Air Force Magazine
Daily Report for Nov. 13, 2020

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

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Allvin Takes Over as USAF Vice Chief
By Brian W. Everstine

Gen. David W. Allvin received his fourth star and took over as the service’s
new vice chief of staff on Nov. 12. Allvin, who previously served as the
director for strategy, plans, and policy for the Joint Staff, takes over as the
Air Force’s No. 2 as Gen. Steven W. “Seve” Wilson retires on Nov. 13.
Wilson, who served in the role since July 2016, is the Air Force’s longest
serving vice chief. During the ceremony at Joint Base Anacostia-Boling,
Washington, D.C., Allvin said the “stakes I don’t think have been higher.
The future security environment is evolving in a way that plays right into the
wheelhouse of the Air Force.”

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ACC Boss: Spectrum Warfare Wing Responds to Troubling Adversary Gains
By John A. Tirpak

China and Russia are making troubling gains in electromagnetic spectrum warfare,
and this is one reason the Air Force is forming a new spectrum warfare wing at
Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Air Combat Command boss Gen. Mark D. Kelly said in a
recent interview. Opponents will use their facility in EMS warfare to enhance
their own kill chains and try to break those of the U.S. and its allies, he
said.

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Air Force Outlines Wish List for European ABMS Demo
By Rachel S. Cohen

The Air Force’s next massive force networking demonstration will focus on
protecting troops in Europe from incoming missiles and other airborne threats,
the service said in a recent notice. The fourth Advanced Battle Management
System exercise, slated for February 2021, will pull data from next-generation
sensors into a common operating picture to detect and track surface-to-air
threats against U.S. European Command forces, as well as fending off enemy
cruise missiles, USAF said Nov. 10. Under the “agile combat employment”
strategy, military participants will also practice deploying away from
brick-and-mortar bases and setting up a makeshift camp where they can
reconstitute forces and launch attacks.

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Senators Push for More F-35 Oversight in Spending Bill
By Rachel S. Cohen

The Senate Appropriations Committee wants to keep a closer eye on the
Pentagon’s most expensive weapons program. Lawmakers added multiple provisions
to the committee’s version of the fiscal 2021 defense spending bill that call
for more reports on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, as well as greater
transparency in future budgets. The committee is offering $1.1 billion for 12
more F-35As, and $525.5 million for five more F-35Cs, than the Pentagon
requested. In total, Senate appropriators want to spend $5.5 billion on 60
F-35As for the Air Force in 2021. That’s nearly identical to the House’s
plan for the F-35A, which offers $5.8 billion. Still, appropriators seek more
information on the ripple effects of America’s decision to oust Turkey from
the Joint Strike Fighter program and other aspects of its progress.

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Senators Seek Road Maps for C-130, LC-130 Fleets
By Rachel S. Cohen

The Air Force’s C-130 fleets have again caught the eye of congressional
lawmakers, who asked for more information on the future of those aircraft in a
version of the fiscal 2021 defense spending bill. Senate appropriators want the
Air Force Secretary to send Capitol Hill a report on C-130 fleet management
plans, and a similar road map for the ski-equipped LC-130s that allow the
military to travel in polar regions.

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Five Americans, Two Allied Service Members Killed in UH-60 Crash in Egypt
By Brian W. Everstine

Five American troops, along with one French and one Czech service member, were
killed Nov. 12 when a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter from the Multinational Force
and Observers crashed in Egypt. Multinational Force and Observers is an
international peacekeeping force tasked with overseeing the peace treaty between
Egypt and Israel. The U.S. Army’s Task Force Sinai Aviation Command flies
specially painted UH-60s carrying peacekeepers throughout the Sinai Peninsula.
In addition to those killed, one U.S. service member survived and was medically
evacuated. “The MFO will conduct an investigation to determine the cause of
the accident,” MFO said in a statement.

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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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New DOD Adviser Has Made Controversial Proposal: Get Rid of the Marine Corps

Retired Army Col. Douglas Macgregor, newly-appointed as a senior adviser at the
Pentagon, has a track record of making controversial statements. But his most
provocative of all might be a proposal to do away with the U.S. Marine Corps.

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F-35, Reaper Sale to UAE Draws Fire in Senate, Fuels Concern over Libya

This week’s notification to Congress of a pending $23.4 billion deal with the
United Arab Emirates for 50 F-35 warplanes, 18 MQ-9B Reapers, and billions worth
of air-to-air and air-to-ground munitions is the latest in a series of sales to
partners in the region meant to deter and contain Iran.

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US MQ-9 Reaper Drones Stationed In Poland Spotted With New SIGINT Wing-Mounted Pod

Some interesting photos were shared online by the Polish Ministry of Defense.
They show one of the MQ-9 drones of the 52nd Expeditionary Operations Group
Detachment 2, the unit operating MQ-9 Reaper drones in Europe, flying over Lask
Air Base, Poland, with a brand new pod.

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Pentagon to Release New Mission Engineering Guide

The Defense Department will soon release a new guide to help engineers and the
acquisition community as they pursue new capabilities for the military. The
initiative comes as the Pentagon is trying to implement the 2018 National
Defense Strategy and engage in great power competition with China and Russia.

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US Space Force Awards Third Contract for Anti-Jamming SATCOM Prototypes

The U.S. Space Force has awarded Lockheed Martin a contract to build a new
anti-jamming communications satellite prototype, bringing the number of
companies working on that program to three. Under the contracts, each company
will develop a prototype payload for the Evolved Strategic Satellite
Communications program. ESS is intended to be the successor to the Advanced
Extremely High Frequency constellation, which provides secure, survivable SATCOM
for strategic communications.

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NORTHCOM Focusing Budget Priorities on Data Management for JADC2

A large piece of U.S. Northern Command’s budgetary focus over the next two
years will be informed by a focus on sharing and collecting data for the
military’s future interconnected command and control system.

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SPONSORED: Extending Human Performance Through Technology: The Promise of JADC2

The Air Force’s vision for the seamless, networked warfighting concept known
as joint all-domain command and control, or JADC2, is all about using
information to dominate the battlespace: By interconnecting systems across every
domain, U.S. forces would seek to increase the operational decision space for
all U.S. commanders, overwhelming adversary commanders and shortening
decision-making cycles for any opponent that must react.

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As Air Force Bucks N.H. PFAS Limits, State Seeks Payment For Pease Neighbors' Water

New Hampshire wants the Air Force to cover the cost of drinking water assistance
for three homes near the former Pease Air National Guard Base, N.H., with per-
and polyfluoroalkyl chemical contamination in their home wells.

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VA Turns to Machine Learning to Automate Prescription Workflows

In doing so, they’re learning firsthand how emerging technology-based
solutions can help free up their time, so that more attention can be given
directly to patients, according to the Executive Director of the Veterans Health
Administration’s Innovation Ecosystem, Dr. Ryan Vega.

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One More Thing...
The Amazing Story of How This Nazi Recon Plane Ended Up Being Tested in the US During WWII

The World War II warplane’s extraordinary journey began with a Romanian
defector and ended at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.

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