Air Force Reserve Command activated the 718th Intelligence Squadron at JB Langley-Eustis, Va., to help process imagery and signals intelligence gathered by USAF overhead sensor platforms and distribute useful information from that raw intelligence directly to troops in the fight. The squadron, authorized at nine officers and 79 enlisted personnel, will integrate with Langley’s 497th Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Group to operate Distributed Ground Station-1 there. DGS-1 is one of the major nodes in the Air Force Distributed Common Ground System, the service’s worldwide network of intelligence processing centers. The squadron, active as of June 7, reports to AFRC’s 940th Operations Group at Beale AFB, Calif. “The 718th will provide continuity and long-term experience to the DCGS mission, providing timely, relevant ISR support to warfighters at every level of combat,” said Col. Jon Ellis, 940th OG commander. (Robins release)
RTX, parent of Raytheon, Collins and Pratt & Whitney, is getting out of the space prime business and focusing on its "strengths" as a maker of space sensors, buses, and components, company COO Chris Calio said during an earnings call.