Vertx is at EnforceTac 2024 in Nuremberg from February 26-28, 2024, to showcase the newly launched Recon Flex and Recon X uniform collection. Make sure to stop by Booth #679 in Hall 7 to check out their latest gear and apparel.
For more information about Vertx and Vertx Pro, please visit their website.
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The Instant Access Back Panel allows for easier access to adjust your cummerbund. Both the front and back of the carrier features interior facing channels for foam to add comfort and ventilation. These foam inserts can be removed for a more streamlined carrier. The front and back have the ability to hold both soft armor and plates that are the same size and cut as the carrier.
Visit FirstSpear to find American Made kit and accessories, Built For The X.
DUKE FIELD, Fla. —
The 919th Special Operations Wing made history Feb. 3, 2024 demonstrating a new capability on the same airfield some of the Air Force’s most revered aviation pioneers trained more than a half century ago.
Throughout the four-day exercise, the unit integrated non-standard aviation, Remotely Piloted Aircraft and Mission Sustainment Team operations to prepare for future contingencies where the famed Doolittle Raiders trained for their daring one-way mission in the offensive against Japan decades ago.
“This exercise demonstrated the 919th’s ability to employ the functionality of an entire unit and establish an operational air base all while maintaining a very small footprint,” said Col. Jason Grandy, 919th SOW commander. “We developed this training to fit AFSOC’s deployment model which is focused on the competition between rising powers. We did it in a manner that also allowed us to validate a proof of concept for a few of our mission sets.”
As part of the exercise, members from the 919th Special Operations Security Forces Squadron and 919th Special Operations Medical Squadron flew aboard a C-146A Wolfhound aircraft to perform a medical evacuation for critically injured servicemembers at a remote overseas location. After the aircraft landed, members applied life-saving medical care on a simulated battlefield before loading the casualties on stretchers for transport on the C-146 back to a higher level medical facility for treatment and care.
“Our security forces members are elite and have some of the best training to protect not only the lives of aircrew but also those on the battlefield,” said Grandy.
Air Commandos from the 2nd Special Operations Squadron used the venue to continue devising strategies to enhance the capabilities of the MQ-9 Reaper. In this case, they integrated the weapons system into the exercise in ways it has not been used before.
“We are transforming for the future in every aspect of our mission,” said Lt. Col. David Payne, 2nd SOS commander. “Not only did our members accomplish the shortest known runway landing for an MQ-9 via Satellite Launch and Recovery to date, we also provided casualty evacuation overwatch, as well as ammo resupply to ground forces.”
The culture of innovation that lives within the squadron was the catalyst behind an initiative to provide an ammo resupply using an MQ-9 travel pod after completing a short field landing on Eglin Aux Field 1 (Wagner Field).
“I think it’s important to point out that in February 1942, Doolittle and his crew trained for the shortest takeoff in B-25 history (400 feet),” said Payne. “Now 82 years later, we are following in his footsteps landing the MQ-9 on the shortest known field on the same airfield. The achievement required technical order waivers which allowed for a 33 percent decrease in runway required for landing.”
Payne noted the aircraft departed the tarmac at Hurlburt Field, Fla., near a facility named The Richard E. Cole building. Cole was the co-pilot for Doolittle on the lead aircraft for the Doolittle Raiders and the last surviving member of the Raiders before passing away in April 2019 at the age of 103.
The 919th Special Operations Mission Support Group was equally impressive proving they can provide the warfighter with operational flexibility for mission sustainment and generation with a very small footprint.
Mission Sustainment Teams are comprised of highly trained personnel to set up a contingency location for a brief period of time. These specialized teams include a variety of support specialists to offer a base operations capability with skill sets in fuels, communications, security forces and civil engineering among others.
“We provided MST elements at multiple forward locations throughout the exercise enabling airlift and overwatch assets to transit and receive the support needed while they were on the ground,” said Col. Olivia Nelson, 919th SOMSG commander. “This is the first time our Airmen have exercise the deployment of multiple elements of an MST, and we learned many valuable lessons in the process. I’m incredibly proud of their efforts.”
Payne commended the support specialists for enabling his unit’s exercise objectives and concluded by promising to continue pushing the envelope for innovative and transformation.
“We’re not done,” said Payne. “We’ll keep leaning forward and doing things only SOF [Special Operations Forces] can do.”
By LtCol James R. Wilson, 919th Special Operations Wing
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. — Service members, tech industry professionals and academia gathered together at JBLM’s American Lake Conference Center for the Armed Forces Communications & Electronics Association’s second annual Enabling Distributed C2 Symposium from Jan. 31-Feb. 1, 2024.
“One of the things that we wanted to do is provide a venue and event that would bring together industry, the military and academia to hear the challenges that leadership in the military has that we can help solve,” said Dave Stookey, treasurer of the AFCEA Northwest Chapter. “The Army and Air Force communicate what problems they’re having, especially in the INDOPACOM area, and then industry and academia have a better idea of what they’re asking for and how we can bring solutions. There are companies who have solved some of the same issues that maybe the Army or the Air Force could consider putting into use.”
At the forefront of the conference was a discussion about how technological innovation helps commanders attain better command and control while operating in the Indo-Pacific theater.
“One thing that we’re finding is that as technology improves, commanders want better visibility into what’s happening, better situational awareness and better information,” said Stookey. “Better technology enables the distributed C2 to get the right information to the right people in austere or challenged environments.”
Col. Rett Burroughs, the First Corps chief information operations officer (G6), elaborated on how better technology and data collection enable commanders to make better, informed decisions.
“Commanders have to know the data, they have to understand what they need and what’s missing from their requirements to make an informed decision,” said Burroughs. “Maybe you’re wearing a parachute and you and I are going to jump out of this airplane in 15 hours. We want to get an enemy read because they’re not going to wait till we land to start shooting at us. Technology has the ability to help us get the information that we need to make informed decisions, faster.”
Stookey elaborated on new strides the technology industry is making to control the amount and relevance of information commanders have access to.
“If you’re down range and you want information, you’re trying to pull the whole information search and that’s wrong,” he said. “What industry is doing is refining how you do a search when you’re at the edge. And then you do a query and only pull back what you need.”
Technology enabling greater command and control also helps mitigate the “tyranny of distance,” one of the most significant challenges I Corps faces operating in the Pacific.
“The tyranny of distance is always uppermost in my mind,” said Burroughs. “Because how am I going to get comms all the way to Australia and then to Thailand? We can provide at least a minimum of voice so Lt. Gen. Brunson can talk to the 7th Infantry Division commander who may be in Chitose, Japan. But we’re also working on building a better data infrastructure as well.”
Stookey talked about one of the ways the industry is helping I Corps overcome this obstacle.
“One of the areas industry is doing a lot is taking the cloud across the ocean,” said Stookey. “If you’re connected and you’re in the United States, that works great. But when you’re 6,000 miles away or in a country that doesn’t have the greatest fiber connection, what do you do? What the industry is doing is they’re putting that cloud computing in a box that can be the same size as a roll luggage. You can take it with you and then all you have to transact with the cloud is the minimum amount of data you need.”
With the amount of data commanders have access to and the speed at which they can get it, commanders can make better decisions faster.
“… Commanders need to be able to hear the confidence in a subordinate voice to know that they truly understand the task, mission, purpose, and the intent,” said Burroughs. “And if he can hear that and then free up his commanders to fight, then we’ve achieved success.”
By SGT Keaton Habeck
FORT LIBERTY, N.C. — Army researchers are teaming with operational units to define the future of countermine technology while developing solutions for Soldiers.
The Army’s C5ISR Center joined the 20th Engineer Brigade, 18th Airborne Corps and industry partners during the multi-day Sandhills Project experimentation event in December to demonstrate how Army Futures Command’s R&D community is shaping technological capabilities to meet Soldiers’ current and future needs.
C5ISR Center’s civilian engineers and scientists are modernizing the Army’s countermine mission space through investments in Aided Target Recognition, known as AiTR, with an emphasis on increased Soldier survivability. The Center was one of the first to develop and field AiTR during operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, primarily for counter-improvised explosive device applications in combination with ground penetrating radar sensors. Now, the focus turns to the next round of threats. The C5ISR Center is an element of the Combat Capabilities Development Command under AFC.
Mike Donnelly, an electrical engineer in the Center’s Research and Technology Integration Directorate, said the group is developing AiTR algorithms for integration into platforms such as remote and autonomous ground robotics, small unmanned aerial systems and handheld detection systems. Breaching operations must be as fast and precise as possible to maintain momentum and reduce the enemy’s ability to target friendly forces.
“We go to the field to provide live demonstrations with Soldiers and collect data from real targets,” Donnelly said. “This helps us develop a more robust algorithm so that when you give it to the Soldier, you know it’ll work in wide range of environments and conditions. That’s been the fundamental ideology behind our program. Build the best AiTR we can for Soldiers when it comes time to deploy.”
In addition to civilian subject-matter experts, the Army assigns noncommissioned officers to C5ISR Center as enlisted advisers to bridge the gap between lab-based research and operational use.
“Working with Soldiers gives researchers a different perspective because they have on-the-ground experience,” said Master Sgt. Cory Stepp, a combat engineer assigned to C5ISR Center. “As the R&D coordinator for C5ISR Center, I go out and find units, and we take this technology to Soldiers to get a larger amount of feedback. It’s important to involve Soldiers early on so we can help fix some of the problems in the very beginning stages.”
Col. Kenneth Frey is director of the Maneuver Support Capability Development Integration Directorate, which writes requirements for the future capabilities of Army branches that include combat engineers. His team works with DEVCOM Centers and other Army research organizations to understand the current state of the art and where technology is headed to define modernization requirements.
“I aim to modernize the engineer regiment, specifically toward the 2040 future,” Frey said. “What are our threats in 2040? Where do we need to be in 2040 to prepare regiments to operate in that time and space? I leverage the science and technology community to understand the minimums and maximums of technology now and in the future.
“The main obstacle that I see for Soldiers today in this experimentation is they still do this mission in the threat and are physically in the breach. For 2040 or nearer, we want to remove Soldiers from the hazard. Everyone here — S&T, industry, leadership — has come together with their skillsets. It gives a vision of what can be done.”
C5ISR Center electrical engineer Clare Yang said algorithms help to reduce the cognitive burden on Soldiers as they conduct missions as well as improve situational awareness by automatically detecting threats of interest. AiTR does not require a Soldier to continually monitor a sensor feed but merely confirm what the algorithm detects.
“Soldiers can push the ground robotic platform ahead of their units to conduct breach objectives such as cutting wires, moving obstacles and neutralizing explosive hazards while they stay behind,” Yang said.
“With an air platform, Soldiers can elevate their point of view, which allows them to see a farther distance and a wider area. Time is of the essence when it comes to obstacle breaching, and the ability to see as far and wide of an area as possible will help combat engineers gather intel quickly and make speedy decisions. In the coming decades, we’ll see more human-machine integrated platforms.”
Maj. Nick Rinaldi, a project manager at Army Applications Lab, is part of a team focused on working across the service to bring solutions to the front lines.
“There are great programs in place to get us where we need to be in the Army of 2030 and Army of 2040,” Rinaldi said. “In parallel, there are activities happening at an operational unit level across multiple organizations in Army Futures Command and Corps of Engineers. How do we deliver in parallel? How do our Warfighters take advantage of technology as it’s becoming available?”
C5ISR Center participation in experimentation venues such as Sandhills Project and brigade training rotations is instrumental for the Army S&T community to move lab work into the field, according to Marc Titler, a chief engineer in the Center’s RTI Directorate.
“Our engineers and scientists get immediate feedback on the current capabilities that will improve the next iteration of their prototype systems,” Titler said. “SMEs gain a broader appreciation and context of the real-world mission space challenges and problems that helps focus investments and technical investigations.”
By Dan Lafontaine, DEVCOM C5ISR Center Public Affairs
AUSTIN, Texas – Army Futures Command is charged with transforming the Army to ensure war-winning future readiness.
A major effort underpinning this goal is the command’s extensive study and assessment of the future operational environment.
“It’s not about getting it right,” said AFC Commanding General Gen. James E. Rainey of the command’s efforts to forecast future likelihoods. “It’s about not getting it really wrong and seeing what you got wrong and adapting faster than your enemy.”
In late 2022, AFC leadership identified the need for a “running estimate” of what future challenges the Army of 2040 might face, including how it is likely to be shaped by rapidly evolving technologies and shifting global geopolitics.
An initial version of the document, which focused on the 2040 timeframe, was developed by AFC’s Directorate of Intelligence and Security in early 2023.
Referred to as the Future Operational Environment Running Estimate, the living document draws upon insights from previous iterations of future forecasts — among them AFC Pamphlet 525-2, Future Operational Environment: Forging the Future in an Uncertain World 2035-2050 — but was uniquely designed to be updated continually, offering the Army the ability to iteratively refine its understanding of future warfare.
“Army Futures Command’s critical mission is to transform the Army through new capabilities, formations and operational concepts that provide war-winning readiness. Understanding the conditions of the future operational environment and how adversaries may fight is necessary to inform the command so it can develop the capabilities, formations and concepts to achieve overmatch in those conditions,” said Jacob Barton, Ph.D., AFC’s future operational environment intelligence chief.
The running document explores types of conditions warfighters might encounter, technologies that could disrupt the status quo and implications of near-peer adversary activities.
Input for the document is derived from intelligence reporting, academic and scientific studies, and sustained engagement with experts from across the intelligence community, industry, academia and think tanks. The document also includes input from organizations across the command and other elements of the Department of Defense, resulting in comprehensive and in-depth analysis of information, Barton explained.
AFC uses the assessment of the future operational environment to inform all other critical functions performed by the command, including research, concepts, experimentation, requirements and integration.
The work is often extraordinarily complex, given how rapidly situations and technologies can change.
“Some of the most challenging aspects of preparing for the future operational environment involve the difficult nature of attempting to forecast the future,” Barton said.
“In assessing trends about the current operating environment, we attempt to envision the range of possibilities that exist in 10 and 20 years. Then we make assessments of what we believe at the time to be the most likely conditions within the range of potential possibilities.”
Despite the vastness of the challenge, Barton believes AFC is well-positioned to serve as a steward of the document for the Army.
“By having close collaboration with concepts and capabilities writers, engineers, scientists, technologists and integrators, AFC is uniquely suited to compare friendly and adversarial capabilities and provide useful analysis about what might be necessary to provide the Army advantages in the future,” Barton said.
AFC shares its analysis with other members of the joint force, helping to refine understanding of mutual challenges and opportunities related to future readiness.
The Army-specific lens of the running estimate also extends beyond what is typically provided by academia and industry, making it particularly useful to Army leaders and planners. Due to the sensitive nature of the document, it is not available for public consumption; however, its insights are directly contributing to the nation’s ability to protect its future.
“Ultimately, the Army must maintain its advantages,” Barton said. “Protecting the information and judgments inherent to the running estimate is a necessary step to maintaining this advantage.”
By Maureena Thompson, Army Futures Command
If you’re not familiar with us, Vertx is known for delivering durable, high-quality bags, packs, and apparel tailored to the needs of tactical enthusiasts, civilians, and pro-2A advocates. In 2023 we unveiled our exclusive Vertx Pro line, featuring three uniform collections specifically designed for Federal, Military, and Public Safety professionals. Every Tuesday will be an opportunity to learn more about our product range, innovations, and events that matter to you.
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