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Atlantic Ocean. (December 9, 2023) The U.S. Navy now launches the most sophisticated and deadly fifth generation aircraft from aircraft carriers around the world. In this photo by MC3 August Clawson, Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Aircraft Handling) 1st Class Michael Duffy, from Philadelphia, holds an F-35C Lightning II from Strike Fighter Squadron 147 on the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington while at sea.
The F-35 Lightning II is a multirole, stealthy, all-weather fighter that is now the standard attack jet produced by the multinational Joint Strike Fighter program. The Lightning II is designed for both air superiority and strike missions and will be the cornerstone of NATO and U.S.-allied air power until 2070. It is also able to provide electronic warfare including intelligence collection, surveillance, and reconnaissance. In addition to carrier landings, the F-35B variant provides short takeoff and vertical landing capability for the Marines.
The Lightning II replaces the A-10 Warthog and F-16 Eagle platforms with better penetrating capability to strike heavily defended targets. The plane carries an astonishing 22,000 pounds of weapons on six fuselage pylons and two internal bays for stealth. With a maximum speed of Mach 1.6 and a range of 1,700 miles, the Lightning II is equipped with a suite of AIM air-to-air missiles, the AGM series air-to-surface munitions, and stand-off attack weapons. For bombing missions, the Lightning II can deploy precision guided Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM), the GBU series glide bombs, and even a modified nuclear weapon.
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Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. (December 8, 2023): In this photo by Airman 1st Class Steven Cardo, Captain Joshua Holden with the 79th Fighter Squadron flashes his unit’s signature “Tiger, Tiger” hand signal as he prepares for take-off during Exercise Tiger Claw 24-2 held here recently. Air Force pilots and their support crews practiced operating from austere environments in dispersed locations as part of the Air Force’s Agile Combat Employment (ACE) doctrine.
The concept was born during World War II where airfields had to be improvised and quickly constructed and defended in austere environments. Today, the ACE concept calls for relying less on large traditional main overseas bases as hubs for projecting combat power and more on multiple, dispersed forward operating locations over great distances.
The plan envisions a lean, select group of Airmen deploying to far flung locations to prepare airfields in forward locations for fighter jets to land. This is part of a larger strategy to decentralize air assets to complicate the enemy’s targeting of friendly forces while expanding the options for commanders to go on the attack. This new policy is in response to the growing ability of adversaries to strike bases that have traditionally been considered sanctuaries.
No longer.
While operating from smaller, dispersed locations offers agile combat response, it also introduces a significant uncertainty factor that must be overcome. Information about enemy location, disposition, or activity will be incomplete, inaccurate, and potentially subject to adversary manipulation. As such, Air Force units must adapt their tactics to prevail despite these uncertainties. ACE will span air, space, cyberspace, land, maritime, and special operations forces who will need to be in the right places at the right times to evade enemy strikes while creating opportunities for commanders strike from multiple locations simultaneously.
For pilots like Captain Holden, the ACE concept will improve survivability and effectiveness of air units in any future war.
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Miramar, California. (December 3, 2023): In its ongoing efforts to improve communication between units, the Marines have harnessed satellites to serve mobile aerial and maritime platforms, ground vehicles, and dismounted soldiers. In this photo by Corporal Daniel Childs, Captain Akerin Lab with the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing demonstrates the Mobile User Objective System (MUOS), a satellite-based system to deliver global narrowband connectivity to troops on land and sea. The MUOS relies on a constellation of five satellites to enhance long-range, rapid communication between Marine units to expand their operational reach around the globe.
Developed by the Navy’s Office for Space Systems in conjunction with Lockheed Martin, the MUOS replaces the slower and less mobile 1990s-era Ultra High Frequency Follow-On (UFO) satellite communication system. The new system is designed for mobile users and can transmit voice, data, and video communications at higher data rates and greater distances than previous systems. For example, the MUOS has extended communications as far as the North Pole which is the most northern reach of any geosynchronous satellite system in history.
For the Marine on the ground, the MUOS system provides rapid, effective communication no matter where they are fighting, a capability that will save lives.
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Miramar, California. (December 3, 2023): In its ongoing efforts to improve communication between units, the Marines have harnessed satellites to serve mobile aerial and maritime platforms, ground vehicles, and dismounted soldiers. In this photo by Corporal Daniel Childs, Captain Akerin Lab with the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing demonstrates the Mobile User Objective System (MUOS), a satellite-based system to deliver global narrowband connectivity to troops on land and sea. The MUOS relies on a constellation of five satellites to enhance long-range, rapid communication between Marine units to expand their operational reach around the globe.
Developed by the Navy’s Office for Space Systems in conjunction with Lockheed Martin, the MUOS replaces the slower and less mobile 1990s-era Ultra High Frequency Follow-On (UFO) satellite communication system. The new system is designed for mobile users and can transmit voice, data, and video communications at higher data rates and greater distances than previous systems. For example, the MUOS has extended communications as far as the North Pole which is the most northern reach of any geosynchronous satellite system in history.
For the Marine on the ground, the MUOS system provides rapid, effective communication no matter where they are fighting, a capability that will save lives.
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San Diego, California. (December 7, 2023): In this photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Richard Uranga, crew members of the Coast Guard Cutter Waesche stand at attention on the flight deck as they prepare to offload drugs interdicted in the Eastern Pacific. Joined by the Cutter Active, these top-of-the-line ships eliminated 8,264 Kilograms of cocaine worth an estimated $239.7 million in value from the American streets.
Commanded by Captain Robert Mohr, the Waesche was commissioned in 2010 and is one of the most sophisticated vessels in the Coast Guard. This 418-foot-long cutter has a top speed of twenty-eight knots and a range of 12,000 miles. The Waesche has a hanger and flight deck to launch helicopters, essential to running down drug smugglers whose tactics are becoming more creative.
A third of this recent seizure came from a semisubmersible drug-running boat that was carrying 2.5 tons of cocaine in its hold. These so-called “drug subs” are custom made ocean going self-propelled vessels that sail nearly submerged to reduce the likelihood of detection by radar, sonar, and infrared systems. The cargo capacity varies but most can carry several tons of drugs as far away as Europe.
Multiple U.S. agencies, including the Departments of Defense, Justice, and Homeland Security work with the Coast Guard to combat international drug cartels. The FBI, Customs, and Drug Enforcement Administration also play a significant role in counter-narcotic operations.
Support Our Troops congratulates the highly professional crews of the Waesche and the Active on a job well done.
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Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea. (December 1, 2023): True partners have each other’s back. In this photo by Staff Sergeant Samuel Earick, South Korean and American Air Force military police secure their position during anti-terrorism drills held here recently. The U.S. Air Force 8th Security Forces and their opposite number, the South Korean 38th Fighter Group, defend this sprawling military facility of over 2,800 personnel and billions in vital air assets.
Kunsan Air Base is home to the 8th Fighter Wing, known as the "Wolf Pack," which is a part of the 7th Air Force based at Osan, South Korea, Kunsan is one of the last of the Air Force’s “warrior bases” where members serve for one year unaccompanied by family. All troops assigned to the base live in the old-fashioned dormitory style.
Also based at Kunsan is the Army's 2nd Battalion, 1st Air Defense Artillery, which is equipped with Patriot missiles to protect the base against tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and even advanced aircraft.
Located on the west coast of the Korean peninsula, Kunsan Air Base will be a major hub for follow on forces from the United States in time of war. Originally built by the Japanese as a fighter-interceptor base in 1938, Kunsan was recaptured by the U.S. Army's 3rd Battalion, 24th Infantry and became home to the U.S. Military Assistance Advisory Group at the end of World War II.
Toay’s Air Force security forces go through extensive training in law enforcement and combat tactics to protect bases like these both stateside and overseas. In this exercise, the Americans joined the South Korean 38th Fighter Group police to tackle various scenarios ranging from a simulated firefight to the apprehension of opposing forces.