July 19, 2023 | International, Land
GM Defense tackling battlefield power for Marines through DIU effort
GM Defense wants to pave the way for the U.S. Marine Corps to feel comfortable fielding an all-electric vehicle.
September 19, 2018 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR
How Air Force Tankers, Transports Can Survive In High-Tech War
“We're looking at airframes of the future that will have common cockpits, advanced propulsion systems, (and) signature management," Miller said. The goal “really is understanding (how) to modify or build an airplane that allows us to operate through that threat environment."
AFA: Air Mobility Command's tankers and transports would be big, slow targets in a major war, but without them, most of the US military can't move. The imperative to fly fuel, supplies, and troops in the face of high-tech threats – from anti-aircraft missiles to cyber attack – is forcing AMC to change its approach to aircraft upgrades, communications networks, and what they ask airmen to think about every day, its new commander told reporters here this morning.
AMC wants to stimulate innovative thinking by all its people, Gen. Maryanne Miller said, but “not so much on innovation for innovation's sake” – they have to be “much more focused.” On what? “It needs to be on our resilient and agile response,” she said, “being able to operate in that contested, degraded, or operationally challenged threat environment.”
There are a lot of buzzwords in that sentence, but they add up to a major change in mindset for strategic transport and logistics. While roadside bombs have ravaged ground convoys in Afghanistan and Iraq, US pilots and sailors can usually assume that they'll arrive alive. Until last year, the joint Transportation Command – overseeing Air Mobility Command, Military Sealift Command, and the Army's Surface Deployment and Distribution Command – didn't even factor into its war plans that an enemy might shoot down planes or sink ships. But Air Mobility Command is already under constant attack in cyberspace, and advanced adversaries such as Russia, China, or even Iran have long-range missiles to challenge US dominance of the air and sea – what's known as an Anti-Access/Area Denial (A2/AD) strategy.
Transportation Command is now well into a congressionally-directed Mobility Capabilities & Requirements Study (MCRS) that “is looking at all the things that you're describing,” Miller said when I asked about such factors. TRANSCOM is working with the Pentagon's independent office of Cost Assessment & Program Evaluation (CAPE) and the Air Force, she said, with AMC providing extensive data on how it's operated over the years. Due out “later this fall,” she said, the study will look at the evolving threats and make recommendations on how many tankers and transports AMC needs, and of what kinds.
Full article: https://breakingdefense.com/2018/09/how-air-force-tankers-transports-can-survive-in-high-tech-war
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August 6, 2020 | International, C4ISR, Security
New England guardsmen test their skills in Cyber Yankee 2020
Mark Pomerleau Members of the National Guard from New England states concluded a two-week cyber exercise that sought to test the cyber skills of guardsmen and critical infrastructure operators. Cyber Yankee 2020, which took place July 21-31 in New Hampshire, involved more than 200 National Guard members and their civilian counterparts from across New England states, along with some active-duty partners and participants from local, state and federal agencies. In its sixth year, there was less attendance than previous years due to the coronavirus pandemic, but several were able to participate remotely. “Cyber Yankee is primarily a hands-on keyboard cyber incident response exercise for National Guard soldiers and airmen in FEMA Region 1, which are the six New England states,” said Lt. Col. Woody Groton, a member of the New Hampshire National Guard and the director for Cyber Yankee, according to a Facebook post by the New Hampshire Air National Guard. Groton said in a video that the exercise is primarily focused on the electrical and water sector. The exercise is “a great training opportunity for us to work with those people who would actually own the network that we would potentially respond on and for our soldiers and airmen to get that experience and for the engineers from those various entities, they get the training in working with us,” he said. The Guard units within the various states are a critical resource to defend against cyberattacks when they overwhelm localities. “If a large-scale attack happened against a power company, water company, or any other critical department around the state, we would be able to get activated and help them mitigate the threat,” Capt. Frederick Bond, 103rd Air Control Squadron cyberspace operator and exercise Team 3 lead from the Connecticut National Guard, said in a release. “It's similar to when a storm comes and we help remove fallen trees or shovel snow from roofs to help get critical infrastructure going again.” The friendly blue team had to deal with simulated attacks from an opposing red team. Social media posts were used to simulate a real internet environment, where forces must sift through the noise and discern what information is needed to make decisions and identify threat actors. In one case, these actors defaced a public website. “We found some discrepancies including website, it looks like it may have been defaced. The team is digging into finding the source of that defacement and then making steps to correct it,” Master Sgt. Eric Lewis, a blue team member in the New Hampshire Air National Guard, said in a video. Other actions tested included protecting computer files from being stolen or manipulated. “We received intel that potential threat actors may be using a certain capability to transfer files,” said Senior Airman Stephen LaLuna, 103rd Communications Flight cyber systems operations specialist with the Connecticut National Guard. “We see the traffic that's using it, that sets off a flag on our end to look deeper into that. If we determine it is malicious, we send it up the chain with our findings and recommendations to block it.” Officials explained that one of the most critical aspects of these training events is the partnerships built between Guard units, critical infrastructure operators and government entities so that when a crisis breaks out, everyone is acquainted. “We have built enduring partnerships with state government and the critical infrastructure sector. Something that if we did have a major cyberattack against one of those, we would be ready to respond and already know each other,” Groton said. Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified Lt. Col. Woody Groton. He is with the Army National Guard. https://www.c4isrnet.com/cyber/2020/08/03/new-england-guardsmen-test-their-skills-in-cyber-yankee-2020
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March 26, 2019 | International, Naval
Innovation Road Show: US Navy Seeks Acquisition Solutions from Small Businesses
By Warren Duffie Jr., Office of Naval Research Public Affairs ARLINGTON, Va. (NNS) -- In an effort to establish new connections with innovative small businesses and research companies—and reach these players where they live and work—the U.S. Navy will host a trio of outreach events on April 8-11 in Lowell, Massachusetts. The Navy will hold the events through its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, both located at the Office of Naval Research. SBIR provides the Navy with groundbreaking technology created by small firms—while STTR transitions products developed by both small businesses and research institutions to the Navy and Marine Corps. This year's events will spotlight New England's regional technology corridor, known for its prominent academic institutions, research centers, laboratories and science- and defense-focused companies. “Outreach events like these help foster collaboration to enhance the innovation network and pipeline, and accelerate the delivery of needed technologies to the Navy and Marine Corps,” said SBIR Director Bob Smith. “It's part of a new naval effort to deliver capabilities to warfighters faster by expanding relationships with regional technology hubs. This year, New England is the first stop.” The three events are: Partnering Summit—This is a setting where the naval acquisition community, government, industry and research organizations can meet to discuss naval priorities, share best practices and learn about partnership opportunities with SBIR and STTR. Monday, April 8, and Tuesday, April 9, at the UMass Lowell Inn & Conference Center. Learn more at https://www.onlineregistrationcenter.com/SBIRSTTR. Navy Forum for SBIR/STTR Transition (FST)—FST is an annual innovation marketplace matching Navy needs with small business-technology solutions. Attendees can see 133 exhibits from 107 vendors; engage in one-on-one meetings; listen to Tech Talks; and sit in on sessions hosted by congressional and Department of Defense leaders. Wednesday, April 10, and Thursday, April 11, at the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell. Learn more at https://navyfst.com/. Accelerated Delivery and Acquisition of Prototype Technologies (ADAPT) Workshop—ADAPT is a new approach to match non-traditional small businesses with naval needs and quick research-and-development funding. This half-day workshop will feature technology briefs on pre-released areas of interest from a Navy shipyard; discussion about the proposal process and contracting; and opportunities for face-to-face conversations with subject matter experts. Wednesday, April 10, from 8 a.m. to noon. UMass Lowell Inn & Conference Center. Learn more at https://www.onlineregistrationcenter.com/ADAPT. https://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=108981