Air Force Magazine
Daily Report for July 6, 2020

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

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Black Airmen Talk Race in the Air Force
By Rachel S. Cohen

Black Airmen are wrestling with their own reality in an Air Force that still
suffers from its own racial blind spots and systemic discrimination, as civil
unrest sweeps the nation following the May death of George Floyd. A dozen Black
Airmen—including current and former officers, enlisted members, and
civilians—shared their experiences with Air Force Magazine in June, describing
how race has influenced their lives and careers, and how the Air Force still
needs to evolve.

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Shaw Identifies Pilot Killed in F-16 Crash
By Brian W. Everstine

The F-16 pilot killed in the June 30 crash at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., has
been identified as 1st Lt. David Schmitz. Schmitz, assigned to the 77th Fighter
Squadron at Shaw, was flying a local training sortie as his squadron is
preparing to deploy when his F-16CM crashed on the base at about 11:30 p.m. The
cause of the crash is under investigation. Schmitz is a prior enlisted Airman,
who served as a C-17 loadmaster before earning his commission through Officer
Training School, 20th Fighter Wing Commander Col. Larry Sullivan said in a
video. He earned his pilot’s license at 17 years old, before enlisting in the
Air Force.

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House Armed Services Committee Passes 2021 Policy Bill
By Rachel S. Cohen

The House Armed Services Committee argued its way through its version of the
fiscal 2021 defense policy bill on July 1, ultimately approving the annual
legislation 56-0. The unanimous vote is a stark departure from the committee’s
33-24 vote last year, which largely fell along party lines after a contentious
marathon debate. In comparison, this markup lasted only about 14 hours. One of
Congress’s most traditional lawmaking processes is taking place under the
least traditional circumstances, thanks to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

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Lengyel: Military Should Stay Out of Civil-Unrest Missions
By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

Civil-unrest response efforts should be undertaken by law-enforcement
authorities, not U.S. troops, National Guard Bureau Chief Air Force Gen. Joseph
L. Lengyel said July 2 during an event hosted by the Brookings Institution think
tank. “In my opinion, uniforms, I don't care what flavor they are—Title 10,
Active-duty, National Guard, Reserve—uniforms being out there in
law-enforcement situations is not optimal,” he told Brookings Senior Fellow
Michael E. O’Hanlon during a live-streamed conversation about the state of the
Guard. “We should do as little of it as we can, and it should be predominantly
a law-enforcement, police operation and when they need us, we can and we will
come. But we should do what we can to avoid that.” As of the morning of July
2, approximately 570 Guard personnel—including about 60 Air Guardsmen—were
still activated in six states and the nation's capital to back up law
enforcement in case unrest broke out, down from nearly 41,500 at the beginning
of June.

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DOD: Afghan Air Force Airstrike Ops Improving, Struggles in Maintenance
By Brian W. Everstine

The Afghan Air Force has made major strides in its ability to plan and conduct
operations, especially on its A-29 Super Tucano fleet, but it is overly reliant
on contractor support to keep flying, according to a new Defense Department
report on progress in Afghanistan. The Afghan Air Force, alongside the
country’s special forces, are the most capable components of Afghanistan’s
military, the Pentagon said in a report to Congress released July 1. The
AAF’s strike aircraft, which was “almost nothing” in 2014 now conducts
nearly half of all airstrikes in the country even as U.S. airstrikes have
surged. The AAF comprises three flight wings and 18 detachments, flying A-29s,
C-208s, AC-208s, C-130s, Mi-17s, and MD-530s.

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Clark Nominated to Lead Air Force Academy
By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

President Donald J. Trump has nominated Lt. Gen. Richard M. Clark to be the next
U.S. Air Force Academy superintendent. If confirmed, Clark will replace Lt.
Gen. Jay B. Silveria, who graduated from the Academy in 1985 and has led the
school since August 2017. Silveria plans to retire later this year, according to
a USAFA release. Clark, who currently works as the Air Force’s deputy chief of
staff for strategic deterrence and nuclear integration, is a 1986 USAFA graduate
and a former commandant of cadets, according to his service biography. Prior to
his arrival at the Pentagon, he led 3rd and 8th Air Forces, and served as
vice-commander of Air Force Global Strike Command.

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Virtual Events: Mitchell Rolls Out New Paper, and More
By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

On July 8, AFA's Mitchell Institute will host a virtual rollout for its newest
paper, "Building an Effective, Efficient Air Force: The Imperative for
Cost-Per-Effect Analysis." Event video will tentatively be posted on Mitchell's
website at [link removed] and YouTube page at
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Correction

A story that ran in the July 2 Daily Report, “USAF Taps 18 More Companies to
Develop New Combat Network" ([link removed])
incorrectly identified how much money each company could receive under the contract.
Each contract is notionally worth up to $950 million. We have corrected the story online.

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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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Troops Who Stepped Up for COVID-19 Pandemic Response Are Eligible for These Two Medals

Active-duty, Reserve, and National Guard service members who mobilized to work
in medical centers, man testing outposts, distribute supplies, and otherwise
support their communities in pandemic response are authorized to receive the
Armed Forces Service and/or Humanitarian Service medals, per a Defense
Department memo signed June 30.

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In Russian Bounties, Former Diplomats See Effort to Mess with U.S.—but Not Much More

Why would Russia take such an escalatory step, some analysts have asked, when
the Taliban were already killing Americans in Afghanistan of their own accord?
For former senior diplomats to the region, the answer is likely simple: Russian
President Vladimir Putin saw an opportunity to cause harm to the United States,
and he took it.

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Democrats Say Troop Threats Should Be Pursued ‘Relentlessly’

The two top Democrats in Congress said July 2 that any threats to U.S. troops
must be pursued “relentlessly,” rebuking President Donald Trump after
receiving a highly classified briefing about intelligence that Russia offered
bounties for killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

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House Slides Money into B-21 Bomber Procurement Account

An amendment to the House version of the fiscal 2021 defense policy bill would
move some funding for the secretive B-21 bomber program from its research and
development account to procurement, a sign that production activities could be
picking up. The amendment transfers $20 million into “Long Range Strike Bomber
advanced procurement” and would “allow the program to begin some procurement
activities ahead of schedule,” according to the legislation.

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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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Major Airfield Expansion on Wake Island Seen by Satellite as U.S. Preps for Pacific Fight

America's remote island outpost in the Pacific is an essential fallback point
for pushing airpower west during a major conflict.

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OPINION: Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles Still Matter

"On July 1st, the House Armed Services Committee derailed an effort to kill
funding for the U.S. Air Force's intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)
replacement, the Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD)," write Adam Lowther, a
professor at the U.S. Army’s School of Advanced Military Studies; William
Murphy, director of senior leader education for nuclear command, control, and
communications at the Louisiana Tech Research Institute; and retired USAF Brig.
Gen. Gerald Goodfellow, executive director of the Louisiana Tech Research
Institute. "This was a big win for the Air Force because the arms control
community has set its sights on GBSD and its primary target."

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France Withdraws from NATO Naval Mission: Turkish Alleged Actions as Cause

France has pulled out of a NATO naval mission in the Mediterranean in protest
against a Turkish frigate allegedly switching on targeting radar on a French
warship, plunging ties between two members of the military alliance to a new
low.

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Mitchell Forum Paper: ‘The RAF Eighty Years on from the Battle of Britain’

“With the anniversary of the Battle of Britain upon us, reflecting on that
time 80 years ago and where we are today, the similarities between the Royal Air
Force of 1940 and that of 2020 are striking,” writes Kevin Billings, a senior
visiting fellow at AFA’s Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies. “It is
worth considering that now, as then, control of the air—and today
space—remains the vital enabler of everything the total force does. As Field
Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery observed, “If we lose the war in the air, we
lose the war, and we lose it quickly.”

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Fighting Suicide through Education, Guaranteed Job Placement

Kyle Kaiser and Mark Sayampanthan started Veteran Internships Providing
Employment Readiness a year ago. VIPER helps connect veterans with internships
and job training that leads to assured employment after being discharged.

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WATCH: Military Aircraft Fly over NYC for Fourth of July Celebration

Before the big nighttime fireworks show filled the skies above New York City,
another boom of celebration could be heard as jets flew over the city. The
Defense Department announced plans of a flyover event with aircraft from the Air
Force and Marine Corps recognizing New York City's role "in the birth of this
great nation." The event, expected in other major cities as well, was coined
"Salute to the Great Cities of the American Revolution."

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One More Thing...
This Cat Stowed Away on a Military Cargo Plane, Now Some Humans Are Trying to Help It Get Home

Airport staff are not even sure where the cat—a friendly gray-and-white
male—boarded the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III cargo plane. The flight
originated at Travis Air Force Base, Calif., but made a stop in Colorado
Springs, Colo., before continuing on to Bangor International Airport in Maine.

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