September 12, 2018 | International, Aerospace
By: Stephen Losey
A series of one-day safety stand-downs across all flying and maintenance wings has given the Air Force several clues on how to correct a string of troubling — and sometimes fatal — aviation crashes and other mishaps, the service said Monday.
In a news release, the Air Force said the review identified six potential risks to aviation safety: stress caused by high operations tempos; a lack of time to properly focus on flying basics, mission activities and training; pressure to accept risk; a culture that pushes airmen to always execute the mission; decreased availability of aircraft; and the potential for airmen to become complacent when carrying out routine tasks.
The full report summary, provided at Air Force Times' request, also raised concerns about the increasing requirements on maintainers, and low experience in some operations and maintenance personnel.
The summary also cited “perception of ineffective training” as another area of concern.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Dave Goldfein ordered the stand-down in May, after several high-profile mishaps including the May 2 crash of a WC-130 Hercules that killed the nine Puerto Rico Air National Guardsmen aboard.
“The review proved tremendously helpful as we continue to seek both high levels of safety with intense and realistic training,” Goldfein said in the release. “As air superiority is not an American birthright, our training must continue to be challenging and meaningful. But I also want commanders to have the decision authority to determine how far to push.”
The service has distributed those findings to the field, the release said, and flying and maintenance leaders are using those findings to help guide their decisions.
The summary also cites the aging fleet of Air Force aircraft as a problem contributing to increased maintenance requirements and decreased aircraft availability.
The summary said that major commands provided the Air Force Safety Center with their aggregate feedback after completing their safety stand-downs, so senior leaders could find out what issues and concerns were identified across all wings.
The Air Force has already started putting plans into place to address airmen's concerns, including adding more support back to squadrons, reducing additional duties, “enhancing information processes for aircrew mission planning” and cutting staff requirements, according to the release.
November 14, 2024 | International, C4ISR, Security
Google exposes cloaking scams targeting users with fake sites and AI-driven fraud, bolstering defenses with real-time scam detection.
June 29, 2020 | International, Naval
By: Andrew Chuter LONDON — Britain's Royal Navy took delivery of two new aircraft carriers, but a government report on the ships achieving operational capability has laid bare some obstacles toward making a fully effective carrier strike group. In a report released June 25, the National Audit Office pointed to delays in developing the Crowsnest airborne early warning radar and contracting to build the logistics ships destined to support the 65,000-ton carriers as ongoing problems for the Royal Navy. The NAO also raised questions about future funding. The Ministry of Defence is making slow “progress in developing the crucial supporting activities that are needed to make full use of a carrier strike group, such as the Crowsnest radar system and the ability to resupply the carriers. In addition, it has not established a clear view on the future cost of enhancing, operating and supporting carrier strike, which creates the risk of future affordability pressures,” the NAO said. Added the head of the watchdog: “The MoD also needs to get a firmer grip on the future costs of carrier strike. By failing to understand their full extent, it risks adding to the financial strain on a defense budget that is already unaffordable.” HMS Queen Elizabeth, the first of two carriers built by British industry in a £4.6 billion (U.S. $5.7 billion) program, is already undertaking extensive sea trials, with its F-35B jets ahead of a planned first deployment next year. The second carrier, HMS Prince of Wales, is also conducting sea trials but is some months behind its sister ship. The warships are not expected to be operated simultaneously. The NAO said the Lockheed Martin-led program to install Crowsnest radars on Royal Navy Merlin helicopters is running 18 months late and will impact how the British carrier strike force is initially deployed. The watchdog said the MoD is working to come up with an acceptable baseline radar by the time HMS Queen Elizabeth undertakes its initial deployment next year. “As at April 2020, the Department [the MoD] expected to achieve initial Crowsnest operating capability in September 2021, some 18 months later than planned,” the NAO reported. “As this is later than the December 2020 milestone for declaring initial operating capability for carrier strike, the Department is working to provide a credible baseline radar capability for the first deployment with the United States in 2021. It expects to recover some lost time to declare full operating capability in May 2023, 11 months later than planned. However, the existing timetable contains no contingency to accommodate any further slippage. The delays will affect how the Department can use carrier strike during this period.” British and U.S. Marine Corps jets will be based on the carrier during its first deployment, partly because the U.K. does not have a sufficient inventory of available jets. Eighteen of the aircraft have so far been delivered for use by the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force Lockheed Martin secured the Crowsnest contract in 2017, with Searchwater radar supplier Thales and helicopter builder Leonardo as subcontractors. Crowsnest is a key element in the protection of the naval strike group, giving air, maritime and land detection and tracking capabilities. The NAO said the delay “has been caused by a subcontractor, Thales, failing to meet its contractual commitments for developing equipment and not providing sufficient information on the project's progress. Neither MoD nor its prime contractor, Lockheed Martin, were aware of these problems until it was too late, reflecting MoD's ineffective oversight of its contract with Lockheed Martin.” A Lockheed Martin UK spokesperson said the company is working to deliver the Crowsnest capability in time for HMS Queen Elizabeth's deployment. “As prime contractor for Crowsnest, we understand the fundamental component that this program delivers to the UK's Carrier Enabled Power Projection. We will continue to ensure that the program develops in line with our requirement to deliver the Crowsnest capability to support the first operational deployment of HMS Queen Elizabeth,” the spokesperson said. “We will work with our industrial partners and the MoD to address any developmental issues which arise, including the deployment of additional resources, if necessary, to maintain program timescales and deliver this critical capability to the Royal Navy.” Thales UK did not respond to Defense News' requests for comment by press time. The NAO partly blames the setbacks for why the MoD faces a “tight timetable” to develop full operating capability for a strike group by 2023. But the watchdog also highlighted the Fleet Solid Support program as another obstacle. The MoD had targeted 2026 for when the first of up to three logistics ships could provide ammunition, food and general stores to the carrier strike group, but that timeline has extended by up to three years as a result of ongoing uncertainty over the schedule to compete and build the vessels operated by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. The MoD abandoned a competition to build the ships late last year, saying it was concerned about obtaining value for money. At the time, the program was mired in controversy over whether the contract should go to a British shipyard consortium or awarded to a foreign company. That issue remains unresolved. No date has officially been given for restarting the competition. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told the parliamentary Defence Committee earlier this year that he thinks it will relaunch in September, but that has not been confirmed. Defence Committee Chairman Tobia Ellwood was particularly critical of the failure to provide the necessary support ships, noting that without them, the carriers' capability would be seriously undermined. “It'll be hotched and potched, only available for short operational journeys,” he told the Daily Telegraph on June 26. “It will be for display purposes only, and that's a very expensive toy.” Britain has only one solid support vessel, RFA Fort Victoria, that can replenish a carrier at sea. It entered service in 1994 and is due to retire in 2028, having had its life expectancy extended. The NAO report said the limitations of RFA Fort Victoria would have a knock-on effect to carrier operations. “Having only one support ship with limited cargo capacity slows the tempo and reach at which the Department [the MoD] can replenish a carrier group. In addition, the Department will have restricted options for deploying the carriers for much of 2022 because RFA Fort Victoria will be unavailable due to major planned maintenance work,” the NAO said. Responding to the report, an MOD spokesperson said: ”Carrier strike is a complex challenge, which relies on a mix of capabilities and platforms. We remain committed to investing in this capability, which demonstrates the U.K.'s global role. “Despite the disruptions of COVID-19, the carrier strike group is on track for its first operational deployment.” https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2020/06/26/heres-why-britain-is-struggling-to-form-a-fully-effective-carrier-strike-group/
May 26, 2022 | International, C4ISR, Security
Déclenchée une heure avant l'offensive terrestre russe, l'attaque destinée à couper les communications ukrainiennes utilisant le réseau de satellites KA-SAT, exploité par Viasat, avait, par ricochet, privé d'internet des milliers d'utilisateurs en Allemagne, en France, en Hongrie, en Grèce, en Italie et en Pologne. « Nous pouvons attribuer au gouvernement russe la cyberactivité malveillante menée contre l'Ukraine » déclarait le 10 mai dernier le chef de la diplomatie de l'Union européenne, Josep Borrell. C'est la première fois que les vingt-sept États membres de l'Union s'accordent sur une réponse conjointe face à une cyberattaque, en dégainant un outil pourtant à sa disposition depuis 2017. La France avait déjà fait du renforcement de la cybersécurité dans l'Union une de ses priorités. « Le conflit en Ukraine est le genre de choc systémique qui fait tout accélérer et prendre conscience qu'il faut faire encore davantage. Cela a donné un nouvel élan aux discussions sur le besoin de coopération renforcée, y compris dans le domaine cyber », explique Miguel Gonzalez-Sancho, chef de l'unité pour la cybersécurité à la direction générale des réseaux de communication et des technologies de la Commission européenne. Selon plusieurs spécialistes, le niveau d'échange d'informations sur les menaces n'a jamais été aussi élevé, à la fois entre États mais aussi entre agences publiques et de grandes entreprises privées. « La plupart des capacités de protection des systèmes d'information sont entre les mains du secteur privé », souligne Dan Cimpean, directeur de l'agence de cybersécurité roumaine. Les États réfléchissent à certifier à l'échelle européenne un réseau de prestataires privés qui permettrait d'aider entreprises et collectivités à faire face aux nombreuses attaques. Le conflit a aussi permis de conclure plus rapidement certaines négociations sur des textes pour renforcer le niveau global de sécurité au sein de tous les États membres de l'Union européenne, que ce soit au niveau des entreprises sensibles, des administrations ou des institutions européennes. « Il y a une volonté politique d'aller plus loin car la question cyber est devenue difficile à traiter au niveau national », ajoute Miguel Gonzalez-Sancho. Le Figaro du 21 mai