Jerry Moran Asks Air Force Chief About Funding Cuts To Cyberthreat Research Team

Forbes Breaking News

During a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on Thursday, Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) asked Air Force Chief Gen. David W. Allvin about funding for cyberthreat preparedness programs.

Transcript

00:00Senator Moran, followed by Senator Murray and Senator Bozeman.

00:05Chairman, thank you.

00:06Gentlemen, thank you for your presence and for your service.

00:09I want to visit first about the B-21.

00:12STRATCOM Commander General Cotton recently stated that the Air Force's plan to acquire 100 aircraft is insufficient

00:19and that 145 aircraft are necessary to meet global requirements.

00:24Either General Alvin or Secretary Mink explained the importance of this investment

00:29what plans does the Air Force have to accelerate the production of this aircraft to increase the number in the fleet?

00:37Well, thank you, Senator Moran.

00:38This is the B-21 radar certainly is cutting edge.

00:41It is absolutely necessary to maintain our dominance in the future.

00:45The program of record of a minimum of 100 is what General Cotton was referring to.

00:51Having mass is also extremely important.

00:54And so as we look at the minimum of 100, we will continue to evaluate how many need to be at the time of production

01:01to make sure that they're meeting the need.

01:03And if there is an increased number, we'll certainly address that.

01:06With respect to acceleration, I think this is one of those where we certainly need to continue to look at it.

01:11We have bought down a lot of risk in the design.

01:13We have bought down a lot of risk in the development.

01:15We are currently buying down risk in the test.

01:18This is also an aircraft that is manufactured differently.

01:20And so we want to ensure that before we accelerate, we don't want to be overly zealous without fully understanding

01:27what it might mean to accelerate beyond a certain production rate.

01:30So that is something we are intensely looking at from not only an affordability point of view,

01:35but also a feasibility point of view to ensure that we don't go too fast.

01:40But it is very, very promising, and it's a significant capability for our Air Force.

01:44Thank you. I was there at the unveiling in Palmdale.

01:46It was quite an experience.

01:50General Alvin, the 177th Information Warfare Aggressor Squadron trains U.S. Air Force joint

01:58and allied personnel in replicating current and emerging cyber threats as a red team,

02:04cyber red team, testing military networks.

02:06I'm concerned about the impact of cuts to the office of the Director of Operations and Test Evaluation

02:11on the scope and services of red team missions.

02:15Are you aware of these cuts, and what's your thoughts on how it might affect active duty, guard, et cetera,

02:23both inside and outside the cyber domain?

02:26So, Senator, we are certainly aware that those deliberations are ongoing for those cuts.

02:31We are going to evaluate what, if any, impact there are to the actual operational effectiveness of the red teams

02:37because they do provide a critical capability to learn before combat where your vulnerabilities might be.

02:43So we will be addressing that and looking very closely if there are any impacts

02:46on how we might mitigate those going forward.

02:48In today's threats of cyber, these red teams seem exceptionally valuable and important to the country.

02:55And highly skilled.

02:56They're amazing airmen.

03:00I'm supportive of the efforts to replace the E-4B Survivable Airborne Operations Center.

03:07Wichita's NIAR is supporting, that's the National Institute of Aviation Research at Wichita State University,

03:13is supporting this capability by digitally twinning 747-8,

03:18allowing the Air Force to own the technical data package for the SAOC aircraft.

03:24Secretary Mink, could you highlight the importance of this program's continued full funding

03:29and the value to the Air Force owning the data rights to new and legacy programs?

03:35Secretary Mink, yeah, obviously it's a critical part of our nuclear control architecture.

03:43As General Alvin spoke before, some of the challenges with the F-35 is the government does not own all the technical data

03:49associated with that aircraft.

03:51That is something we do not want to have happen again.

03:53So we are working our way through to acquire that technical data one way or another.

03:59In this case, as you're referring to, pulling the airplane apart and basically rebuilding the data package.

04:08That has value, Mr. Secretary.

04:10Yes.

04:11It's challenging, but it has a lot of value.

04:14The Air Force recently discovered systemic issues with the B-1's aircraft backbone,

04:22detrimental to the bomber fleet.

04:24After failed attempts to fix the problem,

04:27NIAIR once again developed a solution that will reset the life cycle of the aircraft.

04:32General Alvin, I want to highlight the importance of this project,

04:35which will maintain and extend the life of the B-1.

04:39And could you discuss the value of non-traditional suppliers in supporting sustainment of the Air Force's platforms?

04:45Thank you, Senator.

04:46You just gave us Exhibit A.

04:48It's fantastic to be able to integrate that sort of capability and skill.

04:51And Wichita State University also being very involved,

04:54their innovative nature has really drawn another source for us to be able to get the maximum readiness

05:00out of the platforms we have.

05:01It's highly important and very much appreciated.

05:04I'm pleased to see you smile when I ask my questions about these topics.

05:08And finally, just a sentence, a comment.

05:12The 190th Air Refueling Wing, located in Topeka at Forbes Field,

05:18has a long and storied history in supporting the missions of refueling of the KC-135.

05:24It's proximate to the 22nd Air Refueling Wing and the 767 fuselage production line,

05:31both occurring in Kansas as well.

05:33Secretary Mink, as the Air Force evaluates the location for the KC-46 MOBE,

05:41I would encourage you to strongly consider the 190th Refueling Wing in Topeka.

05:47It's a huge and significant issue for us.

05:49Yes, Senator, we will.

05:51I was reluctant to bring this topic up because I look to see other states might have other members of this committee

05:57who have the same thoughts about their locations.

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