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Lloyd Austin: US Capabilities to Strike, Track Global Threats Have Evolved Since 2001
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Lloyd Austin: US Capabilities to Strike, Track Global Threats Have Evolved Since 2001

Lloyd Austin, secretary of the Department of Defense and a 2021 Wash100 Award winner, said he believes the U.S. is now safer than in 2001 given the capabilities it has acquired and developed when it comes to collecting, analyzing and tracking threats worldwide, Voice of America reported Sunday.

“Our ability to strike has increased by orders of magnitude. What's most important is that as a government, we operate a lot better with any interagency in terms of our ability to share information, our ability to coordinate and deconflict,” Austin told VOA in an interview.

“So, because of all of those things, I would say, yeah, we are safer,” he added.

Austin talked about evacuation efforts in Afghanistan, the counterterror war and his top priority.

“We know that we have to maintain a focus, in order to defend this country, which is my top priority, we have to maintain a focus on countering transnational terrorism and preventing terrorists from exporting terror from any place on the globe to our homeland, and we will remain focused on that with a laser focus,” he noted.

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Trade Association Urges U.S. Government to Speed Up Implementation of Aircraft Engine Emission Rules
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Trade Association Urges U.S. Government to Speed Up Implementation of Aircraft Engine Emission Rules

The Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) is calling on the U.S. government to expedite review of potential rule changes for aircraft engines to facilitate the implementation of global standards meant to reduce soot emissions ahead of the 2023 deadline and avoid any potential supply chain disruption, Reuters reported Friday.

"Any delay to regulatory implementation would create uncertainty, potentially significantly impacting our supply chain, airline deliveries, and damage U.S. industry’s overall global competitiveness," Leslie Riegle, assistant vice president of civil aviation at AIA, told the news agency.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is expected to come up with a final rule on aircraft engines by September 2022 and any rule changes should be reviewed and approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

General Electric has urged the current administration to speed up the rulemaking process in order for engine makers to have "clear standards for demonstrating compliance prior to the 2023 deadline." 

The Biden administration announced Thursday several federal actions as part of efforts to reduce aviation emissions by 20 percent by 2030 and achieve a zero-carbon aviation sector by 2050.

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Climate-related risks to the national security mission and the role of data analytics tools in climate adaptation will be the key points of discussion at the Potomac Officers Club's virtual event on Tuesday, Sept. 14. Click here to register for the "Bolstering Climate Resilience for National Security" forum and learn more about POC's other upcoming events.

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Air Force Renames 55th Communications Squadron to Reflect Cyber Mission; Lt. Col. Christopher Wong Quoted
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Air Force Renames 55th Communications Squadron to Reflect Cyber Mission; Lt. Col. Christopher Wong Quoted

The U.S. Air Force has rebranded its 55th Communications Squadron to emphasize the military unit's role in communication infrastructure security at Offutt AF Base in Nebraska and cyber defense mission work at the service branch.

USAF said Sunday the redesignation to 55th Cyber Squadron comes after the group completed a set of requirements and internal restructuring efforts.

The branch expects the squadron to further integrate into the 55th Wing operations environment to gain access to ground and onboard systems of the wing's RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft.

“No longer is our primary focus customer issues or general system maintenance, but instead we are thinking about ways to engage near-peer adversaries and defend our mission-critical networks and infrastructure,” said Lt. Col. Christopher Wong, commander of 55th Cyber Squadron.

To qualify for the redesignation, the squadron had to maintain its legacy communications security mission, implement Enterprise information technology-as-a-service at Offutt AFB, achieve initial operating capability status for its Mission Defense Team mission and secure clearance from the wing commander.

The group also underwent qualification training, received cyber equipment and developed unit-specific defensive tactics, techniques and procedures.

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Defense Digital Service, Air Force Research Lab Plan Counter-UAS Tech Transition; Katie Olson Quoted
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Defense Digital Service, Air Force Research Lab Plan Counter-UAS Tech Transition; Katie Olson Quoted

The Defense Department’s digital service group plans to transition its small unmanned aircraft system sense-and-detect platforms to the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Negation of Improvised Non-State Joint Aerial (NINJA) system program by Sept. 30, FedScoop reported Friday.

The technology transfer effort reportedly follows a memorandum of understanding signed between the Defense Digital Service and AFRL in April for collaborative work in the counter-sUAS area.

Acting DDS Director Katie Olson told the publication that the agency has tested and delivered technologies to military personnel for their drone threat detection and tracking activities since early 2020.

“Transitioning these capabilities to AFRL enables their evolution and growth and allows them to continue to support and modernize the DOD defensive posture,” Olson added.

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NNSA Updates Power Equipment at 2 National Security Mission Sites; Sheila Feddis Quoted
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NNSA Updates Power Equipment at 2 National Security Mission Sites; Sheila Feddis Quoted

The National Nuclear Security Administration has completed projects to replace a 60-year-old diesel generator at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina and a standby power system at the Device Assembly Facility in Nevada.

NNSA said Friday it updated the electrical feed for the Savannah complex's 234-H building with an integrated permanent backup system to power the agency's tritium handling process.

The DAF standby power replacement effort at the Nevada National Security Site saw the installation of new batteries, and transformers to ensure continuity of critical mission work in the event of an outage.

“These two projects that provide dependable and resilient power are integral modernization activities for NNSA to deliver its mission,” said Sheila Feddis, director of the NNSA's infrastructure operations and modernization office.

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Sean Connelly: Agencies Can Utilize CISA Services to Meet Zero Trust Security Mandate
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Sean Connelly: Agencies Can Utilize CISA Services to Meet Zero Trust Security Mandate

Sean Connelly, program manager of Trusted Internet Connections (TIC) at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), said that CISA will offer services for agencies mandated to implement zero trust strategies under President Biden’s cybersecurity executive order, Federal News Network reported Friday.

He noted at a NextGov event last week that CISA plans to make its protective domain name system services available to other agencies in an effort to help them reach zero trust maturity status.

Connelly said there are existing and potential services that could help agencies understand the maturity model buildout effort. CISA distributed its preliminary “Zero Trust Maturity Model" guidance after the White House released the Executive Order on Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity.

The maturity model includes five pillars where specific examples of traditional, advanced and optimal zero trust architecture are provided. It also cites three cross-cutting capabilities identified as visibility and analytics, automation and orchestration, and governance.

The draft guide is open for public comments through Oct. 1st.

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Octo, Dataiku Partnership Fosters Data Science Innovation; CEO Mehul Sanghani Quoted
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Octo, Dataiku Partnership Fosters Data Science Innovation; CEO Mehul Sanghani Quoted

Leading federal IT modernization contractor, Octo Consulting announced on Friday that the company is partnering with Dataiku, an artificial intelligence and machine learning company, to better provide mission-critical solutions for complex IT challenges in the defense, intelligence, health, finance and law enforcement markets. 

Octo CEO, Mehul Sanghani commented, “We are exceedingly pleased to be able to offer our customers alternatives in data science solutions to address their unique, complex challenges.”

The collaboration between the two companies will utilize the New York-based Data Science Studio's (DSS) singular end-to-end platform to enable data scientists, mission owners, business analysts and non-coder employees alike to work together in building and developing their own AI models.

Dataiku, named a leader in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Data Science and Machine-Learning Platforms, works to democratize data access in order to empower organization-wide collaboration and promote a more human approach to AI integration. 

Senior Director of Octo’s AI Center of Excellence, Rob Albritton notes, “This is especially important as we work toward making tactical data accessible to soldiers, first responders, and teams in other sectors that depend on the ability of our data scientists to collaborate and find viable solutions.”

To elaborate, Cindy Walker, vice president of Octo’s Data Science Center of Excellence, explained the importance of improving the collaborative outcomes with Dataiku to deliver stronger innovation solutions and approaches to manage the use of data and enhance mission information. 

Octo’s partnership with Daiku will also work to expand their clients’ access to data without jeopardizing system security. 

About Octo 

Octo is a technology firm dedicated to solving the Federal Government’s most complex challenges, enabling agencies to jump the technology curve. We don’t just modernize. We create lasting change through best practices that help agencies implement and integrate at-scale next-generation technology and innovation.

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USAF Kessel Run Supports RabbitMQ Open-Source Message Broker; Nick Barber Quoted
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USAF Kessel Run Supports RabbitMQ Open-Source Message Broker; Nick Barber Quoted

The U.S. Air Force's Kessel Run software laboratory produced a submission for the RabbitMQ message broker's open-source messaging-topology operator.

Kessel Run said Thursday its All Domain Common Platform (ADCP) product line made the submission to RabbitMQ, which allows multiple systems and applications to exchange information.

ADCP serves as a platform for command and control applications that allow for distributed operations across the globe. The platform helps developers scale applications from across the globe and accelerate deliveries of C2 applications.

Nick Barber, Kessel Run's software engineer who made the submission, said the RabbitMQ fix will allow sourcing from different namespaces, as software engineers from across the globe use RabbitMQ to seek solutions.

“For RabbitMQ, there are people who post issues on their (messaging) board saying something doesn’t work or that they’d like someone to add a functionality,” Barber said.

“Anytime it's obvious that you’re using someone's open source, that gives them the ability to dedicate more resources to it, and it's proof that it's the direction they should be moving in," he added.

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Army Develops Model to Enable Question-Based Robotic Learning; Felix Gervits Quoted
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Army Develops Model to Enable Question-Based Robotic Learning; Felix Gervits Quoted

The U.S. Army has created a computational model that enables robotic systems to learn from soldiers via conversational interaction.

The service branch said Thursday it pursues this research in partnership with Tufts University under the Department of Defense's Laboratory University Collaboration Initiative (LUCI).

This research supports the Army's plan to implement autonomous robots that operate as part of soldier teams in the future. Researchers at the Army tested the model with a cognitive robotic architecture to demonstrate how the approach can support actual military activities.

“The model enables a robot to ask effective clarification questions based on its knowledge of the environment and to learn from the responses,” said Felix Gervits, researcher at the Army Combat Capabilities Development Command's Army Research Laboratory.

The team will move the project forward by making the model understand more types of questions.

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AFRL Chief Heather Pringle: Partnerships With Industry Sought for Space Tech Development
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AFRL Chief Heather Pringle: Partnerships With Industry Sought for Space Tech Development

The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is looking to expand its partnerships with the industry and with academic institutions to develop space capabilities supporting the U.S. Space Force (USSF). 

AFRL Commander Maj. Gen. Heather Pringle pointed out at the 36th National Space Symposium that partnerships with private companies help the organization “deliver transformational capabilities” while increasing its exposure to ideas and innovation, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) said Thursday.

“I absolutely love the excitement, the opportunities to connect, the partnerships we can build and the palpable enthusiasm to exchange ideas that build the space ecosystem together," explained Pringle.

According to the general, the AFRL has expanded its responsibilities from working on just technologies for the Air Force to also conducting research and development for the military service's space counterpart.

As part of its new task, the R&D facility launched the SpaceWERX space innovation arm that Pringle described as “one of our most energetic thrusts in this area.” 

Similar to the Air Force-focused AFWERX, SpaceWERX will enable industry and the academe to work with space operators, laboratory engineers and acquisition professionals to develop novel technologies for USSF.

Pringle stressed that the success of the AFRL and its partner companies in providing new capabilities “is benefiting both sides.”

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