A US Space Force Academy? Raymond Weighs In

June 17, 2021 | By Greg Hadley

Go Space Force, beat Air Force?

At least one U.S. Senator has expressed interest establishing a new service academy dedicated to the fledgling service branch. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) floated the idea June 17 during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, pressing Chief of Space Operations Gen. John W. “Jay” Raymond on the topic.

“I’ve spoken in every Academy in our country, leadership, and organization. I’m very proud of them,” Tuberville said. “And I just hope that … we’ve got great institutions in this country, but I think we need something maybe where just we specialize with space.”

Raymond, however, said he didn’t think such an institution was necessary at this point.

“I think one of the things is, as an independent service, you have to develop your own people,” Raymond said. On the officer side, we only bring in about 300 or so folks a year. I’m very comfortable that the Air Force Academy is developing those people for us.

“In fact, you know, two years ago, before the Space Force stood up, we only got 30 cadets out of the Academy. The first year, last year, out of the Academy, we received 86. This year, 118. So we’re coming up on a little less than half of our total population coming from the Academy. And the talent that we’re getting is really top-tier talent, including a Rhodes Scholar. And so the Academy has a strong astro program—they’ve got a strong space program. I’m very comfortable that they are producing the the officers that we need to cover the Space Force, and they’re doing really good work.”

The Space Force has only existed as an independent service branch since December 2019, and no plans for a service academy were included in the service’s initial proposal. Tuberville, however, represents a state with a strong Space Force connection, as the city of Huntsville, Alabama, was selected as the new headquarters for U.S. Space Command. That decision has been protested and is currently under review.

There are five service academies: the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the U.S. Naval Academy, the U.S. Air Force Academy, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Like the Space Force construct, the U.S. Marine Corps commissions officers from the Naval Academy.

While Raymond didn’t sound interested in the idea of a separate Space Force Academy, he did express optimism about the service’s newly launched University Partnership Program, which was initially joined by 10 to 12 schools.

“What we are seeing, and what I am seeing as you go around to the schools, is that there is an increased amount of folks that are applying for space-related STEM degrees, which is important,” Raymond said. “I think it’s going to pay great dividends for our nation. What we’re trying to do with our University Partnership Program is partner with those folks and then attract them to come into the Space program. I’ve talked to [NASA administrator] Nelson—I’d really like to partner with them as well. I think there’s great opportunity here for the youth of America.

USAF, Boeing Resolving Two More KC-46 Deficiencies

June 17, 2021 | By Brian W. Everstine

The Air Force and Boeing are addressing two previously unannounced Category 1 deficiencies on the KC-46. The issues, affecting the aircraft’s receptacle drain line tubes and Flight Management System, will be fixed at Boeing’s expense.

“There are no operational restrictions on fielded KC-46s due to either of these deficiencies, nor do they affect [Air Mobility Command’s] plan for KC-46 Interim Capability Release,” said USAF spokesman Capt. Joshua D. Benedetti in a statement. “The [System Program Office] and Boeing have established operational processes and maintenance procedures to mitigate impacts and ensure the issues do not add extra risk to personnel, aircraft or operations.”

The air refueling receptacle drain line developed cracks in low-temperature conditions, according to the Air Force, and Boeing is redesigning the drain tube to address the issue.

The aircraft have also suffered isolated incidents of Flight Management System instability during operations. Boeing and subcontractor GE Aviation identified the need for a long-term software fix, and for the short term, Boeing is developing updated procedures to ensure the system’s stability in flight. The system became an issue in a March 3 flight over the Pacific, causing the crew to use other navigation systems to safely land in Hawaii, according to Defense News, which first reported the deficiencies.

While the fixes have been identified, they are still classified as Category 1 deficiencies. Four others relate to the aircraft’s Remote Vision System, fuel leaks, and a “stiff” refueling boom that requires an actuator redesign. An improved Remote Vision System 2.0 is now in preliminary design review, and the Air Force expects installations to begin in 2023.

Earlier this year, the Air Force resolved two other Category 1 deficiencies on the KC-46: a duct clamp that moved excessively and a drain mast on the outside of the tail that could potentially break loose.

Hundreds of less serious Category 2 deficiencies with the aircraft persist, defined as issues that do not impact the safety of flight and have workarounds in place to continue operations. These include a problem with the jet’s Aerial Refueling Software for which the Air Force has developed a workaround, Air Force Magazine reported.

Brown: DOD Needs Up to 5% More Money, Plus Aircraft Cuts, to Compete With China

June 16, 2021 | By John A. Tirpak

Even with a 3 percent to 5 percent increase in the defense budget, losing a conflict with China still becomes a “distinct possibility” without both aircraft cuts and a fundamental change in how the Air Force structures itself for war, Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. warned lawmakers June 16.

Asked by House Armed Services Committee ranking member Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) whether Brown agrees with the 2018 National Defense Strategy Commission’s finding that Pentagon spending should be increased 3 percent to 5 percent, Brown replied simply, “I do.”

Brown said he shares the committee’s concerns over the defense budget’s top line, saying that’s “exactly why I wrote ‘Accelerate Change or Lose’—because I do see risk if we do not.”

The fiscal 2022 budget prioritizes modernization, which drove the Air Force to request retiring some systems now “to ensure that we do not have future risk,” Brown said. He declined to say the Air Force needs a bigger share of the budget despite its key role in deterring China in the Indo-Pacific.

In his opening statement, Brown said the Air Force must bring about change faster because if it continues with “incremental” improvements, “losing becomes a distinct possibility.”

Under questioning from Chairman Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), Brown said he’s confident the budget matches the “vision” of a 10- to 15-year evolution in the fighter force to a more capable fleet able to deal with China’s rise in the Indo-Pacific.

“We are in a position of transition,” Brown said.

The Air Force is replacing the F-15C with the F-15EX because the C model is “really starting to show its age.” Meanwhile, the service is retaining the youngest F-16s, which can serve “another 15-20 years.” The budget calls for cutting 42 A-10s, with the remaining modernized fleet serving “into the middle of the next decade,” he said. The F-35 will remain the “cornerstone” of the force.

The F-22 will receive upgrades to serve for the same timeframe, then the Next-Generation Air Dominance fighter will succeed it. Collectively, Brown refers to this scheme as the “four plus one” fighter fleet plan: the NGAD, F-35, F-15EX, F-16, and A-10.

When asked by Rogers if the committee will receive the service’s Future Years Defense Plan, Roth deferred to the Pentagon.

“You have to understand that as we prepared this FY 22 budget with the Office of the Secretary of Defense,” Roth continued, “given the focus on the short timeframe—and we were late to begin with—but given the short timeframe, the focus was entirely on FY 22. There were no decisions made about the out years, so there really isn’t an out-years FYDP to be provided at this time.”

Under questioning from Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.), Brown declined to offer an opinion about whether the U.S. would ever invade China by land or why the “AirSea Battle” concept by the Air Force and Navy, according to Luria, “did not survive first contact with the Joint Staff.” She said a spokesman said the land component was missing from the concept.

“Think about that,” she said. “The missing part of an AirSea Battle concept was the land portion. … I guess the spokesman forgot about the Marine Corps.” Brown said that in the Western Pacific, “Air definitely plays a role.”

He added, “To me, I really do see air and sea, but really, across the Joint team and across all domains is where I expect that conflict to occur.” He said it’s hard to predict if a land invasion would be required but that he wants “to make sure we have options in the future.”

Luria asked Brown if the “1/3, 1/3, 1/3” divisions of funds for the services makes sense in the context of conflict with China and whether he believes “the Air Force and Navy require more resources to deal with this current conflict?” Brown responded that “naturally I’d like to have more” but that the services have to parse out “the redundancies we have” in the context of the Joint Warfighting Concept “to ensure we have the right capabilities for the Joint Force.”

Luria said she wanted to underscore “that I really, strongly believe the Air Force and Navy have a larger role to play in the Western Pacific and was hoping you would come here—just as (Chief of Naval Operations) Adm. (Michael M.) Gilday yesterday—and advocate for that because I think this is truly essential to the defense of our nation and what we might face in the Western Pacific in the future.”

USAF Reaches Out to Industry for ‘Bridge Tanker’

June 16, 2021 | By Brian W. Everstine

The Air Force is seeking options for a “bridge tanker” to fill the gap in tanker capacity anticipated between the end of KC-46 Pegasus production and development of a future refueler.

USAF’s Life Cycle Management Center on June 16 issued a Sources Sought Announcement seeking qualified, interested companies to provide a commercial derivative aircraft “based on existing and emerging” technologies. While specific requirements are not fully defined, the Air Force said the tanker can be crewed or uncrewed and does not need to be a low-observable aircraft.

The Air Force will release a final request for proposals by the end of 2022 once requirements are locked in.

“The KC-135 will be 70 years old when the Air Force expects to receive its last KC-46 delivery in 2029, and replacing these vital aircraft continues to be critical to the Air Force mission to project Rapid Global Mobility in today’s strategically competitive environment,” the Air Force said in a release.

USAF officials first mentioned the bridge tanker project in late 2020, promising a “full and open competition.”

“The Secretary of the Air Force has committed to a continuous recapitalization of tanker aircraft,” Air Mobility Command boss Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost said at the Airlift/Tanker Association’s October conference. “We’re going to have a bridge tanker—we’ll have a full and open competition—on an aircraft to continue to recapitalize … the KC-135.”

While the sources sought notice is seeking interested companies, just two aircraft are mature enough for the competition: the KC-46 and the Airbus A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport, which lost to the Pegasus in the previous competition.

The announcement comes amid continued public criticism of the KC-46 program on Capitol Hill. During a June 16 hearing, multiple members of the House Armed Services Committee said the Air Force should consider re-competing the KC-46 program because of extensive delays and performance issues with the Boeing aircraft.

Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.) accused the Air Force of paying $226 million for a “lemon.” He said “it is time that something changes.”

Acting Air Force Secretary John P. Roth defended the program and said re-competing the tanker program makes no “economic or business sense.” The best way forward, he said, is to work within current contracts to improve the aircraft to make it “hopefully ready” by 2023 or 2024.

F-16s, C-130s, KC-135s Training in Morocco for Exercise African Lion

June 16, 2021 | By Brian W. Everstine

Several U.S. Air Force aircraft including F-16s, C-130s, and KC-135s have deployed to northern Africa for the continent’s largest exercise, African Lion.

The exercise drew 7,000 participants from nine nations and wraps up June 18 with USAF aircraft flying alongside Moroccan aircraft for close air support training and C-130s airdropping personnel.

“The arrival of fighters and tankers adds another level to this already dynamic exercise,” said Gen. Jeffrey L. Harrigian, U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa commander, in a release. “Every flight brings another opportunity to work closely with our partners and exchange best practices so we can better pursue our shared goals.”

F-16s from the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base, Italy, and KC-135s from the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall, United Kingdom, arrived in Morocco on June 14. C-130Js from the 86th Airlift Wing at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, deployed even earlier.

The F-16s conducted an Agile Combat Employment training event June 16, flying from Ben Guerir Air Base in Morocco, engaging in close air support missions at a nearby range, then landing at Guelmim Airfield to reload and refuel. The aircraft took off again, flew another mission, and returned to Ben Guerir. All told, the F-16s dropped seven 500-pound bombs, according to a release.

The C-130s flew weapons, support equipment, and personnel to Guelmim as part of the ACE event.

“The teams down at African Lion are taking ACE to the next level by executing it in Africa for the first time,” Harrigian said. “Demonstrating these capabilities in new austere locations solidifies our unmatched ability to rapidly deploy combat-credible forces to any location.”

This year’s event is the first since 2019; the 2020 exercise was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to Morocco, Tunisia and Senegal also hosted activities as part of African Lion.

Brown: NGAD Will be a Multirole Fighter

June 16, 2021 | By John A. Tirpak

The Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) system—the fighter that will succeed the F-22—will have ground attack capability possibly for its own protection, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. told lawmakers June 16.

Testifying before the House Armed Services Committee on the fiscal 2022 budget request, Brown said he wants the NGAD to have “multirole” capability, emphasizing that the aircraft’s primary role will be air dominance but with the ability to strike ground targets as well.

Compared to the F-22, Brown said the NGAD will have “increased weapons load [and] … increased range” necessary to operate at the great distances required in the Indo-Pacific theater.

The NGAD will have “some air-to-ground capability to ensure, one, that it can survive, but also to provide options for our air component commanders and for the Joint Force,” Brown said, suggesting that the NGAD will be able to shoot at air defense systems that threaten it.

Retired Gen. James M. Holmes, former of Air Combat Command, has said there may be two variants of NGAD: one with long range and payload for the Indo-Pacific and one more oriented to the relatively short ranges between possible battle areas in Europe.

The NGAD is described as a “family of systems” that allows the Air Force to control the sky at times and places of its choosing, but its centerpiece will be a fighter aircraft. Other parts of the system are likely to be unmanned escort aircraft to carry extra munitions and perform other missions.

During the hearing, Brown also confirmed that the Air Force’s reason for not including more F-35s on its unfunded priorities list is that it prefers to wait for the more advanced Block 4 version of the jet.

“The F-35 we have today is not necessarily the F-35 we want to have that goes into the future, that will have Tech Refresh 3 and Block 4 against an advancing … Chinese threat,” Brown said.

The Air Force has put more F-35s on its unfunded priority list for the last several years, and Congress has obliged, adding 12 jets every year to the Air Force’s request for 48. However, members of the HASC in previous hearings this year have said they would fight against adding more F-35s to USAF’s request because the previous adds have exacerbated parts shortages and lowered the aircraft’s mission capable rates.

Brown emphasized that, while there were F-15EXs in the unfunded priority list, that move is meant to swiftly try to reduce the average age of the fighter fleet, which now is about 29 years old.

“Even with the unfunded priority list, the majority of new fighters we’re going to buy will be F-35s,” Brown said. But the Air Force did put F-35 sustainment items in the list because improvement in this area is a critical priority, he said.

Internal documents obtained by Air Force Magazine have shown the service intends to reduce its F-35 buy through the rest of the Future Years Defense Program to about 43 per year, in anticipation of Block 4 aircraft, which start coming off the production line sometime after 2025. The Government Accountability Office recently reported further slips in that timeline.

Editor’s note: This story was updated at 3:13 p.m. June 18 to correctly attribute the statement that there could be two variants of NGAD to former Air Combat Combat boss retired Gen. James M. Holmes.

Technical Problems Push T-7A Production Decision Back At Least One Year

June 16, 2021 | By Brian W. Everstine

The Air Force is requesting limited funding for its T-7A Red Hawk next-generation trainer because of technical issues uncovered in testing, which have pushed back the full-rate production decision on the aircraft by at least a year.

The 2022 budget request calls for $188.9 million in research, development, test, and evaluation funding for the T-7. This is below the $206.4 million projected for fiscal 2022 in the 2021 budget request’s future year defense program. The Air Force is not releasing FYDP information this year. The 2022 budget also requests just $10.4 million in advance procurement funding for the T-7.

The Air Force, in a statement, said multiple issues are inhibiting the Red Hawk’s progress toward production. For example, the Milestone C decision, or full-rate production, slipped from 2022 to 2023 because of supplier-side critical parts shortages, initial design delays, and the need for more testing after the “discovery of aircraft wing rock,” which means the T-7 can be unstable in the roll axis when flying at high angles of attack.

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. reassured members of the House Armed Services Committee on June 16 that despite the decrease in funding, the service remains committed to replacing its aging T-38s with the T-7.

“Our focus and commitment to the T-7 has not waned,” Brown said. “We want to make sure the money aligns with where the program is.”

The Air Force has touted the use of digital engineering for the T-7, with then-Air Force Secretary Barbara M. Barrett announced in September 2020 that Boeing’s Red Hawk trainer jet would be the first plane to earn an “e” designation, as the eT-7A, signifying it was designed and tested using digital engineering. Digital engineering uses advanced computer modeling and simulation, and technology like virtual and augmented reality, to quickly draw up hardware blueprints and vet how various configurations would work in the real world without building a physical prototype.

However, officials told Air Force Magazine on June 16 there is an “inherent schedule risk because of the aggressive nature of the program’s schedule.”

The T-7 APT program office is “continuously analyzing methods to improve schedule” and is working with Boeing with the goal of a Milestone C production decision in fiscal 2023. Previous acquisition reports projected the decision to be made in 2022.

Boeing said in February that the first production aircraft will roll out in early 2022. The first airworthy T-7 will be delivered in 2023, and the first squadron is expected to be operational in 2024, with full operational capability in 2034. The company wants to build up to five deliveries per month, with the Air Force planning to buy 351 T-7As.

The Air Force, in an April acquisition report, said the aircraft had flown more than 250 test sorties, and it was expected to enter Phase 2 of developmental testing in 2021.

New GBSD Facilities ‘On The Path’ To Stay On Budget

June 16, 2021 | By Greg Hadley

Plans to upgrade facilities for the new Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD) program remain “on the path” to stay on budget as the Minuteman III replacement’s development progresses, Air Force Lt. Gen. Warren D. Berry told a Senate subcommittee June 16.

“GBSD, where you’re essentially going to replace a silo a week for eight years, is going to be a very complicated endeavor … so we’re very grateful for the authorities we’ve gotten from Congress,” said Berry, the deputy chief of staff for logistics, engineering, and force protection. “And I think those authorities that we have received have at least set us on the path to realizing the goal of staying on cost and on budget for the GBSD transition.”

Berry told the Senate Appropriations military construction subcommittee that a key focus of the department’s military construction request this year was modernizing its nuclear facilities. In total, $98 million was requested for GBSD facilities—$67 million at Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., and the rest at Hill Air Force Base, Utah.

But while GBSD remains on track and well funded in the budget, Berry was also pressed by Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) about the lack of MILCON funding for a new Weapons Generation Facility at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota that would accommodate both the base’s B-52 bombers and its land-based nuclear weapons.

“This is the only dual nuclear base in the country operating in an older facility, so it seems to me it’s of great importance. Can you tell me the timeline there?” Hoeven asked.

Berry said he could not offer a specific date for when that construction might begin but did note the challenges presented in trying to build a facility for both bombers and missiles.

“It is very, very complicated. The WGFs themselves are complicated and complex facilities, when you design in all of the safety and security standards that come with that weapons system,” Berry said.

Also at Minot, more than $70 million was appropriated across 2019 and 2020 for a consolidated helicopter facility to house, repair, and operate the new MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter, which will replace the aging UH-1Ns used for security at the Air Force’s nuclear missile fields.

But while the MH-139A itself has been delayed by issues with FAA certification, there has also been no construction for the Minot facility despite Hoeven saying he was “expecting that y’all would have had a groundbreaking by now.”

The delay is due to higher-than-expected bids from constructors, and the service is looking for ways to reduce costs, Berry said. When a contract finally is awarded, it will take roughly two years to complete the facility, he added.

Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) also questioned Berry on the status of construction for a new Weapons Storage and Maintenance Facility at Malmstrom Air Force Base in his state. About $235 million was authorized for the project in fiscal 2020.

“Right now, talking to our design and construction agent, we believe that we’ll be ready for a contract award in spring 2022,” Berry said. “So once we do the contract award, we can start doing mobilization and you can start doing the actual construction at that site.”

Norms for Space Should Be Key to Arms Control Negotiations, Generals Say

June 15, 2021 | By Greg Hadley

Multilateralism and norms of behavior in the space domain should be prioritized in any future arms control negotiations, senior military leaders told Congress on June 15.

U.S. Northern Command boss Gen. Glen D. VanHerck and Deputy Commander for U.S. Space Command Lt. Gen. John Shaw both testified to a House Armed Services subcommittee as part of a hearing on the fiscal 2022 budget for missile defense programs, and both offered similar answers when asked by Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.) what they would want discussed first in any negotiation.

“First of all, I think that any arms control discussion these days should not be unilaterally with a single country with the two peer competitors that we have. It would be nice to have that discussion with both Russia and China,” VanHerck said. “I do believe there’s opportunities to discuss arms, including non-kinetic, such as cyber and space, where we can establish lanes in the road, where I’m very concerned about unintentional escalation in those areas.”

Shaw added, “The space domain, it’s not a global common. It’s an extra-global common, and so I would echo what General VanHerck said, that whenever you talk about something in the space domain, you have to involve all the parties that are participating in that, so it would have to be multilateral. I would think the first thing I would want to look at in the space domain is norms of responsible behavior within that domain, expectations of what is professional behavior versus non-professional behavior things, things that help us to avoid escalation in that domain that could lead to a crisis globally.”

Garamendi’s questioning comes the day before U.S. President Joe Biden is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a highly-anticipated summit amid rising tensions between the two great powers. The issue of rules for behavior in space has been an area recently stressed by U.S. Chief of Space Operations Gen. John W. “Jay” Raymond as well.

Also on June 15, VanHerck voiced support for the Homeland Defense Radar-Hawaii (HDR-H), a long-planned missile defense sensor that went unfunded in the 2022 budget. At the same time, VanHerck said, the military would be able to defend Hawaii from threats regardless.

“I believe [HDR-H] gives us additional capability for an underlayer that would support the defense of Hawaii, specifically given additional capability and capacity,” VanHerck said. “But let’s be clear, at this moment in time, I’m comfortable with my ability to defend Hawaii. That doesn’t mean I don’t support the sensor, though.”

VanHerck’s focus on enhanced warning systems and sensors also came up when he was asked to elaborate on his statement last week to a Senate subcomittee that the 2022 budget “didn’t move the ball very far” in terms of resources for the Arctic region, an increasingly contested and strategically valuable area.

Referring to his unfunded priorities list, VanHerck mentioned “over-the-horizon radar capabilities, Arctic communications capabilities, as well as polar over-the-horizon” as areas where he’d like to see more resources. He also cited the need to build up infrastructure and support for Navy and Army forces.