US Northern Command launched two F-16 fighters out of Andrews AFB, Md., as a precaution during the massive power outage that affected a huge swath of the United States and Canada on Aug. 14.

The command also increased the alert status for other air defense units in the eastern US. However, US officials quickly determined the outage was not caused by terrorists and was, instead, the result of problems caused by the age of the power grid system.

Formed just last year, NORTHCOM is the first unified command with responsibility for defense of the US homeland.

Wald: Some Bases Irreplaceable

US European Command’s move into new Eastern European operating locations does not mean established Western European bases such as the Air Force airlift hub at Ramstein AB, Germany, have outlived their usefulness, said Gen. Charles F. Wald, deputy EUCOM commander.

Wald said during an Aug. 5 visit to the Pentagon that Ramstein, the Grafenwoehr Army training area, and EUCOM’s Stuttgart headquarters, all in Germany, should be retained because they offer irreplaceable benefits.

“ What good would it do to give something like that up, just to say you did it?” Wald asked.

Nonetheless, Wald said he expected to see US power continue to move to new locations, possibly as force levels are reduced at existing facilities. Bulgaria, Lithuania, and Romania were cited as possible homes for new operating locations. (See “Lighter Footprint, Longer Reach,” p. 48.)

AMC To Reorganize

Air Mobility Command announced a major reorganization that will reduce its numbered air forces from two to one and create two expeditionary mobility task forces. Plans called for the changes to take effect Oct. 1.

AMC will redesignate its two existing NAFs—15th at Travis AFB, Calif., and 21st at McGuire AFB, N.J.—as EMTFs. They will each report to a new NAF—18th Air Force—to be headquartered at Scott AFB, Ill.

Leading 18th Air Force will be a three-star general, who will be responsible for “all presentation of forces to the warfighter,” said Gen. John W. Handy, commander of US Transportation Command and AMC. The NAF commander will oversee the Tanker Airlift Control Center, the flying units, the two EMTFs, and the en route system, explained Handy.

The EMTF commanders—both of whom will be brigadier generals—will lead and have administrative control over AMC’s four air mobility operations groups. The AMOGs provide the multifunctional teams that create working airfields at bare bones bases anywhere in the world.

The two commanders also will be “deployable directors of mobility forces during contingency operations,” serving as the “designated agent for all air mobility issues” in a theater, according to an AMC statement.

DOD Cancels Bright Star

The high demand for US forces worldwide rompted the Pentagon to cancel Exercise Bright Star, a major biennial multinational desert training exercise held in Egypt. Canceling Bright Star was “an extremely difficult decision,” Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said in an Aug. 9 announcement.

Bright Star, which began in 1981, was to have taken place in September. It normally features more than 70,000 troops from 10 nations.

The release noted that, because of the demands of the war on terrorism and the continued US military presence in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere, 49 of DOD’s 182 military exercises scheduled for this fiscal year have been rescheduled or canceled.

USAF May Seek Common Helo

Air Force officials believe the service could save more than $600 million over 30 years by replacing its 62 Vietnam War-era UH-1 helicopters with a variant of the same helicopter it plans to buy to replace its combat search and rescue HH-60 Pave Low.
USAF’s requirements board approved the tentative plan for a common helicopter in June, said Lt. Col. Griffith S. Massey, but the plan had not been reviewed by the Pentagon’s Joint Requirements Oversight Council.

The common helicopter program would be an annex to the service’s plan to buy a new CSAR helicopter to replace the HH-60s, said Massey, who is USAF’s chief of CSAR and special operations force requirements.

USAF plans not only to purchase a more advanced and capable helicopter but to increase the size of its CSAR fleet from 104 aircraft to 132, beginning in 2005.

Increasing the fleet size by more than 25 percent reflects the growing demand for search and rescue forces.

Potential replacements include a modified Sikorsky S-92 or Lockheed Martin–Agusta Westland US101—either of which would be significantly larger and more capable than the UH-1 or HH-60.

USAF To Test New BDUs

The Air Force is evaluating a new battle dress uniform that would look distinctly different from today’s version, which is the same as the one worn by the Army. More importantly, it would be easy to maintain.

Officials said the new BDU would eliminate the need for professional laundry service, saving each airman up to $240 a year.

For 20 years, airmen have worn the same woodland camouflage BDUs used by soldiers, as did Marines until a few years ago. In that time, said Gen. John P. Jumper, Air Force Chief of Staff, “material technology has improved greatly.” He said that the current BDU has been “adequate,” but it is time to consider how and where the uniform is used today.

The new uniform is designed to be more versatile. With a blue and gray color scheme, it should provide camouflage in a wider range of visual conditions—such as for urban areas and for night operations. It will also be suitable for a greater range of climates, officials said. The service plans to use the same fabric the Marines identified as best for durability and wash-and-wear characteristics.

USAF will begin a six-month wear test in January. Personnel at nine bases, representing various operating environments, will test 300 of the new BDUs. Officials emphasized that the wear test is designed to solicit feedback from airmen in the field that will lead to a decision sometime late next year.

Questioned about the new uniform on a visit to Fairchild AFB, Wash., Jumper said that nothing is final and the service is “still playing with the different camouflage patterns.”

DOD Slows V-22 Production

Acting Pentagon acquisition chief Michael W. Wynne decided in August to slow the planned increase in the V-22 tilt-rotor’s production rate.

The first bump up—from 11 per year to 15—was expected in Fiscal 2005. (See “Aerospace World: DOD OKs V-22 Osprey Production,” August, p. 17.) Now, according to an Aug. 8 acquisition decision memo, the 2005 rate will remain at 11, while the 2006 rate—cut by at least three aircraft—will be capped at 17.

Wynne indicated he wanted any savings generated by this move to go toward V-22 interoperability improvements, such as installation of the Joint Tactical Radio System and the Link 16 data link.

For 2007 and beyond, “production rates should increase by about 50 percent per year for a total of 152 aircraft through FY09,” said Wynne. He expects to accelerate multiyear procurement “as soon as possible.”

The Osprey combines the speed of a prop airplane with the takeoff and landing capabilities of a helicopter, but two deadly crashes in 2000 forced an extended grounding and redesign of the aircraft.

USAF intends to buy 50 CV-22s for special operations missions to replace its fleet of MH-53 helicopters.

Wanted: FAP Pilots, Maintainers

Air Combat Command and Air Force Reserve Command officials said they are ready to hire experienced Reserve instructor pilots and aircraft maintainers to launch the Fighter Associate Program at five active duty bases starting in October. They expect to have FAP fully implemented by spring 2004.

The program, which began as a test in 1998, is designed to increase fighter pilot experience levels throughout the Air Force. To accomplish this, ACC and AFRC plan to place experienced Reservists in active flying units and inexperienced active pilots in Reserve units.

AFRC will place a detachment of four Reserve IPs—one full-time and three traditional—within active duty units at Eglin AFB, Fla., Hill AFB, Utah, Langley AFB, Va., Nellis AFB, Nev., and Shaw AFB, S.C. At some of these bases, AFRC will also have six enlisted maintainers—two full-time and four traditional.

For its part, ACC will embed three active duty pilots—one trained IP and two inexperienced pilots fresh out of fighter upgrade training—in Reserve squadrons. ACC plans to send active duty pilots to AFRC units at Hill AFB, Utah, Homestead JARB, Fla., NAS JRB Fort Worth, Tex., NAS JRB New Orleans, La., and Whiteman AFB, Mo.

GAO Sees Force Structure Strains

The Defense Department has not transformed its force structure to meet post-9/11 defense requirements, so missions such as homeland air defense are straining imbalanced military resources, asserted the General Accounting Office in a new report.

“ The present force structure may not be sufficient to address the increase in domestic and overseas military missions,” the Congressional watchdog agency said. The reason: The new missions have been heaped on top of DOD’s existing responsibilities.

For the Air Force, Stateside post-9/11 missions have included nonstop support for Operation Noble Eagle. Combat air patrols and air defense alerts often prevent pilots from keeping up with combat training needed to stay proficient for deployments.
In its response to the report, DOD said it is “studying and implementing significant changes” to the force structure. No increases in topline end strength are currently planned, however.

CSAF Unveils New Fitness Test

Gen. John Jumper, the USAF Chief of Staff, announced in late July that the Air Force will be going back to basics for its physical fitness regime. The service is dumping the bicycle ergometry test as its primary tool to gauge physical fitness.

“ The amount of energy we devote to our fitness programs is not consistent with the growing demands of our warrior culture,” Jumper said. “I think all of us can agree that we were disappointed with the fitness standards.”

The new physical fitness test will measure activities that airmen can do while deployed. That means a return to traditional activities such as the push-up, the sit-up, and the 1.5-mile run.

The testing standards are slated to go into effect Jan. 1.

Bush Wants England at Navy

In an unusual move, President Bush announced on Aug. 22 his intent to nominate Gordon R. England to serve a second tour as Secretary of the Navy. England resigned from the Navy’s top civilian spot in January to become the deputy director of the new Homeland Security Department.

England’s nomination was prompted by the recent death of Colin R. McMillan, the Administration’s choice to succeed England as Navy Secretary. Bush announced on May 7 his intent to nominate the New Mexico businessman for the job. McMillan, who had battled cancer for a year and underwent cancer-related facial surgery in early July, committed suicide July 24.

Upon the Administration’s renomination of England, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said that England “did a fine job as the Secretary of the Navy prior to moving to the Department of Homeland Security, and I look forward to working with him again.”
Serving as acting Navy Secretary since Feb. 7 has been retired Air Force Gen. Hansford T. Johnson, who is the Navy undersecretary for installations and environment.

DSB To Endorse Sea Basing

The influential Defense Science Board is expected to endorse the sea-basing concept that would create mobile offshore bases to improve military reach.

The DSB will release a report that supports sea basing, according to Jane’s Defense Weekly, but that calls for development of fast sea-lift capabilities to move large loads quickly from ship to shore and among maritime vessels. The DSB maintains the fast sea-lift capability is essential for the concept to be effective.

Officials told Jane’s that what sea basing will ultimately look like is still undecided. Competing approaches include using a small number of large platforms or using a large number of smaller vessels that are capable of acting as a base when working together.
By late August, the science board’s report had not yet been released.

Russia, China Seek Space Talks

Russian and Chinese officials opened the door for discussions with the US on how to avoid the weaponization of space. They told attendees at the 65-nation Conference on Disarmament in August that now they would be willing to talk even if the discussions do not lead to a formal treaty.

The concession is viewed as a key step in moving forward with discussions on the issue. Previously the two governments had pressed solely for formal treaty negotiations.

The US has opposed a treaty banning weapons in space, but officials had indicated a willingness to enter into nonbinding negotiations.

Strykers Arrive at Osan

A detachment of the Army’s new medium-weight Stryker combat vehicles arrived at Osan AB, South Korea, in August. They were delivered by C-17, giving Air Force and Army crews the opportunity to practice transporting and off-loading the vehicles.

The Strykers are an integral part of the Army’s transformation effort. They are lighter and more mobile than the heavy Abrams tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles.

Strykers can be transported within a combat theater by C-130 airlifters. If delivered by air, the larger tanks and armored personnel carriers require use of C-17s or C-5s, which are far less numerous than C-130s. And, in the case of the C-5, the number of possible landing locations is greatly reduced.

USAF Tests Anticollision System

Two F-16s flying out of Edwards AFB, Calif., on Aug. 7 successfully tested an Automatic Air Collision Avoidance System—the world’s first such system.

During the test, two F-16s—one equipped with Auto ACAS, the other not—repeatedly flew toward each other. The system prevented a collision each time, without pilot input, said Steve Markman, flight test director for Air Force Research Laboratory’s air vehicles directorate at Wright–Patterson AFB, Ohio.

The Auto ACAS takes over control of an aircraft to maneuver it out of harm’s way. Current collision avoidance systems only provide pilots with audio and visual notice of a potential collision. That works for transports and other slower-moving aircraft but not for fighters engaged in high-speed maneuvers near other aircraft, said Markman. He noted that midair collisions are a major cause of USAF fighter aircraft losses.

The new system provides the usual warnings, then, at the last instant, when it’s clear the pilot has not responded, takes control just long enough to maneuver the aircraft to avoid the collision. “Auto ACAS returns control to the pilot as soon as the aircraft begin to separate, typically in a second or two,” said Markman.

AFRL plans further flight tests of the system, which was the result of two years’ effort, including simulations on the ground and with single aircraft flying against computer-generated aircraft. It will also be used for unmanned aerial vehicles.

Maj. James Less, one of the pilots on the Auto ACAS-equipped F-16, believes fighter pilots, once they see the system work, will have no qualms about using it.

Eglin Hosts Combat ID Exercise

A joint combat-identification exercise was held in August to help warfighters solve the vexing problem of what to do when there is disagreement over exactly where targets are located.

A common problem, said officials, is that two sensor aircraft could designate the same target, but they may cite coordinates that vary by almost a mile.

To help resolve this type of issue, the Joint Combat ID Evaluation Team at Eglin AFB, Fla., organized an exercise at the Combat Readiness Training Center in Gulfport, Miss. Some 2,000 troops—using their normal equipment and procedures—participated in the event, which officials called a realistic simulation of the fog of war.

US Joint Forces Command analysts pored over the data generated at the exercise to determine where inconsistent targeting information originates. Their recommendations on how to improve tactics, techniques, and system compatibility were sent to senior leaders.

Pilot Yields on Anthrax Shots

A Dover AFB, Del., pilot who had asked for a court-martial to argue against taking the anthrax vaccine has relented and taken the shots, reported Stars and Stripes. Lt. Col. Jay Lacklan, an Air Force Reserve Command C-5 pilot, told the publication he had concluded that he could not win his case and risked going to prison.

Several hundred personnel have been disciplined for refusing to take the shots. At least two Dover pilots were given general discharges in 2000. Reportedly, there were many incidents of serious reactions to the vaccine among personnel at Dover.

Lacklan had planned to argue the shot program was illegal because the vaccine contained a booster the Food and Drug Administration had not approved for the anthrax vaccine. The booster is squalene, a naturally occurring substance in human livers. DOD officials admit squalene has been found in minute amounts—less than the level of squalene found in the human bloodstream—in some of the vaccine lots, but they insist it is not the reason for side effects experienced by some personnel.

According to DOD, the FDA said that its own tests could have introduced the squalene into the vaccine samples. The FDA found trace amounts of squalene in diphtheria and tetanus vaccines, as well as the anthrax vaccine.

DOD has recorded about 1,000 adverse reactions—with nearly 900 of them minor—among almost 530,000 members who have been vaccinated against anthrax since it began the program in 1998.

Vandenberg ATC Goes Private

In a first for the active duty Air Force, Vandenberg AFB, Calif., on Aug. 1 ceded air traffic control tower operations to a private contractor.

The switch to a contractor will save the Air Force $520,000 over three years and “frees slots in a critical career field,” said Capt. Michael Horowitz, of the 30th Operations Support Squadron at Vandenberg.

USAF will pay Serco Management Services $1.3 million over three years. Four of the five air traffic controllers working for Serco at Vandenberg are former military controllers.
The Vandenberg contract may be just the first of several as Air Force officials try to find ways to relieve the stress on one of its shortage career fields. The service is looking at other installations with “slower towers,” said Horowitz, for potential outsourcing.

Obituary

George W. Marquardt, an Army Air Forces B-29 pilot who flew on both atomic bomb raids at the end of World War II, died Aug. 15 in Murray, Utah. He was 84 and had suffered from Parkinson’s disease for many years.

On Aug. 6, 1945, Marquardt flew bomber No. 91, equipped with special cameras, and accompanied Col. Paul W. Tibbets Jr. as he flew the Enola Gay on the bombing of Hiroshima, Japan. Three days later, he substituted for Tibbets as pilot of the Enola Gay on a weather reconnaissance sortie in conjunction with Bockscar’s attack on Nagasaki.

Marquardt was a native of Princeton, Ky., and left Illinois Wesleyan University in March 1941 to join the service. He left the AAF shortly after the end of World War II and settled in Utah, where he became a steel company executive.

In a 1995 interview with the Salt Lake Tribune, he said: “I have never for one moment regretted my participation in the dropping of the A-bomb. It ended a terrible war.”

News Notes
By Tamar A. Mehuron, Associate Editor

• Gen. Robert H. Foglesong on Aug. 12 succeeded Gen. Gregory S. Martin as commander of US Air Forces in Europe, Ramstein AB, Germany. Foglesong had been Air Force vice chief of staff.
• On Aug. 22, Martin replaced Gen. Lester L. Lyles as head of Air Force Materiel Command, Wright–Patterson AFB, Ohio. Lyles retired.
• The Missile Defense Agency on Aug. 15 announced that Adak Island, Alaska, will be the primary support base for the sea-based X-band radar, which will provide ballistic missile tracking information as part of the Ground-based Midcourse Defense system. MDA plans to modify the SBX vessel, a self-propelled oil drilling platform, for the radar and begin operations by 2005.
• The B-2 test team at Edwards AFB, Calif., successfully dropped two live 5,000-pound enhanced GBU-28 munitions from a B-2 bomber for the first time Aug. 14. The test took place over the Utah Testing and Training Range. The GBU-28 B/B is an upgrade of the GBU-28 A/B designed specifically for the B-2.
• The Missile Defense Agency has temporarily halted plans for a space-based kinetic energy boost-phase intercept capability, according to Defense Daily. Industry officials said MDA believes the technology is not mature enough. The agency is proceeding with its ground-based KE-BPI program.
• According to the Seattle Post–Intelligencer, Boeing has received a USAF contract to develop and demonstrate by 2007 new systems for the service’s E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft. Planned upgrades include new mission computing hardware and software, improved console displays, and advanced radar equipment. The contract may be worth about $1 billion—the same amount Boeing lost when the Air Force stripped the company of several government launch contracts as punishment for ethics violations in the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle competition with Lockheed Martin. (See “Washington Watch,” September, p. 8.)
• The Russian government in August approved the privatization of the Mikoyan Gurevich (MiG) design bureau. The state-owned aircraft builder will be privatized in 2004, as part of a government program to restructure the defense sector.
• Northrop Grumman completed, earlier this summer, preliminary compatibility testing of the EADS electronic intelligence payload with Northrop’s Global Hawk UAV. The company next plans a series of flight tests in late fall at Edwards AFB, Calif., and next year in Germany. German officials are interested in a variant of Global Hawk—dubbed Euro Hawk—as an eventual replacement for its older Breguet Atlantic signals intelligence aircraft.
• USAF awarded a Lockheed Martin-led team a potential three-year, $50 million contract to develop a communications architecture for the next-generation command and control satellite constellation, a global network of C2 and ISR systems and platforms. The network would link air-land-sea-space-based sensors to speed information to warfighters. Lockheed leads team members Boeing, Raytheon, IBM, and L3 Communications.
• Northrop Grumman on Aug. 1 completed the first production version RQ-4A Global Hawk for USAF. Company officials rolled out the UAV in its new gray and white operational paint scheme at Palmdale, Calif., where it was to undergo a final series of systems tests before being sent to Edwards AFB, Calif., for flight tests. It is the eighth Global Hawk air vehicle built; the first seven were developmental versions.
• Interfax–Military News Agency reported that the Russian Air Force would start receiving an upgraded MiG-29 fighter and an upgraded MiG-31 next year. According to the news service, the plans revealed on Aug. 8 by Col. Gen. Vladimir Mikhailov, Russia’s Air Force chief, also included deployment of the new S-400 long-range air defense missile and new Mi-28 helicopter. Moscow passed on the development-plagued An-70 military transport. (NATO countries in 2000 had dropped consideration of the An-70 in favor of the Airbus A-400 transport.)
• The list of staff sergeant promotions USAF released in August showed a selection rate of 49.79 percent—13,651 of 27,416 eligible senior airmen. The rate last year was 62.98 percent.
• At least two European firms are offering their helicopters to South Korea, which needs to replace its elderly fleet of US-built UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters. South Korea has traditionally purchased most of its military equipment from US firms, but the recent rise in anti-American sentiment may lead Seoul to seek other suppliers. The London Times reported that both Westland, a UK–Italy firm, and French-owned Eurocopter plan to bid for the right to supply some 500 helicopters over the next decade.
• Starting Oct. 1, about 370 recruits can sign up for the new, short-term 15-month enlistment under the Congressionally mandated National Call to Service program. They must first complete basic training and technical training. At the end of their enlistment, they can choose whether to extend their active duty commitment by 24 months or spend 24 months in the reserves.
• On July 22, an Air Force promotion board selected 1,824 line captains out of 1,973 considered for promotion to major in the zone—for a selection rate of 92.4 percent. The 2003 rate is slightly below the 2002 rate of 92.6 percent; the rate in 2001 was 88.3 percent.