ARLINGTON, Va. (AFNS) —  

The Department of the Air Force’s capstone innovation campaign, Spark Tank, recently concluded submissions — and Airmen and Guardians may now vote for one of the top six selected ideas.

Visit the links in the titles of the selections for more details on each idea. To vote for your favorite, visit the Guardians and Airmen Innovation Network website. First-time users will need to sign up for a free account using their government email addresses and Common Access Cards. Then click “Vote now” next to your favorite idea, limit one idea only. Voting ends March 8.

The semi-final round of Spark Tank completed December 19, with six of 235 ideas advancing to the finals. Finals are scheduled to take place at the Air and Space Forces Association Warfare Symposium March 8 in Aurora, Colorado. Department of the Air Force senior leaders and two celebrity judges will review the ideas and select the winner in a live event.

Spark Tank 2023 Finalists:

Accelerated Development of Multi-Capable Airmen/Guardians
Maj. Caitlin Harris
351st Special Warfare Training Squadron
Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico
Air Education and Training Command

The Special Warfare prototype project will provide linkages between human systems and operational tasks across a spectrum of skillsets that will accelerate training, learning, and retention while developing Airmen/Guardians in multiple competencies. This aggressive modernized training focuses on training the Airmen and Guardians in an efficient and dynamic way, preparing them for wartime situations requiring them to step outside their occupational specialty and operate as expert multi-disciplinarians.

Advanced Maintenance and Troubleshooting System
Master Sgt. Aaron Cordroch
1st Special Operations Maintenance Group
Hurlburt Field, Florida
Air Force Special Operations Command

Imagine a world where we leverage cyber threat and intrusion/anomalies hardware detection and diagnostic mapping tools to take a snapshot of clean data and systems to build a picture of maintenance issues that can be monitored for changes.

Infrastructure in an Augmented Reality World
Tech. Sgt. Sarah Hubert and Tech. Sgt. Raymond Zgoda
353rd Special Operations Wing and 374th Civil Engineer Squadron
Yokota Air Base, Japan
Pacific Air Forces

Realizing the potential of augmented reality enables precise determination of what and where our underground infrastructure is located without digging it up. Scanning installations and using Augmented Reality drastically reduces resources to repair after attack or natural disaster.

Project Kinetic Cargo Sustainment
Capt. Andrew Armor, Master Sgt. Brandon Allensworth, Master Sgt.
Peter Salinas, Master Sgt. Jet Nesle and Tech. Sgt. Justin Sprinkel
18th Logistics Readiness Squadron
Kadena AB, Japan
Pacific Air Forces

 Dramatically accelerate mobility cargo processing capacity and throughput by means of operating outside of analog mobility processes and tools for port operations.

Real-Time Asset Management System
Michael Dolan
Space Base Delta 3
Los Angeles AFB, California
Space Systems Command

 Imagine leaders and employees optimizing office space, minimizing modernization construction costs and enable tracking and evolution continuity of every location and asset from unclassified to Special Access Programs. This Space Management tool provides real-time assessment and data mining capability for every square foot of buildings and every office space to include IT configurations down to the chip level.

Project Oregon Trail
Staff Sgt. Michael Sturtevant
353th Special Operations Support Squadron
Kadena Air Base, Japan
Air Force Special Operations Command

 Reimagined and reduced Time-Phased Force and Deployment Data are afforded because there are smaller, lighter, and faster-to-deploy mechanisms to move cargo and equipment wherever needed, on the spot without the need for pallet jacks or forklifts.

By Crystal Ortiz, Secretary of the Air Force Management and Business

RESOLUTE, Nunavut, Canada (AFNS) —  

The New York Air National Guard’s 105th and 109th Airlift Wings partnered with Vermont Army National Guard and Canadian Armed Forces to support Exercise Guerrier Nordique, Feb. 22–March 31 in the Canadian Arctic. 

The 109th AW, Stratton Air National Guard base in Scotia, New York, deployed two LC-130 Hercules aircraft and 60 Airmen to Resolute Bay in Canada’s northern Arctic territories to act as tactical airlift support for the Canadian exercise. 

Vermont Army National Guard soldiers will be transported to Resolute Bay, Nunavut, on a C-17 Globemaster III from the 105th AW, Stewart ANG base in Newburgh, New York. From there, teams will forward-deploy to establish remote camps. 

The LC-130H is the largest ski-equipped aircraft in the world, capable of landing on ice and snow in polar environments. As the only unit to fly the LC-130H, the 109th AW provides support to scientific research stations in Antarctica and Greenland.

Among the 109th deployers are the 109th’s Polar Camp Skiway Team — personnel trained to establish a remote camp in extreme cold — and build a ski landing area supporting the unit’s LC-130H aircraft. The PCST used specially equipped snowmobiles to lay out the landing zone for the larger American LC-130Hs.

The team works with the Royal Canadian Air Force’s 440 Squadron, which flies the Twin Otter ski-equipped aircraft to establish ski landing areas.

In the past, Guerrier Nordique has operated as a training exercise for emergency response and domestic operations in extreme weather in Northern Canada.

The Vermont Army National Guard, which includes a mountain warfare battalion, has participated in the exercise since 2012.

This year, the Guerrier Nordique exercise focuses on combat capability and lethality in temperatures that stay below zero all day during the training period.

“While elements of the Vermont Guard and Canadian Armed forces will be conducting training, the role of the 109th AW is as a real-world tactical airlift,” said Chief Master Sgt. Ron Jemmott, the senior enlisted leader for the wing’s maintenance squadron and a member of the PCST.

“Our job is to establish the ski landing area as a lifeline for the guys out there training,” Jemmott said.

Once established, the remote camp and ski landing area will provide multi-national ground forces with tactical support via the 109th’s LC-130Hs.

This can include flying supplies and personnel to and from the exercise site and aeromedical evacuation if needed, Jemmot said.

“The exercise will culminate in a mock overland assault of an airfield 100 miles away, wherein Canadian and American soldiers will utilize snow machines and vehicles — capable of traversing the arctic terrain — to travel, assault and secure the airfield,” said Lt. Col. Matt Sala, a pilot with the 109th AW and officer in charge of the PCST during Guerrier Nordique.

“Our job is to use skills we have built over years of operating in the Arctic and Antarctic to provide the real-world tactical support to enable citizen-soldiers from Canada and the U.S. to develop similar abilities through exercising their role in possible arctic combat operations,” Sala said.

Canadian Armed Forces and Vermont Army National Guard personnel will deploy to the exercise area, establish their own remote camp and train in arctic combat and survival techniques.

“Exercises like this illustrate the growing strategic importance of developing American and allied capabilities in the Arctic as interest in the region is scaling up around the world,” Jemmott said.

“When adversaries like China and Russia are beginning to operate more often there, it is time for us to work with allies and other agencies to increase our individual capabilities as well as our interoperability so we can compete in the future,” Jemmott said.

By SSgt Madison Scaringe and MSgt Jamie Spaulding, New York National Guard

WASHINGTON (AFNS) —  

The Department of the Air Force 2023 Vice Chief’s Challenge begins Feb. 21. Its goal is to find innovative responses to challenges affecting Agile Combat Employment.

ACE is designed to increase survivability while generating combat power in geographically dispersed locations. Announced last year, ACE intends to be both proactive and reactive in addressing threats.

Airmen can submit their ideas here. Submissions are due between Feb. 21–May 22.

“We have heard the call to Accelerate Change or Lose from Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown, Jr.; he has set the vision for the force we need to become. Through the Operational Imperatives, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall has refined our focus on delivering threat-informed capabilities that the force needs to prevail,” said Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin. “The changing character of war will privilege lethality, speed, agility, and resilience – acceleration matters.”

This year’s challenge focuses on two key areas:

Rapidly transitioning to a wartime footing and delivering combat power to the point of need at the speed of relevance

Operating in a highly contested environment consistent with the concept of ACE

Operationalizing ACE aids four areas: codifying repeatable and understandable processes; forces that are suitably organized, trained, and equipped; theaters that are postured with the appropriate equipment, assets, and host nation agreements; and joint service and partner nation integration and interoperability.

Idea selection will be based on which have the broadest appeal and highest probability of delivering impacts toward designing, improving, and employing ACE.

“The imagination and creativity resident in our Airmen is vital,” Allvin said. “Airmen are our critical advantage. Airmen have the ideas and ingenuity required to help us accelerate and fly, fight and win…airpower, anytime, anywhere.”

Airmen whose ideas move forward in the Vice Chief’s Challenge will be paired with innovators from across the force, to include key players on the Air Force headquarters staff who advocate to adopt similar concepts. Morpheus innovation team will take 6 to 12 promising ideas and directly shepherd Airmen and ideas through the innovation adoption process.

A Platform One account is required to participate in the Vice Chief’s Challenge. Instructions can be found here.

For additional support available by email, visit here.

To learn more about the Vice Chief’s Challenge visit here.

By Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs