Air Force Magazine
Daily Report for Aug. 27, 2020

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Edited by Amy McCullough with Brian W. Everstine, Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory and John A. Tirpak

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Brown: Air Force Suicides on Pace to Reach 2019 Level
By Brian W. Everstine

The Air Force is on a path to match its 2019 suicide level, despite a
service-wide tactical pause and efforts to curb the spread, as stresses related
to COVID-19 have added to the problem, the service’s top officer said Aug. 26.
“One of my concerns here is COVID adds stress and we are, from a suicide
perspective, we are on a path to be as bad as last year,” Air Force Chief of
Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. said during an appearance at a virtual Air Force
Sergeants Association's conference. “And it’s not just an Air Force problem,
this is a national problem, because COVID actually adds some additional
stressors.” Brown told the audience of Airmen, “I’ll be honest with the
collective, we’re struggling to figure out how to deal with this.”

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Space Force Waiting on Capitol Hill for its Ranks
By Brian W. Everstine

Space Force Senior Enlisted Adviser Chief Master Sgt. Roger A. Towberman said
the new service wanted to announce the new enlisted ranks for the service, but a
proposed amendment to the fiscal 2021 National Defense Authorization Act by
former Sailor Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas), which calls on the Space Force to use
U.S. Navy ranks, put that on hold. “We’ve got to let that law, that legal
system, play out and so until it plays out, there’s really no point moving
forward,” Towberman said during the Air Force Sergeants Association’s
virtual conference Aug. 26. “We’re ready to execute. I’m ready to be a
master chief if that’s what the law says I’ll be. We’re ready to pivot and
do something else if we’re asked to do something else.

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Barksdale Changes Course, Evacuating Bombers Ahead of Hurricane Laura
By John A. Tirpak

A strengthening Hurricane Laura has prompted 8th Air Force to move its B-52H
bombers from Barksdale Air Force Base, La., to other locations, but the base is
not planning to evacuate its personnel, a 2nd Bomb Wing spokesman said.
Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base in Texas is keeping its MQ-9s and F-16s
hangared to ride out the storm. Laura is expected to make landfall as a Category
4 storm with winds up to 156 mph, and is expected to retain Category 1 strength,
with winds up to 95 mph, when it reaches the northern part of the state.


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Air Force Global Strike Command to Host Women’s Leadership Symposium
By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

Air Force Global Strike Command’s third Women’s Leadership Symposium—to be
held virtually from Sept. 1-2—will tackle the promotion of diversity and
inclusion within its ranks, the unique issues women Airmen face at work, and how
all of that impacts retention. Women comprise 19 percent of Global Strike’s
manpower and 20 percent of USAF’s Active-duty force, making them “the
largest underrepresented group” in the service and major command alike said
A3/6 Directorate Chief and 2020 event chair Maj. Kim C. Rigby in an Aug. 25
interview with Air Force Magazine. “When we really look at issues that impact
them [and] what barriers we face to service, we start uncovering a lot of
pieces,” she said. “We start peeling back that onion, and a lot of times,
those policies that may be in place or those restrictions or barriers, when
we're able to lift those for women, they oftentimes benefit everyone.”

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Virtual Events: Mitchell Institute, ANWA DC Co-Host Nuclear Deterrence Forum, and More
By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

On Aug. 27, the Air Force Association's Mitchell Institute for Aerospace
Studies, in partnership with the Advanced Nuclear Weapons Alliance Deterrence
Center, will host a Nuclear Deterrence Forum featuring National Nuclear Security
Administration Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Brent
K. Park as part of their NNSA Series. Event video will tentatively be posted to
<a
href="[link removed]">Mitchell's
website</a> and <a
href="[link removed]">YouTube page</a>
afterward.

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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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U.S. Service Members Injured in Syria after Skirmish with Russian Forces

Four troops have been diagnosed with mild concussion-like symptoms after the
incident, according to a draft Pentagon statement reviewed by POLITICO. A second
U.S. source briefed on the matter confirmed that multiple U.S. troops were
injured.

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For US Air Force Pilots, the Toughest Training Flights Are Going Virtual

A new simulator campus at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., could be key for the U.S.
Air Force as it grapples with the question of how it can train pilots against
complex threats like Russia and China at a budget-friendly cost. On Aug. 17, the
Air Force opened the doors of the Virtual Test and Training Center, or VTTC, a
new, $38 million building where pilots will practice advanced tactics in a
simulated environment that replicates war against a near-peer nation.

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New START’s Demise Could Cost DOD $439B, or Nothing: CBO

The Congressional Budget Office study finds that one B-21, with 10 Long-Range
Stand-Off (LRSO) cruise missiles and eight nuclear warheads, would cost $500
million, and $40 million a year (in 2020 dollars) to maintain.

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White House Announces $1B Investment for AI and Quantum Computing Hubs

The White House’s new initiative will fund a series of academic and private
sector research and development hubs linked to federal agencies to work on
foundational problems and “pursue transformational advances” across topics
like quantum computing, machine learning, and computer vision.

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Trump Administration Sends Mixed Signals on Nuclear Weapons Budgeting

Defense hawks in Congress are pushing a contentious plan to give the Pentagon a
stronger hand in crafting nuclear weapons budgets, but the Trump administration
has been sending mixed messaging over recent weeks about whether the change is
needed.

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Air Force Taps Machine Learning to Speed Up Flight Certifications

Machine learning is transforming the way an Air Force office analyzes and
certifies new flight configurations. The Air Force SEEK EAGLE Office sets
standards for safe flight configurations by testing and looking at historical
data to see how different stores—like a weapon system attached to an
F-16—affect flight. A project AFSEO developed along with industry partners can
now automate up to 80 percent of requests for analysis, according to the
office’s Chief Data Officer Donna Cotton.

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OPINION: How to Compete in Cyberspace

U.S. Cyber Command boss, National Security Agency Director, and Central Security
Service Chief Gen. Paul M. Nakasone and his Senior Adviser Michael Sulmeyer
outline CYBERCOM’s new approach.

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USAF Issues $90M Contract for Counter-Drone Systems and Support

SRC Inc. has won a $90 million contract to support the U.S. Air Force’s
counter-small unmanned aerial system efforts, the service announced Aug. 24.
Under the indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract, which is not to
exceed the $90 million ceiling, USAF will purchase SRC’s C-sUAS and related
components. SRC will also provide upgrades, sustainment, installation support,
and design and analysis support.

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Federal Court Strikes Down Service Requirement Policy Blocking Citizenship Path

A federal court has struck down a Pentagon policy requiring immigrant troops to
serve for six months to a year before they are eligible for expedited
citizenship. In an Aug. 25 ruling, a judge in the U.S. District Court for the
District of Columbia sided with arguments that the minimum service requirement
is “arbitrary and capricious” and violates the Administrative Procedure Act.

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In Conversation about Race, Air Force Warns Troops to Avoid Microaggressions

As part of efforts to continue discussion of race and inequalities across the
force, the U.S. Air Force has launched a new series of educational videos
designed to promote understanding and meaningful dialogue.

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OPINION: What the Heck Is Wrong with You, Space Force?

‘When you unveiled the Space Force logo, many immediately saw it as an homage
to ‘Star Trek‘ (even though our Delta was an homage to the previous military
space insignias),” writes “Star Trek” actor William Shatner. “Why not
borrow back from ‘Star Trek‘ and adopt our ranks as well? We took them from
the Navy for good reason, even though Gene Roddenberry was a veteran of the U.S.
Army Air Corps. They made better sense when talking about a (space) ship.”

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45th Space Wing on Pace for 39 Space Launches in 2020

Wing Commander Brig. Gen. Doug Schiess said that if the current manifest holds,
the Florida Space Coast will see 39 launches in 2020, compared to 18 launches in
2019 and 24 in 2018. “And so the launches are continuing to increase, that’s
due to national security space missions and a huge part due to our commercial
missions,” said Schiess.

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Send a Question to Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper!

Secretary Esper will speak at AFA’s virtual Air, Space & Cyber Conference and
is taking questions from the audience! Click the link above to submit your
question by Friday, Sept. 4, then listen to see if he answers it on Sept. 16 at
10 a.m. EDT.

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One More Thing...
That Time the Air Force Tossed Cats in Zero Gravity

It's been a pretty lousy year, so it’s time to break out a truly powerful mood
corrector: the government's proud legacy of space cats and cat physics.

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