Current predictions show a COVID-19 vaccine is still 18 months away, so the Air Force must find ways to survive and operate in a world where the virus keeps coming back, Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein wrote in an April 28 letter to commanders. “It’s time to dust off those Ability to Survive and Operate manuals,” Goldfein wrote. “Many of us grew up in the age of Apple Orchards, MOPP levels, operations with PPE, aircraft decontamination procedures, etc. While we have not required it in recent years given our focus on the Middle East, the ability to survive and operate in a CBRNE environment is in our DNA.” Goldfein said the pandemic is now the "defining moment" for Airmen, comparing it to Pearl Harbor and the Sept. 11 terrorists attacks for previous generations. "The command characteristic of each defining moment is the world never returned to where it was before the event," Goldfein wrote.

The Air Force’s information technology enterprise is facing an unprecedented test. The coronavirus pandemic has shocked global economies, sent nations into lockdown, and overwhelmed hospitals in some of the largest American cities. As the U.S. workforce adjusts to the new reality of working from home, the virus’s spread is forcing the IT that supports millions of military and civilian personnel to sink or swim. Building on incremental changes that were already in progress, Air Force officials are trying to turn what they call “20th-century IT for a 21st-century service” into an enterprise that keeps their air, cyber, and space missions going uninterrupted. If they succeed, this urgent recognition of IT as a top priority could reverberate far into the future for a better connected, digitally savvy force.

The Senate Armed Services Committee is convening a panel of current and former military officials May 6 in a last-ditch attempt to get the Federal Communications Commission to change its mind about approving a Ligado Networks plan opposed by the Pentagon. Committee leaders believe the FCC ignored the nearly unanimous concerns raised by the rest of the federal government, a SASC spokeswoman said. The goal of this week’s hearing is to amplify those warnings that the commission may have overlooked. SASC is in talks with the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, which holds oversight responsibility for the FCC, about potential next steps if the FCC does not change course.

U.S. Northern Command and North American Aerospace Demand personnel who work in certain “no fail” missions are sequestered inside the Cheyenne Mountain Complex in Colorado to avoid any possible contact with the new coronavirus and ensure the homeland is protected, the head of NORTHCOM said. Starting in February, NORTHCOM and NORAD moved critical personnel into Cheyenne Mountain, a 5.1-acre complex situated under 1,800 feet of rock. “What I’ve been trying to do is ... drive risk to zero,” NORTHCOM boss Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy said during a May 5 Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies virtual event.

The military has finished testing its top-tier forces and is planning to test a selection of asymptomatic personnel across the force to understand how the virus has spread through the ranks. The Pentagon announced a four-tier testing plan, starting with key strategic and homeland defense personnel, followed by troops in the combat zone, those deployed or returning from overseas, and lastly other forces. DOD currently can test about 20,000 people per week, but ultimately the need is for about 56,000 tests per week, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said in the same briefing. These numbers have changed as the situation develops.

Two B-1Bs flew directly from Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., to train with NATO forces in Estonia on May 5, the latest long-distance training mission for the bombers. The Lancers worked with forces on the ground from Estonia, the United Kingdom, and Denmark as part of the “Spring Storm” exercise, according to the Estonian Ministry of Defense. “The U.S. Air Force values opportunities such as these to build readiness capacity and capability alongside the Estonian air force,” the U.S. Embassy in Talinn said in a news release. “Regardless of any global challenge, the U.S. remains committed to our allies and partners and stands ready alongside them.”

On March 23, the Air Force Association's Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies will host a virtual Nuclear Deterrence Series event featuring Scowcroft Group Principal Frank Miller. At a time when nuclear modernization programs are accelerating around the world, proposals to recapitalize the U.S. nuclear arsenal are at the forefront of debates over defense spending. Miller will share his insights into the prospects for U.S. nuclear modernization programs and the value of nuclear deterrence in today's competitive security environment. The think tank will post event video on its website and YouTube page after the live event.