Air Combat Command’s Distributed Common Ground System received a key software element, known as the Common Imagery Exploitation Segment, Tuesday when Lockheed Martin installed the interim upgrade at the two DCGS operational units. The software update to CIES allows Air Force intelligence analysts to use common tools and software and provides the service with a security hub that is forward compatible with other nodes and interfaces within the DCGS. “It has significantly reduced the time critical targeting requirement,” said Lt. Col. Chuck Angus, head of Air Force Materiel Command’s 330th Air Sustainment Wing, Robins AFB, Ga.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
