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Stars and Stripes
A C-17 Globemaster III out of South Carolina has been dedicated to the memory of the Air Force’s legendary “candy bomber,” who brought relief to German children during the Berlin Airlift nearly 75 years ago. The aircraft was given the name “Spirit of the Candy Bomber” at a ceremony in Provo, Utah, during a two-day event to honor Col. Gail Halvorsen. Halvorsen, who died in February at the age of 101, conceived the idea to incorporate chocolate into deliveries of crucial supplies during the operation, which became a defining moment of the Cold War.
Breaking Defense
The Homeland Security Department’s cyber agency has assured lawmakers that it is working to understand the potential impacts of an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) on 5G cellular communications, as the U.S. government—including the Pentagon—rushes to keep pace with China. “We are certainly concerned about a range of risks, natural or human cause, that could degrade our critical infrastructure and national critical functions,” said Eric Goldstein, executive assistant director for cybersecurity at the department’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
Defense News
“America’s military leaders state time and again that China’s forcible assault on Taiwan, and therefore our response to it, is a near-term challenge. Given the lengthy time to plan, program, build and field credible combat power, a 2027 problem is really one of today. Alarm bells should be ringing in Congress as the president’s latest defense budget cuts readiness. Given that ongoing support for Ukraine is straining some key U.S. military supplies and munitions, everyone should be concerned the China fight would demand even more and faster. As this Pentagon team is plagued with ‘next war-itis’ by overly biasing research and development dollars to prepare for future wars over purchasing from hot production lines today, the result is the erosion of our few remaining competitive advantages,” writes Mackenzie Eaglen, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.
Airforce Technology
Air Force Special Operations Command incorporated defensive cyberspace operations into the training objectives of the Emerald Warrior 22.1 exercise. The exercise involved testing the effectiveness of a real-time cyber intrusion detection system on an aircraft. The training was conducted by AFSOC staff in collaboration with two mission defense teams and a commercial cybersecurity company, Shift5.
Defense News
Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak has announced that his country is launching the second phase of its mid-range air defense program by requesting that the U.S. government sell it six Patriot batteries with related gear. “We are advancing the contract on the second phase of the Wisła air defense program. I have signed a letter of request related to an acquisition of three divisions, or six batteries of the Patriot system, which will include omnidirectional radars, missile launchers, and a stock of missiles,” Błaszczak said.
Defense One
The Army’s Fort Bragg, N.C., would become Fort Liberty under recommendations by a commission that studied whether military bases with Confederate ties should be renamed. The commission also suggests that eight other bases be renamed for military heroes. Some Twitter users called the choice of “Fort Liberty” “lazy” and “jingoistic.”
Air Force release
A new memo formally outlines responsibilities related to the design, development, and sustainment of Space Force uniforms and signifies the close partnership between the newest military service and the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center’s Agile Combat Support (ACS) Directorate. Wade Yamada, deputy director of staff, Office of the Chief of Space Operations, and Lea Kirkwood, program executive officer and director of ACS, signed a memorandum of understanding May 16.
National Defense Magazine
Lockheed Martin has wrapped up production of the first of the Air Force’s new long-range air defense radars. In March, the Air Force announced it had selected the AN/TPY-4 for the Three Dimensional Expeditionary Long Range Radar, or 3DELRR, rapid prototyping program worth $8.4 million. The new ground-based radar is able to detect and track current and emerging threats, from small unmanned aerial vehicles to tactical ballistic missiles at great distances, said Rick Herodes, director of ground-based air surveillance radars at Lockheed Martin.
One More Thing
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Popular Mechanics
The 1960s were a tumultuous era in American history, and one of the milder controversies of the time was the phenomenon of unidentified flying objects, or UFOs. In response to more than 10,000 reported UFO sightings, the U.S. Air Force decided to release a pamphlet, Aids to Identification of Flying Objects, that gently steered people with UFO sightings away from thoughts of flying saucers and aliens and toward more grounded explanations. It marks a stark contrast to how the Pentagon handles UFOs, or what it now calls unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs), in the modern day.
