Air Force Magazine
Daily Report for July 21, 2020

View in your Web Browser: [link removed]
Edited by Amy McCullough with Brian W. Everstine, Alyk Russell Kenlan and John A. Tirpak

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ Advertisement ]
[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USAF Nets Turkey’s F-35s Under $861.7M Contract Mod
By John A. Tirpak

The Pentagon will acquire eight F-35A jets previously bound for Turkey, plus six
more F-35As under an $861.7 million contract. The contract modifies a previous
fixed-price award and “exercises options to procure eight Lot 14 F-35A
Lightning II repositioned aircraft as a result of the Republic of Turkey’s
removal from the F-35 program.” The other six Air Force F-35As covered by the
contract are from the same lot. The deal funds “recurring engineering” to
modify the Turkish-ordered jets to meet USAF specifications. Work is to be
completed by May 2026.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Oil Leak, Improper Mission Planning Caused 2018 RQ-4 Crash
By Brian W. Everstine

A leak in a cracked oil line caused an RQ-4’s engine to fail during a ferry
flight to the Middle East in June 2018, and because the operations aircrews did
not properly plan divert airfields en route, the Global Hawk crashed into the
sea near Spain, according to an Air Force investigation. The RQ-4B, tail number
09-2041, operated by the 348th Reconnaissance Squadron at Grand Forks Air Force
Base, N.D., was deploying to U.S. Central Command when its engine failed more
than 11 hours into the flight. After gliding for about an hour, the pilot
determined the aircraft could not make it to a divert airfield and crashed it
into the sea, destroying the RQ-4 at a loss of $98 million.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ Advertisement ]
[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Air Force Equips Airmen to Lead Discussions on Race
By Alyk Russell Kenlan

The Air Force released a list of resources to help foster conversations on race
and inclusion within the service. Since protests started after the killing of
George Floyd on May 25, Air Force leadership has encouraged frank discussions on
race throughout the service. The goal of this list is to equip airmen with the
knowledge to constructively solve issues of prejudice and bigotry. “We must
arm our forces with the insights and perspectives of how they can first and
foremost be empathetic leaders,” Lt. Col. Angel Lugo, education and training
chief of the Air Force Diversity and Inclusion Division, said in a July 17 press
release. The list includes books, videos from senior leaders, and TED Talks.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

B-1 Task Force Trains With Japanese F-15Js, Deploys to Guam
By Brian W. Everstine

Two B-1s deployed to the Pacific on July 17, flying intercept training with
Japanese F-15Js before landing at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, for the first
time since May. The two Lancers from the 37th Bomb Squadron at Ellsworth Air
Force Base, S.D., flew directly to the Sea of Japan for the integration training
with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-15Js as part of the bomber task force
deployment. Since ending the Continuous Bomber Presence mission in April, Air
Force Global Strike Command has sent smaller task force deployments of bombers
on direct flights to the Pacific as part of what it calls “dynamic force
employment.”

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ Advertisement ]
[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USAF Selects 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2020
By Amy McCullough

The Air Force has selected 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year from a pool of 36
nominees representing major commands, direct reporting units, field operating
agencies, and Headquarters Air Force. The Airmen were selected based on their
“superior leadership, job performance, and personal achievements,” according
to a USAF release. The Outstanding Airman of the Year program debuted at AFA’s
10th annual National Convention in 1956, and the association has continued to
shine a spotlight on the outstanding airmen from each major command every year
since.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Heidi Grant Tapped to Lead Weapons Export Agency as First Civilian Chief
By John A. Tirpak

Heidi Grant, once the Air Force's top weapon exports official, will now lead the
Defense Security Cooperation Agency, marking a shift from uniformed to civilian
leadership at that agency. DSCA's current leader, Army Lt. Gen. Charles Hooper,
is retiring. Grant will oversee arms sales that are increasing annually, to more
than $55 billion last year.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Virtual Events: Goldfein Discusses State of USAF at Brookings, and More
By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

Today, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein will appear in
conversation with Mara Karlin, director of the Merrill Center and the Johns
Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies’ Strategic Studies program,
to discuss the state of the service, including issues such as USAF
modernization, and deterring Russia and China. Webinar registration is required,
but free, and you can sign up <a
href="[link removed]">here</a>.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ Advertisement ]
[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Radar Sweep

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Air Force ROTC Opens Summer Field Training Despite COVID-19 Pandemic

Air University is hosting more than 1,100 Air Force Reserve Officer Training
Corps cadets from universities around the country this summer for their required
field training despite the coronavirus pandemic. That number is less than half
the number of cadets that would normally show up for field training in a
non-pandemic year, and it reflects the aggressive COVID-19 mitigation plan in
place to ensure the health and safety of cadets, training staff, and military
community.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DOD Awards $3.5 Million Contract to Crosstex International, Inc. to Increase Domestic Production of Surgical Masks

The $3.5 million investment would support capital investments to procure
additional machine lines through the company’s longstanding partnership with
its current domestic machine fabricator. The additional lines would increase
Crosstex’s production by an additional 100 million surgical masks a year.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

OPINION: I Was a Military COVID Planner. Trust Me: Texas Is in Deep, Deep Trouble

“Things are pretty bad right now in the Lone Star State,” writes recently
retired Army officer Kris Alexander, whose final assignment was at U.S. Northern
Command. “But the real pain is likely to come during hurricane season, when as
many as 19 named storms are projected to hit.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Blue Angels' New Fat Albert C-130J Has Flown For The First Time

The check flight in the United Kingdom brings the aircraft one step closer to
returning to the United States and joining the rest of the team.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lengthy F-35 Upgrade List to Transform Strike Fighter’s Future Role

Ten years ago, the F-35 was still in crisis mode: With the flight-test fleet
grounded for most of 2009, the supply chain was reeling. Ashton Carter, who was
then the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology, and logistics,
later acknowledged that proposals to cancel the program had been briefly
considered during that period. In plotting the program’s next decade of
development, a similar narrative of early struggles is becoming clear.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ Advertisement ]
[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Heidi Grant Takes over Defense Security Cooperation Agency

Heidi Grant, a longtime Air Force official, will be the next head of the Defense
Security Cooperation Agency—marking the first time a civilian has run the
office since it was created in 1998. She will succeed Lt. Gen. Charles Hooper,
who is retiring. A Defense Department spokesman confirmed that the agency head
is now a civilian-led position, after traditionally being a three-star job.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USSF and UK MOD Demonstrate Protected Tactical Waveform over SKYNET

On July 13, the U.S. Space Force and the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence
successfully conducted a demonstration of the U.S. Protected Tactical Waveform
over the U.K.’s SKYNET satellite system, showcasing PTW’s superior data
rates and anti-jam performance. This collaboration was a pivotal first step in
demonstrating the flexibility and compatibility of PTW over international
partner SATCOM.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sierra Nevada Wins DIU Contract for Experimental Space Station

The Defense Innovation Unit picked Sierra Nevada Corp.’s “Shooting Star”
spacecraft, originally designed to carry payloads to the International Space
Station for NASA, as its “Unmanned Orbital Outpost” space station to test
capabilities—and perhaps in future serve as on-orbit fuel stations or
logistics hubs.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

8th Fighter Wing Airman Found Dead in Dorm

An airman assigned to the 8th Fighter Wing at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, was
declared dead on July 20 after being found unresponsive in their dorm room.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Legislators Move to Stop VA from Using Dogs for Most Medical Research

House appropriators have advanced a Veterans Affairs Department funding bill
that would largely prohibit the department from using dogs for medical research,
even for experiments the VA has said are vital to improve veterans' treatment
options.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One More Thing...
AFSFC Launches Software to Monitor Health of MWDs

The Air Force Security Forces Center at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas,
has officially launched the Kennel Health Assessment 2.0 project to ascertain
the holistic state of all of the kennels across the U.S. Air Force and ensure
the well-being of all Military Working Dogs. The project was started in 2018 as
KHA 1.0 by Master Sgt. Steven Kaun, the current Air Force MWD program manager.

[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ Advertisement ]
[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Daily Report: [link removed]
- Contact Us: [link removed]
- Advertise With Us: [link removed]
- Purchase/Reprint: [link removed]

- Air Force Association: [link removed]
- Join AFA: [link removed]

- AF Mag on Facebook: [link removed]
- AF Mag on Twitter: [link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Published by the Air Force Association

All airforcemag.com material is under copyright of
the Air Force Association. All rights reserved.

The Air Force Association
1501 Lee Highway, Arlington, VA
22209-1198

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To unsubscribe or change your preferences, please visit the link below:
[link removed]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------