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Army Staff Sgt. Kyle Westen conducts maintenance checks on an M1 Abrams in Pabrade, Lithuania, July 26, 2021. Westen is assigned to the 1st Infantry Division, which arrived in Europe to begin a nine-month rotation supporting Operation Atlantic Resolve, which builds readiness, increases interoperability and enhances the bond between ally and partner militaries.
Navy Chief Petty Officer Evan Bruce jumps from a KC-130 aircraft during a maritime insertion course in San Diego, July 29, 2021.
An Air Force F-35A Lightning II, a P-51 Mustang and an A-10 Thunderbolt II fly in formation during the 2021 Thunder Over Michigan Air Show at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Mich., Aug.7, 2021.
Sailors conduct replenishment aboard the USS America during Talisman Saber in the Coral Sea, July 27, 2021. The exercise is designed to strengthen capabilities to respond to security concerns in the Indo-Pacific region.
Marines and sailors conduct air-cushioned landing craft operations from the USS Kearsarge during Large Scale Exercise in North Carolina, Aug. 3, 2021. The exercise demonstrates the Navy’s ability to employ a lethal force.
A member of team Homestead receives the COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination event during the August Unit Training Assembly at Homestead Air Reserve Base, Fla., Aug. 7, 2021.
Marine Corps Capt. Andrea Occhipinti inspects laser guided training during Pacific Iron at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Aug. 4, 2021. The exercise is designed to project forces into the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command’s area of responsibility.
Army Green Berets parachute onto a drop zone alongside members of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force during Exercise Forager 21 at Andersen Air Force Base, July 30, 2021. The exercise enhances ability to dynamically employ forces to address the full range of security concerns while supporting regional alliances.
Aug. 12, 2021 | BY David Vergun , DOD News
The U.S. is now navigating through uncharted waters with the possibility of strategic deterrence failing under rapidly growing threats from China and Russia, the commander of U.S. Strategic Command said.
Navy Adm. Charles A. Richard described those threats and provided solutions through integrated deterrence in all domains, both conventional as well as nuclear, across the services and in tandem with allies and partners when he spoke today at the Space & Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama.
"We are witnessing a strategic breakout by China. The explosive growth and modernization of its nuclear and conventional forces can only be what I describe as breathtaking. And frankly, that word breathtaking may not be enough," he said.
China is rapidly improving its strategic nuclear capability and capacity, Richard said. It's growing and enhancing its missile force, including multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles. These include intermediate range ballistic missiles, mobile ICBMs and submarine-launched nuclear ballistic missiles.
Beijing is also pursuing advanced weapons such as hypersonics, he said.
"Because of these challenges our current terrestrial- and space-based sensor architecture may not be sufficient to detect and track these hypersonic missiles," he said.
In 2019, China tested more ballistic missiles than the rest of the world combined, he noted.
Beijing is also developing a modern nuclear command and control capability and is modernizing its conventional forces to include ships, submarines and aircraft, he added.
"They have the largest Navy in the world and they have the third largest air force in the world," he said.
Russia continues to use a wide range of capabilities that are below the threshold of conflict, such as cyber and state-sponsored coercion of nations, seeking to solidify great power status, Richard said.
Russia is pursuing modernization of its conventional and strategic forces, he said. Nuclear weapons remain a foundational aspect of Russia's strategy and they have recapitalized over 80% of their strategic nuclear forces, including expanded warhead delivery capacity.
Like China, Russia is investing heavily in developing hypersonic weapons and a variety of other missiles, he said.
Nuclear modernization is a Defense Department priority for deterrence, Richard said.
That modernization includes not just the nuclear triad, it also includes investing in a nuclear command and control system that is protected against cyberattacks, he said.
"Every operational plan in the Department of Defense, and every other capability we have, rests on an assumption that strategic deterrence will hold. And if strategic deterrence, and in particular nuclear deterrence, doesn't hold, none of our other plans, and no other capability that we have is going to work as designed," Richard said.
Richard also mentioned bolstering conventional forces, missile defense and standing up the Joint Al-Domain Command and Control system. Developing and fielding hypersonics and high-energy laser weapons are also very important.
To better understand and respond to national security threats, the department needs to harness America's great intellectual community, as it has done before with the RAND Corporation, he said.
The ongoing National Defense Strategy, Nuclear Posture Review and Missile Defense Review, are the ideal means to address the threats, inform decision makers and inform the department's path forward.
Industry as well needs to shore up the nation's defenses by delivering needed technology and systems on time and at reasonable cost, he said.
The importance of allied and partner interoperability and rigorous joint and combined war games and exercises cannot be overstated, Richard said.
Army Maj. Eloisa Cox talks with her daughter, Spc. Ayana Anthony in South Korea, July 30, 2021. Both are assigned to 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division.
"When you look at the amount of data we pull from a test, let's just pick a [ground-based midcourse defense] test — terabytes of data," Navy Vice Adm. Jon A. Hill said during a presentation at the Space & Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama. "Are we assessing all that data? The answer is no."
Hill said that following such a test, even one that has been by all measures successful, engineers might come back later, after looking at portions of the data that resulted from the experiment and find things that reveal important facts about what happened — things that wouldn’t otherwise be readily apparent.
"It's not unusual for one of our great engineers to come back later and say you know in this telemetry stream I found something really interesting here. This valve did not do what we thought it was going to do," Hill said.
That's just one engineer looking at a portion of a stack of data that he couldn't possibly get through on his own. Processing all that information is a good task for artificial intelligence, Hill said.
"With machine learning and artificial intelligence, you can go into that whole vast amount of data and you can start to see interesting attributes rise and we're seeing that now once we start to institute artificial intelligence and machine learning," Hill said.
But in the world of missile defense, there's much more than just the testing and assessing of systems. There's also actual operations: the detection of threats, command and control of systems and engagement with a threat.
Those areas can also be enhanced by artificial intelligence, Hill said, "and this is the challenge to industry."
A big priority for MDA, Hill said, is making life easier for the operators of the complex systems used to protect the U.S. from missile threats. AI can help make their job easier, he said — and put their attention on things that matter.
"The more artificial intelligence capability/machine learning that comes in to make the load easier — to get rid of some of these tedious tasks in the planning thing — that takes advantage of the brain of our sailors, our soldiers, our airmen, our guardians — that allows them to think about fighting the battle, not fighting the system," he said.
Right now, Hill said, MDA is starting to look at places where AI can be used to detect, track and discriminate targets, conduct command and control operations, and engage targets.
"How does that translate into some of these major functions of the system? That's what we're going after now. You start to see areas where you can improve algorithms and how you do that detect-control-engage sequence," he said. "I'm pretty excited about this. But I want to get it into an area to where we can start having more discussions about how we take what is in now primarily in the science and technology world and port that right into [the] No. 1 priority in my mind: making the operator's life easier, so we can get weapons on target."
Aug. 12, 2021 | BY U.S. Cyber Command Public Affairs
Minister Nakayama met with Army Gen. Paul M. Nakasone, Cybercom commander. They discussed strategic security challenges in cyberspace and bilateral cooperation between the U.S. and Japan. Nakasone also briefed Nakayama on the roles, missions and capabilities of Cybercom.
"I was honored to welcome Minister Nakayama to U.S. Cyber Command. Our dialogue focused on common cybersecurity interests, further strengthening our alliance," said Nakasone. "The relationship with key strategic partners like Japan is critical in ensuring peace and stability across the Indo-Pacific region and in cyberspace.''
The U.S.-Japan alliance has never been more resolute and resilient and is the cornerstone of peace and security in a free and open Indo-Pacific.
''Under the digital transformation of the whole society, cybersecurity is an ever-more important challenge for the nation and the armed forces,'' said Nakayama. ''The discussion with Gen. Nakasone was a timely and constructive opportunity to reaffirm the core role our alliance continues to play in overcoming that shared challenge and to explore concrete steps to strengthen our cybersecurity collaboration further. Gen. Nakasone and I are opening a new chapter in our joint efforts in cyberspace.''
Air Force Master Sgt. Jared Clauser prepares a diversion grenade during training at Camp San Luis Obispo, Calif., Aug. 10, 2021.
The ceremony was held aboard the cutter and was presided over by Vice Adm. McAllister, commander, Pacific Area. A change of command ceremony is a military tradition that represents a formal transfer of authority and responsibility for a unit.
McCabe departs the cutter after a two-year tenure to continue his career as the 17th District response division chief in Juneau, Alaska.
Carmichael most recently commanded the Coast Guard Patrol Forces Southwest Asia operating in the Middle East. During his 13-month tenure as the senior Coast Guard representative in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Carmichael led PATFORSWA and provided 365 days of continued support to maritime security operations in the north, central, south Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
“Congratulations on a successful tour, Capt. McCabe, and welcome aboard, Capt. Carmichael,” said McAllister. “The Coast Guard Cutter Midgett is a world-class ship capable of executing the most challenging national security missions, allowing the Coast Guard to continue advancing our longstanding commitment to safeguard the nation’s maritime security and economic interests through critical and frequent deployments throughout the Pacific. I am confident that under your leadership, Midgett will continue to serve U.S. national interest in the region.”
The Midgett was commissioned August 24, 2019, and serves as one of eight operating national security cutters in the Coast Guard. The legend class national security cutter is the largest and most technologically advanced class of cutter in the Coast Guard fleet. It is capable of operating in the most demanding open ocean environment and is built for complex law enforcement and national security missions involving both the Coast Guard and multiple partner agencies.
Aug. 12, 2021
The secretary of the Navy and chief of naval operations announced today the following assignments:
Rear Adm. (lower half) William P. Pennington will be assigned as deputy commander, Tenth Fleet, Fort George G. Meade, Maryland. Pennington is currently serving as commander, Task Force Seven Zero; and commander, Carrier Strike Group Five, Yokosuka, Japan.
Capt. David G. Wilson, selected for promotion to rear admiral (lower half), will be assigned as commander, Naval Legal Service Command, Washington, D.C. Wilson is currently serving as assistant judge advocate general (Operations and Management), Washington, D.C.
Aug. 12, 2021
The Office of the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (OSEAC) announced today the following assignment:
Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Howard L. Kreamer, currently assigned as the sergeant major to U.S. Marine Forces, Pacific, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii, has been selected to replace Navy Fleet Master Chief John J. Perryman IV as command senior enlisted leader for U.S. Strategic Command, Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska.
The USS Gerald R. Ford and the USS Paul Ignatius transit the Atlantic Ocean, Aug. 7, 2021. The Ford conducted full ship shock trials.
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class David Crocker applies a corrosion preventative to the outside of an E2D Hawkeye in the hangar bay of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln during operations in the Pacific Ocean, July 11, 2021.
Pennsylvania Air National Guardsman Tech. Sgt. John Henn conducts an aerial refueling of an F-16 Falcon aircraft near St. Louis, July 28, 2021.
Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Christopher Mahoney taxis on the runway at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., July 29, 2021.
Two soldiers look out the bottom hatch of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter at a hanging water bucket during aerial firefighting training at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, Aug. 7, 2021.
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