USAF to Get Turkish F-35s | Diversity, Inclusion Reading List

July 21, 2020

Edited by Amy McCullough with Brian W. Everstine, Alyk Russell Kenlan and John A. Tirpak

The first F-35A produced for Turkey is unveiled during a June 2018 ceremony at Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth, Texas, facility. Lockheed Martin photo.

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.

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.

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.

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.”

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.

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.

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 here.

Radar Sweep

Snapshot: DOD and COVID-19

Air Force Magazine

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

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

USAF release

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.

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

DOD release

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.

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

The Daily Beast

“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.

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

The Drive

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.

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

Aviation Week Network

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.

Heidi Grant Takes over Defense Security Cooperation Agency

Defense News

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.

USSF and UK MOD Demonstrate Protected Tactical Waveform over SKYNET

Space Force release

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.

Sierra Nevada Wins DIU Contract for Experimental Space Station

Breaking Defense

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.

8th Fighter Wing Airman Found Dead in Dorm

USAF release

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.

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

Military.com

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.

One More Thing

AFSFC Launches Software to Monitor Health of MWDs

USAF release

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.