Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Maintenance Support Group Keeps Air Force Base Employees Safe

June 30, 2020 | BY Kendahl Johnson

Like so many units at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, the 309th Maintenance Support Group has had to adjust its battle rhythm due to COVID-19. The unit is working hard to ensure other teams within the Ogden Air Logistics Complex can continue to support their critical missions while keeping employees safe from the coronavirus.

A contractor inventories COVID-19 cleaning and protective supplies.

Gene Kourtei, the deputy group director for the 309th MXSG, said that although it's been a challenge, his team has been successful in elevating and achieving the three priorities of keeping employees safe, continuing to meet mission demands and exceeding customer expectations.

We have kept and continue to keep our employees safe with robust cleaning plans and protocols. I believe the customers didn’t feel much, if any, impact. Our job moving forward is to maintain it that way."
Gene Kourtei, Deputy Group Director, 309th Maintenance Support Group

"We've worked really hard, and I'm proud of our entire team," Kourtei said. "We've significantly limited the effects of the pandemic to our most important resource while optimizing how we perform business in a constrained environment. I’d like to think a lot of that is due to the deliberate, quick and proactive methodology."

The approach started with using processes already in place to become the central supplier for the entire complex for necessary items such as masks, hand sanitizer and disinfectants.

A contractor fills up spray bottles with cleaning disinfectant.

"We were able to supply everyone in a quick manner," Kourtei said. "We did a great job of purchasing what we could find as fast as we could and distributed those critical items throughout the complex as rapidly as possible."

The unit's engineering team was tasked with developing a response plan in the event of workplace contamination. The team developed a comprehensive checklist that postured the complex to be ready to respond to a multitude of different scenarios. Kourtei said being prepared and transparent at every level has helped employees feel comfortable and safe.

Perhaps the biggest challenge, he said, was developing a teleworking posture.

A contractor loads a hand sanitizer stanchion.

"Historically, we have never teleworked," Kourtei said. "Moving from no telework to full telework was a test of the complex's agility. Our ability to pivot to that environment was as good as you could ask for. We have kept and continue to keep our employees safe with robust cleaning plans and protocols. I believe the customers didn’t feel much, if any, impact. Our job moving forward is to maintain it that way."

Kourtei said they are ready and prepared to support the complex for as long as needed. They've worked hard to improve communications and have developed solid processes for keeping employees and their worksite environment COVID-19 free while ensuring warfighter demands continue to be met.

(Kendahl Johnson is assigned to the 75th Air Base Wing.)

Statement by Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs on U.S. Troop Levels in Germany

June 30, 2020

The Secretary of Defense and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff briefed the President yesterday on plans to redeploy 9,500 troops from Germany. The proposal that was approved not only meets the President’s directive, it will also enhance Russian deterrence, strengthen NATO, reassure Allies, improve U.S. strategic flexibility and U.S. European Command’s operational flexibility, and take care of our service members and their families. Pentagon leaders look forward to briefing this plan to the congressional defense committees in the coming weeks, followed by consultations with NATO allies on the way forward. We will be providing timely updates to potentially affected personnel, their families and communities as planning progresses.

Missile Defense Chief Looks to Handle Changing Threat

June 30, 2020 | BY JIM GARAMONE , DOD News

Missile defense has gone from pie-in-the-sky Star Wars technology in the 1980s to a proven military capability in the 21st century, and the Missile Defense Agency is looking to extend those capabilities against new threats.

Navy Vice Adm. Jon Hill, the agency's director, told the Hypersonic Weapons Systems webinar in London the agency is looking to adapt current technologies against the hypersonic threat while looking toward new capabilities.

"The sad reality is that many of these threats, regardless of how they're launched and what their profiles are, really do look like hypersonic threats," he said.

Ballistic missiles as they approach impact are hypersonic, as are many maneuverable cruise missiles. "So if you're the sailor on the deck of a ship, they all look the same to you," Hill said. "If you're a soldier manning a land-based battery, it's going to be maneuvering and coming in very quickly at hypersonic speeds. If you're one of the airmen that's manning one of the many sensors that are out there, it's going to look fast, and it's going to be moving quickly."

A ground-launched missile heads skyward.

So, the hypersonic threat already exists. The Missile Defense Agency now must adapt as the threat morphs, Hill said. Right now, the hypersonic threat is almost ancillary to the capabilities of ballistic and cruise missiles, he added, but as competitors test and build, that threat will become more sophisticated. 

"We're defending the United States, our deployed forces, our allies and friends from missile attacks in all phases of flight," Hill said. It is a simple mission statement, but not so simple to execute.

The key to the program is the sensor array. "We leverage all sensors, and many, many countries are in the business of fusing data so that you have a complete track picture," the admiral said. "We call it from … birth-to-death tracking and that is absolutely required. You don't want to lose track of the threats, particularly if [they are] unpredictable and maneuverable."

The agency will leverage space sensors, which is typically how it sees initial launches. "We will fly through ground-based sensors," he said. "We have ships with the sensing capability deployed globally. Another great way that we partner with our allies that sensor architecture is critically important, particularly as the threats become more and more maneuverable over time."

The existing sensing architecture and battle management system and even existing weapons can counter this very formidable threat, but more needs to be done, he said.

So, the bottom line is that just because a weapon is hypersonic doesn't mean it can't be intercepted. "Like all good engineering organizations, we're going to look for where the vulnerabilities are in a hypersonic flight, whether it's a glide vehicle or cruise missile," Hill said.

Soldiers man consoles in operations room.
A building that looks like the bridge of a Navy ship on land.

The glide phase looks to be the most promising place, because it is earlier in a missile's trajectory, Hill said. "We are now investigating what it would take to move into that first part of the glide phase," he added. 

This means evolving the terminal system, "and then looking at how we can change the propulsion as required — change the front end to get to the glider phase," Hill said. "It is a tough regime to operate in. But you have to remember that the hypersonic threat is not invincible — in that phase, it's bleeding off energy, it may be doing a roll, and may be starting its maneuver. But it's a great place to engage."

In addition, the admiral said, the agency is looking to build sensing from space.

This is not the 21st century version of pie-in-the-sky. The Missile Defense Agency is working closely with the services and combatant commands and having discussions with international partners on defending against this threat, Hill said.

Green Light

Air Force pilots fly a C-130J Super Hercules over East Africa, June 28, 2020.

Diving Course

Marines complete an open circuit dive during a diver propulsion device certification course at Camp Schwab, Okinawa, Japan, June 23, 2020.

Marine Maneuvers

Marines patrol through grassy terrain during platoon attack range training as part of Exercise Fuji Viper at Camp Fuji, Japan, June 23, 2020. Fuji Viper focuses on sustaining individual and small unit proficiency and decision making.

Parade Practice

Marines assigned to the Marine Barracks Washington, D.C., conduct a full dress rehearsal in preparation for the upcoming Friday Evening Parade at the Corps' oldest post, June 24, 2020. This year's parades will be different from those of the past. With the COVID-19 concerns, the barracks will conduct smaller ceremonies while adhering to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Defense Department guidelines.

Cadet Formation

Air Force Academy basic cadets undergo restriction-of-movement training in Colorado Springs, Colo., June 29, 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic changed how the more than 1,100 men and women are processed. Medical staff tests each trainee for the coronavirus to ensure the safety and security of the cadets and staff.

Mountain Marines

Marines participate in a 10-mile retrograde hike during the final exercise of mountain-warfare training at Haltdalen Training Facility in Norway, June 26, 2020.