Air Force Magazine
Daily Report for April 9, 2020

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Edited by Amy McCullough with Rachel S. Cohen, Brian W. Everstine and Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

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Moody A-10 Makes Emergency Wheels-Up Landing
By Brian W. Everstine

An A-10 pilot was uninjured when a Warthog made an emergency belly landing April
7 at Moody AFB, Ga. The A-10 from the 75th Fighter Squadron was flying a routine
training mission when the pilot declared an in-flight emergency. The pilot
returned to base and the aircraft’s landing gear did not retract, forcing it
to land and skid to a stop on Moody’s primary runway.

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How Lakenheath is Fighting COVID-19 and Keeping its Eagles Flying
By Brian W. Everstine

When the Air Force needs combat aircraft to rapidly deploy, the F-15s and Airmen
of the Liberty Wing at RAF Lakenheath, England, are often the first to respond.
So when the new coronavirus outbreak hit the base, it required a quick and
evolving response to keep the Eagles and Strike Eagles flying and ready. “The
COVID-19 response has been a significant event for everybody involved,” Col.
William Marshall, commander of the 48th Fighter Wing at Lakenheath, said in an
interview. “Here at the Liberty Wing, our key task has been to balance the
protection of our force, along with ensuring that we can continue to provide the
combat airpower.” The base built up new medical infrastructure and processes
to address coronavirus, and with social distancing rules and other mitigation
steps has seen a drop in cases.

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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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DOD ID Offices Go Remote, Delay Card Expiration
By Rachel S. Cohen

More than 1,600 Defense Department identification offices push out about 18,000
to 20,000 cards each day that allow everything from base access to health care
services. To cut down on the number of people visiting those offices during the
coronavirus pandemic, DOD is revising its rules on ID cards until Sept. 30.
“Remote USID card renewals and reissuance shall be expanded,” the document
states. “Remote family member enrollment/eligibility updates are authorized.
Remote USID card initial issuance for first-time card issuance or replacement of
a lost/stolen ID is authorized. All remotely issued USID cards shall be issued
with an expiration date not to exceed one year from the date of issuance.”

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Guard Sees Increase in COVID-19 Cases
By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

The Guard has begun to see COVID-19 cases among civilians, contractors, and
dependents, National Guard Bureau Chief Air Force Gen. Joseph Lengyel confirmed
on April 8. In addition to 349 cases recorded among Guard personnel as of the
afternoon briefing, Lengyel said at least four civilians, three contractors, and
13 dependents have tested positive for the new coronavirus. He added that the
actual number of infected individuals from those populations might be higher
than the Guard statistics reflect.

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Overseas Directed-Energy Demonstration Underway
By Rachel S. Cohen

The Air Force Research Laboratory announced April 6 it has kicked off its
overseas demonstration of directed-energy weapons dispatched to take down
threatening unmanned aircraft. While the demo has long been in the works, AFRL
revealed that its Tactical High-Power Operational Responder (THOR) system will
join four Raytheon-built laser and microwave weapons in the assessment.
Microwaves interfere with a small drone’s electronics to stop or redirect
them, while lasers burn a hole in the fuselage. “THOR is a directed energy
game-changer,” Kelly Hammett, AFRL’s directed-energy director, said in a
release. The service is not disclosing where the tests will take place, though
the systems could become a permanent fixture there if they succeed.

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Virtual Events: DOD COVID-19 Town Hall and More
By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

Today's events include a Defense Department COVID-19 virtual town hall with
Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen.
Mark Milley, and Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Ramón "CZ" Colón-López at 10:30 a.m. EDT,
as well as a virtual town hall with leaders from the 914th Air Refueling Wing.

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Radar Sweep

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Snapshot: DOD and COVID-19

Here's a look at how the Defense Department is being impacted by and responding
to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Pentagon Delays Budget Deadline to Help Staff Work from Home

The Pentagon is adjusting its internal budget review process so that more
military and civilian personnel can work from home amid the coronavirus
pandemic, Defense One has learned. Instead of requiring the service branches to
provide detailed budget requests for fiscal 2022 on June 1, Deputy Defense
Secretary David Norquist says each branch needs to submit only “major program
change proposals” on that date.

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Raymond: Space Force Acquisition Proposals Are about ‘Going Fast’

Raymond said he is "concerned with our ability to stay ahead of the threat."

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Trump Removes Acting Pentagon IG Slated to Lead Pandemic Oversight

President Donald Trump has removed the acting Pentagon inspector general from
his position, thus stripping him of his ability to lead the committee overseeing
the government’s pandemic response.

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Security Lapses at US Military Hospitals Put Staff, Patients at Risk, IG Finds

Lax security controls at U.S. military hospitals and clinics threaten lives and
leave facilities vulnerable to criminal activities such as theft, damage, and
terrorism, according to a new investigation by the Defense Department Inspector
General.

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‘You Are Justified in Being Angry with Me’—Read the Acting SECNAV’s Final Memo to the Fleet

As his last act as acting Navy Secretary—before James McPherson, who was
confirmed as the Army’s number two official just 15 days ago, takes over the
newly vacated role—Thomas Modly distributed one final memo to the fleet.

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Sailor Aboard 4th U.S. Aircraft Carrier Tests Positive for Coronavirus

A sailor assigned to the USS Nimitz, a Bremerton, Wash.-based aircraft carrier,
tested positive for COVID-19 last week after experiencing symptoms while on
board the ship, according to three defense officials familiar with the matter.

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Pamela Powers Tapped to Perform Duties as VA’s No.2

President Donald Trump has selected Pamela Powers to perform the duties of the
deputy secretary of the Veterans Affairs Department—the highest accountable
official on the department’s massive electronic health record modernization
program.

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Rapid Acquisition & Sustainment

The Air Force and U.S. defense establishment are breaking down barriers and
injecting speed, innovation, and creativity into the procurement system. Check
out our new page to learn more about these efforts.

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Precision Airstrike Eliminated al-Shabab Senior Leader

U.S. Africa Command post-strike assessments confirm that one of the three
terrorists killed in the command's April 2 precision airstrike was a
long-standing, high-ranking leader in the al-Shabab terrorist organization.

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One More Thing...
419th Fighter Wing Hosts F-35 Virtual Field Trip

With closures at schools across the nation due to COVID-19, the 419th Fighter
Wing invited students to use their computers or cellphones to “visit” for a
virtual field trip to see the Air Force’s newest fighter, the F-35 Lightning
II via a video recorded by 419th FW Vice Commander Col. Brian Silkey. “We
thought it would be fun to use the technology we have at our fingertips to bring
the F-35 to them,” he said. “Ultimately, we want them to know we’re all in
this together and we hope that some are inspired to follow their dreams to serve
in the U.S. military.”

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