Daily Report

April 6, 2011

Bomber Vectors

There are still no set requirements for USAF’s new penetrating bomber program, but the service does have “direction” in the form of a classified memo from Defense Secretary Robert Gates, said Air Force Secretary Michael Donley Tuesday. Speaking with defense...

Libyan Force Numbers

The Air Force had as many as 89 aircraft involved in the Libyan no-fly zone operation in the last couple of weeks, but now that it’s “out” of the main role in Operation Odyssey Dawn, that number has declined to...

Shutdown Preparations

The Air Force is in the midst of a series of strategy meetings to figure out how it would function if the government shuts down, Secretary Michael Donley said Tuesday. Members of Congress have so far failed to reach a...

Looming Paycheck IOUs

The Air Force will not be “able to make payroll” for the last pay period of Fiscal 2011 without enacted appropriations for the remainder of the fiscal year, Secretary Michael Donley told reporters Tuesday in Washington, D.C. Donley said the...

Dipping Below

The Air Force will begin to slip below its moderate-risk requirement for 2,000 fighters next fiscal year, Lt. Gen. Bud Wyatt, Air National Guard director, told House lawmakers last week. “The President’s [Fiscal 2012] budget has announced the loss of...

Vanguards of the Airspace

The Air National Guard’s ability to protect US airspace is “sufficient” for now, said ANG Director Lt. Gen. Bud Wyatt last week. However, the nation must be prepared for the next step in air sovereignty alert by the time the...

Total Destruction with a Mouse Click

US cyber officials say their biggest concern is that a simple click of the mouse will lead to catastrophic physical destruction of property. What happened at Russia’s Shushenskaya Hydroelectric Power Plant in Siberia in 2009 is the perfect example, said...

Cyber Commandos

Maj. Gen. David Senty, US Cyber Command’s chief of staff, said finding a “logical career track” for a “special operations-like career field” for the cyber domain is a top priority. These cyber commandos would be a “skilled, selected, distinctive cadre...

Sharing Situational Awareness

Shared situational awareness is the key to building combatant commanders’ confidence in US Cyber Command, Maj. Gen. David Senty, CYBERCOM chief of staff, said at AFA’s CyberFutures Conference last week. “Only through shared situational awareness” will commanders come to understand...

Balancing National Security and Civil Liberties

Some of the biggest challenges that US Cyber Command faces are not technical, said Maj. Gen. David Senty, chief of staff for the organization. “It’s work force and culture that really drives some of our issues,” Senty said during his...

Building a Cyber Force

Building the most capable cyber workforce is critical to national security. The challenge is figuring how to get there, said members of an industry panel at AFA’s CyberFutures Conference last week. Lynn Dugle, president of Raytheon Intelligence and Information Systems,...