Radar Sweep
Snapshot: DOD and COVID-19
Here's a look at how the Defense Department is being impacted by and responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Move Over COVID, IC Says Influence Operations Will Be Next Big Disrupter
Disruption is usually spoken of in positive terms: Breaking through stagnation, forcing a reevaluation of assumptions, and promoting innovation. But for the Intelligence Community, it also means new challenges in gathering and analyzing data that could have profound national security implications.
Russian Military Says US Flights near Crimea Fuel Tensions
The Russian military on Sept. 18 accused the U.S. and its allies of provoking tensions in the Black Sea region with a sharp increase in the number of bomber patrols and intelligence flights. Col.-Gen. Sergei Rudskoi, head of the Russian General Staff’s main operational department, charged that the U.S. and other members of NATO have significantly increased the scope of their military activities in the region.
Russia Rejects US Terms, Sees 'Minimal' Chance to Extend New START Nuclear Pact
Russia sees minimal chances of extending the New START treaty with the United States—their last major nuclear arms pact—as it does not accept conditions set out by Washington, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying on Sept. 21.
Mitchell Institute Nuclear Deterrence Forum Featuring Brad Roberts
Drawing on a five-year effort to understand Russian and Chinese strategic thought, their approaches to conflict with the United States and its allies, and the requirements of integrated strategic deterrence, Brad Roberts, director of the Center for Global Security Research at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, joins AFA’s Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies to discuss the U.S. and its allies’ need for a coherent and robust theory of victory against great power competitors, the obstacles that have hindered past progress, and where the U.S. should go from here.
Chinese Air Force Video Shows Simulated Bomber Attack on Pacific Island Resembling Guam
A promotional video the Chinese air force released on Sept. 19 appears to depict a simulated strike on a Pacific island some media outlets identified as Guam.
Guam Becomes a Living Laboratory for Pentagon’s ‘Connect-Everything’ Experiments
U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and the Air Force are testing new networked warfare solutions in the region right now.
The JADC2 Revolution
U.S. forces are redefining joint operations to be more tightly integrated. Joint all-domain command and control (JADC2) accelerates the speed and complexity of warfare by tying forces together across the air, land, sea, space, and cyber domains. For the latest on what this means to operators and the industry, check out our JADC2 landing page.
Pentagon Considers Operating Independent 5G Networks under New Dynamic Spectrum-Sharing Effort
The Pentagon is considering owning and operating its own fifth-generation wireless networks to support its domestic operations under a new dynamic spectrum-sharing effort. In a Sept. 18 request for information, the Defense Department asks for responses on "innovative solutions and alternative approaches to enable [dynamic spectrum sharing] within the department's currently allocated spectrum with the goal of accelerating spectrum-sharing decisions and 5G deployment."
Air Force Recruiting Service Develops Electronic Officer Qualifying Test
In conjunction with the Air Force Personnel Center, an electronic version of the Air Force Officer Qualifying Test is now available for the first time ever. The eAFOQT is not replacing current testing but is another tool for recruiters to use when processing officer applicants.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to Be Buried at Arlington National Cemetery
According to her wishes, the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery, the Supreme Court said in an announcement following her death Sept. 18 at age 87.
VA-Made ‘Smart Bandage’ Can Track Chronic Wounds—and Treat Them
A team of researchers led by a Veterans Affairs Department biomedical engineer produced a high-tech “smart bandage” that uses electrical stimulation to treat chronic wounds and can provide information about how they are healing. The bandage, now named “Exciflex," is equipped with a chip, sensors, and more, incorporating electrotherapeutic technology developed by Dr. Kath Bogie and her research colleagues in Cleveland, Ohio, at the VA Advanced Platform Technology Center and Case Western Reserve University.