The new chairman of the Air Combat Command Commander’s Group, comprising 21 key community representatives, is the representative from the military liaison committee for Beale AFB, Calif. Ron Bartoli is the president of the Beale committee and has been active in the push to get the Air Force to locate its new Cyber Command in California, specifically at Beale. The Appeal-Democrat reports that Bartoli says his election to the chair will give him “a little bigger voice.” The Air Force has put its provisional Cyber Command headquarters at Barksdale AFB, La., but that’s not the last word.
The Air Force has embraced new technical approaches like open mission systems and rapid software updates for cutting-edge aircraft like the B-21 and Collaborative Combat Aircraft. Increasingly, though, the service is also working to apply these to its older, “legacy” aircraft, officials said this week.