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Archive for August, 2024

Applications Open for US Army Artificial Intelligence Scholars Program

Monday, August 5th, 2024

The Army Artificial Intelligence Integration Center (AI2C) is seeking applicants for their Artificial Intelligence Scholars Program (AISP) Cohort 6.

Open to Active Component officers (Lieutenant to Major) with exceptional academic foundations in computer science, math, and engineering.

There are two programs currently available, the AISP Graduate Degree and the AISP PhD Program.

The AISP Graduate Degree is a highly competitive, 20-22 months of Advanced Civil Schooling at Carnegie Mellon University or the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Degree opportunities include: Masters of Computational Data Science; Masters of Information Systems Management-Business Intelligence Data Analytics; AI data Engineering, and Autonomous System AI Engineering. Advanced Civil Schooling is followed by a 24-month utilization tour at the AI Factory in Pittsburgh, PA.

The AISP PhD Program is an elite 36-month program at Carnegie Mellon University followed by a 3-year utilization tour at the AI Factory. The purpose of this program is to train officers to conduct independent research in AI or related fields. Graduates will extend the body of AI knowledge, apply cutting edge AI research to Army problems, and lead development of Army AI plans and proofs of concept.

Applications are due no later than August 9, 2024: www.hrc.army.mil/content/BOP

For additional information or to begin the application process reach out to: usarmy.pittsburgh-pa.afc-ai2c.mbx.workforce-development@army.mil

New from Primo Hunting, the Edge Carbon Fiber Tripod

Monday, August 5th, 2024

Despite incorprating MagnaSwitch mounting system from Spartan Precision Technlogy, the new Edge Carbon Fiber Tripod from Primo Hunting is quite affordable at just under $280. Additionally, it features adjustable carbon fiber legs (9″ – 67″) to keep the weight to 3.5 lbs.

The MagnaSwitch mount allows rapid swapping of adapters and clamps to accolade a wide variety of weapons and optics.

Available from www.primos.com/shooting-sticks/edge-carbon-fiber-tripod-shooting-stick-with-magnaswitch.

MATBOCK Monday: Skeet Patches

Monday, August 5th, 2024

Summer is in full swing, and with it comes the great outdoors, sunny days, and, unfortunately, pesky bugs. Whether you’re hiking, camping, or just enjoying a backyard BBQ, the last thing you want is to be constantly swatting away insects. That’s where our innovative bug spray patches come in.

How It Works

Each patch features a super absorbent, anti-microbial lining designed to hold DEET or any other anti-bug spray for hours. This means you can stay protected from insects without having to frequently reapply spray directly to your skin. Our patches not only keep you bug-free but also minimize your exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.

Versatile and Convenient

Our kits include two large and two smaller patches, offering versatility for all your needs:

– Small patches: Ideal for placement around the ankles or just below the knee, providing targeted protection in these vulnerable areas.

– Large patches: Perfect for wearing on your shoulders, ensuring comprehensive coverage.

Design Options

We understand that style matters. That’s why we offer our patches in two attractive designs: the American Flag and a playful Dots pattern. Show your patriotic spirit or go for a fun look—the choice is yours!

Custom Orders

For those looking to make a statement or promote a brand, we offer custom flag sets. These must be purchased in sets of 100 kits. For more information and to place an order, please contact us at orders@matbock.com.

Enjoy the Outdoors Worry-Free

Say goodbye to bug bites and chemical-covered skin. Our bug spray patches provide a safe, effective, and stylish way to stay protected. Grab your kit today and enjoy the great outdoors without the hassle of pesky insects.

“Thunder Dome 2024” Promotes Innovation in Air Commandos

Monday, August 5th, 2024

HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. —  

Participants from across the command took part in the first Air Force Special Operations Command Innovation Competition dubbed “Thunder Dome” here from July 15-19.

For the competition, Air Commandos presented projects and ideas to AFSOC senior leaders that required resourcing and development beyond their originating organization capabilities. Approved proposals stood a chance at receiving $2 million in Operation & Maintenance (O&M) funding. 

Out of the 17 projects submitted to the AFSOC staff, only six were chosen to make the in-person presentation. The six projects were selected through weighted voting based on multiple factors including impact on readiness/advantage, alignment with AFSOC strategy, and feasibility of execution.

Prior to the presentations, AFSOC/Continuous Improvement and Innovation programs (CI2) provided teams extensive coaching for seamless presentations. Additionally, teams participated in an AFSOC/CI2 black belt certification project to improve future iterations of the Thunder Dome competition.

Due to the presenter’s outstanding ideas and preparation, the panel of judges decided to award all six projects funding.

“This is what AFSOC is all about; enabling Air Commandos to further develop innovative solutions that transform AFSOC and solve problems that impact our readiness and test our advantage,” said Lt. Gen. Mike Conley, commander of AFSOC.

Through conversations with AFSOC CI2, there is now a path forward to execute each projects funding.

The next Innovation Competition “Thunder Dome 2025” is in the works and will take place in January of next year. Ideas are currently being accepted by the Wing Process Managers.

Air Force Special Operations Command Public Affairs

MI History: Army Security Agency Establishes DARRS Detachments

Sunday, August 4th, 2024

I love military history and in particular SOF and SI history, having served in both communities. I especially appreciate the MI stuff since so little has been published. The US Army’s Military Intelligence Soldier Heritage Learning Center recently shared this post:


Photo: Personnel of the 1st ASTD, one of the ARVN units supported by the DARRS detachments

On 31 July 1970, the Army Security Agency (ASA) established Division Advisors Radio Research Support (DARRS) Detachments in South Vietnam. The DARRS detachments were an effort to further the overall “Vietnamization” of the war as well as provide direct support to the American advisors with Army of Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) divisions.

In early 1969, President Richard Nixon’s administration began a program to end American involvement in Vietnam, which involved expanding, equipping, and training South Vietnamese military forces so they could take an increased combat role while reducing the number of American forces. As part of this broader program, the ARVN began to organize their SIGINT effort. To support their divisions, they organized ARVN Special Technical Detachments (ASTDs) consisting of four officers and fifty-six enlisted personnel. Modeled on the ASA’s highly successful direct support units attached to American divisions and separate brigades, the ASTDs provided SIGINT support to combat divisions and passed information up the South Vietnamese cryptologic chain of command. On 1 July 1969, two ARVN divisions received the first ASTDs.

Under the terms of the Vietnamese Improvement and Modernization Program, ASA’s 509th Radio Research (RR) Group, under Col. William W. Higgins, would assist the ASTDs by providing mission equipment and logistical support and by instructing the South Vietnamese on how to perform their own maintenance. All the while, ASA leaders continued to take every opportunity to press the ARVN to focus upon voice intercept and even offered on-the-job training by temporarily assigning Vietnamese to the 509th RR Group’s own low-level voice intercept teams.

Over the next year, Higgins and his group informally supported the ARVN’s nascent SIGINT efforts. Under Project SCREWDRIVER, 509th RR soldiers regularly visited South Vietnamese elements to pass on maintenance tips and to ensure they were receiving necessary supplies. These visits also proved an excellent means to monitor overall operational progress.

At the same time, intelligence support for American advisors became more critical. Consequently, the 509th RR Group field-tested the concept of a team dedicated to specifically support the senior American advisor for the 1st ARVN Division. This test proved so successful that the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) approved the concept for all of the ASTDs. On 31 July 1970, MACV and ASA established the DARRS detachments.

The DARRS detachments’ primary function was to pass SIGINT information to senior American personnel advising the South Vietnamese divisions and to provide a sanitized version for the ARVN commanders. In addition, DARRS personnel provided the ASTDs with constant support and advice. Their impact was immediately evident and began to assure that the ARVN detachments were operationally functional.

As one advisor noted, “For a long time we had a shortage of hard intelligence…The 9th DARRS has given us the ability to make estimates and allow the commander to make decisions.”

?Michael E. Bigelow

UK Soldiers Test Next Generation Body-Worn Technology

Sunday, August 4th, 2024

Cutting-edge data visualisation tools, integrated sensors, and live intelligence feeds are all connected within a single system known as the Future Integrated Dismounted Soldier Vision or FIDSV.

The helmet includes integrated power and data feeds, enhanced audio, a universal Heads Up Display (HUD) interface, and a mounted strobe alert system to identify friend or foe. A head-mounted night vision system (HMNVS) can also be used with enhanced digital night vision and injectable imagery capabilities.

The next generation of body-worn technology has been put through its paces by UK soldiers, bringing a modernised advantage to the battlefield. The aim of the trials is to integrate available technology into wearable tech for soldiers, advancing battlefield awareness and allowing faster tactical decision making

Story via NATO

Photos courtesy of UK Ministry of Defence / © Crown copyright 2024

25th Infantry Division Tests New Technology in Philippines

Sunday, August 4th, 2024

WASHINGTON — The ability to quickly put cutting-edge warfighting equipment in the hands of Soldiers is key to maintaining readiness, says 25th Infantry Division commander, Maj. Gen. Marcus Evans

Incorporating new technology like drones allows Soldiers to become familiar with off-the-shelf equipment that can increase protection and lethality, he added.

Evans spoke during a media roundtable appearance Friday to highlight participation in “Transform in Contact” efforts in the Philippines during Balikatan, an annual bilateral training exercise that supports the U.S.-Philippine Mutual Defense Treaty.

“Transformation in Contact” is the first step in the Army’s continuous plan to deliver new technologies to deployed warfighters for testing and analysis. In the 25th Infantry Division, 2nd Brigade is spearheading that effort.

“The broad framework that drives our overall assessment validation is, are we more lethal? Are we more mobile? Can we enable infantry formations, combat formation, sustainment formations to see further, to have better sensing capability, to be able to strike further with organic assets” while protecting the force, he said.

Evans said the division’s participation not only helps integrate emerging technologies into warfighting but helps leaders up and down the chain of command to develop solutions to constantly changing combat developments.

“Our main focus is on warfighting readiness,” he said.

The use of unmanned aircraft systems allows the Army the ability to see further, to have better sensing mechanisms, better striking mechanisms, and then to be able to project force while protecting the force, he said.

“Now we have small, unmanned air system in the hands of squad leaders that can see three to five kilometers from their current position, which allows them to understand the battlefield better, protect themselves, and creates increased lethality,” Evans said.

Also key is countering drone threats, “and how we can sense those threats that are approaching a formation, and then take actions to protect the formation or to interdict those elements … that are trying to strike us,” he said.

Lessons learned from the Philippine training will be incorporated into the next Combat Training Center rotation in Hawaii at the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center [JPMRC].

That October training will involve wide-ranging joint participation, he said, particularly from the Air Force and Navy.

“From a multinational perspective, we are planning to incorporate about a battalion-sized force from Japan,” he said, as well as fire assets from Singapore and Thailand, and logistics teams from Malaysia.

The shoulder-to-shoulder training in the Philippines really starts at JPMRC, Division Command Sgt. Maj. Shaun Curry said.

“A young American kid joins the service, [goes] to Hawaii for their first duty location, and they go to JPMRC, where they meet a host of our multinational partners for the first time. We’re starting our partnerships in on-the-ground friendships, and we start training inside of the jungle … From there, those partnerships and friendships grow into our operations, pathways rotations, whether that’s the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, and we’re really growing as the transformation in contact happens, helping them see their own formations, how they fight, and how they utilize technology.”

Curry said Soldiers learned from Filipino partners that carrying less on a march is far better, given the terrain, heat and humidity. Likewise, Soldiers are fielding newer body armor that weighs 20% less than older equipment, which improves their ability to move through the jungle.

Troops are also incorporating unique methods to use powered, load-carrying vehicles, similar to the common wheelbarrow, Curry said. The new approach enables one Soldier to load several hundred pounds, whether it be causalities or mortars, and move across restricted terrain. Where once it would take a squad to move a third of the weight, the soldier can now execute the mission solo and faster, allowing the remainder of the squad to focus on elements of lethality or protection, he said.

Evans said the Philippine training also confirmed that the time it takes to place equipment on the field is compressing.

“From the time period that we were asked to start executing this transformation in contact, it was the shortest amount of time that I have ever experienced having equipment show up,” he said.

By Jonathan Austin, Army News Service

US Army Updates Test & Evaluation Guidance

Saturday, August 3rd, 2024

The US Army has published an administrative update to 2003’s DA PAM 73-1 “Test and Evaluation in Support of Systems Acquisition” which provides guidance and procedures to implement test and evaluation policy for material and information technology systems.

The biggest update is moving proponency from the Under Secretary of the Army to the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Acquisition, Logistics, Technology) which is commonly referred to as ASAALT.

This Army pamphlet also implements the policies contained in Army Regulation 73 – 1 and consolidates seven Department of the Army pamphlets: DA Pamphlet 73 – 1, 73 – 2, 73 – 3, 73 – 4, 73 – 5, 73 – 6, and 73 – 7.

Other updates:

? Provides an overview of the test and evaluation process in support of Army systems acquisition (chap 1).

? Describes the test and evaluation working-level integrated product team (chap 2).

? Provides detailed guidance and procedures for the preparation, staffing, and approval of the test and evaluation master plan (chap 3).

? Provides an overview of the Army critical operational issues and criteria development and approval processes (chap 4).

? Provides an overview of the Army system evaluation and system assessment process (chap 5).

? Provides an overview of Army developmental and operational testing processes (chap 6).

Get your copy and dig in at armypubs.army.mil/epubs/DR_pubs/DR_a/ARN40764-PAM_73-1-001-WEB-2.pdf