Bass Becomes 1st Woman CMSAF | New Numbered Air Force

Aug. 17, 2020

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

Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force JoAnne S. Bass delivers remarks during a transition ceremony held at Joint Base Andrews, Md., on Aug. 14, 2020. Bass succeeded CMSAF Kaleth O. Wright as the 19th chief master sergeant of the Air Force. Air Force photo by Eric Dietrich.

Bass Becomes First Woman, Asian American to Serve as CMSAF

By Brian W. Everstine

Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force JoAnne S. Bass took over as the 19th senior enlisted leader of the service on Aug. 14, marking a period of change and promising more diversity and inclusion in the ranks. Bass' appointment makes the Air Force the first military service to have both a woman and an Asian American in the senior enlisted role, shortly after Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. became the first Black officer to lead a branch of the Armed Forces. “This is a historic moment for you,” Bass said to Airmen of all ranks watching the ceremony at Joint Base Andrews, Md. “I encourage you to stay passionate, determined, purposeful, and keep running your race. And together we will continue to make meaningful and lasting history as our force charts and navigates new domains.”

USAF to Create New 15th Air Force

By Rachel S. Cohen

Air Combat Command is preparing to consolidate its fighter, rescue, and command-and-control enterprises into a new numbered air force that will help military leaders wield those forces more effectively. This month, the Air Force will bring its Ninth and 12th Air Forces under one roof as the 15th Air Force, ACC Commander Gen. James M. “Mike” Holmes said during an Aug. 14 Air Force Association event. It’s one of Holmes’s last initiatives as he retires at the end of the month.

Joint Staff Strategy Boss Allvin Nominated as USAF Vice Chief

By Rachel S. Cohen

Lt. Gen. David W. Allvin is on deck to become the Air Force’s next vice chief of staff, the Pentagon announced Aug. 14. President Donald J. Trump nominated Allvin to succeed Gen. Stephen W. “Seve” Wilson, who has been the Air Force’s second-highest officer since July 2016. Allvin's extensive experience in joint assignments, including about six of the last 10 years, indicates the Air Force will continue to grow its offerings and influence in the Joint Force. Maj. Gen. Jim Dawkins Jr. is also nominated to take over as the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for strategic deterrence and nuclear integration.

Space Force Doctrine Raises Questions About Nuclear Missiles

By Rachel S. Cohen

If a nuclear missile passes through space on its way to hit the Earth, should the Space Force own it? That idea puzzled some policy watchers who read a section on orbital flight in the Space Force’s first Space Capstone Doctrine paper, published Aug. 10. To them, it suggests that the Air Force’s intercontinental ballistic missiles, which are fired from underground silos and arc above the atmosphere before plummeting to a target, would fall under the space jurisdiction instead. A Space Force official said the doctrine is simply laying out what the space domain looks and acts like.

F-16s, KC-135s Deploy to Poland for Training Rotation

By Brian W. Everstine

F-16s and KC-135s deployed to two bases in Poland for an aviation rotation, shortly after the U.S. and Poland agreed to increase the amount of forces in the country. F-16s from the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, deployed to Łask Air Base for Aviation Detachment Rotation 20.4, while KC-135s from the Illinois Air National Guard's 126th Air Refueling Wing will be based at Powidz Air Base. Additionally, the contractor-owned, contractor-operated MQ-9s from the 52nd Expeditionary Operations Group Detachment 2 recently returned to Miroslawiec Air Base, Poland, from Estonia. The rotation will focus on training alongside the Polish air force, according to U.S. Air Forces in Europe.

DoDEA Schools at Kadena, Maxwell Will Start School Remotely Due to COVID

By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

Forty-six of the 159 brick and mortar Department of Defense Education Activity institutions will begin the school year remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Though many of these institutions are on Army bases, that includes elementary and middle schools at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., as well as several schools on Kadena Air Base, South Korea, the Defense Department said on Aug. 13.

Virtual Events: Silveria on Mitchell’s ‘Aerospace Nation,’ and More

By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

On Aug. 17, AFA's Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies will present a new installment of its “Aerospace Nation” series featuring U.S. Air Force Academy Superintendent Lt. Gen. Jay B. Silveria. Event video will tentatively be posted to the think tank's website and YouTube page afterwards.

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.

GAO Finds Controversial Ligado Order Not Subject to Congressional Review Act

Inside Defense

The Government Accountability Office has ruled the Federal Communications Commission's order allowing Ligado to deploy a terrestrial network within the low band is not a rule subject to the Congressional Review Act, dealing a blow to opponents of the FCC's decision who argue the network will imperil GPS signals.

Pentagon Rethinks Troubled F-35 Logistics System

Aviation Week Network

The Pentagon is in the early stages of replacing the troubled Lockheed Martin F-35’s autonomous logistics system with a new, cloud-based network, and hopes to get it up and running by the end of 2022.

OPINION: Let the Space Force Define Its Own Ranks

The Hill

"In creating the Space Force, Congress and the president laid out a great blank canvas on which the service’s founders could color their future," writes retired Lt. Gen. David A. Deptula, dean of AFA's Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies. "Let’s let them do just that—without tying their hands behind their backs."

UN Soundly Defeats US Demand to Extend Arms Embargo on Iran

The Associated Press

The U.N. Security Council on Aug. 14 resoundingly defeated a U.S. resolution to indefinitely extend the U.N. arms embargo on Iran, with the Trump administration getting support from only the Dominican Republic but vowing further action to prevent Tehran’s sale and export of conventional weapons.

Fake News Is Wreaking Havoc on the Battlefield. Here's What the Military's Doing About It

Military.com

Those pushing fake news campaigns in Europe and elsewhere often have different goals when it comes to influencing the way people feel about U.S. forces and their NATO allies. Those efforts frequently center around vilifying the powerful, decades-old alliance that serves as a major counterbalance to Russia in Europe and elsewhere.

The Air Force Is Going Full 'Rainbow Six' with Its New Throwable Scout Robots

Task & Purpose

Fans of the video game “Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege” will recognize a new gadget the Air Force is using to help base security forces scout out threats and inspect vehicles without putting themselves at risk. The best part: you can absolutely chuck it!

Kabul Begins Release of Final 400 Taliban, Talks to Follow

The Associated Press

Afghanistan has released the first 80 of a final 400 Taliban prisoners, paving the way for negotiations between the warring sides in Afghanistan’s protracted conflict, the government said Aug. 14.

New Boss at AFPC

USAF release

Maj. Gen. Christopher E. Craige assumed command of the Air Force Personnel Center from Maj. Gen. Andrew J. Toth during an Aug. 12 ceremony.

Federal Appeals Court: Male-Only Draft Is Constitutional

The Associated Press

A federal appeals court in New Orleans upheld the constitutionality of the all-male military draft system on Aug. 13, citing a 1981 U.S. Supreme Court decision. In a decision that overturned a 2019 ruling by a Texas-based federal judge, a panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans said “only the Supreme Court may revise its precedent.”

One More Thing

Victory Over Japan Day: End of WWII

Defense Department webpage

V-J Day, or Victory over Japan Day, marks the end of World War II, one of the deadliest and most destructive wars in history. When President Harry S. Truman announced on Aug. 14, 1945, that Japan had surrendered unconditionally, war-weary citizens around the world erupted in celebration.