Private Sector SATCOM and Tactical Networking
Industry Support & Challenges / By Ken Peterman: The U.S. Army is currently building an Aviation Mission Common Server (AMCS) to enhance storage, data processing and transport capabilities across every aircraft in order to ensure the current fleet is ready to fight and win in multi-domain operations. Viasat commends the Army for implementing AMCS and other initiatives to enhance communications technology across airborne platforms and speed up the introduction of new capabilities. In order to maintain a tactical edge and deter near-peer adversaries, it will be critical for the U.S. military to deliver enhanced communications and cloud-enabled technologies across all...
Learn MoreCorneal Refractive Surgery for Applicants
Ask the Flight Surgeon / By MAJ (Dr.) Eric Abdul: The popularity and success of corneal refractive surgery (such as LASIK, LASEK or PRK) has prompted questions from those applying for Aviation duty. Here is an introduction to the topic for initial applicants. Photo: Army.mil FS: Light enters the eye through the clear portion of its front known as the cornea. The cornea refracts, or bends, incoming light through the lens and directs it onto the retina at the back of the eye. Most of the refractive power of the eye resides in the spherical shape of the cornea, with...
Learn MoreAviation Support Facility (AASF) – The Center of Gravity
Reserve Components Aviation / By COL Joseph Bishop: In my previous article I focused on how the ARNG utilizes its Theater Aviation Sustainment Maintenance Groups as one element within a holistic aviation sustainment maintenance architecture. The second element within that maintenance architecture and where the rubber meets the road are the 97 Aviation Support Facilities across the United States. The AASFs are the center of gravity for unit level aviation maintenance and the hub for aircrews that operate Army aircraft. Kankakee ARNG Aviation Support Facility ILARNG is the ARNG’s newest aviation support facility. The Kankakee ASF is home to 1-106...
Learn MoreLow Altitude Training
Combat Readiness Center / By COL Jason L. Miller: Army units are moving rapidly to fully implement the training required to prepare for large-scale combat operations (LSCO) against a peer or near-peer competitor. This training will focus on the tactics necessary to rapidly deploy, execute combined arms maneuver, and succeed in a complex, multi-domain environment. One of the primary challenges is training Soldiers who have been fighting counterinsurgency (COIN) for over a decade to refocus their efforts to fight against a threat which requires them to fly at terrain flight and nap-of-the-earth altitudes. As our branch chief put it, “We...
Learn MoreTraining to Fight in Large Scale Combat Operations
Branch Chief’s Corner / By MG David J. Francis: It was 0320 hours and the lead troop of the squadron had just made it through their passage point across a low saddle with heavily wooded hilltops on either side. It added a couple of extra minutes to the route, but it avoided a built up area and more importantly this saddle gave them a gap they could exploit where the threat systems could not “see” them, either visually or with their advanced tech. Sure, their cutting-edge Aircraft Survivability Equipment could acquire and defeat almost anything on the battlefield…almost anything. But...
Learn MoreCareer Decisions
By CW5 Jonathan Kozio: Being a Soldier in the United States Army is a demanding profession. Long days training, weeks away from home, and deployments. Now, let’s add a family to the mix and the management of time gets far more difficult. The demand for aviation assets to support training and deployment rotations has not slowed, which strains our Soldiers and their families. U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 John Marsh and Capt. Nicholas Bruno, assigned to the 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, taxi their UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, on Chièvres Air Base, Belgium, Oct. 23, 2019./ U.S....
Learn MoreArmy Aviation Moving Out!
President’s Cockpit / By MG Jeff Schloesser: The holidays are almost upon us, and so it’s a great time to reflect back over the year, and what a great year it’s been for Army Aviation! Deployed AAAA Aviation Mission Survivability Officer of the year CW4 William Roth’s wife and daughters accept the award and congratulations on his behalf during the ASE Symposium on Nov. 18, 2019 in Huntsville, AL./ AAPI PHOTO BY CHEALSEA JARVIS Army Aviation leaders at all levels have settled into their jobs, and are pushing our entire enterprise forward, working hand in hand with OSD, Congress, and...
Learn MoreAUSA’s Senior Leaders Town Hall
Family Forum / By Judy Konitzer: AUSA’s 2019 Annual Meeting and Exposition was held in Washington D.C. from October 14-16, and thanks to technology I was able to view many of the live forums and events as can you at ausa.org/events/2019-annual-meeting/live-stream. During “The Family Forum Army Senior Leaders Town Hall,” The Honorable Ryan D. McCarthy, Secretary of the Army; GEN James C. McConville, Chief of Staff of the Army; and SMA Michael A. Grinston, Sergeant Major of the Army, shared their philosophy and responded to questions from the audience, as well as from other venues. They collectively agreed that “our...
Learn MoreWarrant Officer Flight Training Program
By CW4 Becki Chambers: This reason is what motivated CW2 Elizabeth Kruchek to join. Elizabeth grew up in Laingsburg, MI, a small town just northwest of Lansing. During her sophomore year of high school, Elizabeth had the opportunity to participate in a German exchange program. She says the experience changed her life and opened her eyes to the world that existed outside of her tiny hometown. She became hooked on travel, and has since lived in many states, and not all because of the Army. Left to right: Madeline Heath, Elizabeth Kruchek, Tarrissa Vincent When Elizabeth was a teenager, her mother...
Learn MoreDelivering Systems in Support of Multi Domain Operations
PM UAS / By COL Scott Anderson: In December 2018, Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) released TRADOC Pamphlet 525-3-1, “The U.S. Army in Multi-Domain Operations 2028.” This document serves as the first step in the doctrinal evolution for future operations of the Army of 2028 across all warfighting domains – air, land, sea, space, and cyber. It provides a foundation for continued discussion, analysis, and development of our warfighting methods to comprehend enabling the joint force on the future battlefield. This evolution of comprehension and understanding will guide organizational change, as well as inform decisions about future operational changes and...
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