Category: United States Defense

Source: United States Air Force

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFNS) —  

AFWERX is partnering with NASA to develop a digital operations center for future Advanced Air Mobility efforts through the Civilian Commercialization Readiness Pilot Program awardee, ResilienX.   

With the fast-growing field of AAM technology, AFWERX’s Airspace Innovation and Prime Partnerships program has partnered with NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration to fill in technological and administrative gaps that present themselves. Earlier in 2023, AFWERX formalized these partnerships with a Memorandum of Understanding and participation in the AAM Interagency Working Group to plot the future of AAM. 

The CCRPP is a NASA Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer program which takes mission-relevant technologies in development and infuses them with funding intended to foster commercialization. 

This system is intended to enhance base security, special forces efforts, emergency disaster response, and passenger and cargo transportation planning. It is further being developed to include other technologies necessary for air domain awareness. 

“CCRPP is a true example of public-private partnership where government stakeholders and an industry consortium are working together on the airspace efforts,” said Darshan Divakaran, AFWERX Airspace Innovation and Prime Partnerships program manager. 

ResilienX is a company focused on the holistic safety assurance of AAM ecosystems and is leading the way with an industry consortium to create a digital system for AAM operations. The project intends to define and perform initial integration of an AAM Operations Center that is scalable, tactical and enables verification and validation of the various systems and sensors involved in uncrewed aerial systems, electric vertical take-off and landing operations, and other advanced aviation technologies. The initial AAM Operations Center will be built out in collaboration with NUAIR at the Syracuse Hancock International Airport, with an aim to test and transition it to additional locations by 2025. 

Each company in the consortium contributes their industry expertise and technological advancements to create the most robust system possible. As additional requirements are included by military and other government stakeholders, AFWERX plans to bring in additional industry partners in the next phase. 

“We are thrilled with the trust AFWERX has put in us to lead this consortium,” said Ryan Pleskach, CEO of ResilienX. “Through a dedicated systems engineering approach, we intend to develop a dual-use solution to the core digital infrastructure needed for advanced air mobility that is inherently scalable and extensible. Through this pioneering effort and with support of all the federal stakeholders that AFWERX is bringing to the table, we believe this solution will be turnkey and available to government and commercial markets in late 2024.” 

Utilizing the research expertise of NASA and AFWERX’s subject matter experts, this collaborative project will attempt to meet the needs of the emerging field of AAM operations. It is informed by the U.S. Air Force AAM Operations Center requirements through testing and operator interactions. 

“Agility Prime helped pave the way for government and industry to work together on aircraft certification,” Divakaran said. “The Airspace Innovation team is taking it a step forward with airspace integration, management and security efforts focused on emerging aviation technologies.” 

The first phase of development will include a detailed need and task assessment, feature development with user interviews and observations, initial integration of baseline technologies, and testing. The second phase will see user testing of human factors, safety development, prototype testing, and a live demonstration of the system. 

For this project, ResilienX has received $4.8 million in AFWERX and NASA funding through the CCRPP. The program is planned to progress through October 2025.

Source: United States Air Force

JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas (AFNS) —  

Air Force officials selected 506 Air Force senior master sergeants for promotion to chief master sergeant out of 2,249 eligible for a selection rate of 22.5% in the 23E9 promotion cycle, which includes supplemental promotion opportunities.

Senior raters will be granted access to the select lists via the Virtual Enlisted Promotion Release application on Nov. 29.

The chief master sergeant list will be publicly available on the Air Force Personnel Center Enlisted Promotions website Dec. 1 at 8 a.m. CST. Members will also be able to access their score notices on the virtual Military Personnel Flight via the AFPC secure page upon public release.

For more information about Air Force personnel programs, visit the AFPC public website.

Source: United States Air Force

JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas (AFNS) —  

Just ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin made his first visit to the 37th Training Wing, marking the occasion by presiding over the oath of enlistment for 756 graduating Airmen.

Allvin emphasized the importance of service in the U.S. Air Force, highlighting the commitment and dedication of the next generation.

“Congratulations, you made the team,” Allvin said to the newly graduated Airmen. “This is a team that requires commitment.”

He went on to say that Airmen today are serving in a “time of consequence” and their commitment to service has never been more important.

Additionally, Allvin’s address was a reminder of the magnitude of the oath they were about to take and what is yet to come in the next chapter of their life as an American Airman, reminding them to serve honorably.

Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force JoAnne S. Bass also attended the event and imparted her own words of wisdom and encouragement.

“I was you over 30 years ago when I joined this winning team,” Bass said.

Bass told the crowd she signed up for the G.I. Bill and to “figure out life.” Four years later, she signed up again to pay off her car.

“Somewhere I learned what it really meant to be on this winning team and what it means to wear our nation’s cloth,” she added.

She then asked the graduates to make the organization better, to make their career fields better and to make the Air Force better.

During the senior leader’s visit to the 37th Training Wing, they made a brief stop at the 344th Training Squadron where they were met by Senior Master Sgt. Ladiwina Gilly, Air Force Recruiting Schoolhouse superintendent.

Gilly spoke about the crucial role the schoolhouse plays in preparing recruiters to inspire and engage with the public, and showcased the behind-the-scenes role-playing training that was on-going at the time. Additionally, Gilly described the schoolhouse’s “Seats to Streets” effort.

The program is a modernized approach for recruiting students to help sharpen their skills by leaving the simulated lab room environment and taking to the streets to interact with people. With basic training graduations occurring 48 times per year, future recruiters have many opportunities to engage with guests at the Airman’s Coin Ceremony on Wednesdays.

“Seats to Streets effectively trains students on rejection and how to respond when told ‘no,’” Gilly said.

She emphasized to leadership that learning how to accept rejection was an important part of the training process.

Allvin and Bass visited with more than 60 of the Air Force’s newest recruiters in training and were able to gain insights into the training processes.

Following the recruiting schoolhouse, the visit continued along the training continuum to basic military training to tour BMT facilities and observe training in action.

While touring a dormitory and observing a trainee’s bed and locker area, Allvin decided to “pull a 341” from a trainee who was only in their second week of training. He indicated on the 341 that “this is impressive … keep pushing” and signed it “CSAF #23.”

A form 341 is used to document discrepancies or excellence for trainee performance. The CSAF’s note of encouragement was left on the trainee’s bed, only to be discovered later.

At the conclusion of the tour, Allvin and Bass expressed their gratitude for the warm welcome and praised the dedication and professionalism of the Airmen at the 37 TRW.

The visit underscored the vital role the wing plays in shaping the future of the Air Force.