The Air Force is considering restructuring the 116th Air Control Wing at Robins AFB, Ga., so that it conforms to the organizational constructs established for integrating active duty and reserve component airmen. This unit was the service’s first Total Force wing when it stood up in 2002, bringing together active duty airmen and Air National Guardsmen under a unified, blended organization and single command chain to operate E-8C Joint STARS ground-surveillance aircraft. However, as currently structured, the “blended” wing “does not fit into” any of the Total Force Integration associations (i.e., classic, active, ARC) codified in 2007, service officials tell the Daily Report. Accordingly, the Air Force is mulling making “the 116th ACW as a TFI active association,” they said. “We fully expect the continued integration of the regular Air Force and Air National Guard on the Joint STARS mission,” they noted. A decision is expected sometime later this summer.
Calls for the creation of a dedicated cyber-focused military service are gaining traction among some cyber advocates and lawmakers. But a recent think tank report adds a twist to that push—calling for a so-called Cyber Force to have no enlisted personnel. It’s an idea some experts say misses the mark…