27 juin 2019 | International, Aérospatial, Autre défense
By: Kelsey Reichmann
The Air Force has been on an almost three-year journey to integrate artificial intelligence into operations and that effort will soon be more apparent as the service plans to declassify its artificial intelligence strategy, Capt. Michael Kanaan, the service's co-chair for artificial intelligence, said June 26 at the AI World Government Conference in Washington, D.C.
“We had to find a way to get us to a place where we could talk about AI in a pragmatic, principled, meaningful way,” said Kanaan.
During his speech, Kanaan laid out five principles that have guided the Air Force with artificial intelligence in the meantime. They are:
1. Technological barriers will be a significant hurdle.
Kanaan said the service has made it a point to limit technological obstacles. However, one problem contractors may face is higher priced products geared toward security-driven government programs versus the same, less expensive commercial programs. A new attitude toward commercial off-the-shelf technology within the service can help, he said.
“Too often working with our agencies, they have to take risks in the framework of time, people and bespoke unique solutions to deploy on your systems,” Kanaan said. However, this does not have to be the case. “Accept commercial standards because unclassified does not mean un-secured."
2. Data needs to be treated like a strategic asset.
“We used to ask the question, if a tree falls in the forest does it make a sound. Well, in the 21st century the real question to ask is was something there to measure it,” he said. He explained this involves looking at when and how to digitize workflows.
3. The Air Force must be able to democratize access to AI.
“This is an opportunity now to say, machine learning as our end state, if done right, should be readable to everyone else,” Kanaan said.
This will involve balancing support and operations and taking into consider the reality that the demographics of the traditional workforce are going to shift, Kanaan explained.
“Not looking at the top one percent, but focusing on the 99 percent of our workforce,” he said. “The Air Force, of those 450,000 people, 88 percent are millennials [adults under 40]."
Looking to digital natives in the integration process will be valuable because this younger slice of the workforce already has insights into how this technology works.
4. Computer skills must be viewed as strategic assets.
Just as the Defense Department has treated foreign language skills as an asset, Kanaan said, the Air Force must view computer skills the same way.
In the United States, 50,000 graduates qualified for 500,000 technology-based jobs each year, and the Air Force must promote emerging technology skills the way it did traditional electrical engineering, astronautics and aeronautics during the space race, Kanaan said. “I believe that it is time for another national defense education act," Kanaan said.
5. Communication, transparency and cooperation are imperative.
As innovations are made, communication, transparency and cooperation are necessary for discussions with international governments, industry and academic partners, Kanaan said.
“As Americans we should be communicating about the ethics of artificial intelligence and how we view society every single day. These are important topics and they do provide that signal to the rest of the world that we view our society in different ways than maybe some others and our values and norms are important because AI at its end state bolsters our biases.”
Most importantly, these issues must be addressed sooner rather than later, Kanaan said.
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NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun. 6, 2019-- L3 Technologies (NYSE:LLL) announced today that it has been competitively awarded the $499 million U.S. Air Force C-130H Avionics Modernization Program Increment 2 (AMP INC 2). Under the contract, L3 will design, produce and certify a state-of-the-art modernization solution for a fleet of 176 Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve C-130H aircraft to improve aircraft availability, reliability and sustainability while significantly reducing life-cycle costs. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here:https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190606005185/en/ L3's avionics and Communications, Navigation, Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) upgrade solutions are fully certified for airworthiness and CNS/ATM compliance, and are flying today with U.S. and international customers. (Photo: Business Wire) “L3 is committed to delivering innovative, cost-effective solutions to ensure mission readiness in support of the U.S. Air Force's modernization strategy,” said Christopher E. Kubasik, L3's Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President. “We are focused on providing an agile and low-risk approach to modernizing the Air Force's diverse fleet of C-130s, enabling these assets to operate well into the future.” Modernization solutions will include integration of a commercial off-the-shelf avionics suite, as well as L3's training integration and services. Development, initial- and full-rate production will take place at L3's facility in Waco, Texas, on multiple C-130H variants, including the C-130H1, C-130H2, C-130H2.5, C-130H3 and LC-130H. “L3's aircraft modernization and modification capabilities are world-class,” said Jeff Miller, L3's Senior Vice President and President of its ISR Systems segment, which includes the Waco facility where work on the AMP will be centered. “Our skilled workforce and our unique 1.25-million-square-foot facility in Waco will provide differentiated capabilities for C-130H fleet longevity.” L3 has more than 65 years of experience as an aircraft systems integrator, including modernizing avionics for C-130 aircraft in the U.S. Air Force fleet and for international allies. The company's tailored C-130 solutions feature a modern cockpit and open-architecture solutions that integrate avionics from leading providers, and are fully certified for airworthiness and Communications, Navigation, Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) compliance. L3's aircraft modernization and modification facilities are capable of retrofit, modernization and production for both fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, delivering a broad range of aerospace modification and integration solutions to keep international military, head-of-state, government and commercial customers safe and mission-ready. L3 supports aircraft of all types, sizes and missions, with industry-leading capability to provide complex aircraft conversions; maritime, ISR, command and control, and airborne systems missionization; depot fleet maintenance and modification; and highly customized design, integration and certification of mission subsystems and interiors. With headquarters in New York City and approximately 31,000 employees worldwide, L3 develops advanced defense technologies and commercial solutions in pilot training, aviation security, night vision and EO/IR, weapons, maritime systems and space. The company reported 2018 sales of $10.2 billion. To learn more about L3, please visit the company's website at www.L3T.com. L3 uses its website as a channel of distribution of material company information. Financial and other material information regarding L3 is routinely posted on the company's website and is readily accessible. Safe Harbor Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 Except for historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this news release are forward-looking statements. Statements that are predictive in nature, that depend upon or refer to events or conditions or that include words such as “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates,” “will,” “could” and similar expressions are forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements set forth above involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any such statement, including the risks and uncertainties discussed in the company's Safe Harbor Compliance Statement for Forward-Looking Statements included in the company's recent filings, including Forms 10-K and 10-Q, with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and the company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements. https://www.l3t.com/press-release/l3-modernize-avionics-us-air-force-c-130hs