An exercise along the Panama Canal in the last week had more than 250 airmen incorporating several USAF concepts, so military and civilian personnel from 20 countries could learn how to handle numerous operations simultaneously in a joint working environment. First Lt. Christina Mundy reports that the air element of the exercise included airmen from 12th Air Force, Air Forces Southern, and the 612th Air Operations Group. Col. John Marselus, commander of the Doolittle Air and Space Operations Center at Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., said that exercise incorporated the real-world “reach-back” capabilities of five Air Component Coordinating Elements and an Air Operations Center Communications Enhancement Package. “By employing key concepts during PANAMAX, we are able to reach back to our CAOC—in Arizona—and run all air, space, and information operations from one central location,” he said. The exercise concludes today.
Three of four congressional committees with influence over defense policy have voted to change the official name of the Department of Defense to the Department of War—but final approval of the Pentagon rebrand is months away and not yet assured.