DEFENSE INTEL

Tyndall Air Force Base Trailblazing Way to Installation of the Future

by: Don Arias and Sarah McNair, AFIMSC Public Affairs

The Digital Twin Hololab went live March 17 at Tyndall Air Force Base to showcase the base’s digital transformation as part of Installation of the Future efforts. These cutting-edge planning concepts and innovative technologies will be integrated across the base and enable numerous capabilities for the warfighter at Tyndall and throughout the Air Force.

“The Hololab is the primary interface with the Digital Twin of Tyndall Air Force Base,” said Lowell Usrey, an Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) Natural Disaster Recovery Division (NDR) branch chief.

“The Digital Twin is a near life-like, virtual representation of the physical world. This is the place where Airmen can interact with the model using virtual reality goggles or just a good old-fashioned computer screen.”

The Hololab demonstrates how these concepts and technologies have been incorporated to help create a more resilient, efficient and sustainable installation. The model itself is tied to the overall $4.9 billion rebuild schedule, enabling views of the installation at any given point in time.

“It’s more than a display,” Usrey said. “It is an open canvas that puts the virtual world into the hands of potential users to improve mission effectiveness and collect feedback to help improve the system.” “We are making the Hololab accessible because we want to spread knowledge of how the Digital Twin will help us with our mission today, as well as spark conversations of how it can help us in the future,” said Col. Travis Leighton, NDR division chief.

Visitors will be able to explore what it’s like to operate the systems that are built into the virtual replica of the installation. For example, facilities operators have the ability to view the real-time condition of assets as they explore the model.

The Digital Twin is one of many new technologies being implemented to transform Tyndall into the Department of the Air Force’s Installation of the Future.

Also of note is the Air Force Civil Engineer Center's NDR PMO collaboration with AFWERX, a technology directorate of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), over the past two years to drive innovation and incorporate new technologies into the rebuild. The collaboration has resulted in the creation of a Flightline Operations Challenge in 2021.

The 2021 challenge will help shape technologies that have potential for incorporation into the Flightline of the Future. The NDR PMO team sought to engage individuals, startups, small businesses, large enterprises, academia and research labs to solve problems.

The Flightline Operations AFWERX challenge was the culmination of months of planning and a competitive evaluation with hundreds of participants. Solutions offered involved improvements to airfield and aircraft maintenance operations including autonomous technology, enabling data-driven decision-making and integrating advanced (smart) airfield surfaces to strengthen the flightline and improve operations.

“Developing an automated process to collect airfield surface data and use artificial intelligence to identify surface anomalies and damage is revolutionary,” Lowell Usrey, NDR PMO Innovation Branch chief said. “It would allow airfield managers to persistently monitor and track flightline conditions and plan more efficiently.”

“It was exciting to collaborate on ways to leverage technology for our day-to-day work and overall mission on the airfield,” said Maj. Kayley Squire, Tyndall’s airfield operations flight commander. “The solutions that surfaced are remarkable -- and it was made even more rewarding by being able to show our Airmen that innovation and change is possible,” she said.

The automated processes developed at the AFWERX Challenge can also improve aircraft maintenance operations.

“The technology shown during the AFWERX Challenge will completely transform aircraft maintenance operations,” said Lt. Col. Yogi Lebby, chief of the Air Force’s Advanced Concepts Office. “These new modernizing solutions will allow maintainers to be more proactive, document more effectively and drive efficiencies back into a maintainer’s day. The future is now and I’m excited to be part of the journey."

Flightline security was another focus of breakout sessions to identify areas for improvement. Security tactics, techniques and procedures that were developed in a time when advanced technology was not available were discussed. To counter 21st century security concerns, modern solutions were shaped by the group. Proposed solutions included using some of the same technologies as airfield maintenance, like smart pavements, to help augment security operations. Facial recognition, detectable flightline access badges and other technologies could be incorporated into flightline features like pavements and lights to identify individuals on the flightline.

“Having civil engineers and airfield operations working together to tackle common issues we face on the airfield with new and innovative solutions was truly something special,” said Lt. Col. Robert Bouffard, a Pentagon executive officer from the Air Force. “They all had the common goal of increasing mission effectiveness.”

The Installation of the Future represents an evolution toward a more resilient, ready and lethal Air Force. The decisions made throughout the Tyndall rebuild are blazing the trail for future installations that will follow in their footsteps. These decisions are precedent-setting across the Armed Forces and solidify Tyndall’s place in the annals of the Air Force.

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