Air Force Magazine
Daily Report for Nov. 12, 2020

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Edited by Amy McCullough with Rachel S. Cohen, Brian W. Everstine and John A. Tirpak

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Department of Air Force Funding Takes Hit in 2021 Spending Bill
By Rachel S. Cohen

Senate appropriators on Nov. 10 released a $696 billion defense funding bill for
fiscal 2021 that offers the Department of the Air Force less money than it
requested for most spending accounts. The proposal comes more than a month into
the fiscal year, as the federal government is operating under a stopgap spending
measure. A funding bill must be signed into law by Dec. 11 to avoid a government
shutdown. Lawmakers could also pass another continuing resolution to keep
agencies open while they seek compromise. Senators are offering the Air Force
and Space Force $200.4 billion for personnel, procurement, operations,
maintenance, and technology development in the base and Overseas Contingency
Operations accounts.

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Former AFRL Boss Faces Sexual Assault Charge
By Amy McCullough

A military court will consider a sexual assault charge levied against former Air
Force Research Laboratory boss Maj. Gen. William T. Cooley at an Article 32
preliminary hearing in January 2021, the Air Force said Nov. 10. Cooley is
accused of making “unwanted sexual advances by kissing and touching a female
victim” on Aug. 12, 2018, in Albuquerque, N.M., according to a USAF release.
He was removed from his post amid an Air Force investigation in January.

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Tyndall is DOD’s First Base to Adopt Robot Dogs
By Brian W. Everstine

Robot dogs will soon patrol U.S. Air Forces bases. The 325th Security Forces
Squadron at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., will be the first unit in the Defense
Department to start using Ghost Robotics robot “dogs” to semi-autonomously
patrol the base. The unmanned ground vehicles, which walk on four legs and are
outfitted with sensors and cameras, will not replace the squadron’s military
working dogs, but will have a set patrol “path” on the base where personnel
and cars can’t easily access. “We are very excited. ... These robot dogs
will be used as a force multiplier for enhanced situational awareness by
patrolling areas that aren’t desirable for human beings and vehicles,” said
Maj. Jordan Criss, commander of the 325th SFS, in a release.

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USAF Program Costs Up Largely Due to Increased Units, Services Purchased
By John A. Tirpak

The Air Force's major acquisition programs collectively increased in cost $3.7
billion in the first quarter of fiscal year 2020, according the Pentagon's
latest Selected Acquisition Reports. Most of the increases were due to buying
more units and services. The F-15 Eagle Passive Active Warning Survivability
System electronic warfare suite, for example, will equip 140 more aircraft than
previously planned, and Department of the Air Force will buy 12 more launch
services than previously expected. In addition, the joint-service F-35 program
cost $206 billion less in base-year and $32.8 billion less in then-year dollars,
“driven by incorporation of the Lot 11 actuals as well as the negotiated
values for Lot 12-14 procurement.”

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Biden’s DOD Transition Team Taps Think Tanks, Cross-Agency Experience
By Rachel S. Cohen

Presumed President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on
Nov. 10 revealed the first Pentagon transition team members who will review the
agency’s operations and begin the process of handing it off to new leaders in
January. Kathleen H. Hicks, director of the international security program at
the Center for Strategic and International Studies, will lead the Defense
Department agency review team (ART). Several other members come from CSIS and
other prominent research institutions, including the Center for a New American
Security, RAND Corp., and New America. Their work experience spans years in the
defense, foreign policy, energy, technology, and other sectors.

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State Department Approves F-35, MQ-9 Sale to UAE
By Brian W. Everstine

The State Department on Nov. 10 formally approved a potential $23.37 billion
arms sale to the United Arab Emirates, including up to 50 F-35s, 18 MQ-9s, and
both air-to-air and air-to-ground munitions. The move, which is opposed by some
on Capitol Hill, comes on the heels of the White House-brokered agreement
between the UAE and Israel. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in a statement, said
the potential sales recognize “our deepening relationship and the UAE’s need
for advanced defense capabilities to deter and defend itself against heightened
threats from Iran.”

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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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Trump Installs Senate-Rejected Retired General As Pentagon Policy Chief

President Donald J. Trump’s deeply controversial nominee to become the top
policy official at the Pentagon, rejected by the Senate over the summer, will
assume the duties of the post following the resignation of former acting policy
chief James Anderson earlier on Nov. 10.

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OPINION: Putting Combatant Commanders On A Demand Signal Diet

“In a series of articles on combatant commands, the Washington Post came to a
sobering conclusion about the outsized power wielded by these globe-spanning
military bureaucracies: They had ‘evolved into the modern-day equivalent of
the Roman Empire’s proconsuls—well-funded, semi-autonomous, unconventional
centers of U.S. foreign policy.’ These powerful commanders are routinely
‘received by heads of state who offer gifts, share secrets, and seek
advice.’ That was in 2000. The power, influence, and sway of combatant
commanders has only grown since,” writes Mackenzie Eaglen, a resident fellow
at the American Enterprise Institute, in an opinion piece.

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Air Force Wants Lasers on Fighter Jets by 2025

Lockheed Martin is working toward outfitting a directed energy system on fighter
jets by the middle of the decade, according to a company official.

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Air Force Pilots Honor their Comrade and Supporter

He wasn’t an Air Force pilot. He was never stationed at Nellis Air Force Base,
Nev. He hadn’t been in the military since his Navy days during the ’50s. But
to a generation or two of U.S. Air Force pilots flying out of Nellis, Evan
Thompson was a brother in arms as beloved as any with whom they served, even if
most of them knew him only from a distance.

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Ellsworth, Minneapolis St. Paul are 'Red' Air Force Bases

Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota and the Minneapolis St. Paul Air
Reserve Base in Minnesota are among nine U.S. Air Force bases in the world that
have been categorized as a "red" installation due to the rise of active COVID-19
cases in areas surrounding the bases.

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Rules Describe Permitted, Prohibited Post-Election Activities

The 2020 election cycle is almost over. However, the rules that limit the
political activities of federal government employees and service members still
apply.

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Andersen AFB holds Exercise Sling Stone 21-1

Andersen Air Force Base personnel conducted an antiterrorism/force protection
exercise dubbed Sling Stone 21-1 with its Joint Region Marianas partners to
strengthen the base’s ability to respond to security threats Nov. 5.

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Boeing Wins Three FMS Contracts to Support Qatar Emiri Air Force

Boeing has received three foreign military sales contracts worth $800 million to
support the Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF).

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One More Thing...
National Air Force Museum Celebrates Veterans

The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base,
Ohio, offers visitors from near and far a chance to learn more about the Airmen
who built the service and to honor their time in uniform. On Veteran’s Day,
Nov. 11, visitors can hear from Air Force veterans who will be on hand to share
their stories and bring exhibits to life. Can’t get to the museum? You can
still hear from Air Force veterans: A dozen new podcast interviews introduce
listeners to the the service’s first female pilots, who provide a
behind-the-scenes look at their lives and share the story behind “Women in the
Air Force: From Yesterday into Tomorrow,” a new exhibit and series of
installations spread throughout the museum that will fully open in 2021.

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