Friday, December 11, 2020

Test Card

 

Army Pfc. Erick S. Alulema, a combat medic specialist assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 102nd Cavalry Regiment, New Jersey Army National Guard, prepares a COVID-19 Ag testing card during COVID-19 testing at the New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home at Menlo Park in Edison, N.J., Dec. 9, 2020. The test detects the presence of protein antigens from SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. There are currently 26 New Jersey National Guard soldiers and airmen assisting at New Jersey’s three Veterans Memorial Homes.

Food Delivery

 

Arizona National Guard soldiers and airmen deliver boxes of groceries to area residents at a food bank in Flagstaff, Ariz., Dec. 10, 2020. The Arizona National Guard has completed more than 5,700 missions, totaling more than 290,000 man hours, in response to the COVID-19 emergency.

Ready Refuel

 

An Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle prepares to receive from a KC-135 Stratotanker during Emerald Flag over the Gulf of Mexico, Dec. 3, 2020. The exercise combined ground, space, cyber, and air platforms for joint test and experimentation.

Marine Mobility

Marines refuel light armored vehicles during Steel Knight/Dawn Blitz at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif., Dec. 7, 2020. The exercise gave the 1st Marine Division the opportunity to showcase readiness within the education, planning and execution continuum.

 

Juliet Jump

 

An Army paratrooper descends over Juliet drop zone during training in Pordenone, Italy, Dec. 10, 2020.

Corps Reflection

 

Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Lucas Mitchell looks through the scope of an M32 multi-grenade launcher in Niigata, Japan, Dec. 10, 2020, during Forest Light, an annual bilateral exercise with U.S. and Japanese forces.

Fast Exit

 

Marines and Japanese troops fast-rope out of an aircraft during Forest Light in Japan, Dec. 10, 2020. The annual bilateral exercise strengthens the interoperability and readiness of U.S. and Japanese troops.

Pushup Patrol

 

Air Force Staff Sgt. Alaxey Germanovich leads airmen in pushups following a ceremony in which he received the Air Force Cross at Cannon Air Force Base, N.M., Dec. 10, 2020. Germanovich was honored for his actions during a fierce firefight in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, April 8, 2017.

Top Hat

 

Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Yunior Basulto puts a hat on a Christmas tree during a holiday event aboard the USS Carl Vinson in the Pacific Ocean, Dec. 9, 2020.

Refueling Reflection

 

An Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker operator and pilot monitor the refueling of a B-52 Stratofortress during a Bomber Task Force mission over Southwest Asia, Dec. 10, 2020.

Rocket Launch

 

A Delta IV rocket launches from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Fla., Dec. 10, 2020. The Space Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center Launch Enterprise team participated in the mission.

Air Force, DOD Leaders Discuss Cutting-Edge Innovations

 Dec. 11, 2020 | BY David Vergun , DOD News

Leaders from the Defense Department's Defense Innovation Unit and the Air Force spoke today about DIU and AFWERX collaborative projects. AFWERX is a program for entrepreneurs within the Air Force intended to circumvent bureaucracy and engage innovation.

DIU Director Michael Brown took part in an AFWERX panel with Air Force Secretary Barbara M. Barrett, and Will Roper, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics.

Drone flies above troops.

AFWERX is the Air Force's team of innovators who encourage and facilitate connections across industry, academia and military to create a culture of innovation and solve problems. 

The Defense Innovation Unit's mission is to accelerate the adoption of commercial technology throughout the DOD.

"AFWERX over the past three years has grown from a visionary startup to an innovative ecosystem, connecting ideas with solutions and empowering air and space professionals to think beyond today's reality," said Barrett.

"Innovation is embedded in our culture, and in our DNA, and innovation is a force multiplier for partnerships fueled by small business industry, interagency partners and aerospace professionals," she added.

Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr., sits in a LIFT Aircraft Hexa aircraft during a visit to Camp Mabry, Texas, Aug. 20, 2020. During the visit, Col. Nathan Diller, AFWERX director, spoke about Agility Prime, a non-traditional program seeking to accelerate the commercial market for advanced air mobility vehicles. (Air National Guard photo by Staff. Sgt. Sean Kornegay)

Barrett provided some examples of what AFWERX has been working on: creating new landing gear, using a 3D printing lab to create needed medical supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic, developing space-based situational awareness capabilities, developing virtual reality enhanced pilot training, and creating an affordable flying car that can deliver supplies to the point of need.

Current efforts of AFWERX are focused on energy, autonomy, space and microelectronics, she noted.

Brown spoke about DIU's collaboration with the Air Force.

One of the areas that DIU worked on in the past is predictive maintenance that started with the Air Force, he said. Now that technology is being shared across every military service.

Airmen set up satellite gear.

One of the benefits of DIU is that it was set up as a joint organization, meaning it has folks inside from every service branch, he added.

One of the areas DIU is now focused on is autonomous swarming drones, he said.

Roper said that area of focus is important. "Swarming drones are increasingly things that terrorist groups can do, that hobbyist groups can do with the right technical know-how," he said, adding, "I think it's a great example, because swarming drones that could attack the military, that's not just an Air Force problem. All of the services face that. Well, that's a scary future, we have to worry about."

Balancing Act

Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Brian Kruzelnick, second from left, the Air Mobility Command’s command chief master sergeant, participates in an obstacle exercise while visiting Dover Air Force Base, Del., Dec. 8, 2020.

 

Reindeer Delivery

 

An Air Force airman assigned to the Michigan National Guard’s COVID-19 response task force, is working at the South Michigan Food Bank in Battle Creek, Mich., Dec. 8, 2020. The airmen are working alongside civilians to help the food bank with distribution this Christmas.

COVID-19 Kits

 

Air Force Airman 1st Class Tamara Henry, a medical technician assigned to the 60th Surgical Operations Squadron, prepares a COVID-19 test kit at Travis Air Force Base, Calif., Nov. 30, 2020. David Grant USAF Medical Center personnel set up the testing site earlier this year.

Grocery Boxes

 

Michigan National Guard soldiers assigned to Michigan’s Task Force Spartan work with the Gleaners of Warren, Michigan, Community Food Bank, Nov. 24, 2020. Army and Air National Guard members filled and labeled thousands of pounds of frozen blueberry and green bean bags in the Gleaners warehouse. They also assembled approximately 1,600 lbs of quarantine cold and dry food boxes, reaching a goal of 90,000 lbs weekly during the Christmas holidays. The food bank warehouse serves 400 agencies in five counties. Since March, Michigan National Guard teams have supported food banks across Michigan, distributing more than 7 million pounds of food to local communities.

NATO's Success Depends on Ability to Change As Needed

 Dec. 10, 2020 | BY David Vergun , DOD News

NATO's secretary general discussed a wide range of issues facing the alliance, particularly threats from China, and what he expects the alliance to achieve going forward.

Jens Stoltenberg, NATO's secretary general, today spoke virtually from NATO headquarters in Brussels to the Defense One Outlook 2021, a forum for sharing thoughts and ideas.

"NATO is the most successful alliance in history because we have been able to change when the world is changing," he said.

U.S. and Italian troops operate a vehicle through water in the woods.

To keep pace with a changing world, Stoltenberg said the alliance launched the NATO 2030 project earlier this year.

"NATO 2030 is about how to make sure that NATO continues to change," he said. 

For 40 years, NATO did one thing, and that was to deter the Soviet Union, he said. When the Cold War ended and the Berlin Wall came down, NATO changed its focus to ending the wars in the Balkans and fighting terrorism in the Middle East.

After Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea and China's growing military threat, the focus changed again, he added. 

In response to these new threats, NATO increased its defense spending and modernization efforts, and those efforts will continue with a 10-year plan embodied in the NATO 2030 project.

Stoltenberg acknowledged policy and political differences in the 30-nation alliance, and he said NATO needs to be able to successfully address those differences.

"There's no way to hide the differences on a wide range of issues, but then we need to sit down, come together, consult and try to find ways forward despite our differences," he said.

Soldiers walk down a mountain trail.

"My message to the United States is that it's a great advantage for the United States to have 29 friends and allies, especially as the United States and the world addresses the security implications of a growing China," he added.

He said the alliance — along with Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and other partners — looks with alarm as China is making its presence felt in the South China Sea, the Arctic, Africa and cyberspace through foreign investments and in building out a vulnerable 5G network that it's looking to export.

At last year's NATO summit, the alliance for the first time decided to put discussions about how to deal with threats coming China on the agenda, he said.

Russia is also a growing concern. "In the last decade or so, we've seen that Russia gradually has undermined and violated the INF Treaty," he said, referring to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. 

Despite the demise of that treaty, the alliance is working to strengthen arms control — not only with Russia, but also with China, he said.

Regarding Afghanistan, the secretary general said the alliance must weigh the risks of leaving too quickly without satisfactory negotiations with the Taliban and the Afghan government.

"It would be a great tragedy if the terrorist caliphate they lost in Iraq and Syria then reemerges in Afghanistan," he said. 

"No one wants to stay in Afghanistan longer than necessary. But at the same time, we realize that if we leave too soon, we may pay a very high price," he warned. 

A pilot sits in an open cockpit.

Regarding the Arctic, the secretary general said NATO is heavily involved there, with many of the important NATO military bases located there or nearby.

"NATO allies have over the last two years invested heavily in new capabilities that operate in the Arctic: maritime patrol aircrafts, new frigates, new fighter jets and so on. All those capabilities are important for NATO presence in the Arctic," he said.

NATO also hosted the recent Trident Juncture exercise in the Arctic area, he added

The alliance is also working to reduce tensions with Russia in the Arctic, he said, noting that Russia is a member of the Arctic Council and the Barents Euro-Arctic Council, along with northern NATO nations.

On a different topic, Stoltenberg said: "I very much look forward to working with Joe Biden when he becomes the president. I know him as a very strong supporter of the trans-Atlantic bond, and he knows NATO very well through his time as vice president and also as the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee."

General Officer Assignments

 Dec. 11, 2020


The secretary, U.S. Air Force, announces the following general officer assignments:

Maj. Gen. Brad M. Sullivan will be assigned as chief of staff, U.S. Forces Korea, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, U.S. Army Garrison-Humphreys, Korea. Sullivan is currently serving as commander, Curtis E. Lemay Center for Doctrine Development and Education; and vice commander, Air University, Air Education Training Command, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.

Maj. Gen. Stephen C. Williams will be assigned as special assistant to the commander, Air Combat Command, Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia.  Williams is currently serving as chief of staff, U.S. Forces Korea, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, U.S. Army Garrison-Humphreys, Korea.

Ex-con admits helping destroy evidence in investigation of murdered wife of Fort Stewart soldier

 Defendant met confessed killer while in prison

SAVANNAH, GA:  A former federal inmate has admitted to helping destroy evidence in the murder of the wife of a Fort Stewart soldier.

Devin Ryan, 30, of Hardeeville, S.C., pled guilty in U.S. District Court to Use of Fire in Commission of a Federal Felony, said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. The charge carries a mandatory sentence of 10 years in federal prison, followed by a period of supervised release.

There is no parole in the federal system.

“A man with no involvement other than previous time behind bars with an admitted killer needlessly complicated a murder investigation by destroying a significant piece of evidence,” said U.S. Attorney Christine. “Rather than stay a free man and hang up the phone when called, Devin Ryan helped cover up a murder – and that choice has earned him more hard time behind bars.”

Stafon Jamar Davis, 28, of Savannah, pled guilty to Premeditated Murder and to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon in the July 9, 2018 shooting death of Abree Boykin, 24, a resident of post housing at Fort Stewart Army Reservation.

As described in court documents and testimony, after killing Boykin by shooting her twice in the head, Davis contacted Ryan – who previously served prison time with him – for help in “getting rid of a car.” Ryan provided directions to a location in Hardeeville, S.C., where the two men met. Ryan brought a container of gasoline with him, and the two poured gas inside Boykin’s 2018 Honda Accord and set it on fire. The car exploded, and the burned vehicle later was hauled to a salvage yard and ultimately scrapped before investigators could track it down.

Both Ryan and Davis were on federal supervised release at the time of the crimes, and both are in custody awaiting sentencing.

“Ryan’s attempt to cover up a murder made an investigation more difficult, but because of the determination of FBI and Army Criminal Investigation Command investigators, the case was solved and he will go back to prison,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta.

 “Today’s plea by the defendant is proof of the level of detail our special agents and our law enforcement partners will go to, to solve a crime,” said Chris Grey, spokesman for the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command. “Destroying crucial evidence from such a horrific crime is unconscionable.”

The case is being investigated by the FBI and the Army Criminal Investigation Command, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer G. Solari and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Darron J. Hubbard.