft Carriers in Next Ship-Count Plan

The U.S. Navy could start lobbying Congress to rethink a law requiring it to
have 12 massive aircraft carriers in its arsenal, the service's acting Secretary
said. Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said Jan. 29 that "everything is on the
table" when it comes to the next force structure assessment, which will lay out
a plan for the types and numbers of vessels the service needs.

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OPINION: The U.S. Navy Needs More Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchells

“The development of deep tactical expertise is costly and rests with
increasingly fewer individuals,” writes U.S. Navy Cmdr. Kevin Chlan, a federal
executive fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments who
formerly commanded Strike Fighter Squadron 31. “Answering the challenges
presented by the NDS through the authorities provided in the 2019 recent NDAA,
the Navy and other services should hasten the reform of its workforce, finding
new ways to retain and use highly trained experts—such as Maverick.”

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Hundreds Attend Illinois Funeral for Air Force Veteran with No Known Relatives

Hundreds of people attended a funeral service in suburban Chicago on Jan. 29 for
a former U.S. Air Force mechanic who became an “unclaimed veteran” when he
died last month. The service for John James Murphy, 71, was held at
Symonds-Madison Funeral Home in Elgin, Ill.

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The Oldest F-4EJ Phantom in Japan Is Now Flying with a Dust Collection Pod Used to Detect Radioactive Particles

This Phantom has been in service with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force since it
was imported from the United States in 1971. Now, it is flying a pretty unusual
mission.

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One More Thing...
Battle of Britain Ace Fighter Pilot Paul Farnes Dies Aged 101

Wing Cmdr. Paul Farnes was among the 3,000 airmen—The Few—who defended
Britain's skies in 1940. He died at his home in Hampshire on the morning of Jan.
28, the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust said. His battle victories made Wing
Cdr Farnes an ace, a term taken to mean any fighter pilot credited with shooting
down five or more enemy aircraft.

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