Space Force Established | KC-46 Cargo Locks Fixed | Stalemate Remains in Afghanistan

Dec. 23, 2019

Edited by Brian W. Everstine and Rachel S. Cohen

Editor’s Note

The Daily Report will pause for the holidays from Dec. 24 to Jan. 1; we will return to your inbox on Jan. 2. We wish you a happy and safe season, wherever you may be, and thank you for reading. See you in 2020!

Space Force Established as Trump Signs NDAA

By Rachel S. Cohen

President Donald Trump on Dec. 20 established the US Space Force as America’s sixth military service, one of the most significant changes in Air Force history and a milestone in America’s exploration and militarization of the cosmos. The Space Force is the Pentagon’s first branch of the military solely dedicated to organizing, training, and equipping personnel to operate and protect military space assets like GPS satellites. It will sit within the Air Force and draw on much of the service’s existing bureaucracy, while aiming to create its own culture and structure to prioritize and tackle space in new ways.

KC-46 Program Downgrades Cargo Lock Issue, Begins Retrofits

By Brian W. Everstine

The Air Force on Dec. 18 downgraded one of the top-level problems facing the KC-46 program, lifting a three-month ban that stopped the tanker from carrying personnel and cargo as Boeing began installing new cargo locks on the aircraft. The redesigned lock has been retrofitted onto four aircraft so far.

Afghan Stalemate Remains as Pentagon Defends Mission

By Brian W. Everstine

The Afghanistan War remains a “strategic stalemate” 18 years after it began, the Pentagon's top uniformed officer said Dec. 20, defending the conflict's main mission as successful from the beginning. “This is a very difficult, complicated situation," Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said during a press briefing. “Our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines who have given their lives in Afghanistan have not given their lives in vain."

Northrop Grumman Gets Funding for Hundreds of F-16 Radars

By Rachel S. Cohen

Northrop Grumman will build hundreds of active electronically scanned array radars for the F-16 fighter jet under a Dec. 19 contract worth more than $1 billion. The contract covers work on up to 372 radars through May 2027. It modifies an earlier award to finalize the funding.

USAF Issues Weapon Swarm Research Contract

By Rachel S. Cohen

Atlanta-based Georgia Tech Applied Research Corp. on Dec. 19 received an $85 million contract for the Air Force's "Golden Horde" project that aims to show weapons can work together in self-directed swarms. The demonstration is one of AFRL's initial "vanguard" programs that will pull resources from across the lab to speed development. It replaced the earlier "Gray Wolf" missile swarming effort to instead network weapons already in the Air Force inventory.

Radar Sweep

Boeing Starliner Fails Key NASA Mission as Autonomous Flight System Malfunctions

CNBC

Boeing’s spacecraft Starliner, developed to fly astronauts, failed to achieve the goal of its critical flight test for NASA, when it was launched to space on Dec. 20. Starliner was supposed to fly to the International Space Station, deliver cargo, and return safely—to demonstrate its capabilities and safety. But the spacecraft will not dock with the space station after its autonomous flight-control system misfired shortly after the launch, putting Starliner in the wrong orbit.

Senate Confirms Three Senior DOD Officials

Inside Defense

The Senate voted the evening of Dec. 19 to confirm three senior Pentagon officials before the end of the year.

Pentagon Creates ‘Cadre of Pricing Experts’ to Curb Parts Abuses

Bloomberg

The Pentagon has created a “Cadre of Pricing Experts” to identify pricing trends for spare parts and suppliers that should be monitored to prevent a continued “assault on the American taxpayers,” according to chief weapons buyer Ellen Lord.

Pentagon Announces Plans to Monitor Foreign Trainees' Social Media Posts

Military.com

The Pentagon has completed re-screening all Saudi students in US military training programs following a deadly Dec. 6 shooting rampage at NAS Pensacola, Fla., Defense Department officials announced Dec. 19. No indications of additional threats have surfaced, they said.

Nearly 60 Percent of Women Experience Stalking in the Ranks, Study Finds

Military Times

A new study looking into the prevalence of stalking in the rank-and-file paints a grim picture of a military already fraught with questions that suggest a toxic culture. The report from the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, titled “An Examination of Stalking Experiences During Military Service Among Female and Male Veterans and Associations With PTSD and Depression,” analyzed responses by 1,733 veterans in an effort to understand not only the rate of stalking during military service, but the impact these experiences have on mental health.

Senate Passes Bill to Ban VA from Signing Settlements with Doctors Fired for Medical Mistakes

Government Executive

The Senate on Dec. 19 unanimously approved a measure that would make it harder for Veterans Affairs Department doctors disciplined for medical mistakes to get new jobs, with lawmakers in both parties saying it would bring more accountability to VA and prevent veterans from receiving poor care.

One More Thing

MacDill Releases Plan to Search for Lost African American Cemetery on Base

10 News

After learning about a lost African American cemetery on property that existed before MacDill Air Force Base was built in Tampa in 1939, leaders at MacDill have released a plan to search for any lost graves that might remain. 10News research has found dozens of death certificates as well as newspaper articles that show the cemetery that existed as early as 1902.