Maj. Gen. Steven Rudder, director for strategic planning and policy at the U.S. Pacific Command, has been nominated by President Donald Trump to serve deputy commandant for aviation at the U.S. Marine Corps headquarters.

The Defense Department said Wednesday that President Trump also endorsed the promotion of Rudder to the rank of lieutenant general.

Rudder previously served as commanding general of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing as well as supply officer and platoon commander of the 3rd Amphibious Assault Battalion.

His previous assignments have included roles such as maintenance quality assurance officer; weapons and tactics instructor; logistics and operations officer; future operations officer; and military assistant at the office of the secretary of defense, among others.

Rudder was also deployed to Japan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Qatar, Iraq and the U.S. European Command and Central Command‘s areas of responsibility.

The 49th Wing at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico has conducted a five-day surge to test the capacities of the base’s airmen and civilian personnel in a remotely piloted aircraft mission.

The U.S. Air Force said Wednesday the 6th, 9th and 29th Attack Squadrons performed 45 sorties for more than 465 flight hours using a General Atomics-built MQ-9 Reaper RPA to help maintainers, sensor operators and student pilots discover and experience the platform’s limitations.

The event also provided commanders with an opportunity to exercise the MQ-9 system and analyze the accuracy, competency and proficiency of the operating squadrons.

Holloman AFB’s aircraft maintenance team played a role during the surge in operations when both aircraft and simulators were fully utilized to the maximum extent possible in support of student training efforts.

“Right now we are launching aircraft that will stay airborne for 10, 11 or 12 hours, and it takes a very fine-tuned sequence and schedule in order to execute launching those operations,” said Lt. Col. Timothy Monroe, commander of the 9th Attack Squadron.

Army Reserve Maj. Gen. Ricky Waddell, commander of the 76th Operational Response Command, has been selected to succeed K.T. McFarland as deputy national security adviser, Politico reported Wednesday.

Waddell will report directly to Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who received Senate confirmation for the national security adviser post in March, and will oversee daily operations and lead deputy panel meetings.

The report said McFarland is set to leave for Singapore later this year to serve as a U.S. ambassador.

Waddell previously served as deputy commander for mobilization and reserve affairs at the U.S. Southern Command in Florida before he assumed the 76th ORC commander post in October 2015.

The 35-year Army Reserve veteran also served as director for European security affairs at NSC, instructor at the U.S. Military Academy’s social sciences department and commander of the C Company under the 35th engineer battalion.

He held other military assignments that include energy sector strategic analyst at the U.S. Central Command and special assistant at the office of deputy undersecretary of the Army.

He is a recipient of numerous awards such as Defense Superior Service Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal and Meritorious Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster.

The U.S. Marine Corps and Navy hosted a 10-day exercise in April for defense, commercial and academic organizations to showcase emerging technology platforms such as unmanned aerial, multi-utility tactical transport and autonomous assault amphibious vehicles.

The Defense Department said Wednesday that its civilian employees, contractors and  members of the Office of Naval Research and other research laboratories participated in the Ship-to-Shore Maneuver Exploration and Experimentation Advanced Naval Technology Exercise 2017 that occurred at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in California.

S2ME2 ANTX participants demonstrated technologies in five amphibious operational areas including ship-to-shore maneuver, weapons fire support and effects, command and control, clearing assault lanes and information warfare.

“The large scope of this exercise allows the Navy and Marine Corps to make informed decisions about future generations of technology for use by the warfighter,” said David Walker, ONR director of technology.

“This pairing of sailors and Marines with scientists and technologists will help move innovation at a faster pace.”

The event also showcased ONR- and Naval Research Laboratory-sponsored systems such as the Battlespace Exploitation of Mixed Reality Laboratory, Mine Warfare Rapid Assessment Capability quadcopter and the Coalition Tactical Awareness and Response system.

DoD noted that some of the technologies presented during S2ME2 ANTX might also be featured at the upcoming Bold Alligator, a multinational series of amphibious exercises co-hosted by the Marine Corps Forces Command and the U.S. Fleet Forces Command.

David Norquist, President Donald Trump’s nominee for the Defense Department comptroller post, has said the time is ripe for DoD to undergo an audit, Federal News Radio reported Wednesday.

Norquist told lawmakers Wednesday during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing that DoD has begun audit readiness efforts over the last seven years without initiating a “full-scope audit,” according to the station.

“Everything you have heard about the size and complexity of the department is true,” he said.

“But that is not a reason to delay the audit. That is a reason to begin.”

Norquist also cited the challenge associated with the Pentagon’s large number of accounting platforms.

“It’s not essential to get down to one, but getting down to a small number would be a step in the right direction.”

Norquist is a partner at Alexandria, Virginia-based certified public accounting firm Kearney & Co. and former chief financial officer of the Department of Homeland Security.