YEAR IN DEFENSE 2020 by STUDIO Gannett

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YEAR IN DEFENSE

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ARMY | NAVY | AIR FORCE | MARINES

2020 EDITION

MAKING HEADWAY Hypersonic weapons production ramps up

CLASS-ACT EDUCATORS Troops to Teachers preps vets for jobs

DEEPFAKE VIDEOS Existential threat to 2020 elections

DETER & DEFEND U.S. Space Command chief shares goals

MISSION FORWARD

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USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

CONTENTS

5 2020 S PECI A L E D ITI O N

YEAR IN DEFENSE

NEWS

MAKING STRIDES Defense Secretary Mark Esper discusses military priorities and challenges

COMMISSARY CONNECTIONS

EXIT STRATEGY

ON DISPLAY

SACRED SPACES

Fast, easy ways to get the most from base stores

Pentagon report cites increased threats after Syria departure

BUDGETING BOUNDARIES Billions of dollars in Pentagon funding diverted to building the border wall

National Museum of the United States Army set to open in 2020

Ofﬁcials approve expansion of near-capacity Arlington National Cemetery

UNIFORM REFORM Navy, Army adopt new camouflage patterns

FEATURES

34 PROVIDED BY FORT BENNING PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE

THEN & NOW

HYPERSONIC WEAPONS

Today’s troops may not recognize the 1920s armed forces

U.S. counters foreign adversaries’ advanced technology

HERIKA MARTINEZ

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CONTENTS This is a product of

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Jeanette Barrett-Stokes jbstokes@usatoday.com

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Jerald Council jcouncil@usatoday.com

MANAGING EDITOR Michelle Washington mjwashington@usatoday.com

50 DAVID A. BRANDENBURG/U.S. NAVY

TROOPS

BRANCHES

WEAPONS & TECHNOLOGY

DOD OVERVIEW

WHAT WOUND?

ARMY

MIND CONTROL

FAKE NEWS?

CAROLYN KASTER/ASSOCIATED PRESS

ABOVE AND BEYOND

WOMEN DRAFTED?

Departments tasked with protecting the country

New ﬁtness test challenges mettle; ex-NFL star joins Idaho National Guard

Three heroic soldiers awarded Medal of Honor

ISSUE DESIGNER Gina Toole Saunders EDITORS Amy Sinatra Ayres Harry Lister Megan Pannone Debbie Williams

New technology could hasten healing

Future warfare may include brain-machine communication

DOD addresses deepfakes as 2020 presidential election looms

JOBS & EDUCATION

Lawmakers consider selective service for all troops

ISSUE EDITOR Tracy Scott Forson

DESIGNERS Hayleigh Corkey David Hyde Debra Moore Lisa Zilka CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Matt Alderton, Brian Barth, Isabella Breda, Adam Hadhazy, Elizabeth Hagedorn, Gina Harkin, Meg Jones, Patricia Kime, Carli Pierson, Sara Schwartz, Adam Stone, Tom Vanden Brook, Russ Wiles

ADVERTISING VP, ADVERTISING Patrick Burke | (703) 854-5914

DEADLY DATA Military grapples with increased number of suicides

pburke@usatoday.com

ACCOUNT DIRECTOR Vanessa Salvo | (703) 854-6499 vsalvo@usatoday.com

68 FINANCE

MARK HOFFMAN/MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL

ON THE COVER A crew member looks out from a U.S. Air Force craft in Suffolk, England.

PHOTOGRAPH Joe Giddens/PA Wire

NAVY

MARINES

Richard Spencer departs post; jet readiness goals met

David Berger takes the helm and considers fewer troops

PROVIDED BY HERBERT EGGERT

Tuskegee Airmen honored; John Raymond talks Space Command

TROOPS TO TEACHERS Organization helps veterans transition to the education ﬁeld

BETTER MARKET

WILLING WORKERS

AIR FORCE

Billing Coordinator Julie Marco

Some veterans seeing improvement in job options after retirement

Microsoft’s new program helps prepare military spouses for tech jobs

ISSN#0734-7456 A USA TODAY Network publication, Gannett Co. Inc. USA TODAY, its logo and associated graphics are the trademarks of Gannett Co. Inc. or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Copyright 2019, USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc. Editorial and publication headquarters are at 7950 Jones Branch Dr., McLean, VA 22108, and at (703) 854-3400. For accuracy questions, call or send an e-mail to accuracy@usatoday.com.

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NEWS

Esper on… Secretary of defense makes significant strides in a short time

LISA FERDINANDO

Defense Secretary Mark Esper delivers remarks at a Department of Homeland Security national cybersecurity summit in September.

By Adam Stone

EFENSE SECRETARY MARK ESPER has served in his

current role for less than six months. Confirmed in July, he’s had a significant impact on the military and the nation in the ensuing months. He led the mission — Operation Kayla Mueller, named after an American hostage who died in Syria — that ended in the suicide of an ISIS leader. Esper oversaw the activation of the new Space Command and made news in November when he terminated Richard Spencer, the secretary of the Navy, after Spencer conflicted with President

Donald Trump over disciplinary actions for troops. During that time, Esper has upheld a standard of transparency with the nation, holding multiple press conferences and commenting on issues ranging from NATO to cybersecurity. Here are excerpts from several of Esper’s speeches and interviews this year:

U.S. DEFENSE STRATEGY “The United States National Defense Strategy accounts for the realities of today’s environment, with a particular focus on this new era of great power competition. This is not because we are naïve about other threats or seek to rekindle

another Cold War. Rather, we are aligned in this focus because of the magnitude of the threats Russia and China pose to U.S. national security and prosperity today, and the potential for those threats to increase in the future. Deterring potential aggression in the first place, prior to the onset of conflict, is paramount to our strategy. This is why we are working with our allies and partners to improve our capabilities, capacity and defense posture throughout our priority regions. Some of our long-held advantages have started to diminish. Great power competition once again has returned to the global stage. If we are to remain the world’s preeminent military

power, then we must change course away from the past and face the challenges of the future head on.”

NATO “With regard to NATO, our top priorities are burden sharing and unit readiness. While we have made great improvements in recent years, we still have a number of allies not meeting the 2 percent defense commitment as agreed to under the 2014 Wales Declaration. President Trump has been very clear — and I will continue to push my counterparts — that all NATO members must live CONTI NUED

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NEWS

ON U.S. MILITARY POWER … “We have incredible reach. We can strike anybody, anytime, anywhere. The terrorists should be aware of that.”

following the destruction of their physical caliphate earlier this year. There is no guarantee of success in an operation with this level of difficulty. And President Trump knew this when he made the bold decision to order the raid, confident in the expertise of our forces. Our service members conducted themselves with incredible skill and professionalism, and they executed the raid, in all of its facets, brilliantly. Not a single United States service member was killed in this high-risk operation. Despite Baghdadi’s death, the security situation in Syria remains complex. Multiple state and nonstate actors continue to vie for control of territory and resources within the country ... Our mission in Syria today remains the same as it was when we first began operations in 2014: to enable the enduring defeat of ISIS. Our recent repositioning of forces within the country is intended to posture us to continue this mission and give the president options, while returning the balance back home to the United States. Those who remain will continue to execute counterterrorism operations, while staying in close contact with the Syrian Democratic Forces who have fought alongside us.”

STAFF SGT. BRANDY NICOLE MEJIA

Esper meets with Command Sgt. Maj. Timothy Metheny, left, and U.S. Army Gen. Scott Miller during a visit to Afghanistan in October.

up to this obligation. The strength of our collective response requires that all alliance members be ready to do their part.”

INCREASING MILITARY STRENGTH “We will do this, first, by building a more lethal force, one that is increasing its readiness and modernizing for the future. Second, we will strengthen our alliances and attract new partners. A strong network of like-minded nations that are willing and able to fight together is an

advantage that our adversaries do not possess. Third, we will reform the department to make the best use of every single dollar Congress gives us. Our country has many competing demands, and it is incumbent upon us to look for ways, no matter how small, to free up time, money and manpower to invest back into our top priorities. We must always keep faith with the American people and be good stewards of their hard-earned tax dollars. Lastly ... we will place a particular fo-

cus on the well-being of our families. Our military spouses and civilians and children make tremendous sacrifices for this country. And in return, I am committed to ensuring they are properly cared for.”

OPERATION KAYLA MUELLER “(Abu Bakr al-) Baghdadi and the thugs who follow him were responsible for some of the most brutal atrocities of our time. His death marks a devastating blow for the remnants of ISIS, who are now deprived of their inspirational leader,

CYBERSECURITY “While we are having success deterring conventional aggression against the United States, our adversaries are increasingly resorting to malign activity in less traditional areas to undermine our security. There is perhaps no area where this is more true than in the cyber domain. Just as we do on land, at sea and in the air, we must posture our forces in cyberspace where we can most effectively accomplish our mission. Defending forward allows us to disrupt threats at the initial source before they reach our networks and systems. To do this, we must be in a position to continuously compete with the ongoing campaigns being waged against the United States. Not only does this protect us day-to-day, but enacting this strategy builds the readiness of our cyber warriors so they have the tools, skills and experience needed to succeed in conflict.”

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NEWS

RICK BRINK

Army Command Sgt. Maj. Tomeka N. O’Neal, Defense Commissary Agency’s senior enlisted adviser, chats with a customer at the commissary at Fort Eustis, Va.

More in Store Commissaries, exchanges amp up convenience for customers By Adam Stone

HEN ARMY COMMAND SGT. Maj. Tomeka

N. O’Neal shops the commissary at Fort Lee, Va., she looks for the bright orange YES! signs.

“For me, I am a very focused shopper, and that sign always puts a smile on my face,” she said. “As you look down the shelves, it draws your attention. You can see just what savings are that day.” The YES! — Your Everyday Savings! — campaign is part of a wave of recent customer service enhancements by the

Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA). By tool that allows for richer feedback and leveraging technology and other innovadeeper analytics. “It gives us the voice tive means, DeCA aims to help make of the customer, and we can get a lot shopping easier and more cost-effective of actionable information,” he said. “It for the military community. actually gives people a place to provide With more than 15,000 employees, written comments, and I can immediDeCA serves more than 12 million ately push that information down to that customers at nearly 240 commissaries in particular store.” 13 countries. The survey tool launched in July, and “The overall goal is for the customer by mid-October had already drawn 4,700 shopping experience to be a memorable customer responses, he said. one, an enjoyable one. I want them to O’Neal has been impressed with the leave the commissary feeling like they survey. “I did it immediately when I left saved money and got a good value,” said the store, when everything was fresh retired Rear Adm. Robert J. Bianchi, on my mind, and it allowed me to be DeCA’s interim director and CEO. very thorough,” she said. “When I wasn’t That means bringing commissary happy about a product, it gave me a practices current drop-down menu: with those in civilian Why wasn’t I happy? communities through Was the product not tools like CLICK2GO, on the shelf? Was it which enables the cost? It’s a very online ordering and well-thought-out curbside pickup. tool.” DeCA launched the More than just a program in spring customer, O’Neal 2019 and expects it is also the senior to soon be available enlisted adviser to in at least the 50 DeCA. She’s shopped NEW AND IMPROVED biggest commissaries, the commissaries for Bianchi said. almost 30 years, and Navy Exchange has more to “This is all about said she is excited offer in 2020: convenience,” he said. to see the military’s uChina Lake, Calif., smaller “There is no doubt in grocery stores trying micro market, January my mind that time is to up their customer uKings Bay, Ga., smaller micro the new currency.” service game. market, February With convenience “The commissary top of mind, DeCA is a part of the uGreat Lakes, Ill., store is taking cues from community,” she said. renovation, April companies like Blue “I see our veterans Apron and HelloFresh shopping, and when Marine Corps Exchange has that have drawn a they do, they will two locations, similar to following among always run into an old convenience stores, coming consumers eager to friend and talk about in 2020: access quick, readywhere they served uQuantico, Va., February to-cook dinner kits, together. That aspect and now offer similar uOahu, Hawaii, April is invaluable, and that kits in commissaries. is what will carry us “The major grocery through the future. chains are offering this, where you have Our role is to be more than just a place to everything you need in the package to shop.” prepare the meal,” Bianchi said. Rather That community aspect will likely than re-create the wheel, DeCA has expand in the near future. outsourced the effort. “We are using Starting Jan. 1, 2020, the Department Tyson (Tastemakers), and they have a of Defense and Department of Homeland whole line of meal kit-type products, Security are expanding in-store comwhether it’s the complete meal or just a missary privileges to some 3 million main course that’s already seasoned and veterans, Bianchi said. marinated.” “It’s a great way to recognize the To ensure these new offerings are service of these folks,” he said. “We are hitting the mark, DeCA has revamped its thinking this could have a $200 (million) customer feedback mechanism. or $300 million impact on our sales … The previous system gave limited and we are already looking at ramping up information, Bianchi said. This summer in anticipation of this happening. We are DeCA implemented ForeSee, a survey actively preparing for it.”

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NEWS

Detrimental Departure Pentagon: Withdrawal from Syria allows ISIS to rebuild

SHEALAH CRAIGHEAD/THE WHITE HOUSE

President Donald Trump and top advisers monitor developments as U.S. forces close in on ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s compound.

By Tom Vanden Brook

RESIDENT DONALD TRUMP’S ORDER to withdraw U.S.

troops from Syria in October provided the Islamic State an opening to rebuild itself, giving the terrorist group time and space to target the West, according to a report released by the Pentagon’s inspector general, Glenn Fine, in November. The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) informed Fine, that the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, has taken advantage of the withdrawal and Turkey’s subsequent incursion into Syria. Trump’s decision prompted strong bipartisan criticism for removing military pressure on the Islamic State and leaving Kurdish forces that had worked with U.S. troops to roll back gains made by the terrorists. “ISIS exploited the Turkish incursion and subsequent drawdown of U.S. troops to reconstitute capabilities and

resources within Syria and strengthen “significant blow to ISIS but would likely its ability to plan attacks abroad,” Fine not end the ISIS threat,” according to the said in the report, which details the report. fallout from Trump’s decision. The Oct. Fine warned that “ISIS will likely 6 order allowed Turkish forces and provide support to its global branches paramilitary groups to occupy parts of and networks, and seek to regain control Syria that had been jointly of some Syrian population patrolled by American forces centers and expand its and the Kurdish-dominated global footprint.” The DIA Syrian Democratic Forces; said Islamic State operatives Turkey considers the Kurdish are likely to attempt to free fighters terrorists, the report prisoners held in Kurdish-run concluded. Russian troops also detainee camps in Syria, moved into the region. according to Fine. The Islamic State, which has The report shows that mounted or inspired terrorist ASSOCIATED PRESS military experts believe a attacks throughout the world, Glenn Fine serves U.S. troop presence in Syria will have a chance to grow as the Pentagon’s is vital, said Nicholas Heras, again, the report said. inspector general. an expert on Syria and the The DIA determined Islamic State at the Center for that the Islamic State is “postured to a New American Security. withstand” the death of its leader Abu “There has been no secret that the Bakr al-Baghdadi, who was killed in a Pentagon prefers to remain in Syria with U.S. raid Oct. 25. Baghdadi’s death was a a light-footprint U.S. military presence

in order to prevent the re-emergence of ISIS,” Heras said. “ISIS wants to remain in Syria to maintain its networks of operatives to carry out operations in the Middle East and to coordinate with operatives in Europe. U.S. interests in the region and in Europe are at risk if ISIS reconstitutes itself in Syria.” Trump modified his initial order for a complete withdrawal of U.S. forces, and about 600 American troops remain in the country. One group conducts a training mission in southern Syria, and a force backed by armored vehicles protects oil fields in the northeast. “ISIS fighters are still operating in the region, and unless pressure is maintained, a re-emergence of the group and its capabilities remains a very real possibility,” said Army Col. Myles Caggins, the spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition. “Our recent repositioning of forces within the country is intended to posture us to continue this mission.”

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NEWS

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

Honorable History Museum honoring U.S. Army to open in summer By Patricia Kime

HE NATION’S OLDEST MILITARY service will soon have

one of the nation’s newest museums. The National Museum of the United States Army is set to open June 4, 2020, about 18 miles southwest of Washington, D.C., in Fort Belvoir, Va. Twenty years in the making, the 175,000-square-foot facility will be the first to cover the service’s entire history, from colonial militiamen in 1636 to today’s troops, said Tammy Call, museum director. “We always go back to the most basic element of the Army, the individual soldier. We tell that story through their artifacts, their items, their storylines, their personal experiences,” Call said.

The museum rose from the ground the clothing, weapons (and) soldier’s load beginning in 2016, built around four ... to the futuristic soldier.” massive artifacts: the only surviving tank In addition to the exhibit spaces, the used by U.S. troops in World War I; a $200 million public-private venture will Higgins Boat used on D-Day; an M4A3E2 have education rooms, a playground and Sherman tank from the digital registries for visitors to Battle of the Bulge; and an research friends and relatives. M3 Bradley Cavalry Fighting Call said the museum will For more Vehicle that was used in Iraq. have something for anyone details on the Now, its completed galleries with an interest in history, not museum, visit are being filled with exhibits just military history. “It’s very thenmusa.org. and artifacts, including exciting to see things coming 63 life-size soldier figures together and the exhibit work that will tell the story of the within the individual galleries service’s transformation across nearly taking shape,” she said. “The Army has 250 years. been here with this nation, step by step, The first figure visitors come into conall along the way.” tact with is the American Revolutionary The museum will be open every day militiaman, Call said. “You (will) see the except Christmas. Entry will be free, progression of the soldier not only of their although timed tickets will be required for physical structure, but the progression of crowd control.

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Sacred Spaces VA cemeteries oﬀer alternate resting spots as Arlington National Cemetery runs out of room By Gina Harkins

RLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY HAS served as

the final resting site for almost half a million people since the Civil War — but the sacred grounds are running out of space. The Department of the Army, which manages the hallowed site where U.S. military veterans dating back centuries are interred, is adding space to the 624-acre area that sits just outside Washington, D.C. But even with a 70-acre southern expansion set to begin in 2021 and expected to be completed by 2025, burial space will run out 30 years later, according to Kerry Meeker, an Arlington National Cemetery spokeswoman. That could mean many Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans won’t have the option of being buried there. In September, Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy proposed changing burial eligibility requirements to keep the cemetery open and active for the next 150 years. The new rules would limit in-ground burial space to those killed or wounded in action, prisoners of war and combat heroes who earn the Medal of Honor, a service cross or the Silver Star. McCarthy’s proposals were in line with Arlington National Cemetery’s advisory committee’s recommendations. The changes would mean military retirees and troops killed on active duty but not in combat will only be eligible for above-ground inurnment. Once implemented, the rules will not affect previously scheduled services at the cemetery, Army officials emphasized. The changes also won’t affect veterans’ burial benefits or eligibility at Veterans Affairs’ national or state cemeteries. It’s not the first time eligibility rules at Arlington have changed. Officials established the current rules in 1967 when burial rates rose sharply after President John F. Kennedy was buried there following his assassination. The mystique of the cemetery was “heightened substantially” after Kennedy’s burial, a 1999 congres-

J.D. LEIPOLD; JOHN MOORE/GETTY IMAGES; ADAM BETTCHER/GETTY IMAGES

sional report states. That led officials to restrict in-ground burials to military retirees and those killed on active duty. Above-ground inurnment is available to a wider veteran population, including those who served fewer than 20 years and don’t qualify for a full military retirement. Veterans who were honorably discharged and served at least a day on active service, aside from training, are eligible for above-ground inurnment. But with space getting tighter, veterans are encouraged to consider other options for their earned burial benefits. “We often make veterans aware of

the Department of Veterans Affairs’ 137 national cemeteries and 115 state veterans’ cemeteries, as these are wonderful options all across the country for our veterans,” Meeker said. The VA is also expanding several of its national cemeteries — or has plans to do so. Between Oct. 1, 2017, and Sept. 30, 2018, there were more than 135,000 interments in VA national cemeteries, according to Gina Jackson, a VA spokeswoman. Between the VA’s national cemeteries and those run by states, territories and tribes, more than 92 percent of veterans have burial options within 75 miles of

their homes, she added. Veterans and their families may also qualify for more benefits at VA cemeteries because the eligibility criteria are considerably less strict than those at Arlington National Cemetery, Jackson said. Eligibility rules are the same at all national VA cemeteries. Any veteran who served on active duty and was discharged under any condition except dishonorable qualifies, including those who received honorable, general and other-thanhonorable discharges. Spouses and any minor children are also eligible to be buried there. Reservists and National Guard personnel who serve on active duty other than for training or have served long enough to be eligible for a Reserve retirement are also eligible, along with spouses and minor children. Those veterans and family members are entitled to a gravesite, headstone and opening- and closing-of-the-grave services at no cost. As space at Arlington National Cemetery dwindles, veterans organizations acknowledge its legacy will be difficult to replace, but there’s no easy answer, Veterans of Foreign Wars officials said in testimony presented to Congress last year. The Army should seek every opportunity to expand the sacred grounds, the group added. Beyond that, “the other option is to encourage VA to work with other state and local partners” to increase burial space at national veteran cemeteries, it wrote. Jackson stressed that all VA cemeteries are maintained at the highest “national shrine” standards. The VA National Cemetery Administration’s national shrine commitment states that the spots should be majestic settings. “Each visitor should depart feeling that the grounds, the gravesites and the environs of the national cemetery are a beautiful and awe-inspiring tribute to those who gave much to preserve our nation’s freedom and way of life,” the national shrine committee states.

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NEWS fit and function have given the Navy better options, such as the extremely popular Type III Navy Working Uniform, which features a green-and-black digital camouflage pattern. Although the green camouflage will be new for most sailors, Navy Expeditionary sailors have been wearing the Type III uniform for the past seven years. The green Type III uniforms officially replaced the blue Type 1 as the Navy’s primary daily working uniform in October. However, an early rollout of the green camouflage took place in January 2018, offering sailors at the Navy Exchange (NEX) Uniform Shop at Bangor Trident Base in Washington a sneak peek. While embracing the new look, some sailors said they’d miss aspects of the blueberry uniforms. “If they could have done the blue uniforms in the new type of material, I would’ve been happy because now I’m going to look like a Marine or something wearing the green uniform,” said Tom Gregg, then a petty officer third class. NEX Service Command spokeswoman Courtney Williams described the material used now as more durable. “The new uniforms are made out of a rip-stop nylon cotton,” she said. “If it does rip, it won’t rip even further.” NICHOLAS BREZZELL

An officer holds open his Type 1 Navy Working Uniform, known as blueberry camouflage, to reveal the green Type III fatigues.

Uniform Reform Navy, Army adopt new camouflage patterns By Adam Hadhazy

OR THOUSANDS OF YEARS,

soldiers have worn uniforms tailored to the combat requirements, textile technologies and fashion sense of the era. That evolution of military wear continues today in the United States’ armed forces. Two branches, the Navy and the Army, each recently wrapped up yearslong phaseouts of particular uniform camouflage types. Starting Oct. 1, Navy sailors were no longer authorized to wear the Type I Navy Working Uniform, popularly known as the “blueberry” for its multiple shadesof-blue camouflage pattern.

Meanwhile, the Army has shelved its Universal Camouflage Pattern uniform (UCP) characterized by its pixelated pattern of gray and khaki hues. “All uniforms have their time,” said Robert Carroll, head of the Navy Uniform Matters Office at the Chief of Naval Personnel. “Whether it be the image, the function, the fit, the mission requirements — it’s all about improvement.”

A DISTINCTIVE LOOK The Navy introduced the blueberry in 2008 in response to sailors’ expressed desire to have a battle dress utility-style uniform, similar to the other services. Conveniently, the blueberry took the place of several other uniform types,

Carroll said, reducing the number of uniforms service members had to buy, maintain and carry with them. The “ocean blues” camouflage pattern did puzzle some, however. “We used to say, ‘there’s no trees at sea, so there’s no need to camouflage at sea’,” said Carroll. But, Carroll pointed out that the pattern was an improvement over previous Navy uniforms — often solid colors, which readily showed stains from oil, paint, dirt and other elements encountered in the industrial ship environments. Plus, the blueberries were quick-drying and hid wrinkles, making them a lowcare garment, Carroll said. Yet, the Navy decided it was time to move on. Continuing advances in fabrics,

LEARNING FROM MISTAKES As for the Army, the branch decided to move away from the UCP — introduced in 2004 — because it simply was not working as intended. UCP was expected to serve as camouflage in all environments, from deserts to jungles. While the grayish UCP proved suitable for urban environments, it did not perform well elsewhere. “Postcombat surveys conducted with soldiers indicated concealment concerns with the Universal Camouflage Pattern,” said Army spokeswoman Heather Hagan. In 2009, the Army began an in-depth effort to address UCP’s limitations, culminating in the adoption of the Operational Camouflage Pattern, with greens and browns to disguise soldiers better in most combat settings. “Quality uniforms ensure that soldiers are comfortable, safe and protected, which contributes to morale, unit cohesiveness and most importantly, soldiers’ ability to win” in battle, said Hagan. Added Carroll: What we wear “projects not only pride in ourselves, pride in our service, but also pride in our country.” Julianne Stanford of the (Bremerton, Wash.) Kitsap Sun, contributed to this article.

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Acts of Valor on Display Texas chosen as National Medal of Honor Museum site By Sara Schwartz

HE NATION’S HIGHEST MILITARY award for valor will

soon have its own museum. Arlington, Texas, was chosen as the future home for the first ever National Medal of Honor Museum, according to the foundation behind the museum. “Arlington, Texas, is the optimal location to build America’s next national treasure — the National Medal of Honor Museum,” Joe Daniels, president and CEO of the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation, said in a statement in October. “All of us at the museum were simply overwhelmed with the enthusiasm, warmth and level of commitment of those involved, who have worked beyond expectation to have the museum come to Texas.” The Medal of Honor is the highest military honor the nation can bestow and the oldest continuously issued combat decoration of the United States armed forces.

“Arlington, Texas, is honored to be entrusted as the home of the National Medal of Honor Museum,” Arlington Mayor Jeff Williams said in a statement. “Located in the heart of our nation, we look forward to commemorating the stories of the 3,500 Medal of Honor recipients to educate, inspire and motivate our youth to understand the meaning and price of freedom. We are excited and humbled to provide a national platform to spread this message throughout our great country.” The museum is expected to open in 2024. Since the first Medal of Honor presentation took place in 1863, there have been 3,524 awarded. In 2019, President Donald Trump awarded the medal to Staff Sgt. David Bellavia, the first living Iraq War recipient; posthumously to Staff Sgt. Travis Atkins, who was killed in action June 1, 2007; and to Master Sgt. Matthew Williams, United States Army, for “conspicuous gallantry while serving as a Weapons Sergeant in Support of Operation Enduring Freedom.”

ALEX BRANDON/ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘INCREDIBLE HEROISM’ President Donald Trump recently presented the Medal of Honor to Master Sgt. Matthew Williams, a Green Beret who helped save four critically wounded comrades and prevented the lead element of a special operations force from being overrun in Afghanistan. The presentation ceremony was held at the White House on Oct. 30, with top military leaders present. The events that earned Williams the honor occurred in April 2008 during a mountainside firefight that lasted several hours as Williams’ team and about 100 Afghan commandos were attacked by insurgents. Trump recounted how Williams led the commandos across a fastmoving and icy river and engaged the enemy. When his team sergeant was wounded by a sniper, Williams exposed himself to enemy fire to come to his aid. He helped evacuate the sergeant and then climbed back up the mountain to evacuate others, again exposing himself to enemy fire as he helped carry and load others on to evacuation helicopters. “Matt’s incredible heroism helped ensure that not a single American soldier died in the battle of Shok Valley,” Trump said.

Trump said the enemy had the high ground, superior numbers and the element of surprise. “Everything they were not supposed to have, they had,” Trump said. “But they had one major disadvantage. They were facing the toughest, strongest and best-trained soldiers anywhere in the world.” The honor is an upgrade to the Silver Star that Williams initially received for his actions that day. He is the second member of his detachment to receive the Medal of Honor for that operation. Former Staff Sgt. Ronald Shurer II received it in 2018. The ceremony in the White House East Room included lawmakers from Williams’ home state of Texas, Defense Secretary Mark Esper and many of the nation’s top military leaders. Williams, who still serves in the Army, said he was “humbled by the whole experience” and thanked his fellow soldiers. “As a team we trusted one another, we fought hard together, we believed in one another, and that’s really why we were all able to come home,” Williams said. — Kevin Freking

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MANUEL BALCE CENETA/ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘HE CLIMBED TO GLORY’ Saluting a fallen hero who reached glory by saving others, President Trump bestowed the Medal of Honor on Army Staff Sgt. Travis Atkins, a soldier who gave his life to protect three comrades from a suicide bomber. Atkins, at age 31, died June 1, 2007, after he tackled an Iraqi insurgent who was trying to detonate his bomb vest. Atkins wrapped himself around the man as the bomb exploded, protecting three colleagues from the blast. “He put himself on top of the enemy, and he shielded his men from certain death,” Trump said during a White House ceremony March 27. “In his final moments on Earth, Travis did not run,” Trump said. Instead, he “laid down his life to save the lives of his fellow warriors,” and embodied the motto of the 10th Mountain Division: “He climbed to glory.” In an account of the incident, the Defense Department said, “Without pausing, Atkins bear-hugged the man from behind, threw him to the ground and pinned him there, shielding his fellow soldiers who were only a few feet away.” Trump presented the Medal of Honor to members of Atkins’ family during the somber ceremony.

ALEX BRANDON/ASSOCIATED PRESS

‘SELFLESS SERVICE’

Trevor Oliver, Atkins’ son, praised his father as a kind and courageous man, and told a crowd of relatives, lawmakers and comrades-in-arms, “I feel so close with you and to him.” Jeff Krogstad, who met Atkins in the first grade, said that he was not surprised by his friend’s heroism. Atkins, he said, believed that the duty of a squad leader was to bring his troops home safe. “He always put others before himself,” Krogstad said. Born on Dec. 9, 1975, Atkins grew up in Bozeman, Mont., an outdoors person who loved to hunt and fish. He first joined the Army in 2000, and became an infantry team leader shortly after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in the spring of 2003. He left the service later that year, but decided to re-enlist two years later, the Defense Department said. He was promoted to staff sergeant while serving in Iraq in 2007, the year of his death. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., attended the Medal of Honor ceremony and said Atkins’ family and friends were “very emotional” about recalling his bravery. “There’s no greater courage,” he said, “no higher level of bravery than that.” — David Jackson

Army Staff Sgt. David Bellavia received the Medal of Honor June 25 for rescuing his squad and clearing out a house full of Iraqi insurgents during the Battle of Fallujah. President Trump presented the Medal of Honor to Bellavia, who became the first living Iraq War veteran to receive the award. “America’s blessed with the heroes and great people like Staff Sgt. Bellavia, whose intrepid spirit and unwavering resolve defeats our enemies, protects our freedoms and defends our great American flag,” Trump said. “David, today we honor your extraordinary courage. We salute your selfless service, and we thank you for carrying on the legacy of American valor.” According to the White House, Bellavia enlisted in the Army in 1999 and served in Kosovo before deploying to Iraq in 2004. He was discharged from the Army in 2005, and co-hosts a daily radio talk show in Buffalo, N.Y. He is the co-founder of Vets for Freedom, a conservative advocacy group. Bellavia, who received a standing ovation, spoke at the Pentagon about the award and praised his fellow soldiers. “I know I care about these guys, I know they love me. Let’s talk about

those people that we love. Let’s talk about why this is ours,” he said. During the Second Battle of Fallujah, Bellavia’s platoon was ordered to clear out a block of 12 buildings when the troops became pinned down by enemy fire. Rather than put one of his own men at risk, Bellavia grabbed an M249 light machine gun and provided covering fire for his fellow soldiers to escape. When they came under fire again from a house full of insurgents, Bellavia ran inside with an M16 and killed four insurgents. When he entered a room full of propane tanks and plastic explosives to prevent an explosion, he fought an insurgent hand-to-hand before wrestling him to the ground and stabbing him in the collarbone. Bellavia’s guest at the ceremony was Gary Beikirch, a Vietnam War veteran who received the Medal of Honor for heroism as a Green Beret medic during the defense of Camp Dak Seang. Bellavia was previously awarded a Silver Star for his actions. The presentation of the Medal of Honor came after the Pentagon reviewed valor awards and upgraded them for many service members. — Nicholas Wu

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TROOPS

WE WANT YOU

In Demand Committee assesses whether women should be drafted GETTY IMAGES/ILLUSTRATION: HAYLEIGH CORKEY

By Gina Harkins

REPORT DUE TO CONGRESS

in March could recommend that all young Americans be required to register for the draft, setting up the possibility that women would involuntarily be sent to battle. When all military combat jobs opened to women in 2015, it stirred a host of debates, including whether women should be required to register for the Selective Service. Men must do so at age 18 or risk jail time or hefty fines. Failing to register also bars them from most federal employment and some student aid. A 1981 Supreme Court decision upheld the male-only registration rules because women weren’t allowed to fill combat jobs. Now, female troops are leading infantry platoons and earning Army Ranger tabs. A federal judge with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas ruled in February that the Military Selective Service Act was unconstitutional for excluding women. However, changing the current system would require an act of Congress. Lawmakers assembled a bipartisan, 11-person commission in 2017 to conduct extensive research on the draft. Army

Brig. Gen. Joseph Heck, a physician who commission published a notice for public leads the Army Reserve’s 807th Medicomments in the Federal Register, he cal Command, heads up the National added. An interim report was released Commission on Military, National, and in January. Among other things, it found Public Service. that opinions were varied. Heck, a former House Republican, Heck said the comments they’ve acknowledges received are in line congressional leaders with the polling that for seeking indicates the public is public opinion about “fairly evenly divided DID YOU KNOW? proposed policies on the issue.” President Franklin D. Rooand reforms rather One group tracking sevelt, citing a shortage of than passing hasty the issue closely is nurses, proposed drafting legislation. the Service Women’s women in his 1945 State “I happened to be a Action Network, which of the Union address. member of the Armed advocates for female Services committee troops. Retired Army The draft was suspended at the time this Col. Ellen Haring, the near the end of the debate was being had group’s CEO, said Vietnam War. When in Congress,” said women should be President Jimmy Carter Heck, who gives a lot required to register reinstated draft registraof credit to leaders, for the draft. It would tion in 1980, he proposed who realized that remove what she said adding women. “this was going to be is a double standard a very contentious and also help ensure issue best left to an the U.S. can respond to independent entity to crises, she explained. do a really in-depth, deep dive.” “With 71 percent of the nation’s youth The commission held more than a unfit for military service, the exclusion dozen hearings and town hall events of qualified women from compulsory across 24 cities in 15 states, Heck said. service during a time of war would ... put It’s also gotten feedback from thousands our national security at risk,” she said, of Americans on its website after the referring to the Pentagon’s assessment

The official findings of the National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service are due to Congress in March, but the group, led by Army Brig. Gen. Joseph Heck, released preliminary suggestions on how to better inform young adults about the draft and military service based on feedback from the public. Those ideas include:

uFormally asking all young Americans to consider national service uCreating a national marketing campaign to advertise opportunities about national service uIntegrating a semester of service into the high school curriculum uEncouraging or incentivizing colleges and employers to recruit individuals who have completed a service year and to award college credit for national service experience uOffering a fellowship to 18-year-olds who want to serve, covering their living stipend and postservice award for a year of national service at any approved not-for-profit organization uIncreasing the living stipend for those who participate in national service programs uProviding an expanded educational award for each year of national service completed

that about 7 in 10 young Americans don’t qualify for the military due to their weight or other health issues, crime or drug problems or lack of education. Heck’s team, comprised of retired military officers and former government officials, also assessed when a draft should be initiated, penalties for noncompliance and whether the government needs to hold mock-draft exercises to ensure the lottery or notification systems function properly. They’ve followed an “extremely analytical and deliberative process,” Heck said.

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TROOPS

Deadly Data Military sees troubling trend as suicides increase

= 541

+ Military suicides increased by 30 from 2017 to 2018

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By Lolita C. Baldor

ILITARY SUICIDES HAVE SURGED to a record high

among active-duty troops, continuing a deadly trend that Pentagon officials are struggling to counter. The Army, Navy and Marine Corps all saw the rate and overall numbers of suicides increase. Only the Air Force had a decrease, according to 2018 data released by the Pentagon in September. Suicides among members of the Reserves and the National Guard also grew. The difficulties involved in identifying service members with possible problems and finding ways to prevent suicides were underscored in September when the Navy reported that three crew members who served on the USS George H.W. Bush took their own lives within a week.

“I wish I could tell you we have an Pentagon’s office of force resiliency, who answer to prevent further, future suicides added, “That’s hardly comforting.” in the armed services,” said Defense Defense leaders expressed dismay and Secretary Mark Esper. “We don’t. We are a resolve to do more to increase resilience caught up in what some in the force, train service call a national epidemic of members to better handle suicide among our youth.” stress and encourage The number of suitroops to seek help. Van cides across the military Winkle said the military is increased from 511 in 2017 also looking at increasing to 541 in 2018. According efforts to train troops on to the Pentagon, the most safe storage of fireSERVICE MEMBERS the at-risk population is enarms and medication. She COMMITTED SUICIDE said there are no consislisted men younger than 30. Army suicides went tent regulations across the IN 2018 from 114 to 139, Marines Defense Department and SOURCE: DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE from 43 to 58 and Navy the services requiring gun from 65 to 68. The Air locks or other controls on Force dipped from 63 to 60. firearms, but some states or bases have Most of the military rates are compatheir own restrictions. rable to civilians numbers, said Elizabeth Van Winkle and Karin Orvis, director Van Winkle, executive director of the of the department’s defense suicide pre-

541

vention office, said recognizing service members who may be struggling or at risk of taking their own lives is difficult, and that sometimes suicide is a sudden, impulsive decision with little warning. Van Winkle and Orvis said it’s difficult to identify reasons for suicide because there are so many factors that could contribute. They also acknowledged that service members are reluctant to seek help, worried that it could affect promotions or security clearances, and military leaders said they must all work harder to address those perceived roadblocks. “Marines must ... be comfortable discussing life’s struggles, mental wellness and suicide,” said Gen. David Berger, commandant of the Marine Corps. “We must create a community where seeking help and assistance are simply normal, important decisions Marines and sailors make.”

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BUDGETING THE

BORDER Pentagon redirects $3.6 billion for wall construction

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By Carli Pierson

HE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS moving ahead with the

campaign promise of expanding the border wall. The project will be funded by redirecting $3.6 billion toward the construction of 175 miles of barrier on the southwest border. The funds were originally designated by Congress for military construction projects in the U.S. and overseas. Responding to President Donald Trump’s request to expedite funding for the wall, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper authorized the diversion of funds from 127 domestic and overseas military construction projects. In a Sept. 3 letter, Esper explained that the president’s February 2019 declaration of a national emergency at the southern border necessitated the additional funding and that the redirection of funds would help “reduce personnel and assets at the locations where the barriers are being constructed and allow the redeployment of Department of Defense personnel and assets to other high-traffic areas.” There were roughly 2,900 active-duty service members and 2,200 National Guard members supporting U.S. Customs and Border Protection along the border in November, according to the DOD. “Any reduction of troop levels along the border will be based on evaluations by DOD and Department of Homeland

Security as to what’s needed to support the security mission. The hope is that over time, border barrier construction will reduce the need for DOD personnel and capabilities there,” said department spokesman Lt. Col. Chris Mitchell. Esper’s letter stipulated that the money wouldn’t be taken from renovations or building of “family housing, barracks or dormitory” structures and that all the projects selected for deferment were slated for 2020, or after. Esper also emphasized that the first $1.8 billion was to be drawn from overseas projects, before tapping the remaining $1.8 billion scheduled for construction projects within the continental U.S. and its territories. The Pentagon has requested that Congress fund the deferred projects at a later date. The 11 planned border wall construction projects to be funded with the deferred money will include replacement of vehicle barriers in New Mexico and Texas, pedestrian fencing and barriers in San Diego and fencing at the border in Yuma, Ariz. In Laredo, Texas, 52 miles of pedestrian fencing is set to be built along the Rio Grande River. A total of 63 overseas projects in 20 countries were immediately affected. Those sites include schools for the children of service members in Germany, Japan and the U.K., as well as operations CONTINUED

GUILLERMO ARIAS/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

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BUDGET DELAYED

JAIME RODRIGUEZ SR.

Construction workers erect the foundation of a steel wall in the Rio Grande Valley along the U.S.–Mexico border.

and training facilities, hazardous material warehouses and airfield upgrades, among other projects. More than 60 domestic construction projects were also put on hold, including a middle school in Kentucky, a missile defense field in Alaska, alert facilities in Louisiana, hazardous waste facilities in Virginia, a MQ-9 drone holding facility in New Mexico, a parking lot at the United States Military Academy at West Point in New York, a National Guard readiness center in Puerto Rico

and a machine gun range in Guam.

DISAGREEMENTS ABOUT FUNDING Congress and the White House have been at odds over the diversion of military construction funds. The president was unable to persuade Congress to appropriate additional funding to build the wall when he declared the national emergency earlier this year. The Senate then voted to end the national emergency, which the president vetoed. With

an emergency declared, the Pentagon was empowered to redirect the funds. Although the Pentagon ordered the projects deferred, they can only proceed if Congress decides to fund, or backfill, them. The Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), authorizing the 2020 defense budget, orders the backfilling of the projects. The House version prevents the use of Pentagon funds to build the wall. The NDAA, which has a 58-year record of being passed, was still under negotiation in early December

As of press time, the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) has yet to be approved. Considerable effort is put toward resolving conflicts between House and Senate versions of the NDAA each year. However, the 2020 plan is still under consideration, even though Defense Secretary Mark Esper urged lawmakers to have it passed by Oct. 1. “It is vital ... that Congress passes the NDAA and defense appropriations bills on time for the coming year. As I’ve expressed to members of the Congress on many occasions ... continuing resolutions harm our military readiness and stifle our modernization efforts,” Esper said in August before chairman for the Senate Committee on Armed Services James Inhofe proposed his scaled back version of the act. Delayed approval of the bill is not unprecedented. Twice, the process has dragged into the new year: The 2008 NDAA was not signed into law until Jan. 28, and the 1996 NDAA was signed Feb. 10. — Tracy Scott Forson

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The hope is that over time, border barrier construction will reduce the need for DOD personnel and capabilities there. — LT. COL. CHRIS MITCHELL, Department of Defense spokesman

JAIME RODRIGUEZ SR.

In order to redirect Pentagon funds to the construction of new portions of the border wall, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency.

and faces an end of the year deadline. Sensing that lawmakers won’t be able to reach an agreement before the year’s end, the chairman for the Senate Committee on Armed Services, Sen. James Inhofe, introduced a “skinny” defense policy bill in late October that would provide for service members’ salaries and authorize military operations and construction, but would still allow the use of Pentagon funding to build the wall. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, chairwoman for the House Appropriations Sub-Committee on

Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies, said, “The House of Representatives will fight any attempt to make our military families or national security suffer for Trump’s lie that Mexico would pay for this nativist boondoggle.”

WALL FIGHT REACHES THE COURTS Human rights organizations, environmental groups and the government of El Paso County in Texas took the fight over the border wall to court. In October, a

Texas federal court ruled that the use of funds originally designated for military construction by Congress and diverted by the Pentagon to build the wall violated the Consolidated Appropriations Act, and was thus unlawful. In July, in a similar case challenging the redirection of Pentagon funding for the wall, the conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the administration and allowed Pentagon funding for the wall while the government appeals a lower court’s ruling. Wall construction is moving ahead in

spite of the ruling from the federal court and with questions about its effectivenes. “It is far too early to quantify the impact the border barriers are having on the overall mission,” said Mitchell. “Of the 450 miles projected to be built by the end of the 2020 calendar year, roughly 75 miles are now complete.” Currently, there are 650 miles of existing border barrier with approximately half dedicated to blocking pedestrians and half to blocking vehicles; 1,300 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border has no barrier.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

By Patricia Kime

Members of todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all-volunteer U.S. military might find the Army, Navy and Marine Corps of 1920 difficult to recognize. The year was marked by a second round of significant cuts to personnel, from a peak 1918 World War I force of 2.9 million to 343,000. Pay remained low, and an isolationist sentiment among the CO NTINUED

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general public — and Congress — posed a threat to military jobs. Yet, despite challenges that included the U.S. refusing to join the League of Nations, and senior officers squabbling about the future of new technology, the troops that remained were grateful for employment by the decade’s end, having jobs that provided housing, pay and three meals a day during the Great Depression, according to David Ulbrich, director of Norwich University’s online military history graduate program and author of Ways of War: American Military History from the Colonial Era to the Twenty-First Century. “The Republicans in the 1920s were very anti-military. They cut the military budget very deeply. Then, when the Great Depression hit and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt took over, he was pro-military and pro-Navy, but he couldn’t get the votes to put any money into the services until the late 1930s, when Germany finally invaded Poland,” Ulbrich said. Twenty years of tight budgets after World War I came as little surprise, according to Ulbrich. Coming off the Great War that saw 53,402 Americans killed in combat and 63,114 die from other causes, including Spanish influenza, families in “Vermont, in Nebraska or in Los Angeles really didn’t care what was happening 3,000 miles away in Germany or 7,000 miles away in Japan,” he said. Congress made sure the troops were paid — the lowest enlisted service man received $30 a month, while the highest-ranking rear admirals or major generals received

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$667.67 — but they disagreed on funding or use of new technology like tanks or aircraft that made their combat debut in the war. Debate also raged within the services over tanks, which weren’t successfully utilized in the war by the U.S., and aircraft, which were only used in a limited capacity. The Army’s famed leader, Gen. John J. “Blackjack” Pershing, moved tanks under the infantry, and turf wars broke out about aircraft. “We still had people who favored horses ... and coming out of World War I, the U.S. military has these new gadgets ... what do you do with them?” Ulbrich asked. In 1920, U.S. troops served in a military that was primarily male. Previously, during the Revolutionary War, women served as cooks, nurses or in other auxiliary capacities. However, WWI marked the first time women were allowed to enlist. More than 13,000 enlisted in the Navy to serve stateside, receiving the same benefits and pay as men. In the Marine Corps, 305 women filled domestic positions. Another 22,974 women served as nurses in the Army and Navy. An additional 223 women served as uniformed civilians in the Army Signal Corps — the “Hello Girls” risked their lives as switchboard operators in Europe. Racial minorities were restricted from serving: The Marine Corps barred blacks from serving, and the Navy only allowed them to hold menial positions such as stevedores, loading and unloading cargo ships. Many African Americans viewed CONTI NUED

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PROVIDED BY BILL CLINE JR.; PHOTOGRAPHED BY KEN SCAR

By the numbers The U.S. armed forces has become larger and more lethal during the last 100 years.

1920

2019

204,292

ARMY

483,941

121,845

NAVY

336,985

17,165

MARINE CORPS

186,009

AIR FORCE

332,101

Not yet formed

343,302 TOTAL # OF SERVICE MEMBERS 1.3 million SOURCE: U.S. Department of Defense

military service a way to prove their patriotism. The Army had four black units — the 9th and 10th Cavalry and the 24th and 25th Infantry prior to the war — but they weren’t allowed to serve overseas. As the war went on, however, the U.S. Army created two new primarily black units, the 92nd and 93rd Divisions, in 1917, and both fought in combat. During the war, Latino troops served in a single Army unit, the 65th Infantry Regiment, while Asian Americans served in integrated units. By contrast, in 2018, minorities accounted for nearly 31 percent of the U.S. armed forces and women

made up 16.5 percent of the military. Despite the differences between today’s military and that of a century ago, changes occurred in 1920 that are recognizable to today’s troops. For example, the National Defense Act of 1920 established the current structure of the U.S. Army, with a standing regular Army, the Reserve forces and the National Guard. The legislation also standardized pay, ensuring that all who served in equivalent ranks received the same pay — a change from pay based on different specialties or branches. Also recognizable are Pershing’s organizational charts for units, with G-1 referring to general administrative staff; G-2, intelligence; G-3, operations; G-4, logistics and G-5, training. And although the weapons look different, the technology developed in World War I — machine guns such as the Browning M1919, aircraft, submarines and tanks — were game-changers to warfare and remain in use today. Ulbrich said the services of today also share another common tie: being stretched thin. The U.S. military of 1920 was cut to the bone and had too few military personnel to complete its tasks; the services today are stretched by a global war on terrorism that has lasted more than 18 years, requiring multiple deployments for many. “There’s this incredible fatigue that makes it very different than a short, violent, bloody experience like the months spent in Europe for the United States in World War I,” Ulbrich said. “The system is fatigued, and it’s not just wear and tear on the soldiers, but their families as well. It’s just a terrible thing.”

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U.S. hastens advancements on ultra-fast hypersonic weapons

Hypersonic Conventional Strike Weapon

By Matt Alderton he world’s first long-range ballistic missile, Nazi Germany’s V-2 rocket, was a technological triumph with tragic consequences. Developed by German rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, it breached Earth’s atmosphere for the first time on Oct. 3, 1942. It made its operational debut two years later, after which the Nazis fired at least 3,200 at Allied targets in Western Europe. The missiles are estimated to have killed approximately 5,500 people and to have seriously wounded another 6,500, to say nothing of the 10,000 concentrationcamp prisoners who died assembling them.

What made the V-2 so remarkable — and so lethal — was its speed. Outfitted with a 1-ton warhead, it could travel up to 200 miles at a velocity of up to 3,300 mph. After launching from a mobile ground platform, the liquid-fueled rocket ascended approximately 60 vertical miles on an arced course, reaching space before falling on its target at such force it bored several feet into the ground before detonating. Its combined tempo and trajectory made it virtually impossible to intercept. As groundbreaking as it was in 1942, the V-2 seems almost quaint nearly 80 years later. That’s because the world’s preeminent weapons have evolved from ones that can travel at supersonic speeds, like the V-2, to ones that can travel at

hypersonic speeds. On the battlefield, it will no longer be enough to have the world’s largest military — victory will belong to the world’s quickest.

‘AN IDEAL OFFENSIVE WEAPON’ Much like in the popular fable The Tortoise and the Hare, many Americans often believe that tenacity triumphs over speed. In modern warfare, however, tortoises are toast. Instead of “slow and steady,” “fast and forceful” wins the race. Enter hypersonic weapons, which are designed to travel at Mach 5 or greater — at least five times the speed of sound. “That’s about 3,800 mph, or about 1 mile per second,” said Margot van CONTI NUED

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Loon, a fellow in defense studies at the American Foreign Policy Council. “That is significantly faster than even our fastest fighter jets, which can travel for short distances at Mach 2 and 3, but can’t get up to Mach 5 … It’s a huge jump forward in terms of capabilities.” Hypersonic weapons aren’t just fast, they’re also highly maneuverable. “Their travel isn’t restricted to the traditional parabolic trajectory of a ballistic missile. They can be steered and controlled, which makes their flight paths very unpredictable,” van Loon continued. “That’s a huge advantage for whoever is deploying them.” Furthermore, hypersonic weapons are difficult to intercept. “Because they go so fast, these missiles have the capacity to evade most missile defense systems now in existence,” explained Michael Klare, a senior visiting fellow at the Arms Control Association. “It’s very hard to develop a defense system that can detect a moving missile, determine where it’s headed and fire a projectile that knocks it out of the sky. Hypersonic missiles will make that even more difficult, and that makes them an ideal offensive weapon.”

the past decade, China and Russia have aggressively pursued weaponization of hypersonic technology and have moved towards near-term fielding of operational systems … Because China and Russia have (done so), we have no option but to accelerate our development of hypersonic strike systems.” Carver’s logic is consistent with the 2018 National Defense Strategy, which instructs the U.S. military to reorganize around great-power competition — potential conflicts with China and Russia, both of which boast sophisticated missile defense systems — instead of counterinsurgency. “We just spent 18-plus years in the global war on terror, and our services have done a great job with that fight,” said Lt. Gen. L. Neil Thurgood, director of hypersonics, directed energy, space and rapid acquisition for the U.S. Army. “But the tools we needed for that fight are different than the tools we need for great-power competition.” Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon

RACING TOWARD THE FUTURE They may seem cutting-edge, but hypersonics date back more than 60 years. “The United States was the first country to start the development of these technologies as far back as the late 1950s or early 1960s,” van Loon said. “But once the Cold War ended, we fell back on our laurels a bit.” That begs the question: If the U.S. pressed “pause” on hypersonic development, why is it pressing “play” again now? There are technological reasons, certainly. “The biggest issue we’re dealing with in hypersonics is heat dissipation. Advancements in material science have allowed us to dissipate heat on smaller, more tactical weapons in a cost-effective manner,” said Wesley Kremer, president of Raytheon Missile Systems, one of

several defense contractors developing hypersonics in partnership with the Department of Defense (DOD). “The other aspect is computer-aided design. We now have the computing power to (solve the engineering challenges inherent in) things that travel at such high speeds. Those two things coming together has really brought us to where we are now.” The most conspicuous trigger, however, is foreign policy: China’s DF-17 hypersonic missile became operational in October, while Russia’s version, the Avangard, is expected to be operational in 2020. “The U.S. has been a world leader in hypersonic technology for decades; however, we have consistently made the decision not to weaponize that technology,” said Lt. Col. Robert Carver, a DOD spokesman. “On the other hand, over

A TEAM EFFORT Unwilling to let China and Russia dominate, the U.S. began speeding toward its own hypersonic weapons in June 2018, when senior military leaders signed an agreement to jointly develop a hypersonic glide vehicle — a weapon that uses a rocket to boost it to its maximum speed and altitude, at which point the warhead separates and glides toward its target. The American version, the Common Hypersonic Glide Body (C-HGB), will be shared across the services. “Fielding hypersonic weapons is DOD’s highest technical research and engineering priority,” Carver said. The Navy is leading design of the C-HGB and also developing a submarinelaunched booster system capable of deploying hypersonic weapons at sea. The Air Force, meanwhile, is developing its own booster system that will airlaunch hypersonic weapons from a B-52. The Army’s contribution is two-fold. First, it will lead production of the C-HGB. Second, it will develop the

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“Because China and Russia have (done so), we have no option but to accelerate our development of hypersonic strike systems.” — Lt. Col. Robert Carver, DOD spokesman

Army Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW), its own class of hypersonic missiles launched from mobile ground platforms. A prototype is expected by 2023, and in March 2019 the Army selected two prime contractors to help build it: Dynetics Technical Solutions (DTS) and Lockheed Martin. The latter, which also is working with the Air Force on its effort, will develop the LRHW’s ground-based launcher and integrate it with the C-HGB. With help from numerous partners — including Raytheon, which will supply the control system — the former will manufacture an initial set of C-HGB prototypes, and will produce the LRHW launcher as a subcontractor for Lockheed. The technology has been proved. What’s needed now is the means to produce it at scale. “All of the work to date has been done by the science and technology community … The challenge now is to move that intellectual capital out of government labs and into the commercial marketplace,” explained Thurgood, who said the federal scientists who developed the C-HGB will spend the next year teaching it to DTS on-site at Sandia National Laboratories. “We’re taking a design that was developed and flight-tested successfully by Sandia National Labs … and we’re working with them to turn their knowledge into a manufacturable weapons system that can be deployed and work every time the way it should,” said Steve Cook, DTS president. Rival defense contracting companies like DTS, Raytheon and Lockheed must similarly unite. “Whereas we once would compete head-to-head, a mission of this

importance calls for us to collaborate,” said Eric Scherff, vice president for hypersonic strike programs at Lockheed Martin Space Systems. “It’s all about capacity and making sure we have the wherewithal to get into a position of superiority again.” While hypersonic offense can help the U.S. regain military superiority, hypersonic defense will be needed to maintain it. That responsibility falls to the Missile Defense Agency, which in October selected Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Leidos and L3Harris to design space-based sensors capable of tracking incoming hypersonic missiles, with the ultimate goal of intercepting them. “The counter-hypersonic mission is actually a much more challenging problem to solve,” said Kremer. “If you’re on offense, you only have to get lucky once. But if you’re on defense, you have to score 100 percent every time.”

DOMINANCE OR DISASTER? The elephant in the room is nuclear

warfare. Although the U.S. thus far has said it will use hypersonic weapons only with conventional warheads, China and Russia have made no such assurances. “We fear that the introduction of hypersonic weapons in large numbers on the battlefield will reduce nuclear stability and make it more likely that a crisis will escalate rapidly,” said Klare, who offered a hypothetical scenario in which the U.S. launches a torrent of hypersonic weapons on Russia. Because of hypersonic weapons’ speed, the Russians would have 10 minutes or less to determine whether it was a nuclear or conventional attack. “That’s not a lot of time. What if they make the wrong decision and launch their own weapons? That’s the fear, because hypersonic weapons reduce decision-making time and increase ambiguity.” While new or strengthened arms control treaties could mitigate such risks, the U.S. and Russia — both of which recently withdrew from the 1987 IntermediateRange Nuclear Forces treaty — have demonstrated a preference for leaving instead of joining such agreements. And so the hypersonic arms race sprints forward. “As we move into great-power competition and seek to maintain battlefield dominance, we must ensure our technological leadership in the advanced warfighting capability enabled by hypersonic systems,” Carver concluded.

An Air Force cadet tests how Mach 6 speeds affect hypersonic vehicles.

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BRANCHES

Department of Defense Organizational structure of the U.S. armed forces

JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

The Joint Chiefs

The Joint Staff

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY Secretary of the Navy

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY Secretary of the Army

KEY DOD COMPONENT

DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE Secretary of the Air Force

Senior Leader Military Service OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE Deputy Secretary of Defense; Under Secretaries of Defense; Assistant Secretaries of Defense SOURCE: U.S. Department of Defense

COMBATANT COMMANDS (11)

DEFENSE AGENCIES (19)

uAfrica Command uCentral Command uCyber Command uEuropean Command uNorthern Command uIndo-Pacific Command uSouthern Command uSpace Command uSpecial Operations Command uStrategic Command uTransportation Command

uDefense Advanced Research Projects Agency uDefense Commissary Agency uDefense Contract Audit Agency uDefense Contract Management Agency* uDefense Finance and Accounting Service uDefense Health Agency* uDefense Information Systems Agency* uDefense Intelligence Agency* uDefense Legal Services Agency uDefense Logistics Agency* uDefense POW/MIA Accounting Agency uDefense Security Cooperation Agency uDefense Security Service uDefense Threat Reduction Agency* uMissile Defense Agency uNational Geospatial-Intelligence Agency* uNational Reconnaissance Office uNational Security Agency Central Security Service* uPentagon Force Protection Agency

Headquarters Marine Corps Office of the Secretary of the Navy Office of the Chief of Naval Operations

Marine Corps

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Army

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Office of the Secretary of the Army

The Air Staff

Office of the Secretary of the Air Force

Air Force

DOD FIELD ACTIVITIES (8)

uDefense Media Activity uDefense Technical Information Center uDefense Technology Security Administration uDOD Education Activity uDOD Human Resources Activity uDOD Test Resource Management Center uOffice of Economic Adjustment uWashington Headquarters Services *IdentiďŹ ed as a Combat Support Agency

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

BRANCHES

Army in Review TOK IT OFF

MASTER SGT. MICHEL SAURET/U.S. ARMY RESERVE

The Army’s use of a China-owned video app called TikTok as part of a recruiting campaign is raising concerns on Capitol Hill. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., sent a letter to Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy asking about potential national security risks AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES posed by the social media platform. Schumer said national security experts have raised concerns about TikTok’s collection and handling of user data. “While I recognize that the Army must adapt its recruiting techniques in order to attract young Americans to serve, I urge you to assess the potential national security risks posed by China-owned technology companies before choosing to utilize certain platforms,” the letter read.

NEW FITNESS TEST Earning a perfect score on the Army fitness test will become more challenging for soldiers next year, when the Army makes its new Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) the standard. Units have been testing the ACFT throughout 2019. Instead of the current fitness test that includes running 2 miles and doing situps and pull-ups, soldiers must deadlift 120-420 pounds, throw a medicine ball backwards as far as possible, do hand release pushups, drag a 90-pound sled and 40-pound kettle bells up and down a 25-meter lane five times, perform leg tucks and run 2 miles, all within 50 minutes.

HOUSING PROBLEMS

HOLDING ONTO HISTORY Much can be lost when regions engage in war, but the Smithsonian Institution and the U.S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command are working together to make sure cultural objects are preserved. The entities have created the Cultural Heritage Task Force, which will protect items from destruction or damage during periods of armed conflict. The effort is similar to that of World War II Monuments Men and Women — curators, architects and historians who saved many of Europe’s treasures during that conflict.

AL-FURQAN MEDIA VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS

AL-BAGHDADI DEATH

GETTY IMAGES

Little is known about the stealth raid that killed ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, but this much has been revealed: U.S. troops involved included members of Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (or Delta Force). The commandos involved killed five residents; Baghdadi and two children died after he detonated a suicide vest he was wearing. Conan, a military working dog, was wounded when he encountered live electrical wires following the explosion.

After blistering news reports of deplorable conditions in military housing managed by private companies, problems of shoddy construction, mold, vermin and poor maintenance came to a head in February in a series of Senate hearings. Army leaders, including thenArmy Secretary Mark Esper, promised to visit every house and address residents’ concerns. The Army has begun working on fixes, including giving military families more power to hold their landlords accountable.

— Patricia Kime and Lolita C. Baldor

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

BRANCHES: ARMY

From NFL to Army Former Green Bay Packer Daryn Colledge traded football for fatigues By Meg Jones

ARYN COLLEDGE COULD HAVE

taken his millions, his Super Bowl ring and his memories of playing at Lambeau Field and retired to a life of leisure, but Colledge’s post-NFL career has taken him down a decidedly different path. He still pulls on a uniform, and he’s still part of a team, though now when he hears his name called, it’s not from a stadium announcer, but more likely from his fellow soldiers as he sprints to a Blackhawk helicopter. After nine seasons in the NFL, Colledge enlisted in 2016 in the Idaho National Guard for an eight-year hitch. He’s a crew chief in a medevac unit and returned home in February from an 11-month deployment to Afghanistan. At 37, he’s older than most Army specialists, and at 6-foot-4 and 250

After nine years in the NFL, Daryn Colledge joined the Idaho National Guard and deployed to Afghanistan. MARK HOFFMAN/MILWAUKEE (WIS.) JOURNAL SENTINEL; PROVIDED BY DARYN COLLEDGE

pounds — down from his playing weight of 308 — he’s one of the biggest in his unit. He’s used to the confused reactions when people find out what he used to do for a living or when football fans learn he’s now a soldier. For Colledge, the decision to join the Idaho National Guard was partly motivated by traveling on USO tours with other NFL players and meeting military members serving far from home. “I met a group of people who were willing to give everything for people they never met. I wanted to stand shoulder to shoulder with them and put my ass on the line,” Colledge said. “It changed my life.” Growing up in the tiny, remote community of North Pole, Alaska, near two military bases, Colledge considered joining the military as a way to serve and get an education. His brother is a captain in the Army, and other family members have served in uniform. But Boise State offered him a football scholarship. Then he was surprised and ecstatic to get drafted by the Packers in the second round in 2006. “I left college with no expectations. The NFL was a long shot. I expected to last in the NFL for 15 minutes,” said Colledge, who lives in Boise, Idaho. “When Green Bay gave me the opportunity, I was over the moon. It was one of those things where you fulfill this fantasy that a lot of kids never get to accomplish.” He started 15 games for the green and

gold in 2006, 13 games the next year Alabama, and he wanted to put down and then started every game from 2008 roots in Idaho. through the Packers’ Super Bowl victory As a crew chief, he performs tasks in 2011 before a trade to the Cardinals. including daily helicopter maintenance, Colledge played three years in Arizona helping guide pilots through tight and one year for the Miami Dolphins landing zones and operating hoists to before retiring after the 2014 season. retrieve wounded soldiers from mounThere are similarities between the tainous terrain, said 1st Lt. Morgan Hill, NFL and the military: Company G, 1-168 General teamwork, a common Support Aviation Battalion “I met a group goal, strong bonds that detachment commander. come through adversity. “They also assist flight of people who Colledge noted that, aside paramedics with any from the physical were willing to lifesaving duties, going out strength required for both and picking up a patient, give everything jobs, his position on the dealing with amputees, offensive line prepared helping medics push for people they him for his current role. through IVs, running never met. I “Your job is to enforce breathing tubes and and take care of the guys pumping devices, said wanted to stand on the field, whether Hill. “In addition to being a it’s the quarterback, crew chief, they double as a shoulder to receivers, running backs. combat lifesaver.” shoulder with My job (in the military) is During his downtime, to protect these kids and Colledge stayed in shape by them and put my lifting weights and playing bring them back to their families,” said Colledge. ass on the line. It basketball, but not football. “I guess looking at it that And when soldiers asked changed my life.” him to play, he demurred. way, it’s the most obvious (military) job for an “I told them I was an — DARYN COLLEDGE, offensive lineman.” offensive lineman. They Idaho National Guard Colledge, a father of didn’t let me touch the ball, two whose wife grew up and all I want to do is hit as an Air Force brat, chose a medevac you,” Colledge joked. “So I’m the wrong unit because of his passion for aviation. guy to pick.” However, he turned down the chance Meg Jones writes for the Milwaukee (Wis.) to become a medevac pilot because it Journal Sentinel. would have meant moving his family to

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

BRANCHES

Navy in Review ONGOING OPERATIONS Tensions were high around the Strait of Hormuz in June and July, with operational challenges including attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, the downing of a Navy unmanned aerial vehicle by Iran and subsequent destruction of an Iranian drone using a new electronic defense system. The Navy also continued freedom of navigation operations, focusing on disputed parts of the South China Sea claimed by China, Vietnam and other countries, but that the U.S. and Japan insist are open waters.

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

SPENCER DEPARTS Defense Secretary Mark Esper forced out Navy Secretary Richard Spencer over his handling of a Navy SEAL whose demotion for a war crimes charge had sparked objection from President Donald Trump. Esper asked for Spencer’s resignation in November “after losing trust and confidence in him regarding his lack of candor” because he failed to tell Esper of a “private proposal” he made to the White House that would have allowed Chief Petty Officer Eddie Gallagher to keep his rank and SEAL status, Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement. “I am deeply troubled by this conduct shown by a senior DOD official,” Esper said. “Unfortunately, as a result I have determined that Secretary Spencer no longer has my confidence to continue in his position. I wish Richard well.” Spencer did not say he resigned and instead wrote in a letter, “I hereby acknowledge my termination.” Spencer did not address Esper’s charge of going over his superior officer’s head but said it had been “the extreme honor of a lifetime to stand alongside the men and women of the Navy and Marine Corps.” He said his departure was due to the fact that he and Trump “no longer share the same understanding” of the importance of military justice.

MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 2ND CLASS TYRA M. CAMPBELL/U.S. NAVY

LADIES’ FIRST In August, 21 sailors assigned to the Navy’s USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier’s Deck Department formed an all-female underway replenishment rig team — the first of its kind in the carrier’s history, according to the Navy. Female sailors make up 20 percent of the Navy, according to military data. “I’ve got a lot of talented female sailors — some that have been here for four or more years and others that have been here for only a few months,” said Senior Chief Boatswain’s Mate Matthew Ross, Deck Department leading chief petty officer. “I don’t really think sailors or people think of this as a big deal, but it really is.”

MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 2ND CLASS NATALIE M. BYERS/U.S. NAVY

CNO TAKES HELM

MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 3RD CLASS TATYANA FREEMAN/U.S. NAVY

CARRIER WOES The Navy’s newest carrier, the Gerald R. Ford, was initially expected to launch in 2018, but construction and maintenance issues have delayed its activation. The ship, now expected to deploy in 2024, has been plagued by problems with its nuclear propulsion plant and weapons elevators. In August, the carrier Harry S. Truman suffered an electrical malfunction that prevented it from its planned September deployment. The carrier Abraham Lincoln, which deployed in April, has remained on station in the Middle East in Truman’s stead, joined in November by Truman’s escort vessels.

Following the sudden retirement in July of Adm. Bill Moran — the vice chief of naval operations who was nominated to become the chief of naval operations (CNO) — over the use of a personal email account for official business and questions concerning his judgment, Vice Adm. Michael Gilday, director of the Joint Staff, was chosen over a number of four stars and more senior three stars to become the service’s 32nd CNO. Gilday’s flag assignments have included serving as commander of Carrier Strike Group 8, U.S. 10th Fleet and U.S. Fleet Cyber Command. — Patricia Kime, William Cummings and Ryan W. Miller

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

BRANCHES: NAVY

NEW UNMANNED AIRCRAFT COULD BE CUSTOMIZED FOR WEAPONRY

An F/A-18E Super Hornet undergoing maintenance MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 2ND CLASS KENNETH ABBATE/U.S. NAVY

Ready. Set. Go! Naval Sustainment System improves ﬁghter jet preparedness By Brian Barth

N HIS FORMER ROLE as secretary of defense, James Mattis issued a mandate to the Navy: Fighter jet readiness must be improved. At that time, the percentage of missioncapable aircraft had fallen; the F/A-18 Super Hornet fleet, for example, stood at 50 percent readiness. The new benchmark was 80 percent. To meet that goal, the Navy launched the Naval Sustainment System to improve jet readiness by bringing in experts from the commercial airline industry to identify ways to streamline maintenance protocols and improve efficiencies. “Seventeen years of the global war on terror and a decade of uncertain budgets had depleted our maintenance abilities and readiness,” said Commander Ronald Flanders, a public affairs officer for the Naval Air Forces. He said the top priority was to improve the Super Hornet squadrons — “the striking arm of the Navy.” Both

the Super Hornet and Growler fleets have surpassed the 80 percent threshold. Master Chief Joseph Coleman, the maintenance control supervisor for Strike Fighter Squadron 122 at Naval Air Station Lemoore in California’s Central Valley, explained that maintaining elite fighter jets is considerably more complicated than taking a car in for an oil change or even maintaining a commercial passenger jet. “The analogy I like to use is that the difference between working on an airliner versus a fighter jet is like the difference between working on a school bus or a Corvette.” Passenger planes, he said, are “designed to fly 10,000 hours before the first inspection. We do our first (fighter jet) inspection after less than 10 hours of flying time.” There are few technicians trained to work on fighter jets, and if parts or supplies are needed, the wait can be long. These factors, combined with budget constraints, led to the backlog of jets in need of attention. In one jet maintenance

category, the average time the plane was out of service had grown to a week or more, Coleman said. “Now we are down to three days or less.” Lt. Cmdr. Michael Loomis, the maintenance material control officer for Strike Fighter Squadron 22, also located at Naval Air Station Lemoore, said one strategy for dealing with personnel and budgetary constraints has been to draw on the Navy’s ranks for labor support. “We empowered junior sailors to take ownership of aircraft that was going to be down for major maintenance.” Now, the fleet includes nearly 350 F-18 planes and more than 90 E-18s. There is still work to be done — the improved readiness levels must be maintained and expanded to other Navy aircraft, said Flanders. It’s an essential national defense mission: “The fewer jets we have that can fly, the fewer people we can train. Now we have more new lieutenants who are getting the qualifications that they need.”

Remote-control combat is becoming more common as drones and missiles allow warfare strategists to execute missions from afar. Aerospace company Boeing may soon be introducing another high-tech tool: fighter jets armed with artificial intelligence (AI). “While the Airpower Teaming System (ATS) will be able to fly independently, we’re focused on smart teaming with manned aircraft of all types — not just fighters — to complement and extend a variety of airborne missions,” said Ashlee Erwin, ATS program communicator. Unlike remote-controlled drones that accompany jets on missions, the ATS would require minimal human input because of its AI. “It’s designed to work as a smart team with existing military aircraft to complement and extend airborne missions … and to provide transformational capability for global defense,” according to Boeing. Built in Australia, the aircraft is expected to make its inaugural flight in 2020. At a length of 38 feet, the sleek design of the vehicle allows it to fly more than 2,000 nautical miles, and its very flexible set of sensors — that perform surveillance and reconnaissance — can snap on and off to perform different missions. So, will the ATS be able to deploy missiles on warring factions during battle, while soldiers focus on hands-on warfare? “Missions and payloads will vary by customer,” Erwin said. — Tracy Scott Forson

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

BRANCHES

Marine Corps in Review

ILLUSTRATION: LANCE CPL. JUAN ANAYA/U.S. MARINE CORPS

MINI CARRIERS

MAJ. JOSHUA C. BENSON/U.S. MARINE CORPS

MARINES ABROAD

The F-35B’s vertical takeoff and landing capability has allowed the service to begin testing its deployment aboard amphibious assault ships — a lightning carrier concept that loads the Joint Strike Fighter onto troop transport vessels, turning amphibious readiness groups (ARGs) into miniature carrier strike groups. The 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit and USS Essex ARG, the first to deploy in such a configuration, arrived home in March.

Several hundred Marines remain in Afghanistan, serving as advisers to Afghan forces in Helmand province. The deployment is in its fourth unit rotation since 2017, and while the troops are largely in a training and support role, they continue to come into contact with Taliban forces. Marines received the combat action ribbon for engaging the enemy in the spring, and in October, five Marines were injured in a rocket attack. About 13,000 U.S. service members are deployed to Afghanistan.

IWO JIMA, REVISITED

38TH COMMANDANT Gen. David H. Berger took the helm of the Marine Corps July 11, succeeding Gen. Robert Neller as commandant. Berger, a graduate of Tulane University who also holds a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University, has a reputation for thoughtful, strategic leadership; a “warrior scholar,” according to former classmates. He served in Haiti after the 2004 coup and is a veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Among his goals for the service are improving readiness to address growing threats from China and Russia and changing the re-enlistment system to increase retention and promote quality.

CHARLES DHARAPAK/ASSOCIATED PRESS

UMBRELLA, ANYONE?

LANCE CPL. MORGAN L. R. BURGESS/U.S. MARINE CORPS

As of Nov. 7, male Marines can carry small, collapsible umbrellas while in uniform, like their female counterparts. Also among the new uniform regulations announced by Gen. David H. Berger in a servicewide message in November are new allowances for women to wear silver earrings with their uniforms and braids and ponytails during exercise.

For the second time in four years, the Marine Corps announced that one of the service members pictured in Joe Rosenthal’s Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph of the Iwo Jima flag raising has been misidentified for nearly 75 years. The most difficult to identify, visible by part of an arm, a helmet and leg, once thought to be Cpl. Rene Gagnon, is in fact Cpl. Harold Keller. Previously, after an investigation by civilian historians, Corps officials said another person in the photograph, once identified as Navy Pharmacist’s Mate 2nd Class John Bradley, was actually Marine Pfc. Harold Schultz.

— Patricia Kime

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

BRANCHES: MARINES

“What will always be a constant is that no matter what the crisis is, our civilian leaders should always have one shared thought — send in the Marines.” — GEN. DAVID BERGER, 38th commandant of the Marine Corps

CPL. SETH ROSENBERG

LANCE CPL. MORGAN BURGESS

Marines run in celebration of the branch’s 244th birthday at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, in November.

Marine Makeover Berger: Today’s Corps won’t cut it for tomorrow’s conﬂict By Matt Alderton

HE U.S. MARINE CORPS is

known as America’s “elite fighting force.” Its men and women are recognized for their strength, smarts, tenacity, loyalty and lethality. But can Marines be as agile as they are effective? Gen. David Berger thinks so. Upon becoming the 38th commandant of the Marine Corps in July, he issued the Commandant’s Planning Guidance, a 23-page treatise in which he detailed his vision for the Corps’ future. In it, Berger stated that his No. 1 priority is force design, which includes operations and organization. He proffers a bold concession in exchange for his objectives: If he must, he’ll trade force size for force capability. “If provided the opportunity to secure additional modernization dollars in

exchange for force structure, I am prepared to do so,” the treatise read. It could be a tough pill to swallow. After all, the Marine Corps already has seen its numbers dwindle: It reached nearly 205,000 personnel in 2009 and currently stands at approximately 186,000. “Berger said he would reduce the size of the Marine Corps, if (needed), to find money for modernization. That’s going to be extremely difficult because the dayto-day demands on the Marine Corps are not decreasing,” said Marine Corps veteran Mark Cancian, a senior adviser in the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. “The combatant commanders around the world, the secretary of defense, the president — they all keep wanting to send in the Marines, and the Marine Corps has to supply those units …

I think that puts a floor on the size of the Marine Corps.” Even if he’s bluffing, observers said wagering end strength will help Berger put an exclamation point on his objective: remaking the Marine Corps based on future instead of past conflicts. “The Marine Corps’ focus is on having the most elite, well-trained, well-led capable force we can, and if we have to trade size for quality, we will do that. I don’t know if we need to, but the willingness to do that is a reinforcement from me to leaders and to Marines that the No. 1 thing that we owe this country is quality: a very capable, very lethal force that can do what no one else will do,” Berger said. The basis for Berger’s posture is the 2018 National Defense Strategy, which compels the U.S. military to pivot away from the wars of the last 20 years, the

focus of which was counterinsurgency, and toward future wars, the focus of which will be “great-power competition” with the likes of China and Russia. One way Berger plans to effect change is by returning to the Marine Corps’ naval roots. “Recently, we have been a land force that could get on ships. Going forward, we must … be a naval force that can both fight at sea and go ashore.” Fundamental to Berger’s vision is reimagining the Marine Corps as a force with distributed rather than concentrated forces, and more and smaller ships instead of fewer larger ones. “For three decades, the Marine Corps has said its amphibious shipping capability must be large enough to land two brigades,” explained Cancian. However, Berger’s proposed plan means two-brigade landings are no longer a standard. “Instead, he thinks the Marine Corps needs different kinds of amphibious ships, including smaller ships and those with more defensive firepower. That’s a huge change.” Berger acknowledged that much remains undecided, but he made one thing clear: Today’s Marine Corps will not be tomorrow’s. “There is still some wargaming we need to accomplish prior to those decisions becoming final,” he said. “But what will always be a constant is that no matter what the crisis is, our civilian leaders should always have one shared thought — send in the Marines.”

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

BRANCHES

Air Force in Review MASTER SGT. CECILIO RICARDO/U.S. AIR FORCE

INDEFINITE ENLISTMENTS In November, the Air Force implemented a program that automatically extends the enlistment of airmen with at least 12 years of service. The initiative, called the Noncommissioned Officer Career Status program, promises to simplify paperwork for the Air Force Personnel Center as well as airmen, eliminating roughly 10,000 re-enlistment contracts a year.

THE BOEING COMPANY

SPACE COMMAND

TUSKEGEE TRAINER The Air Force honored the legendary all-black Tuskegee Airmen this year by naming its new Boeing T-7A training jet the Red Hawk and painting the tails with the same distinctive red markings as the aircraft flown by the famed World War II pilots and navigators. The airmen were known as the Red Tails; the “hawk” portion of the name pays tribute to the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, the aircraft flown by members of the U.S. Army Air Force in World War II, including the African American 99th Fighter Squadron. STAFF SGT. RUSTY FRANK/U.S. AIR FORCE

CHANGES AT THE TOP SUICIDE STAND-DOWN Air Force units underwent a one-day “operational pause” in August after suicides among airmen increased sharply in the first half of 2019. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein and Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Kaleth Wright have encouraged leaders and airmen to connect with one another and seek help if in mental distress. The stand-down aimed to provide units time to examine morale and resiliency in the ranks. “Hopeful to hopeless … what’s going on? It’s our job to find out,” Goldfein wrote in a letter to all commanders. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Gen. David Goldfein was the sole service chief to remain in his post in 2019 (he will retire next year), but leadership changes still affected the Air Force, beginning in March with Secretary Heather Wilson’s announcement that she would depart in May. During her two-year tenure, Wilson, an Air Force Academy graduate and former officer, promoted expansion of the Air Force by 74 squadrons to meet threats from powerful competitors such as Russia and China, and spoke out about the service’s high operations tempo, which she said was negatively affecting airmen. Barbara Barrett was sworn in as the service’s 25th secretary on Oct. 18. The former chairwoman of the nonprofit Aerospace Corporation, Barrett is an instrument-rated pilot who was trained and certified for space flight in 2009.

The Defense Department activated U.S. Space Command on Aug. 29, the 11th geographic combatant command considered to be a step toward the U.S. Space Force that President Donald Trump has sought to establish. Led by Air Force Gen. John “Jay” Raymond, the command is responsible for “protecting and defending the space domain,” according to Raymond, and will focus on protecting space capabilities, tracking objects and activities in space and monitoring potential threats. Raymond shares his Space Command plans on page 60.

— Patricia Kime

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

BRANCHES: AIR FORCE How is the new command different from the original United States Space Command that existed from 1985 to 2002? RAYMOND: The United States Space Command of today shares the same name as the original command. However, it is designed for a different strategic environment. Today’s U.S. Space Command has a sharper mission focus on protecting and defending our critical space assets, a stronger unified structure with our intelligence partners, a strengthened relationship with our allies and a closer connection to our joint warfighting partners and other combatant commands. Although space is a warfighting domain, our goal is to actually deter a conflict from extending into space. The best way I know how to do that is to be prepared to fight and win if deterrence were to fail. We are the best in the world at space today, and we are even better as we establish a new United States Space Command with a singular focus on the space domain.

CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES

Galactic Greatness U.S. Space Command chief launches new mission, priorities

N AUGUST, GEN. JOHN W. “Jay” Raymond, commander of United States Space Command, answered questions from reporters about defense and warfare beyond the Earth’s atmosphere and priorities for his division, which comprises about 26,000 aerospace professionals. Raymond accepted the leadership role over a new Space Command that will have a broader scope than the previous iteration that existed from 1985 to 2002. Following are excerpts from a media roundtable that offer insight on what’s next for the division:

What are the proactive and reactive goals of Space Command? Our missions actually fall in four different areas. The first one is to deter. The second one is to defend. The third one is to deliver space combat effects to our joint warfighting partners around the globe. And the fourth one is to develop joint warfighters to be able to operate in this contested domain. What are Space Command’s top priorities? My priorities are, obviously, consistent with the priorities of the (Department of Defense). ... We have outlined (five) as we get started: The first thing is, we’re going to seamlessly transition the responsibilities for space from U.S. Strategic Command to U.S. Space Command. That has already begun. We’ve been

working very closely with U.S. Strategic Command over the last year as we plan this, and we’re going to continue to work that. We’re also ... going to establish the command. And we’re going to build towards initial operations capability and full operations capability. We want to do that with a sense of urgency. And so that would be priority No. 2. Priority No. 3, one of the critical pieces of standing up ... this command is to strengthen the relationships that we have (with) the other combatant commands around the world. So, we’re going to focus on that integration of space throughout our geographic ... our combatant command partners. Now fourth, we want to continue to expand that allied cooperation. We view this as really critical. We have made some significant strides ... towards that end over the last couple of years. As we stand up the combined command, we think there’s greater opportunities ahead. And then fifth, we’re going to continue to develop those joint warfighters. And that’s a two-part challenge. That’s developing space operators that have a deeper understanding of joint warfighting, and it’s also developing more traditional joint warfighters that have a deeper understanding of space. Which are the challenges you think pose a threat to the U.S. in the space domain? There’s reversible jamming of GPS and communications satellites; there’s directed energy threats; there’s missiles that can be shot from the ground and ... blow up a satellite, like was demonstrated by China in 2007. So, there’s a full spectrum. We’re concerned about all of those threats. (Explain) the urgency of doing this right now. Our level of superiority is diminishing. So, we view this as … a critical opportunity to stay ahead of that growing threat.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

WEAPONS & TECHNOLOGY

GETTY IMAGES/PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: HAYLEIGH CORKEY

Speedy Recovery How a ‘smart’ bandage could help soldiers heal faster By Adam Hadhazy

HE GRIEVOUS INJURIES TODAY’S soldiers often sustain

on the modern battlefield not only affect their quality of life, but also diminish the fighting strength of the United States’ armed forces. To address these issues — for each injured individual and servicewide — a new program from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) aims to halve the time it takes for a wound to heal properly, with minimal loss of function. Called Bioelectronics for Tissue Regeneration, or BETR, the program utilizes emerging technologies in a wearable device that goes over a wound, actively monitors its healing and intervenes to improve the outcome. “The general vision is a super-smart bandage,” said Paul Sheehan, BETR program manager.

Three main types of tech will be used in the BETR bandages: Tiny actuators, or machinelike elements, will biochemically or biophysically stimulate the tissue; sensors will track healing as well as responses to the actuators’ interventions; and machine-learning algorithms will crunch the data collected by the sensors. This system will ultimately guide the actuators on what to do in real-time to ensure a favorable wound-healing outcome. “The body in principle has everything it needs to repair itself,” said Sheehan. “So getting from here to there is really a question of how you work with the body and get it the right information at the right time so that it can heal itself.”

WOUND, HEAL THYSELF Injuries caused by blasts from grenades and improvised explosive devices are among the most challenging to address. The severe tissue damage from intense pressures and temperatures

in these injuries goes beyond the body’s natural ability to completely heal itself. “(These severe injuries) really scramble the body’s physiological processes,” Sheehan said. For instance, in about two-thirds of blast injuries, bone begins to regrow in the wrong anatomical location, Sheehan said. The hope is that a BETR platform could redirect this healing, instructing the body to lay down the new tissue in the correct places. The wound-monitoring component of BETR could help people even before dynamic healing for radical injuries can be realized. It can be used to better treat common ailments. For instance, diabetes patients often must deal with abnormal wound healing that, if more actively monitored, could lead to timelier interventions.

NEXT-GENERATION PROSTHETICS Another promising application for

BETR is osseointegration, a new approach to prosthetics. Conventional prosthetics strap onto the remaining portion of a limb, requiring those muscles to be load-bearing, something for which they are ill-suited. As a result, it can be difficult for those with prosthetic legs to walk on uneven ground, Sheehan said, and the prosthetics become uncomfortable during daily wear. With osseointegration, a titanium rod is surgically implanted into the bone, and a prosthesis is attached to the rod where it protrudes from the skin. The arrangement generates load-bearing force, just like a natural appendage. The upshot: improved performance and comfort. A major drawback, though, is the chance of infection where the rod and skin converge, a site that must remain in a woundlike state, so that the skin does not seal it over, requiring additional piercing. “The risk of infection is everpresent,” said Jonathan Forsberg, a captain in the Navy and an orthopedic oncologist who is further developing osseointegration. The sensors being developed for BETR could vastly improve osseointegration infection monitoring, which at present is largely the responsibility of the patient. “Implants that ‘sense and respond’ in this manner may seem like science fiction,” said Forsberg, who is affiliated with Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and Johns Hopkins Medicine in Maryland, “but they’re closer than one might expect.”

A BETR FUTURE Multiple university groups and private research organizations have submitted their BETR proposals to DARPA, with grant announcements scheduled for December. If all goes according to plan, BETR program facilitators hope to submit an initial prototype for Food and Drug Administration approval by 2025. From there, after rolling out to troops, civilians could also realize the benefits of a smart bandage. Overall, the prognosis seems good for wound-healing to become a more efficient, effective process. “War fighting is clearly a dangerous business,” said Sheehan. “People get hurt, and we’re trying to heal them a bit more quickly.”

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WEAPONS & TECHNOLOGY

Mind Control DARPA’s brain-machine technology offers boundless possibilities GETTY IMAGES/ILLUSTRATION: HAYLEIGH CORKEY

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

N ARMY OF SUPER-SOLDIERS

using their thoughts to control weapons on the battlefield may sound like the plot of a science fiction movie, but the Pentagon’s research arm is working on technology that would do just that — allow troops to interact with machines using only their minds. “We know that our warfighting environment is going to be changing,” said Al Emondi, who manages the NextGeneration Nonsurgical Neurotechnology (N3) program at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). “Future military environments are going

to be more and more intelligent.” The brain-machine interface would allow mind control of drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles. It could also enable an individual to team up with computer systems to multitask during military missions. “It would also be conceptually possible to then direct changes in the network through the N3 interface to defend against (a) cyberattack,” said Emondi, who envisions a scenario where cyber soldiers run both offense and defense simultaneously from a command center. For decades, DARPA has been researching brain-to-machine communication, including ways to restore limb function to people with amputations,

spinal cord injuries and other nervous system impairments. Amputees have been able to control their hands and arms using electrodes placed on their brains. But those brain-machine interfaces required some level of surgery. As part of its N3 program, DARPA hopes to find a nonsurgical way to interact with service members’ brains, both able-bodied and physically impaired. Since the four-year program launched in May, scientists from six research institutes have been experimenting with how light, and magnetic and electric fields can be used to talk to the brain and receive signals back. Patrick Connolly, a neuroscientist at Teledyne Technologies, which is one of

the research teams, says the technology’s applications in the national defense space are “widely unexplored territory” but could “enable able-bodied warfighters and cyber defense professionals to provide an extra layer of security and capability than exists today.” The idea is to boost productivity by allowing soldiers to overcome the limitations of their fingers, and communicate with their machinery directly, said Patrick Ganzer, who is part of the N3 program at tech company Battelle. “It’s increasing bandwidth by tapping into the brain and bypassing the limited muscles that we have,” said Ganzer. “If this technology is successful, it opens up a myriad of other applications.”

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Fake Tech, Real Threat Experts worry deepfake videos may affect political process ures. In May, a deepfake video of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking in slurred S A GROWING NUMBER of speech went viral. The following month, experts warn of the potena digitally altered video of Facebook CEO tial for deepfake Mark Zuckerberg surfaced on technology to Instagram. In both name disrupt the 2020 The deepfake era has and notion, U.S. presidential election, the reached an inflection point, deepfakes Department of Defense is assaid Tim Hwang, disinformacombine sembling a research team to tion researcher and former “fake news” study how best to protect the director of the Harvard-MIT with “deep country against these digital Ethics and Governance of AI learning” forgeries. Initiative. It’s now easier than — a type Deepfake videos, which ever to produce low-budget of artificial are generated with artificial cheap fakes, such as face intelligence. intelligence (AI) known as swaps. machine-learning, are used to “You might not necessarily falsely portray someone doing need to be an expert, and you or saying something. might not necessarily have really powerResearchers worry the media maful computers,” Hwang said. “But you can nipulations will increasingly be used to still pull off a fairly kind of crude video defame politicians and other public figfake.”

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has been studying ways to detect manipulated images and video since 2016. Now, as part of its upcoming Semantic Forensics (SemaFor) program, the agency wants to develop tools that, in addition to detecting deepfakes, can determine where the media originated from and whether it was created for malicious purposes. “There’s really a significant need within the U.S. government to be able to understand whether an image or video has been manipulated because that could potentially influence a decision-making process,” said Matt Turek, program manager for DARPA’s Information Innovation Office, which leads the SemaFor program. Last year, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., wrote to Dan Coats, then the director of national intelligence, warning the “technology could soon be deployed by malicious foreign actors.” In an October letter to social media giants such as Twitter and LinkedIn, Sens. Mark Warner, D-Va., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., expressed concern that deepfakes would have a “corrosive impact on our democracy.” P.W. Singer, a New America strategist and co-author of the book Like War: The Weaponization of Social Media, believes that hostile actors, such as Russia, could be sitting on this deepfake technology for use in the 2020 presidential campaign. “You don’t use your trick play in the preseason game,” he said. “You save it for the championship because it’s of no value to reveal it early on.” A recent report from New York University’s Stern Center for Business and Human Rights concluded that “domestically generated disinformation,” such as deepfakes, “will almost certainly” play a role in the upcoming presidential race. “Imagine that the night before the 2020 election, a deepfake showed a candidate in a tight race doing something shocking he never did,” Boston University law professor Danielle Keats Citron said in testimony before the House Intelligence Committee in June. “The damage would be irreparable.” But the threat posed by deepfakes extends beyond politics and national security. These deceptive videos have the potential to disrupt our everyday lives. “You can imagine someone manipulating images or video around a car accident, for instance, to make it look like there was more damage to their vehicle than what actually occurred,” Turek said. DARPA has called for research proposals for its SemaFor program, and Turek expects to award contracts early in 2020.

DISRUPTING DECEIT Researchers are taking a twopronged approach to neutralizing the deepfake threat. The first is detection. That’s the purview of Matt Turek, program manager at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Information Innovation Office. On a digital level, it’s analyzing pixels: inconsistencies that can indicate when images come from different sources. On a second level, it’s examining the physics; in deepfakes, for example, facial shadows may be inconsistent with light sources. And on a semantic level, it’s comparing media with external data like the weather. If a video takes place outdoors, for example, one can verify whether it was hot or cold when the footage was shot, then analyze skin properties for consistency with recorded temperatures. “We’re building an approach to combine information across all levels to produce a single integrity score for a media asset,” Turek explained. “That integrity score gives us a way to rate what the likelihood is that an image has been manipulated.” The second approach to fighting deepfakes is prevention. Photo and video verification platform Truepic, for example, has created technology that authenticates images and videos at their point of origin by imprinting them with metadata and storing copies on an immutable blockchain. Users can quickly and easily verify the resulting media. “Deepfake detection is important, but not an ultimate solution to the problem,” said Craig Stack, founder and chief operating officer of Truepic. “We ultimately see deepfake detection as an ongoing ‘arms race’ ... without any real end. Until videos can be verified the instant they are captured, post-capture detection will only be a temporary measure.” — Matt Alderton

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JOBS & EDUCATION

PROVIDED BY HERBERT EGGERT

Troops to Teachers helped veteran Herbert Eggert earn his teaching license in less than six months.

“This has been a perfect fit for me ... My military career taught me the value of diversity, and I have really enjoyed teaching students with a wide range of backgrounds and educational needs.” — HERBERT EGGERT, U.S. Coast Guard veteran, teacher

Second Serving Troops to Teachers helps veterans ﬁnd classroom careers By Amy Sinatra Ayres

FTER 23 YEARS COMMANDING ships in the

U.S. Coast Guard, Herbert Eggert retired from the military in May and

started a new career in August — at the helm of a high school classroom. The transition to his new job was seamless, thanks, in part, to Troops to Teachers, a Department of Defense initiative that helped Eggert obtain his teaching license

through the Virginia Department of Education’s Career Switcher program. “That program enabled me to earn my teaching license in less than six months and transition almost directly CONTI NUED

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JOBS & EDUCATION from the military to the classroom,” Eggert said. When it was time for the job hunt, Troops to Teachers (TTT) offered Eggert résumé assistance and interview preparation. He now teaches history to 10th graders at Annandale High School in Virginia, the same school his children attend. “This has been a perfect fit for me,” Eggert said. “Not only is Annandale part of my local community, but social studies and history have always been a passion of mine. My military career taught me the value of diversity, and I have really enjoyed teaching students with a wide range of backgrounds and educational needs.” A national program, Troops to Teachers helps current and former members of the U.S. military start new careers in education. It’s a win-win for those leaving the military and for schools because of the vast experiences these new educators have, and because they’re helping stem a national teacher shortage, said Gail Hardinge, executive director of the Troops to Teachers Virginia Center in Williamsburg. The national program started in 1993, and more than 20,000 participants have been hired since then. During fiscal year 2018, nearly 400 participants were hired. In addition to résumé and interview prep, TTT connects its newly credentialed educators with hiring institutions and helps get them involved in job shadowing or substitute teaching. “Essentially, we work with veterans on different routes to licensure,” depending on the state where they’re interested in teaching, Hardinge said of the national program. “We function as a liaison between their military experience and the expectations schools and departments of education will have in their respective states.” Active-duty service members can apply through the program’s website, proudtoserveagain.com. Once they’ve determined that Troops to Teachers serves the state where they’re interested in teaching, TTT directs them to the appropriate center. States have different requirements and routes to becoming a teacher. In Virginia, for example, military members who don’t already have a bachelor’s degree might opt to go through a traditional teaching program to get a full license. But for those who already have a college degree, Troops to Teachers can help them with alternate licensure routes, such as the Career Switcher program, which includes coursework and

classroom experience, or a provisional experiential program, which can take as little as eight weeks, Hardinge said. That gets the person into the classroom while they complete required coursework to earn a full license. Sharon Opeka, who served 30 years in the Army as a journalist in public affairs, got her provisional license with an endorsement to teach English when she retired in 2018. She had dreamed of teaching since she was in first grade. More than a year before she retired, she contacted TTT and started preparations. “They helped me get together my application, all my documents I needed for the application, which included different testing, some different types of training,” she said. She knew she would be living in southwestern Virginia, and the Virginia office helped her rework her résumé with a focus on teaching opportunities. Opeka started working as a long-term substitute teacher in special education in her local school system and decided that was the focus for her. “I had really fallen in love with the special education department and the

program and the kids,” Opeka said. of the country can help her students “Also, I saw there was a really critical understand more about the world. need ... for special education teachers.” “Hopefully they’re going to reach for She’s now working to change her state everything they can grab,” she said. endorsement from English to special Eggert said his own military experieducation, and she’s working in special ence has helped him connect with his education at the high school level. students and be a better teacher. “My Opeka has also begun an online military career taught me the value of master’s degree program in teaching hard work and being prepared, and through Liberty University in Virginia, both traits have served me well in the which she said offers classroom so far,” he discounts for veterans said. “My students and active-duty have been very For more information on military. The national curious about my Troops to Teachers, visit Troops to Teachers military experiences proudtoserveagain.com program also offers and that has helped financial assistance to foster a mutually of up to $10,000 for respectful relationqualifying members who apply within ship that has helped them to connect three years of their active-duty or to the material.” reserve retirement date. “We find veterans to be highly edu“I think spending 30 years in (the cated in addition to their tremendous Army), I have a great knowledge of leadership experience,” Hardinge said. what’s out there in the world and Veterans often make good teachers what these kids are going to be facing because “there is a willingness to serve when they get out of high school,” and to be part of a consolidated goal, said Opeka, who works in a rural to work with a team of people who are county where many local families have interested in the same goals you have. lived for generations. She hopes her There’s this sense of camaraderie, of experience living in different parts service, of a bigger purpose.”

Sharon Opeka contacted Troops to Teachers more than a year before her military retirement to prepare for her transition into the classroom. PROVIDED BY SHARON OPEKA

“Spending 30 years in (the Army), I have a great knowledge of what’s out there in the world and what these kids are going to be facing when they get out of high school.” — SHARON OPEKA, U.S. Army veteran, teacher

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TOM TINGLE/THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC

Veteran Rudy Del Rio, left, a builder with David Weekley Homes, speaks with MacKenzie Manygoats, center, and Joshua Willis of Arizona Pipeline Company at a work site.

By Russ Wiles

Easier Employment Veterans transitioning to civilian life ﬁnd a more welcoming labor market

TORM JOHNSON WAS CONCERNED about finding work

upon leaving the military after five years as a Marine. He said he had some trouble preparing job applications, largely because it was difficult to translate his military skills into civilian job skills. But Johnson, who now lives in Chandler, Ariz., soon realized the process wasn’t that difficult. With the assistance of a recruiting firm that helped him polish up his résumé, he received several job offers and eventually accepted a position with a contractor that provides technical services for Intel. “I had a job lined up before I left military service,” said Johnson. One of the many benefits of a strong

job market is that veterans returning to civilian life are finding opportunities more plentiful than in years past. Not everyone is faring equally well — some former military enlisted personnel who lack college degrees are struggling. So are some with military-connected physical or emotional disabilities.

IMPROVEMENTS OVERALL Several years ago, as the military was scaling back involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, the jobless rate for “trigger pullers” — Army soldiers and Marines trained in firing weapons but lacking in leadership or technical expertise — was off-the-charts high, said Mike Starich, CEO of Orion Talent. “Learning how to shoot an M16 isn’t a highly transferable skill,” said Starich, CONTI NUED

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whose company helped find jobs for Johnson and other veterans. Now, mirroring dramatic improvements in the overall jobless rate, former service members stand as good a chance as anyone in finding a job. Even better, perhaps. The jobless rate for veterans in 2018 was 3.5 percent, below the national unemployment rate of 3.7 percent.

MAKING PROGRESS Starich identified programs that seemed to have helped, aside from general economic improvement. One was the Joining Forces campaign initiated under former first lady Michelle Obama that encouraged employers to hire veterans. “That got a lot of buy-in from companies,” he said. Another initiative, implemented in 2014, involved including certain groups of veterans within the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. This barred federal contractors from discriminating against protected classes of veterans and required these employers to recruit and hire recently discharged military personnel. At the time, Gulf War veterans faced higher unemployment and earned less money than non-veterans of similar ages and education levels, with men faring worse than women. “It’s definitely working,” Starich said of the latter program.

TRANSLATING SKILLS It helps that scores of employers have recruited veterans in recent years. Another plus is that many companies value the skills that veterans possess. “What employers appreciate the most is that we’ve been through the maturation process,” said Justin Clark, a former Marine. He now works as a field service engineer for Southwest Medical Resources, where he maintains and repairs medical-imaging equipment, following work in aviation electronics in the military. “We show up on time, we work hard and we’re resourceful,” said Clark, who lives in Surprise, Ariz. Companies value veterans for their qualifications, composure, productivity and skills, according to a 2019 Orion Talent survey of more than 100 human resources and recruiting professionals. However, the Orion study indicated that prospective employers don’t always understand the skills applicants have acquired in the military. Starich cited the example of a Navy fire-control technician. “That sounds like it has something to do with installing sprinklers in a building,” he said. “But it actually controls a gun or missile system connected to radar.” BRANCHING OUT Veterans themselves aren’t always sure which jobs they might qualify for.

“Nothing I learned in the military directly taught me how to build houses,” said Rudy Del Rio, a former convoyarranging logistics officer for the Marines and a foreign-forces adviser who helped train Afghan military personnel. “But it gave me a foundation of skills for project management and insight for working with other people to get where we need to be.” Today, after earning a graduate management degree from Arizona State University, Del Rio, who also lives in Surprise, works as a residential construction supervisor for David Weekley Homes. “The military helped me be accountable, decisive and able to lead people through unclear situations,” he said. Del Rio’s advice to job-searching veterans is not to limit themselves to their military specialty. “Be willing to adapt your skill sets, and don’t be afraid to learn new skills,” he said.

OTHER ADJUSTMENTS Finding jobs, while easier than in the past, isn’t the only obstacle facing veterans. There’s also a need to learn how civilians interact in the workplace. Veterans describe civilian work atmospheres as more relaxed and casual than in the military, with lines of command often not as clear-cut. Sean Passmore, an executive vice president at Perfect Technician Academy in Weatherford, Texas, said cultural chal-

lenges for veterans include figuring out how to dress in the workplace, learning to recognize which people are in charge in a uniform-free environment and tolerating small talk and meetings that don’t always start on time. Managing a career path also can be more difficult, without someone directing where you will be working, what you’ll be doing and for how long. “It’s not always a straight-up ladder, as with the military,” he said. Managing workplace benefits, such as health insurance and 401(k) retirement plans, also can be tricky. “The military handles a lot of your life activities, such as housing and health care, so you don’t have to think of that,” said Johnson. For Clark, a big change was fewer vacation days in his civilian job. “I went from 30 days a year to 10,” he said. “You also have to start thinking of costs you didn’t incur in the military.” Joseph Montanaro, a retired Army lieutenant colonel who now helps former veterans deal with personal-finance issues, doesn’t see those issues as substantially different from Americans overall. For example, a lot of veterans are living paycheck to paycheck and often haven’t saved sufficiently for retirement, similar to many Americans. Montanaro, who works for United Services Automobile Association in San Antonio, considers budgeting a key exercise for those leaving or planning to leave the military. “They will need to add some new budget lines, such as for health care costs and increased taxes,” he said.

IMPORTANCE OF PREPARATION One of Montanaro’s key tips for service members is to build up savings before leaving the military. “If you have a stash of cash, then you don’t need to take that first job but can wait to find something that better suits your desires and needs,” he said. “It’s all about having a plan and following it, rather than letting things happen to you.” Planning ahead makes sense for job seekers, too. “Where a lot of vets fail is relying too heavily on the six to eight weeks of paid vacation they might get” when leaving the military, using this time to take it easy rather than searching for a job, said Johnson. Clark suggests that military personnel begin the search well before leaving. “Start looking even if you think you might re-enlist.” Russ Wiles writes for The Arizona Republic.

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JOBS & EDUCATION

Microsoft’s new Military Spouse Technology Academy paves the way for qualified individuals to re-enter the workforce. MICROSOFT

Willing Workers Microsoft trains military spouses to fill tech positions By Isabella Breda and Tracy Scott Forson

ith more than 300,000 tech job openings in the U.S., some companies are struggling to find qualified candidates to fill the many demanding and lucrative positions. Where can employers look for workers who can excel in these roles? Microsoft’s answer is its Military Spouse Technology Academy (MSTA), which recently launched in two Military Spouse Economic Empowerment Zones (MSEEZ). The pilot program in Tacoma, Wash., which graduated 19 students in March, is part of Microsoft’s Software & Systems Academy and “trains military spouses in technical and soft skills that equip them for careers in the technology industry,” according to the company.

Despite having college degrees and job experience, many qualified military spouses often face unique challenges securing employment because of frequent relocations, deployments, residency in remote areas and other factors. “The gaps (in employment) are inevitable,” said Danny Chung, chief of staff for Microsoft Military Affairs and a retired Marine who knows firsthand how military life can affect advancement in a job field. His wife had a promising career that was interrupted by multiple moves across the country from California to Florida, he said. Only 52 percent of military spouses are in the workforce, with an unemployment rate of 16 percent – or four times the national average, according to a 2017 U.S. Chamber of Commerce CONTINUED

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JOBS & EDUCATION report. Microsoft’s 22-week MSTA program helps spouses find the path to employment. Just four months after graduating, 15 of the 19 Tacoma class members had found careers at Microsoft, Boeing and Amazon. “For every spouse that goes back into a fulfilling, meaningful career, we are helping them feel better about themselves and helping that community,” said Chung. In September, the San Antonio program launched with 14 participants. “We took MSTA to San Antonio based on its large military community, the city’s support for military spouses and the many companies in the area that have committed to considering employment opportunities to hire these resilient and industrious graduates,” said Chris Cortez, vice president of Microsoft Military Affairs. In January 2018, San Antonio, home to Fort Sam Houston, became the first MSEEZ, a Hiring Our Heroes designation recognizing “areas that develop workforce solutions for military spouses at the grassroots level through collaboration between government, industry and nonprofit partners,” according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. “The San Antonio location offers the Texas-based military spouse community a chance to develop technology skills necessary for today’s digital economy,” Cortez added. There are currently 21 MSEEZ areas, including San Diego; Colorado Springs, Colo.; and Tampa, Fla. Washington, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas, Wisconsin and Virginia are the six states designated as MSEEZ regions. “Military spouse employment is an important aspect of a strong, resilient military family,” said second lady Karen Pence in October at an event celebrating Texas’ designation as a MSEEZ. “Military spouses are well-educated, hardworking, flexible, reliable and loyal. They are the kind of workers we want in the workforce. Employers who hire military spouses benefit from their tremendous talent and breadth of experience,” said Pence. The program aims to assist as many spouses as possible, but ultimately, “we will reach a certain tipping point where hopefully by then other companies will begin to recognize the value and start to adopt similar programs,” said Chung. Military spouses “are amazing and deserve a helping hand.” Isabella Breda writes for the (Bremerton, Wash.) Kitsap Sun.

SPOUSAL SUPPORT The Military Spouse Economic Employment Zone working group helped introduce the 2018 Military Spouse Employment Act, which:

uIncludes military spouses in noncompetitive appointments to federal agencies uEncourages better career and education opportunities for military spouses uEstablishes child care provisions and benefits for military families uOffers transition assistance for military spouses uExtends the availability of a support program for retired and discharged service members and their families uFacilitates public and private partnerships on health, safety, welfare and morale of military families MICROSOFT

SOURCE: Congress.gov

Microsoft’s Military Spouse Technology Academy offers courses in Tacoma, Wash., and San Antonio, both Hiring Our Heroes Military Spouse Economic Empowerment Zones.

HIRING OUR HEROES Hiring Our Heroes is a U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation initiative launched in 2011 as a nationwide effort to connect veterans, service members and military spouses with meaningful employment opportunities. Hiring Our Heroes has established Military Spouse Economic Empowerment Zones across the U.S. These areas support and assist spouses, addressing barriers they face and providing resources and tools that empower them to find meaningful work. Find a zone near you: SOURCE: Hiring Our Heroes

Military Spouse Economic Empowerment Zones (MSEEZ)

Spokane Olympia

Colorado Springs

Leavenworth

Southwest Virginia

Central Virginia

WI Northern Virginia

VA NC San Diego

Las Vegas

Hampton Roads Augusta Middle Georgia Tampa

MSEEZ locations: STATEWIDE LOCATIONS CITY LOCATIONS

El Paso

San Antonio

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