MacDill Squadron Fights COVID-19 Through Innovation

 Aug. 17, 2020 | BY AIR FORCE SENIOR AIRMAN SHANNON BOWMAN

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented challenges to daily operations at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. In response to these challenges, airmen have supported the mission through teleworking, social distancing and stricter sanitization standards, all while continuing to execute their air refueling mission.

Air Force Master Sgt. Adam Ingram, the 6th Logistics Readiness Squadron Vehicle Management Flight superintendent, said his being a customer service flight presents increased safety concerns for his airmen.

"We work on nearly all of the vehicles on base, so there is a high risk of cross-contamination throughout multiple organizations and our flight members," Ingram said. "We mitigate these concerns by having COVID rules of engagement in place to help keep things safe and sanitized."

The flight increased sanitization protocols, and also retrofitted some of their vehicles with barrier screens to help minimize the spread of the virus.

"Our peers at 6th LRS ground transportation recognized a potential issue of exposure to their drivers and posed it to us to see if we could come up with a solution," Air Force Airman 1st Class Arfaneil Rebujio, a 6th LRS vehicle maintenance technician, said.

One of the unit's mechanics, who is currently deployed, told Rebujio about an idea. Before he left for his deployment, he asked Rebujio to help create a design that would block the air circulation separating the operator from the rest of the bus.

So far, modifications have been made to several of MacDill's transport vehicles, including passenger buses used to transport aircrew from their squadrons to the flight line.

"We have installed the barrier screens on five of our 44-passenger buses and one on an eight-passenger van," Rebujio said. "I think it's a great idea having them installed on our transport buses so we don't risk the well-being of our operators."

For the 6th LRS Vehicle Management Flight, teamwork has helped them overcome many of the challenges presented by COVID-19. They are fully committed to their safety procedures, and those looking to the 6th LRS for services can rest assured that their vehicles are safe.

"It's challenging because we have to interact with customers, but we have developed ways to interact, stay safe and keep the mission going," Ingram said. "Our airmen have developed a daily cleaning process to disinfect vehicles when they arrive to the shop and before we return them to the customer."

Throughout the course of the pandemic, the airmen have remained resilient and have found ways to solve difficult problems.

"COVID has presented new challenges, but the out-of-the-box thinking of our airmen has truly shown," Ingram said. "In response to the virus, our members have applied creative thinking, which will protect our warfighters and ultimately support our mission on an even bigger scale."

(Air Force Senior Airman Shannon Bowman is assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing.)

Marine Unit Completes Exercise With Force Health Protection Measures

 Aug. 17, 2020 | BY Marine Corps 1st Lt. Stephanie Murphy , 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit

The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit completed an interoperability exercise at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, to incorporate detachments that recently arrived to the MEU.

The July 13 training was designed to enhance coordination and familiarize subordinate elements with the MEU's unique mission set, in preparation for follow-on exercises that will incorporate the entire Marine Air Ground Task Force.

The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps' only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region. The unit has implemented strict health protection measures and will continue to conduct mission essential training in support of regional security and stability, officials said.

The training kicked off with a communication exercise at the Jungle Warfare Training Center to integrate personnel and equipment from Battalion Landing Team, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, or BLT 2/4, with the communications section of the command element, testing the MEU's ability to sustain high-frequency communications across long distances from an austere environment.

"COMMEX is our only training event that focuses exclusively on communications," said Marine Corps Maj. Ryan Hamilton, communications officer for the 31st MEU. "It provides an opportunity for radio operators, systems administrators, network administrators and technicians to employ their equipment without the pressure of supporting larger unit-level training objectives.

"Marines can make mistakes, familiarize themselves with their equipment and learn what it means to operate in a remote location with no sources of outside support," he continued. "This training is key in the development of our Marines' technical skills and prepares them for follow-on exercises and operations."

BLT 2/4, which recently arrived from Camp Pendleton, California, worked in close coordination with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 262 (Reinforced), headquartered on Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, to conduct fast-rope training and on-off drills with MV-22B Ospreys.

"This was our first opportunity to coordinate with the aviation combat element and get Marines off the deck in Camp Butler," said Marine Corps Capt. Kenny Herman, Echo Company executive officer, BLT 2/4. "For many Marines, it was their first live-slide out of an MV-22. The Marines demonstrated proficiency during their live slides and proved they're more than capable of executing this insert technique in a real world mission."

Fast-rope training is critical to the battalion landing team because many of the missions the MEU conducts may require insertion and extraction of ground troops by aviation assets in hostile environments.

Combat Logistics Battalion 31's Helicopter Support Team also trained with VMM-262 (Reinforced) over the past few weeks, practicing their ability to attach loads to helicopters in-flight.

"Working with VMM-262 helps us increase our speed and proficiency at executing external lifts, said Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Mitchell Buelow, CLB-31's landing support chief. "We're able to practice so that if we need to, we can get large pieces of equipment to locations that we wouldn't otherwise be able to reach. [Helicopter support teams] are especially important during humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions."

Other events included multiple live-fire ranges, reconnaissance and surveillance missions and tactical air control training with the intent of honing coordination and specific skills prior to the upcoming MEU exercise. While the training conducted over the past two weeks allowed the 31st MEU's subordinate elements to accomplish initial objectives, the MEU exercise will test the ability of the entire Marine Air Ground Task Force to operate together as a crisis response force.

"By working together during Interop, we developed a solid foundation to build on for MEUEX and any missions we will execute together in the future," said Marine Corps Maj. Brett De Maria, the 31st MEU assistant operations officer. "We are remaining flexible, constantly shifting our plans in order to get the maximum training possible while keeping our Marines safe from COVID-19."

Across the MEU, strict measures have been enforced to prevent the spread of the virus: wearing masks, physical distancing and the continuation of mission-essential training, in accordance with III Marine Expeditionary Force health protection guidance.

"The 31st MEU cannot stop training during this time. It's our job to respond to crisis at a moment's notice, and our nation and partner nations throughout the region are counting on us to be prepared in case the worst happens," De Maria said.

Soldier Salute

 

Army Sgt. Maj. Joseph Kim, a California National Guardsman, salutes while the national anthem is played during a groundbreaking ceremony for the Korean War Memorial at Hillcrest Park in Fullerton, Calif., Aug. 14, 2020.

Saber Labor

 

Soldiers conduct simulated air assaults at Hohenfels Training Area, Germany, Aug. 10, 2020, for Saber Junction 20, an annual U.S. Army Europe-directed exercise.

DOD Leaders Provide Digital Modernization Updates

 Aug. 17, 2020 | BY David Vergun , DOD News

Data will be the fuel and the engine for everything the Defense Department has to do to bring intelligence and operations together, DOD's chief information officer told CIOs and technology leaders from across the department in a virtual global town hall meeting.

Dana Deasy said during the Aug. 12 event that quality data that is secure will also help to enable the development of artificial intelligence.

With AI, humans and machines are going to collaborate effectively and efficiently in an ethical manner, Deasy said, lauding the progress being made by the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center's work over the last 18 months.

He then turned his attention to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The DOD COVID-19 Task Force, along with IT organizations across the department, have helped to protect DOD personnel, ensured continued execution of missions and supported the whole of government approach in combating the pandemic, the CIO said. The combatant commanders, leaders from across the services and the secretary of defense all have recognized that effort, he noted.

"It was there. It worked," he said, speaking of the tools that service members and DOD civilian employees have used to work remotely. "Yes, we had our moments where we had to scramble and get things fixed, but if you kind of take the long view of this thing, it was a truly remarkable result by all of you, so a huge 'thank you.'"

U.S. Cyber Command, the National Security Agency, the Defense Information Systems Agency, the Joint Staff, the military services and National Guard Bureau, as well as the DOD CIO office, worked together to get the necessary equipment into the hands of the users, enabling hundreds of thousands of people to work remotely, Deasy said.

Navy Rear Adm. William Chase, senior military advisor for DOD Cyber Policy, noted that adversaries such as Russia and China attack the information space daily through cyber intrusions; intellectual property theft — including weapon systems from the defense industrial base — and, attempts to deny DOD's use of command and control, networks and communications. As a result, he said, joint interoperability and all-domain command and control is a top priority for DOD.

An example, Chase said, is joint all-domain situational awareness, which involves integrating AI and secure cyber data enabled by machine learning as a tool for the combatant commanders to use in such things as target recognition and decision aids for use in long-range, precision fires.

Greg Garcia, the Army's deputy CIO, said it's important to have a workforce that is customer focused, communication strong, adept in technology management and structured to meet future demands.  

Skills such as application software, data, information management, enterprise architecture, systems analysis and data analytics will increasingly help the department better prepare to improve mission outcomes in the digital future, he said.  

Col. A.G. Hatcher, deputy Air Force CIO, noted that it's critical that the joint force gain the needed 5G network access across different operating environments. Although innovation is taking place, it needs to move even faster, he said, not only to get to such goals as 5G, but to get to the post-5G network that inevitably will follow.

A 5G network would be particularly useful for telemedicine into remote areas such as Iraq or Afghanistan, he said, and work is being done on that at Joint Base San Antonio in Texas.

The next focus of 5G work will be on extending the range of the signals, particularly in the vast area of U.S. Pacific Command, Hatcher said, and work on that will occur soon at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii.

Aaron Weis, the Navy's CIO, said the challenge for his department is modernizing aging infrastructure and IT systems. The culture needs to change as well, he said.

"Today we have a culture that's driven by security through compliance," he said. "We need to get to a state where security is driven as a constant state of readiness."

Navy Vice Adm. Nancy Norton, the DISA director, said her agency is working to get new collaboration tools that support cloud computing. The Defense Enterprise Office Solutions Program will lead that effort. These cloud collaboration tools will be made available first to the combatant commands in support of the warfighters, and it will eventually expand out across the department, she said. DISA also is working on ways to reduce bandwidth, improve cyber security and improve performance, Norton said.

Sunlit Saber

 

Army medics prepare helicopters for a mission during Saber Junction at Hohenfels Training Area, Germany, Aug. 7, 2020. The joint exercise is designed to assess readiness and promote interoperability with allied and partner nations

DOD Offers Diversity and Inclusion Counseling Resources

 Aug. 17, 2020

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The Department of Defense responded to interest from service personnel by providing its members with diversity and inclusion resources for those who experienced racism, bias and discrimination in either their personal or professional lives.

The DOD partnered with various programs, including Military Family Life Counseling (MFLC) and Military OneSource to leverage their non-medical counseling expertise to address diversity and inclusion (D&I) issues.  Diversity and inclusion coaches will phase into the MFLC program and allow service members to process their reactions to their experiences and to develop successful coping strategies.  The MFLC program and its D&I coaches have the skills and capacity to provide coaching services to address the issues of diversity and inclusion; provide the immediacy of contact; and assist service members dealing with encounters of racism, sexism, bias and any form of discrimination.

The Military OneSource call center, available 24/7, provides information and referrals to MFLC D&I coaches, Military OneSource non-medical counseling and peer-support, as well as DOD Equal Opportunity (EO) representatives and Chaplains.  This integrated approach to address diversity and inclusion issues offers a range of support options for the military community.

Service members experiencing frustration, sadness, depression or other anxieties can seek assistance to address their concerns, as well as find the support and care they need.

These resources are provided at no cost.

Military members and their families are encouraged to contact these resources at:

• DOD Equal Opportunity representatives
• Chaplains
• Military Family Life Counselors:  Contact Unit MFLC
• Military OneSource:  www.militaryonesource.mil or 800-342-9647

Unlawful discrimination has no place in the DOD and our DOD Equal Opportunity representatives are available to help create and maintain a culture of inclusion and fairness throughout the DOD workforce. EO operates to ensure all individuals are provided a full and fair opportunity for employment, career advancement and access to programs without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, disability (physical or mental), gender, age, sexual orientation, genetic information or parental status. All military members who believe they have been a victim of unlawful discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion or sex that is not otherwise authorized by statute or policy are strongly encouraged to immediately disclose the incidents to their chain of command.  All unresolved complaints should be reported to their unit’s Equal Opportunity Office.