YEAR IN DEFENSE 2017 by STUDIO Gannett

SPECIAL EDITION

FREE 2017 EDITION

YEAR IN DEFENSE

ARMY | NAVY | MARINES | AIR FORCE | NATIONAL GUARD

ON THE FRONT LINES

CYBER COMMAND Warfare’s newest domain challenging

OUTGOING SECRETARY Ash Carter’s exit interview

CIVILIAN TRANSITION Paths to jobs after service changing

PACIFIC THEATER Defense looks east to growing threats

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

CONTENTS

2017 SPECIAL EDITION

YEAR IN DEFENSE

PACIFIC THEATER Military focuses more attention on Asia as a new administration forms

PETTY OFFICER 2ND CLASS CHRISTIAN SENYK/U.S. NAVY; SGT. WILLIAM A. TANNER/U.S. ARMY

THE POLICIES

8 12 14

EXIT INTERVIEW Secretary Carter reflects on his term THE NEXT GUY James Mattis, tapped as Carter’s successor BUDGET MATTERS $611 billion still may not be enough

THE DEPARTMENTS

16 20 28

STRIKING BACK The air battle against the Islamic State group MIDDLE EAST A roundup of events in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan TRANSGENDER TROOPS Services start adopting new, inclusive policies

32 36 32 40

ARMY Addressing a shifting mission NAVY The newest warships take to the sea MARINE CORPS The service’s high-tech future

44 48

AIR FORCE Finding and retaining the best pilots NATIONAL GUARD Disasters, civil unrest and bonus controversies mark the year

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

CONTENTS FEATURES

This is a product of

56 EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

Jeanette Barrett-Stokes jbstokes@usatoday.com

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Jerald Council jcouncil@usatoday.com MANAGING EDITOR

Michelle Washington mjwashington@usatoday.com EDITORS

60 66

CLIMATE CHANGE Preparing the military for a less stable environment VIRTUAL COMBAT Cyberwarfare and training becomes more common WEAPONS TECH A look at the latest gear and equipment for warfighters DISASTER PREP The military’s role in humanitarian aid missions

THE TROOPS

SENIOR MASTER SGT. JULIE AVEY/U.S. AIR NATIONAL GUARD

Elizabeth Neus Hannah Prince Sara Schwartz Tracy L. Scott

68 70

DESIGNERS

Miranda Pellicano Gina Toole Saunders Ashleigh Webb Lisa M. Zilka

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Matt Alderton, Karen Asp, Brian Barth, Mary Helen Berg, Dan Friedell, Carmen Gentile, Adam Hadhazy, Gina Harkins, Patricia Kime, Erik Schechter, Kirk Spitzer, Adam Stone

79 82

ADVERTISING

VP, ADVERTISING

Patrick Burke | (703) 854-5914 pburke@usatoday.com

HONOR THE FALLEN U.S. troops and civilians who lost their lives in service during 2016 WOMEN IN COMBAT New roles open for female service members TROOP HEALTH Lack of sleep, obesity, injury and Zika are top threats MENTAL WELLNESS Increasing efforts to end the stigma associated with seeking help CIVILIAN LIFE Services require troops to prepare for nonmilitary careers

ACCOUNT DIRECTOR

Justine Goodwin | (703) 854-5444 jgoodwin@usatoday.com

FINANCE BILLING COORDINATOR

Julie Marco

ISSN#0734-7456

A USA TODAY 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 2015, 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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MAJ. BRANDON MOTTE/PEO SOLDIER; LANCE CPL. JACOB A. FARBO/U.S. MARINE CORPS

AIRMAN 1ST CLASS RANDALL MOOSE/U.S. AIR FORCE

ON THE COVER Clockwise from top left: U.S. Army soldiers take part in a training exercise with Bulgarian troops in April; Secretary of Defense Ash Carter talks to troops at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota in September; the USS Zumwalt, the U.S. Navy’s largest destroyer, at sea in December; female marine recruits respond to their drill instructor at Parris Island boot camp. NIKOLAY DOYCHINOV/AFP/GETTY IMAGES; TECH SGT. BRIGITTE BRANTLEY/AFP/ GETTY IMAGES; U.S. NAVY/GENERAL DYNAMICS BATH IRON WORKS; SCOTT OLSON/GETTY IMAGES

86 90 94

MILITARY KIDS Defense Department helps the youngest family members COMMISSARY SHOPPING Agency marks milestone while stores adapt to customer habits MEDAL OF HONOR Two men receive the military’s top award

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES

EXIT INTERVIEW Secretary Carter reflects on defense as his term nears a close

Defense Secretary Ash Carter, the fourth man to hold the job under President Obama, testifies on the 2017 budget during a Senate appropriations subcommittee hearing.

ALEX WONG/GETTY IMAGES

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES injury, post-traumatic stress and related conditions and have opened satellite centers at installations across the nation to better connect troops and families to care. What steps still need to be taken to effect a true culture change for women and transgender troops? How do you measure progress? I meet regularly with the department’s senior leaders to go over progress in implementing the changes we’ve made relative to the service of women and transgender service members. We will measure our success based on whether these adjustments help us meet the most important goal: making sure that for every position in our military, we’ve got the best possible person for the job, regardless of gender or other identity. War has moved to cyberspace. What role is DOD playing? What new tools are needed? When it comes to cyber operations, to get the right tools, you need the right people. That’s why a major focus of our innovation efforts in the last two years has been on expanding our access to talent and making the department an even more attractive employer. We also need new capabilities and operational concepts — first, to defend our own networks, which is our top priority, but also to improve our ability to go on the offense against malicious actors in cyberspace.

DREW ANGERER/GETTY IMAGES

Carter swears in Secretary of the Army Eric Fanning, right, with an unnamed aide at the Pentagon in May. Fanning is the first openly gay leader of any U.S. military service, as well as the youngest in nearly 40 years.

By Adam Stone

OR THE PAST YEAR, Defense Secretary Ash Carter has presided over a department that has faced momentous challenges. Abroad, the U.S. remains enmeshed in wars and conflicts that have gone on for more than a decade and a half. And the nature of war itself is changing, spreading to the cyber domain. Internally, the Department of Defense itself is adapting to major cultural changes, adopting new policies allowing women in combat and transgender people in the ranks. Budgetary uncertainty continues to be an issue, made more complex by the fact that the department will have a new commander in chief on Jan. 20. Carter’s term ends that day; retired Gen. James Mattis has been nominated to replace him. In a wide-ranging, written interview with USA TODAY, Carter, who has been

secretary of defense since February 2015, walked us through the defense landscape at the end of 2016. The interview was conducted before the Nov. 8 presidential election.

How do you read the signs in Afghanistan after so many years of war? CARTER: In Afghanistan, most Americans often hear or read about the latest terrorist attack or about a Taliban raid into a city. However, if you take time to look deeper, there are many signs of growth stemming from the international community’s commitment to Afghanistan. Kabul is a far different place than it was under the Taliban. Business activity, access to education and opportunities for women have all increased dramatically. The Afghan security forces are far more capable of providing security around the country.

We should not diminish the challenges in Afghanistan, including the need to improve governance and reduce corruption; nor should we lose sight of the results we have helped the Afghan people achieve with the support of our nation and the international community. Closer to home, could DOD do more to support the mental health of service members? Absolutely — efforts not only to increase the mental health resources available to the military community, but to change the culture and reduce that stigma. The department has made significant investments in mental health during the Obama administration, increasing funding for mental health services by about 75 percent and increasing the number of mental health service providers by more than 40 percent. We established a national center of excellence for care of traumatic brain

What are the latest numbers on troop size? How have “layoffs” and budget cuts affected readiness? The president’s budget for fiscal year 2017 proposed active-duty end strength of 1.28 million active-duty troops. That is the number which best meets the needs of our nation’s security within the bounds of the Bipartisan Budget Act that sets our spending levels. Among the greatest challenges we’ve faced as a department has been budget uncertainty. The constant continuing resolutions and (government) shutdown standoffs have confused our friends and emboldened our enemies — and that’s before you get to the specter of sequestration. It would really help us run this place more efficiently and effectively if Congress could stick with a two-year budget deal for both years. That doesn’t seem like too much to ask. At the same time, you need to sustain recruitment efforts. What are the challenges there, and what are the latest initiatives? We’ve made changes to personnel policies to make them more familyCO N T I N U E D

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES

DENNIS BRACK/POOL/GETTY IMAGES

President Obama receives a security briefing at the Pentagon on the campaign against the Islamic State extremist group from his national security team, including Carter, in August.

“It would really help us run this place more efficiently ... if Congress could stick with a two-year budget deal.” — Ash Carter, Secretary of Defense

friendly. We’ve made the department a more attractive employer by expanding growth opportunities and by reforming policies for how we promote our personnel that are, in some cases, decades old. And we’re working to enhance our recruiting efforts so we’re reaching all areas of the country and all segments of our society.

The world has taken to rattling sabers — shooting at our warships, test-firing missiles, deliberately flying too close. Do these things create a sense of crisis?

A mild annoyance? Our greatest advantage when we face unprofessional behavior on the sea or in the air is that our people are just the opposite — consummate professionals, well-trained, experts at their jobs. That cool professionalism has helped avoid what is our greatest concern with these incidents — that they risk not just an accident that could risk harm to our personnel but could increase tensions or lead to miscalculations. I receive regular updates on what our forces have to deal with everywhere around the world, and while it’s not annoying or distracting to me, it certainly does create the worry that our personnel could be harmed. Can you talk about military strategy regarding Russia: What and how can we deploy/are we deploying, in order

to support present policy and keep options open? We’re taking steps to accomplish two goals: assure NATO allies and partners in Europe; and deter Russia from engaging in more aggressive and provocative behavior. Earlier this year in Warsaw, NATO nations committed to an enhanced forward presence of rotational multinational forces in Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia to strengthen NATO’s eastern flank. The United States has also committed through the President’s European Reassurance Initiative to increasing our force presence and our prepositioned stocks on the eastern flank so that we will have a continual presence of three brigade combat teams in Europe at all times, plus equipment to supply an additional brigade combat team. We’ve also worked to strengthen NATO

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES

ALEX WONG/GETTY IMAGES

Carter welcomes Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne, left, and Australian Minister for Defense Industry Christopher Pyne to the Pentagon in October.

ARMY SGT. AMBER I. SMITH/DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

During a visit to Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland in Texas in November, Defense Secretary Ash Carter — a civilian and trained physicist — assembles an M-16 rifle.

partners such as Ukraine and Georgia.

matched by progress on a number of other non-military fronts. This includes relying on our partners throughout each region to address the underlying causes of violent extremism. Supporting the training and operation of local, partnered forces is the best way to make sure that these nations — Ash Carter can not only eliminate (IS), but are prepared to keep it and other extremist groups from re-emerging.

“The first priority should always be taking care of our people ... because our people are our greatest strategic advantage.”

Will you offer a military vision of a path to defeating the Islamic State group (IS)? What are the viable options? It’s important to recognize that our strategy of degrading and defeating (IS) doesn’t require military force alone. It requires using all instruments of our national power. I am proud of the performance of the Iraqi Security Forces and Syrian opposition forces. Yet the advances on the ground in these countries and elsewhere must be

What was the greatest challenge you faced in the past year and how did you

deal with it? We face a complex security environment with five major challenges: confronting violent extremist groups such as (IS) and al Qaeda; an increasingly aggressive Russia; the rise of China; the malign activities of Iran; and North Korea’s destabilizing behavior. We don’t have the luxury of choosing which problem to solve — our nation’s security depends on dealing with all of them. At the same time, there are challenges our successors will face that we can’t foresee. So we can’t be so consumed by the present that we fail to ensure that the department is prepared for the future. That means we have to concentrate on the force of the future, making sure we continue to attract and retain the best talent.

When we change out the commander in chief, others may perceive that as a vulnerable moment. What are you doing to prepare DOD for the transition? The department’s transition planning has been led personally by my chief of staff, Eric Rosenbach, with deep involvement by both Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work and by a senior civilian career official to provide continuity of planning. We have had several high-level planning meetings with the service secretaries, service chiefs and other high-ranking Pentagon officials. ... While the next president will have the chance to choose a new secretary of defense and other senior civilian personnel, the next administration will have the advantage of tremendous uniformed military leadership, led by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Joseph Dunford (whose term expires in 2019), and an experienced, professional, dedicated and capable corps of DOD career civilians. What will be the single greatest DOD-related challenge for the next president? The first priority should always be taking care of our people, our service members, military families and DOD civilians — not just because it is the right thing to do, but because our people are our greatest strategic advantage. Beyond that, the greatest challenge will continue to be confronting the challenges of the moment — terrorism, Russia, China, Iran, North Korea — while not losing sight of preparing for tomorrow’s challenges, and while accomplishing all that within a constrained and unstable budget environment.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES President-elect Donald Trump shakes hands with retired Marine Corps Gen. James Mattis after a meeting about the secretary of defense position in November.

DREW ANGERER/GETTY IMAGES

By Tom Vanden Brook, David M. Jackson and Jim Michaels

MEET THE SECDEF NOMINEE Outspoken Mattis is an iconic figure for Marines

AMES MATTIS, A LEGENDARY, toughtalking retired four-star Marine Corps general who favors a robust military and criticized the Obama administration’s approach to war, has achieved near-mythic status within the Marine Corps. The aggressive combat commander and innovative strategist defined “warrior ethos” for the latest generation of military men and women. Donald Trump’s decision to name Mattis, 66, to head the Defense Department is a strong signal that the president-elect wants a wartime leader at the Pentagon and not someone to just manage budgets. He’s compared his pick to Gen. George Patton, the legendary World War II commander. During the campaign, Trump said he would overhaul the U.S. strategy to defeat the Islamic State group. Trump has said the current plan isn’t working and suggested some military leaders had been cowed by the Obama administration. “You could easily imagine that Trump believes the advice of generals has been muted and diluted,” said Gregory Newbold, a retired Marine lieutenant general and friend of Mattis. “He’s looking for somebody who is the antidote to that. You certainly get that in Jim Mattis.”

Mattis retired in 2013 after a 44-year career. He led the military’s Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East and Africa. He commanded an infantry battalion in the Persian Gulf War in 1990-91 and helmed a task force that struck Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks. In 2003, he led a division that raced across the desert toward Baghdad in the initial assault into Iraq. He will require a waiver from Congress to become defense secretary; federal law requires a seven-year gap between retirement from the military and assuming the Cabinet post, a statute designed to safeguard the principle of civilian control over the military. The last retired general to head the Defense Department was George Marshall in 1950. The waiver has the support of many in Congress, including Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Mattis made headlines with blunt talk that appealed to troops and left no doubt about his approach. After leading troops in combat — his call sign was “Chaos” — the man known as “Mad Dog” told a San Diego audience in 2005 that he relished fighting. “It’s a hell of a hoot,” Mattis said. “It’s fun to shoot some people. I’ll be right up there with you. I like brawling. You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women

around for five years because they didn’t wear a veil. You know, guys like that ain’t got no manhood left anyway. So it’s a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them.” Those remarks earned him a rebuke from his superiors but didn’t stop his ascent to the military’s most prestigious posts. Also known as the “Warrior Monk,” Mattis cultivates a bookish reputation. He is a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and has continued to speak out about military policy. In 2014, he criticized the Obama administration’s plan to withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan at the end of 2016, a stand that it has abandoned in favor of leaving about 10,000 troops there to train local forces and fight terrorists. Deadlines for withdrawal, Mattis said then, simply embolden American enemies. “We want to crush the enemy’s hope to win through violence,” Mattis said. “Yet we have now given the enemy hope that if they hang on until our announced withdrawal date, they can perhaps come back.” Mattis’ views may mesh with Trump’s calls to beef up the military and more aggressively prosecute Islamic State terrorists. As defense secretary, Mattis will inherit the air war in Iraq and Syria, as well as the thousands of U.S. troops on the ground training local forces and elite commandos who are targeting leaders of the terrorist organization. The war against Taliban insurgents and al Qaeda-linked terrorists in Afghanistan will grind on as well. He’ll be responsible for more than 1 million active-duty troops and an annual budget of more than $600 billion. Also on his plate: the increasingly aggressive Russian military, which has seized Crimea from Ukraine and regularly harasses U.S. ships and warplanes operating in international waters and airspace in Europe; and China’s mounting ambitions in the South China Sea, where it has built artificial islands and fortified them with landing strips and troops. If confirmed by the Senate, Mattis would be a departure from defense secretaries who have come from civilian government service or politics. He would replace Ash Carter, a physicist who rose through the ranks of the Defense Department. Those who have worked with Mattis say he is more than a battle commander. As head of U.S. Central Command, he traveled the region, cultivating ties with foreign military leaders and helping shape strategy. “I know he has this reputation as a ‘war fighter,’ and it certainly is earned, but he really is a clear, precise strategic thinker, more so than any man I have ever worked for,” said Jim Howcroft, a retired Marine officer who served as Mattis’ intelligence officer during the Iraq invasion in 2003.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES The $611 billion National Defense Authorization Act will prevent the Army from dropping below 476,000 soldiers and gives all troops a 2.1 percent raise.

BUDGET ITEMS $611 billion package still may not be enough for all the military’s needs

By Richard Lardner

ONGRESS HAS OVERWHELMINGLY BACKED a $611 billion defense policy bill that rejects a number of President Obama’s key proposals for managing the nation’s vast military enterprise. The Senate voted 92-7 for the annual defense policy bill Dec. 8, a week after the House overwhelmingly backed the measure, giving Congress veto-proof majorities in both chambers. The bill moved on to Obama for his signature. The bill, crafted after weeks of talks between House and Senate negotiators, prohibits Obama from following through on his longstanding campaign pledge to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The bill also bars the Department of Defense from reducing the number of military bases even though senior U.S. defense officials said there is excess capacity, and it awards U.S. troops their largest pay raise in six

years. Obama had recommended a smaller pay increase. The bill prevents the Pentagon from forcing thousands of California National Guard troops to repay enlistment bonuses and benefits they received a decade after they signed up to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan. Soldiers will have to return a bonus only if a “preponderance of the evidence” shows they knew they weren’t eligible to receive the money. Even at $611 billion, the Republican chairman of the House Armed Services Committee lamented that more money is needed in the defense budget to restock the U.S. arsenal worn down by 15 years of conflict. Rep. Mac Thornberry of Texas said he is hopeful President-elect Donald Trump, who pledged during the campaign to spend more on the military, will ask Congress early next year to boost fiscal year 2017 military spending even further. During his 2008 bid for president, Obama pledged to close the detention

reduction in the number of active-duty troops by prohibiting the Army from falling below 476,000 soldiers — 16,000 more than Obama’s defense budget had proposed. The bill also adds 7,000 service members to the Air Force and Marine Corps. House and Senate negotiators dropped a House plan to shift $18 billion from the emergency wartime spending account to pay for additional weapons and combat gear the Pentagon didn’t include in its budget request. They elected instead to boost the wartime account, which isn’t constrained by mandatory budget limits, by $3.2 billion to help improve the military’s ability to respond to global threats. The decision may have been motivated by Trump’s assurances that he would ELENA BALADELLI/U.S. ARMY increase defense spending dramatically, allowing the armed forces to add tens of facility at Guantanamo, which he called a thousands more troops and acquire new recruiting tool for extremist groups. weapons. But Republicans and a number of The defense bill contains $5.8 billion Democrats repeatedly thwarted his goal in additional war-related funding Obama over the ensuing years, arguing the prison requested in November primarily for opwas badly needed for housing suspected erations in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. That terrorists. The ban on closing the prison includes $2.5 billion to maintain elevated also includes a prohibition on moving U.S. troop levels of 8,400 in Afghanistan Guantanamo detainees as announced over the to secure facilities in the summer. About $383 U.S. million would pay for air The bill bars the Trump not only strikes against Islamic pledged to keep GuanState militants. Pentagon from tanamo open, he said Lawmakers avoided reducing the during the campaign that wading more deeply into he wants to “load it up social policy issues by number of military with some bad dudes.” stripping two contenbases even though The defense legislation tious provisions from also authorizes a 2.1 the bill. One, opposed by senior defense percent pay raise for the Democrats, would have officials said there troops — a half-percentallowed federal contracage point higher than the tors to discriminate is excess capacity. Pentagon requested in against workers on the its budget presentation. basis of sexual or gender The Republican chairman orientation. Another, of the Armed Services Committee, Sen. opposed by Republicans, would have John McCain of Arizona, said it’s the largest required for the first time in U.S. history military pay increase since 2010. that young women sign up for a potential The Office of Management and military draft. Budget objected to the larger raise, telling But the Obama administration has lawmakers earlier this year that the lower declared its support for requiring women amount would save $336 million this to register for the military draft, a symbolic fiscal year and $2.2 billion through 2021. but significant shift that reflects the U.S. A bigger increase, the budget office said, military’s evolution from a male-domiwould upset the careful balance between nated force to one seeking to incorporate competitive pay and acquiring cutting-edge women at all levels. equipment and training. Lardner writes for The Associated Press. The bill blocks the Pentagon’s planned

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES U.S. Air Force personnel monitor communications from a surveillance plane over Syrian airspace. Information goes back to a command center in Qatar, where officials select targets for airstrikes.

STAFF SGT. DOUGLAS ELLIS/U.S. AIR FORCE CENTRAL COMMAND

STRIKING HARD

Inside the anti-Islamic State air campaign command center By Jim Michaels

IR FORCE MAJ. GEN. Jay Silveria examined the photos arrayed on a table in a conference room at the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar. The grainy pictures showed a small oil well and collection pool operated by the Islamic State in the Syrian desert. The targeting officer gave Silveria a brief pitch: This was an opportunity to hit a key source of Islamic State revenue. No civilians

were around, and a pair of U.S. A-10 attack planes could get there quickly. The general turned to a military lawyer to see whether he had any legal concerns. He didn’t. Silveria gave the go-ahead, and the planes destroyed the oil well. The strike — conducted before the Mosul offensive began in October — was one example of how the U.S. operation against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria has become the most tightly managed air campaign in the history of warfare. USA

TODAY was granted rare access to the command center in Qatar to witness how the team carries out such campaigns. Every strike has to be approved by an officer with the rank of a one-star general or higher. The targets are scrutinized not only for their potential for collateral damage, but also “proportionality” — whether the military value of the target is worth the time and cost of a strike and furthers the aim of the overall campaign. Staff officers have developed complex

formulas for estimating the potential for civilian casualties on any given target and what type of bomb to use to achieve a specific goal. Pre-planned, or “deliberate” targets, which can include a cash warehouse, car bomb factories or militant communications facilities, take an average of four to six weeks for approval. However, “dynamic” targets of opportunity, like the oil well, account for 85 percent of the strikes and can be approved in minutes if a high-level officer signs off. The highly controlled air campaign reflects a heightened sensitivity to civilian casualties in an era where social media can draw the world’s attention to even a single errant bomb. The number of confirmed civilian deaths in nearly 15,000 coalition strikes since the air war began in 2014 is 55, according to U.S. Central Command. An additional seven allegations are under investigation, and actual casualties are likely higher, because the military’s estimates only include those confirmed through a rigorous process. “Most times we’re trying to drive it to zero civilian casualties,” said Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian, commander of the air campaign in the Middle East. Critics say the regulations to avoid noncombatant deaths are excessive and have undermined the effectiveness of the air campaign. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain, R-Ariz., complained last year that three-quarters of the coalition’s aircraft came back to base without having dropped their weapons. “It’s a very convoluted system for fighting a war,” said Chuck Horner, a retired Air Force general who commanded air operations during the 1990-91 Persian Gulf War. “We’re fighting with one arm tied behind our back.” The military counters that today’s munitions are far more precise than the bombs dropped over Iraq during the Gulf War’s “shock and awe” campaign. Intelligence also has steadily improved, allowing pilots to kill top Islamic State leaders and destroy targets such as the oil well, which reduce the terror group’s income.

INSIDE THE COMMAND CENTER

The air war in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and other parts of the Middle East is run from this sprawling desert base outside Doha, the capital of Qatar. Inside a massive CO N T I N U E D

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES windowless concrete building, protected from the stifling desert heat, military men and women monitor banks of computer screens in a large, two-story room. On the walls above their heads are rows of screens, displaying surveillance video from throughout the region. It’s a long way from previous wars, when bomber pilots would take off with targets marked on a map and drop “dumb” bombs with little or no communication with their home base. The bombs would often flatten entire city blocks or more. Today, technology allows commanders to control events thousands of miles away. The process for choosing ground targets begins with a nomination that could come from an intelligence analyst, ground forces or a pilot who sees a potential target, such as an enemy position, an oil well or a warehouse where the Islamic State stores cash. If selected for further review, analysts will gather surveillance video and other intelligence to establish a “pattern of life” around the target. Analysts assign the target a collateral damage estimate based on its proximity to civilians and the extent that danger to them can be lessened. If there is a risk of hitting nearby buildings, they mitigate the risk by choosing smaller bombs or a fuse that can delay the explosion, so, for example, a bomb would only detonate after it penetrates the target. Military officers plot each bomb’s point of impact on a building or other target, allowing them to measure precisely the blast radius of each explosive they will drop. The selection of munitions can produce a precise impact. Recently, a communications tower near a school was hit so that when it collapsed, it fell away from a cluster of nearby buildings. The analysts also reduce risks to civilians by determining when to strike, such as at night when many civilians aren’t in the area. Even after all those precautions, pilots will abort a mission if civilians unexpectedly approach a target by car or on foot as the bombing is about to begin. For U.S. advisers or the Iraqi or Syrian ground forces they are working with, the wait for the go-ahead can seem excruciating. In June, coalition aircraft unleashed a massive airstrike on several Islamic State convoys fleeing Fallujah in western Iraq. Approval came only after surveillance drones viewed the targets for hours to ensure there were no civilians inside the convoys.

MISSED OPPORTUNITIES?

Coalition commanders point out that intelligence has improved during the air war, allowing pilots to attack an increasing number of targets, despite the restrictions. Pilots dropped an average of 496 bombs

SENIOR AIRMAN MILES WILSON/U.S. AIR FORCE

An airman assigned to the 379th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron loads the weapons rack of an aircraft in October. Air operations in support of the offensive to recapture Mosul are conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve. and other munitions per week this year, up from 144 in 2014, the year the air war began. Targeting the militants’ cash warehouses and oil facilities has forced the Islamic State to cut pay to civilian workers by 50 percent and pay to its fighters by 20 percent, according to Harrigian, the campaign’s commander. Those figures don’t satisfy critics who say some targets are not hit because the approval time is too slow, and a more robust campaign might increase the risk to civilians but end the Islamic State’s reign of terror sooner. “I don’t care how much live communications you have, there’s no way you get through layers of bureaucracy quick enough,” said Chris Harmer, an analyst at the Institute for the Study of War and a former naval aviator. “If our prime goal

is minimizing civilian it serves a strategic casualties, then let’s just interest,” he said. The U.S. operation throw in the towel and Hundreds of thouwalk away. People will sands — if not millions against Islamic accept civilian casual— of civilians have died State militants in ties as an inevitable in previous wars. But byproduct if they think global public opinion Iraq and Syria has there is a strategic goal would no longer accept become the most of defeating the enemy casualties anywhere and replacing it with near that level, analysts tightly managed something better.” reported. air campaign in Geoffrey Corn, a “The application of former Army lawyer and force is driven by the the history of expert on wartime law, political climate of the defended the military’s time,” said Dik Daso, a warfare. emphasis on avoiding military historian and civilian casualties as a professor at the Univernecessary objective to sity of South Carolina. prevent a backlash against the air campaign “People have come to believe that we can from the local population. really do anything with these weapons and “Ultimately it’s beneficial because there is no excuse for hitting civilians.”

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THE POLICIES Members of the Air Force’s 821st Contingency Response Group prepare for operations in Iraq in November.

SENIOR AIRMAN JORDAN CASTELAN/U.S. AIR FORCE

BEHIND THE LINES

U.S. troops across the Middle East work with local troops to combat extremists By Carmen Gentile

IRAQ

For the first time in years, Iraq was what passed for a relatively good news story in the Middle East. The Islamic State group (IS) lost large swaths of territory with the support of American troops advising and training local forces. The northern city of Mosul, seized by IS in 2014, is the last major piece of land held by the extremist group, and Iraqi officials expect to eventually retake it as well. The offensive to retake Iraq’s secondlargest city — led by Iraqi and Kurdish forces, with militia groups also joining the fight — has forced Islamic State fighters out of towns surrounding the city and prompted some of the extremist group’s leadership to flee, likely across the border to Syria.

Amid heavy battle, thousands of civilians have streamed out of Mosul since October, when the latest offensive against IS began. Thousands more were killed in the fighting, and mass graves containing hundreds of bodies have been unearthed. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were without water in late November — a major pipeline was damaged during a battle — and food shortages were beginning to occur. American troops in Iraq operated in an advisory role, training local forces on the ground near Mosul. U.S. special operations forces are playing an even more active role in Iraq and Syria, teaching troops how to identify targets for U.S. airstrikes. U.S. defense officials maintain publicly, despite some reports, that American forces are not on the frontline in the fight for Mosul, which is expected to take several months. “It’s the Iraqis in the lead. The Iraqis are at the front and Americans are providing

(aid) in their advisory role, but they are behind the forward line of troops,” said Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook during a press briefing in October, as Iraqi forces were first reaching the city limits. For now, the Islamic State in Iraq seems to be on the ropes, as some 100,000 Iraqi and allied troops encroach on the city with U.S. forces in varying supporting roles. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi told the Associated Press in late November that IS appeared to be “collapsing,” and that President-elect Donald Trump had promised more support. “In Iraq, the counter-ISIS campaign finally gathered momentum,” said James Phillips, a senior research fellow for Middle Eastern affairs at the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation. “It does seem like ISIS is on the road to military defeat, but it’s to be seen whether that defeat can be cemented into a military and political defeat.”

SYRIA

In December, the Russian-backed offensive in Syria appeared to be taking control of the city of Aleppo, under the control of U.S.-backed antigovernment rebels. Tens of thousands of residents have fled, hundreds of civilians die each week and the city is being reduced to near rubble. The U.S. military effort against the Islamic State in Syria is proving much more complex, Phillips said, because Washington doesn’t have a “state partner” as it does in the Iraqi government. Instead, in 2016, Washington continued to be confronted with Moscow reasserting its role in the Middle East. Russian airstrikes in support of Syrian regime forces targeted moderate Syrian rebels trained and equipped by the United CO N T I N U E D

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THE POLICIES States in Aleppo, further exacerbating the humanitarian crisis there. What now resembles a proxy war in Syria seemingly reignited the Cold War tensions between the U.S. and Russia, which now appears intent on continuing to play a larger role in the region than it has in decades. “There had been an assumption in the Middle East of the U.S. as a guarantor of security,” said Ilan Goldenberg, senior fellow and director of the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. “(Russian President Vladimir) Putin has made some major strategic inroads with a small military investment (in airstrikes). ... The Middle East is no longer the U.S. military’s sole sphere of influence.” The first U.S. service member to die in combat in Syria lost his life on Nov. 24. Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott C. Dayton, 42, of Woodbridge, Va., an explosive ordnance disposal expert, was killed by a roadside bomb.

AFGHANISTAN

OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

U.S.-backed rebels are under siege in Syria; thousands of civilians have fled the country.

The Taliban now controls more of Afghanistan, particularly in the south, than at any time since before the U.S.-led invasion of the country in October 2001. The Taliban has retaken most of the territory it lost to

STAFF SGT. CLAYTON LENHARDT/U.S. AIR FORCE

Members of the Fort Leonard Wood honor guard carry the remains of Army Pfc. Tyler Iubelt during a dignified transfer ceremony in November. Iubelt was one of five Americans killed by a suicide bomber at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan.

U.S. and NATO forces during 15 years of war following the Sept. 11 attacks, prompting the Obama administration to order the remaining 9,800 American forces there to once again play a more active combat role. Seeing losses mount, the White House in June gave U.S. military commanders in Afghanistan the green light to strike Taliban targets in support of Afghan soldiers. American troops were once again accompanying Afghan conventional troops on some missions. Prior to President Obama’s order, U.S. special forces were the primary supporters of Afghanistan’s special forces. The new rule also meant more U.S. airstrikes in support of Afghan forces on the ground, giving them a tactical advantage over the Taliban and other groups such as the Haqanni network and the Islamic State in Afghanistan. In late July, the Islamic State sustained a major blow when a drone strike took out their leader, Hafiz Saeed Khan, and other senior commanders and fighters. But the militants also ratcheted up sectarian tensions in Afghanistan this year, targeting Afghanistan’s Shiite minority while also committing violence against its fellow Sunnis, both Taliban and civilian. “It’s another reason we can’t afford to withdraw from the country altogether,” said Lisa Curtis, a Heritage Foundation senior research fellow who focuses on U.S. national security interests and regional geopolitics in South Asia. “Without U.S. support, air support, we’d likely see Taliban control even more territory.” Curtis added that the northern city of Kunduz, which the Taliban attacked in a coordinated assault this year, would likely still be under their hardline control had it not been for U.S. airstrikes that forced them to withdraw from the city this fall. Since then, the Taliban has been kept away from the city, although its attacks on population centers and U.S. troops persisted. Bombings attributed to both the Taliban and Islamic State continued in Kabul, while U.S. troops remained targets for roadside bomb attacks on their armored convoys. The Taliban infiltrated Bagram Airfield, the largest U.S. base in Afghanistan, in mid-November, killing five Americans — three service members and two civilian contractors — and wounding 17 other people in a suicide bombing. The strike had been planned for months, and the solo bomber set off his device near a group of people preparing for a “fun run.” Attacks by the Taliban and other groups in Afghanistan resulted in nearly a dozen U.S. military and civilian deaths in 2016.

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THE POLICIES Filipinos call for the pullout of U.S. troops in their country in October.

EASTERN TIME

NOEL CELIS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Vital Asia-Pacific region remains unsettled

By Kirk Spitzer

F CONFUSION AND UNCERTAINTY marked the Asia-Pacific defense environment in 2016, the outlook for next year may not be much better. North Korea churned ahead with its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs in spite of international sanctions and condemnation.

China consolidated its island-building campaign in the South China Sea, despite a clear rebuke from an international court of arbitration and ongoing freedom of navigation operations by the U.S. Navy. The U.S. “rebalance” to the Asia-Pacific appeared to wobble as the Philippines’ mercurial new leader Rodrigo Duterte threatened to undo an important new basing agreement, and public opposition in

Okinawa, Japan, threatened further delays in relocating a key U.S. airbase within Okinawa. Perhaps most unsettling of all, an untried and untested new U.S. president is set to take office in January amid warnings that he was prepared to withdraw U.S. troops from the region and approve of allies Japan and South Korea obtaining nuclear weapons — a reversal of decades-long U.S.

policy to restrain the spread of nuclear weapons. (President-elect Donald Trump later tweeted that he had said no such thing, despite evidence to the contrary.) “I would say the overall security situation in the region has gotten worse over the last year, but without any single major event being decisive,” said Garren Mulloy, associate professor of international relations at Tokyo’s Daito Bunka University. The Asia-Pacific region is vital to U.S. economic and security interests. It is home to two of the world’s three largest economies. Eight of the world’s 10 busiest container ports are located there. Nearly 30 percent of the world’s maritime trade transits the South China Sea annually, including some $1.2 trillion in ship-borne trade bound for the United States. Critically, some two-thirds of the world’s oil shipments pass through the Indian Ocean to the Pacific, and more than 15 million barrels of oil pass through the Malacca Strait each day — including nearly all of Japan’s oil imports. In a speech aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in late September, Defense Secretary Ash Carter called the Asia-Pacific the “single most consequential region for America’s future.” The region is heavily militarized. Seven of the world’s 10 largest armed forces and five of the world’s declared nuclear powers are located in the region, and China is making rapid advances in military capability, according to U.S. Pacific Command. The United States maintains 368,000 military personnel in the Asia-Pacific region, including 97,000 west of the International Date Line. By 2020, 60 percent of the Navy’s ships and aircraft will be home-ported in the Pacific region. Few issues dominated the regional agenda this year as North Korea’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile development programs. In January 2016, the rogue regime said it tested what it claimed was a hydrogen bomb. That was the country’s first nuclear test since 2013 and fourth altogether. Although some Western analysts believe the January device was less than a true hydrogen weapon, the test nonetheless demonstrated a growing sophistication. In September, the regime said it had conducted its fifth, and largest, nuclear test. This year’s tests shows steady advancement in North Korea’s nuclear capabilities, said Narushige Michishita, director of the security and international studies program at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo. “In the test they conducted in September, the explosive yield was estimated to be about 10 to 15 kilotons. The bomb that was used in Hiroshima had an explosive yield of about 15 kilotons, so North Korea CO N T I N U E D

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PETTY OFFICER 2ND CLASS CHRISTIAN SENYK/U.S. NAVY

Petty Officer 3rd Class Robert McGuire stands near an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter during training exercises in the Pacific region. A fence marks the North Korean border with China; the Great Wall of China can be seen in the background. GREG BAKER/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

has achieved more or less the capability of the bomb used in Hiroshima. So they have made steady progress,” Michishita said in a speech in Tokyo in November. Altogether, North Korea now has at least 12 and perhaps as many as 20 functional nuclear weapons, and is likely to boost its arsenal to 50 to 100 nuclear weapons within the next five years, Michishita added. North Korea also appeared to make progress in its ballistic missile program this year. The regime currently has about 700 ballistic missiles, mostly short-range Nodong models capable of hitting targets in South Korea or neighboring Japan, including key U.S. military bases in both countries, according to a January 2016 review of U.S. defense strategy by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). But the North also carried out at least three tests of longer-range Musudan missiles that could threaten U.S. bases in Guam and Alaska, and is looking to develop a version that could reach the continental United States as well, the study found.

Although not all the missile tests appear to have been successful, they show North Korea’s willingness to continue with its strategic weapons programs regardless of U.N. sanctions, Michishita said. And while China appears to have taken a pause in its island-building campaign in the South China Sea in 2016, that issue appears far from settled as well. China has built landfill islands totaling more than 3,200 acres in the vital waterway, according to the DOD’s 2016 report to Congress on military and security developments involving China. Three of the expanded Spratly Islands include 10,000foot runways capable of accommodating China’s largest military aircraft, along with extensive port and shore facilities. Although Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged in September not to militarize the islands — which would be largely indefensible in wartime, regardless — U.S. officials worry that China could use the islands as outposts from which to hinder air and sea navigation. In a November speech in Washington D.C., Adm. Harry Harris, commander of

U.S. Pacific Command, proposed adding China, which claims virtually the entire to U.S. capabilities in the region, including South China Sea under vaguely defined land-based anti-ship missiles operated by “historical rights,” said it would ignore the the U.S. Army. ruling. “I think about an area where you put The U.S. has responded by sending these weapon systems on places in the warships on a freedom of navigation western Pacific; they would place at risk operation (FONOP) in waters surrounding potential adversaries in the South China Chinese-built or occupied islands in the Sea, the East China Sea, the Sea of Japan,” South China Sea four times in the past year. Harris said. “I think it is an important The most recent “FONOP” was in October, concept, and we ought to be thinking about when the destroyer USS Decatur sailed in it as we figure out how to maintain that close proximity to the Paracel Islands. edge over our adversaries in the region.” “The South China Sea is not a Chinese Maintaining that edge got significantly lake, as some seem to be lamenting, trickier on June 30, when blunt-spoken and and China does not ‘control’ the highly nationalist leader Duterte took office waterway,” said Ralph Cossa, president as the Philippines’ new president. In short of the Pacific Forum CSIS think tank in order, Duterte insulted U.S. officials — he Honolulu. “FONOPs have accomplished called President Barack Obama a “son of what they hoped to accomplish, which a whore” — announced a “separation” is (demonstrating) that the U.S. will sail from the U.S. in favor of China and said he and fly wherever it damn well pleases and is prepared to “revise or abrogate agreewherever the law allows.” ments” with the United Whether that policy States. The latter was an continues into 2017 apparent reference to a remains to be seen. base-sharing agreement Trump raised alarms “The overall negotiated by the in March about his security situation previous Philippines commitment to the administration that region by suggesting in the region has allows American forces during the heated gotten worse over to be stationed on a presidential campaign rotational bases at five that he might withdraw the last year ... Philippine-operated U.S. troops from Japan if without any single military bases; he later the longtime U.S. treaty expressed regret over ally does not take on major event being the Obama comment. more of the expense of The Enhanced Defense U.S. troops based there. decisive.” Cooperation Agreement And Trump — who was upheld by the Philiphas never held public — Garren Mulloy, Daito pines’ Supreme Court office nor served in the Bunka University earlier this year and is an military — seemed to important part of the U.S. suggest that he would rebalance to the region. not object if Japan and Duterte said in a visit to South Korea were to Tokyo in October that he intended to order develop their own nuclear weapons rather all U.S. troops out of the Philippines within than continuing to rely on the U.S. nuclear two years — a move that could make the umbrella. U.S. strategy of distributing U.S. forces more About 50,000 U.S. troops are based widely in the region difficult to achieve. in Japan — the largest contingent of U.S. “There’s rarely a ‘one-for-one’ replaceforces anywhere outside U.S. territory. ment when we lose military resources, Japan spends about $2 billion a year in such as access to bases in a country. host-nation payments. Geography and political ties are always Japan is embroiled in a continuing unique,” said Grant Newsham, senior standoff with China over sovereignty of a research fellow at the Japan Forum for group of uninhabited islands in the East Strategic Studies in Tokyo. China Sea and has been responding to Duterte’s comments came just months increasing air patrols by China and Russia after the Permanent Court of Arbitration in along its territorial boundaries. The Hague gave the Philippines a clear — Trump’s election has emboldened though likely unenforceable — victory in its activists on Okinawa, who are seeking dispute with China over the Scarborough to derail plans to shift the U.S. Marine air Shoal, a rich fishing region in the South base at Futenma to a less crowded part of China Sea claimed by both countries. the islands; opponents want the base shut The tribunal ruled that China caused down permanently. “irreparable harm” to the marine environTrump seemed to back off some of his ment and “unlawfully” interfered with more extreme statements in the weeks fishermen from the Philippines, and that following the election. But his ultimate China’s island-building campaign is “incompolicy in the Asia-Pacific region remains patible” with international obligations. unclear.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE POLICIES Shane Ortega, a retired Army sergeant, was one of the first transgender service members to serve openly.

undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness. “If we acknowledge the fact that they’re already here, the question is: How do we treat them? “It’s in the best interest of the force, in our view, to provide the medical care they need and to treat them with dignity and respect, as we treat other members of the force,” he said. “As long as they can meet our standards, we want them to be able to serve, and we want them to be able to serve well.” The Pentagon’s new policy states that transgender service members may serve openly; can no longer be involuntarily separated or discharged solely for being transgender; must meet all applicable military standards for their identified gender; may use berthing, bathroom

“The moment Secretary Carter made his announcement, a huge burden was lifted off the shoulders of transgender service members.” — Aaron Belkin, Palm Center

BANNED NO MORE JORDAN RING

Pentagon allows transgender troops to serve openly

By Matt Alderton

T’S IN THEIR TITLE: Service members join the military because they want to serve. No one knows this better than Marine veteran and retired Army Sgt. Shane Ortega, one of the first openly transgender men to have served in the U.S. armed forces. Although he’s among trans service members’ most outspoken advocates,

Ortega didn’t enlist because he wanted to change the system. Rather, he enlisted because he wanted to be a part of it. Having grown up in a military family, he’d never even considered another career. “I joined the military because I wanted to be an active citizen,” said Ortega, 29, now a college student at the University of California-Los Angeles. “I believe in helping our nation, and I wanted to give back to it the best way I could.”

Now, due to efforts by Ortega and other activists, transgender service members can also serve without limits. After a year of study and review, Defense Secretary Ash Carter on June 30 officially repealed the Department of Defense’s ban on transgender service members. “This is not about bringing transgender individuals into the service. It’s about the fact that we already have them in the service,” said Peter Levine, acting

and shower facilities associated with their identified gender; and are entitled to receive all medically necessary care related to their gender transition, including hormone replacement therapy and gender reassignment surgery. “DOD and the services put a lot of time, thought and energy into getting the regulations right, and they did a great job,” said Aaron Belkin, director of the Palm Center, a San Francisco-based research institute that studies sexual minorities in the military. “The regulations are outstanding because they follow the key principle that any military policy should follow, which is treating all service members the same.” According to the Rand Corp., which studied transgender integration for the DOD, the new policy will have “minimal impact on readiness and health care costs (and) no … effect on operational effectiveness, operational readiness or cohesion.” “As important as those values are, this was never about equality or fairness. In a military context, the most important thing is readiness,” Belkin said. “The ban on transgender troops was undermining military readiness in two different ways. The research shows that forcing people to serve dishonestly compromises readiness, as does failing to provide medically CO N T I N U E D

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THE POLICIES

DREW PERINE/THE (TACOMA, WASH.) NEWS TRIBUNE VIA AP

Army Capt. Jennifer Peace, a transgender woman who serves in the active-duty military, hopes that speaking openly will help others to understand transgender men and women. but also “a lot of friction points,” he said. Among them: soldiers who encounter ALEX WONG/GETTY IMAGES roadblocks and delays when seeking U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus speaks at a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride transition-related health care and personMonth event at the Pentagon in June. nel authorizations. “There are still some (transit) issues going on, because they’re still doing construction on the highways.” necessary care to troops.” leaders and soldiers on DOD and Army And the highways are also cultural, The Rand report estimated that out policy allowing open service of transgender according to Ortega. The former sergeant, of approximately 1.3 million activesoldiers,” said Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. who medically retired in June, said duty service members, 1,320 to 6,630 are Jennifer Johnson. “The Army will continue successful integration of trans service transgender. The Palm Center, meanwhile, to sustain force readiness by continuing members requires a longer-term commitestimates the total transgender force — to implement policy changes that support ment to education and inclusion. including both active-duty and reserve recruiting, developing, employing and “When we recruit new troops and personnel — at 12,800. retaining the best talent unrelated to an put them into barracks, they need to be “At this point, we’re not seeing anything individual’s gender exposed to people like those kinds of numbers,” Levine said. identity.” from the (trans) “We’re seeing a handful of transgender The other community,” he members in each service, but not anything services did not said. “Leadership more significant than that.” comment. giving a slide Of course, it’s still early. While the ban While each of presentation isn’t on transgender service members was lifted the services has going to be enough. OF 1.3 MILLION effective immediately in June, the rest of developed its own People have comthe policy is being rolled out gradually. In training plan, Levine plicated questions SERVICE MEMBERS ARE late September, for example, DOD issued said all troops that leadership can’t TRANSGENDER a training handbook, released medical will be educated answer, so trans guidance for providing transition-related about “the nature military people need health care, opened its personnel manageof transgender to be the ones who ment systems to official gender changes individuals” and “the principle of dignity are actually teaching the classes.” and commenced transition-related care and respect.” For Belkin, at least, it’s enough that across the military health system. So far, things are going well, said Levine: they’re among those protecting the Through June 30, 2017, each of the “We’ve seen no problems in terms of country — openly, at last. “The moment services will conduct training around the compliance, objection to the policy or Secretary Carter made his announcement,” new policy. And as of July 1, each branch anything like that.” he said, “a huge burden was lifted off will begin admitting new transgender Added Belkin, “I do not have concerns. the shoulders of transgender service recruits, provided a doctor has certified We’re still monitoring the situation very members.” them as being stable in their identified closely to see how things go, but so far Ortega can speak to that. He knew early gender for at least 18 months. we’re hearing good things. … Trans on that he wanted to serve his country, “The Army is in accordance with DOD inclusion is not a problem.” just like his parents and uncles before him, policy and is in the process of training Ortega also has heard positive reviews, and joined the Marines while he was still

1,320 - 6,630

a junior in high school. Two days after he graduated, he left for boot camp. Ortega subsequently served as a military police officer in the Marines, then a helicopter flight engineer in the Army. During his 11 years of service, he served three combat tours — two in Iraq and one in Afghanistan — and was considered a model soldier by all with whom he served. That is, until 2014, when officials in charge of granting Army flight credentials received the results of his latest physical. Born female, Ortega had enlisted as a woman but began taking hormones in 2010 to assist with his transition to being male. His commanding officers were aware of his transition, but because of his superior performance, allowed him to continue serving despite the Pentagon’s official policy. Since the 1970s, the DOD had explicitly banned trans men and women from military service, deeming them “unfit” to serve on the premise that their condition was the result of a mental disorder. His commanders’ blessing proved moot. When Ortega’s blood work showed elevated levels of testosterone, the Army stripped the helicopter crew chief of his wings and consigned him to desk duty pending review of his case. So commenced two and a half years of administrative purgatory during which Ortega came out as trans and became an activist on behalf of transgender integration, sacrificing a career in the process. “Activism nearly killed me,” explained Ortega. “But I’m really glad I did it, because if I didn’t, this fight could have taken decades.”

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: ARMY

ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF Gen. Mark Milley, chief of staff since August 2015, addressed some of the philosophy behind fighting wars at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in June.

(Let’s discuss the) myths of this, you know, very quickly. This will be land power. Can you talk a over in days, weeks,’ you know, that kind little bit about how looking of thing. I’m very skeptical of that ... so the at the future, we should be myth of a short war is one that we should thinking about land power? all guard against. MILLEY: One of the things that Another one is the myth (that) you is very common, especially in the United can win from afar. Very common, very States, (and) it’s common elsewhere in American. We love technology. We don’t other countries as well, (is) what I’ve want to needlessly spend the lives of our labeled the four myths. There’s actually soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines. So more myths, but I just picked four that are we’re a relatively wealthy country so ... very common and that we should continuthe American way of war, so to speak, has ally guard against. One is the myth of short always defaulted historically to using muniwars. Historically, there have been short tions, stand-off weapons, heavy firepower wars, you know, the Arab-Israeli war in in order to prevail. And I think that’s not a 1967 was relatively short. bad thing, but we have Although some would to be careful to take that argue it’s never ended, to the extreme that we but, you know, in terms could lull ourselves into “The Army doesn’t of military operations, it thinking that you can fight a war. The was short for that period impose your political of time. ... will upon an opponent Army, Navy, Air So, there have been, from a great distance, Force, Marines historically, some from the air domain or relatively short wars. the maritime domain don’t fight a war. But for the most part, with smart munitions history tells us that and stand-off weapon The nation fights a when two countries or systems. You can do a lot war.” more enter into armed with that. You can shape — Gen. Mark Milley conflict that one or battlefields. ... You can the other belligerent certainly send signals. typically underestimates You can kill selected the length of time it’s people, high-value going to take to accomplish military tasks, targets, and that sort of thing. There’s a lot to accomplish their political objectives. you can do, but wars are different than all And typically, wars tend to take longer and of the things I just mentioned. consume more resources than people want The whole purpose of a war is to impose on either side. And obviously at least one your political will on your opponent by the side typically gets it wrong because both use of violence. So, to do that, it typically sides enter it thinking they’re going to win. requires the full spectrum of land power, And one side typically does not. So the air power, maritime power, plus space, myth of a short war, I’m wary when I hear cyber, etc. Apply the time and space in people — especially in American circles, order to impose your will. And land power think tanks, newspapers, even in policy is fundamental, because politics is done circles — I’m very wary and skeptical of amongst people on the land and if you’re anyone who propagates the idea that wars going to impose your will, at some point in would be short, short dust-ups. ‘We can do time, typically, that’s done on the land. ...

SUSAN WALSH/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley testifies in September on Capitol Hill about the cultural changes facing the service. So I think that’s an important myth to kind of avoid is that you can just win from afar. Another one that sort of correlates is that Special Forces can do it all. I’m a proud veteran of Special Forces and we have the greatest and best by far Special Forces in the world. But Special Forces is just what its name implies: special. They are designed, organized, trained men equipped for selected special surgical operations. They are not designed, trained and equipped to win wars. And there’s a difference. ... They can shape, they can do precision strikes, they can do raids, but winning a war is a different thing. That takes a nation to fight wars. The Army doesn’t fight a war. The Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines don’t fight a war. The nation fights a war. So there’s a big huge difference there and we can lull ourselves into thinking that Special Forces is the, is the answer to everything. It’s not. And those in Special Forces would be the first ones to tell you. Another myth that’s kind of prevalent sometimes is that armies can be — again, very American — that armies can be regenerated quickly. ... The Constitution

says that the Congress, their job is to raise an Army and maintain a Navy. So the Founding Fathers even believed in that. So they thought, well, hell, I got to build boats and they’re going to take a long time so I got to maintain that, but I can raise or get rid of an Army at will. ... I think that in today’s world, given the time factors, the speed at which you might have to respond in order to deter an opponent or assure an ally, the idea that you can raise armies, land the forces that can deliver the ... political effects you desire on the ground, and you can do that in short order, I think is a big mistake. It’s a myth because you can’t. It takes a long time to train a platoon sergeant, to train a battalion commander, to build a unit. It takes a considerable length of time. This isn’t, you know, your instantpancake thing where you add water, mix and throw it on the grill and you got a pancake. It doesn’t work like that. So these forces take a long time as well as training, you know, Air Force pilots and Navy ships crews and so on. It takes a long time to create military forces, especially in the modern world and given the complexity of combat operations today.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: ARMY U.S. Army paratroopers train for close urban combat. After years of specializing in that kind of battle, the Army is beginning to ramp up capabilities for larger-scale efforts.

SGT. WILLIAM A. TANNER/U.S. ARMY

MANEUVER WARFARE Army moves from tradition as it plans for the future

By Patricia Kime HE U.S. ARMY IS resetting itself for future battles, shifting its focus to potential adversaries with capabilities equal to or nearly on par with it — “near-peer” enemies who represent a significant challenge to a service that has spent the past 15 years conducting counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations against smaller forces. The Army is seeking to regain the skills needed to oppose sophisticated, high-end

military forces such as those of Russia, China, North Korea or Iran, ramping up large-scale operations capabilities that have degraded as the service focused on the type of close-combat urban fighting conducted in Iraq and Afghanistan. The change is far from an academic exercise, senior military leaders say — it’s a necessity in the face of more frequent, aggressive movements by other countries. “In today’s world we face challenges that are really across the strategic spectrum,” said Defense Secretary Ash Carter after

watching an exercise at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, Calif., in mid-November. “We stand strong every single day on the Korean peninsula against the North Korea missile, nuclear and general threat; we have to counter the malign activities of Iran in the Gulf, protecting our friends and allies; we have to stand strong against Russia, particularly in Europe and against the possibility of Russian aggression of the kind that we saw in Ukraine; and then in the Asia-Pacific, where there are tensions

that go back many decades.” For the Army, the reset goes beyond the service’s AirLand Battle doctrine of the 1980s and 1990s, which provided deterrence in the Cold War and in 1991 allowed the U.S. military to sweep Iraq rapidly out of Kuwait. Today, the service is embracing a “multidomain” strategy that includes not only air, land and maritime fronts, but cyber and even outer space, if the circumstances warrant it. “We are being increasingly challenged with very capable potential adversaries clearly acting in opposition of our national interests,” said Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley in a speech to Army leaders in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 4. “It’s our aim to deter war. But if deterrence fails, we as an Army, we as a nation must be prepared to fight.” According to Milley, the service must bolster its ability to outfight and outmaneuver nation-states, prepared to fight across long distances, “likely into an opposed environment and possibly against a technologically sophisticated and numerically superior enemy.” Adding to this, the reset must happen while the Army is engaged in continuing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and as it deals with cuts to the Army modernization budget in the past decade that has slashed it by nearly 74 percent, from $90 billion in 2008 to $24 billion in 2015. The Army drawdown also continues: As of early November, the active-duty Army stood at 475,000 — the smallest it has been since the end of the Clinton administration in 2000. To handle its current commitments, which include 187,000 soldiers deployed or stationed in 140 countries, Milley said in an October speech, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) has adapted its instruction to address large-scale operations while also reinforcing the smaller-unit skills needed to fight insurgents, said Gen. David Perkins, TRADOC’s top commander. Units are focusing on combined arms exercises that involve Army aviation, armored vehicles, artillery, unmanned aerial vehicles, small arms and U.S. Air Force support. The aim of these coordinated exercises is to move and fight in every domain to gain advantage, Perkins added. “Our advantage generally in the U.S. military and coalition partners is maneuver — our ability to move and have freedom of action. It takes a very well-trained military

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THE DEPARTMENTS: ARMY and a well-disciplined force to conduct really bad, break glass and reach for the maneuver on the battlefield. Generally Army Reserve. But now, many of our forces speaking, if you are a less well-trained, are early entry, moving alongside the active less-disciplined military, you tend to duty to establish the foundation and set the focus less on maneuver and more on high conditions for maneuver forces.” volume of fire,” Perkins said. As the Army returns to its large-scale The training for large-scale battles warfare roots, it will use the traditional involves both live-fire and strategic tools of the combat trade, including tanks, tabletop exercises, including war game artillery, air assets, missiles and land simulations conducted in Army classrooms vehicles. But the future Army will also have across the U.S. and massive exercises at more autonomous vehicles and robots, the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, unmanned capabilities that enhance the Calif., a nearly 1,000-square-mile desert fighting force while protecting it, according post with open spaces and urban warfare to Perkins. training grounds. As for those who will serve in this Perkins said that the Army is also future, the Army will continue recruiting developing a “synthetic training environindividuals who are of “good character,” ment,” or STE, that will provide virtual are physically fit and who demonstrate training anywhere for units ranging in size resilience when challenged, Perkins said. from company to corps. “The Army is very It will allow them to good at training people. work together regardless I can pretty much take “This is a joint of physical location anyone off the streets of and will incorporate all America and train them construct. ... The domains, including cyber to do anything. We are U.S., though not and space. definitely looking at how But the active-duty to assess those who perfect, does joint Army with its ongoing come into the Army … and multinational commitments and but generally speaking, shrinking size won’t we are looking for a better than anybe handling it all alone. person who can deal body else and it’s Perkins said his service with tough situations,” will work as a seamless Perkins said. very hard to do.” team with the Air Force, For those who study — Gen. David Perkins, Navy and Marine Corps national security and TRADOC’s top commander in the multidomain defense issues, the environment. Already, Army’s preparation for the Marine Corps and large-scale warfare can’t Army have stood up a multidomain battle come soon enough. The conservative think task force to coordinate training and the Air tank Heritage Foundation released its Force, with its unmatched drone and cyber well-known 2017 Index of Military Power capabilities, is heavily involved in exercises. in November, calling the Army “weak” and “This is a joint construct. ... The U.S., saying it needs to be expanded from its though not perfect, does joint and multicurrent 32 brigade combat teams to 50. national better than anybody else and it’s “While the Army will continue to pursue very hard to do. Our potential adversaries a model of tiered readiness with the aim of definitely are building coalitions of one, two improving, if only slightly, troop readiness or three. But we are looking at coalitions of levels over the previous year, the service’s 10, 20, 30 (countries). This is very much a overall capability remains static due to joint and multinational approach,” Perkins continued reductions to end strength,” said. Heritage analysts wrote. The Army Reserve and National Guard And the non-partisan research foundaalso factor heavily into the strategy, tion Center for New American Security has providing integrated support active-duty proposed the Army modernize its forward soldiers cannot manage without, according stationed ground forces to deter Russian to Maj. Gen. Michael Smith, deputy chief of aggression — yet remain at an overall the Army Reserve. active-duty end-strength of 450,000. In Afghanistan and Iraq, reservists and “A ready and present combat-credible Guardsmen worked side by side with force is an essential element of deterring active duty, “freely moving about to the aggressors,” CNAS analysts wrote in a point where you couldn’t really tell who year-end assessment of the state of U.S. was with which component,” Smith said. forces. Larger-scale wars will be no different. Milley said despite the challenges facing “The Army can’t win wars without us,” U.S. forces, they will prevail. And he told he added. “The last 15 years have been the potential enemies just that in his truly amazing for the relationship with the October speech: “We will stop you and National Guard, the Army Reserve and the we will beat you harder than you have active duty. … 20, 30 years ago we were ever been beaten before. You are going to seen as a strategic reserve — if things got lose.”

A LOOK AT 2016

SGT. BRANDON HUBBARD/U.S. ARMY

▲ Secretary of the Army Eric Fanning, the service’s top civilian leader, was sworn in in May. Fanning, 47, became the youngest man to serve as Army secretary since Clifford Alexander Jr., who was 44 when he took the job in 1977; an experienced Pentagon official, Fanning is also the first openly gay leader of any of the services. uAfter the ban on women in combat was lifted, women achieved a number of milestones in 2016: Army Capt. Kristen Griest, who had already made history as one of two women to graduate from the U.S. Army Ranger School, became the first female infantry officer in April. In May, Army National Guard Sgt. Shelby Atkins became the Guard’s first female enlisted infantry soldier. And in October, 10 female lieutenants graduated from the first gender-integrated class of the Infantry Officer Basic Leader Course. uFort Hood, which had already seen a significant number of deaths from a 2009 terrorist attack and a mass shooting in 2014, experienced more losses in June when nine soldiers were killed in a convoy training exercise. The troops drowned after their 2.5-ton truck overturned in rising floodwaters. uThe Army deployed more than 22,000 soldiers overseas in 2016, including more than 6,500 to contingency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and nearly 6,000 to Europe. uOverheated soldiers rejoiced as the

Army began allowing them to roll up their sleeves — camouflage pattern in or out — during the summer of 2016. Unlike the other services, which already permit rolling up sleeves during the summer, the Army’s regulations have no seasonal limits, meaning soldiers stationed in Hawaii may be able to display their biceps year-round. uThe Walter Reed Army Institute of Research began human clinical trials of a vaccine against the Zika virus on Nov. 7, inoculating 75 healthy adults with the developmental immunization. The first phase will test both safety and the vaccine’s ability to trigger an immune response, using a purified inactivated Zika virus vaccine. uAfter years of work, the Army in April broke ground on the site of the National Museum of the United States Army. The museum, which will sit on about 80 acres on Fort Belvoir, Va., is scheduled to be completed in 2019. Its 186,000 square feet of space will feature about 30,000 artifacts, documents and images, and more than 15,000 pieces of artwork. — Patricia Kime; Michelle Tan contributed

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: NAVY

CHIEF OF NAVAL OPERATIONS

Adm. John Richardson, chief of naval operations since September 2015, discussed policy issues concerning the Navy at a conference on Asian-Pacific security sponsored by the Center for a New American Security in June.

How do you maintain the kind of global presence that you’re asked to maintain and orchestrate a pivot to Asia that you’re also asked to maintain with a force as large or small as you have? RICHARDSON: We have got to move faster to keep up with the pace. We talked about the classic maritime traffic. That’s picked up tremendously. ... So the Navy fundamentally has to be able to move faster to be able to meet our potential as close as we can and certainly meet our responsibilities to stay ahead of our competitors. To do that, we’ve been given relatively flat, if not slightly declining, resources and that growing gap is really what consumes our leadership right now. How are we going to address that? I believe fundamentally that it’s not going to just be new technologies or new things — it’s going to be the combinations of those things and unique and creative ways that are going to allow us to ride that exponential curve as closely as we can. We’ve all focused in the last three or four years on China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea and the sense of tension there. What is it about China’s capabilities that have changed, that are changing, that present a challenge to you and your forces? I think there is this long-range precision strike capability that certainly ... is sort of an aspiration. The actual execution of that is much more difficult. So sort of my summer project is to try and put that in perspective, that exercising anti-access and area denial is really nothing new. It’s been something that’s been part of warfare since it began. The combination of ubiquitous (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) long-range precision strike weapons takes that to the next step and demands a response. So that’s one dimension that is not only in the South China Sea, but really, as it proliferates around the world, is growing more challenging for everybody, everywhere. That’s extended by the land reclamation and the militarization of those things. So that type of technology gets extended out, potentially, by virtue of those sorts of measures, really raising a lot of questions, destabilizing that region, just

great example. The invitation is still there for the Chinese to participate in RIMPAC and these are the sorts of things that, you know, bring us all together in sort of positive, constructive ways. ... I think that these sorts of exercises do that. You talked a bit about ... what you called a “readiness deficit,” the cumulative impact that the last 15 years of conflict has had on the Navy. How does that consciousness of that deficit, of those limits, play into your decisions as you figure out how to handle these tensions in Asia in particular? It’s a hard thing to articulate because it manifests itself in subtle ways. ... The demands are still considerable. But with respect to people, we’re still making our marks with respect to retention and recruiting. We are looking very heavily at our maintenance programs, both in the public and private shipyards and the aircraft depots to make sure that we are really applying the most sophisticated techniques to get that important work done.

CHIEF PETTY OFFICER ELLIOTT FABRIZIO/U.S. NAVY

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson delivers the principal address at the commissioning ceremony in October for the Navy’s newest fast attack submarine, USS Illinois. because there’s not a clear understanding of what the intentions are there. Can we harness our considerable power and presence to reassure allies, to build a regional common view of what the rules ought to be? And can we get China ultimately to join that inclusive rules base? There is still kind of a long view to this thing, and at the end of that longer timeline, we want a healthy, cooperative China that has really benefited from this architecture of a rules-based type of trade. It’s also important to mention while we touch on trade, that the security element is just one part of this, right? There is an economic element which is tremendous — at least as important as security in the eyes of many of the partners in the region. Then there’s certainly the diplomatic element. So there are a number of things that have to/ could combine together to move this thing

gradually in the direction that it would be beneficial for everybody. Certainly, you know, cooperation would be (a) treat. Competition is fine. Conflict is the thing that we really want to avoid. As tensions have ratcheted up in the (Asia-Pacific) region ... how conscious are you of what you need to do to try to reduce tensions, to keep them from getting out of hand, to make sure the signal is interpreted in the right way? That’s really what we try and do. We’re not out there to increase tensions. We mentioned freedom of navigation operations. ... What could be less confrontative than just an operation that sails, say, a ship completely consistent with existing international law (that) just advocates for the system? So those types of things are advocating for the right thing without being confrontational. The (Rim of the Pacific exercises, RIMPAC) are another

Say the president-elect calls you in and asks you from your perspective as CNO, what are the top two or three things that I should know? My sense is that the next 20 to 25 years are going to be extremely important for the maritime. The U.S. has always been a maritime nation. We get 90 percent of our trade from the sea right now; 95 percent of our information rides on undersea cables. We have increasing deposits of energy and those sorts of things that come off the sea floor. ... So your United States Navy is going to be a pivotal capability to provide the stability by which that will grow in a non-confrontational, non-conflict environment. ... (I also) would advocate for a steady commitment to keeping this Navy at sea and erasing that readiness debt, which is kind of a burden that we carry right now. And then moving forward, I would say that we have it in our bag of responsibilities to make sure that we do it in a way that is completely judicious and responsible that does not miss any opportunity to provide the American taxpayer, the American people, with the Navy they need. ... That would be, I think, my pitch to the new president.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: NAVY The USS Zumwalt, one of the U.S. Navy’s newest destroyers, passes historic Fort McHenry after the Maryland Fleet Week and Air Show Baltimore.

ALL THE SHIPS AT SEA

PETTY OFFICER 3RD CLASS KALEB R. STAPLES/U.S. NAVY

U.S. Navy fleet is being built for stealth, new missions

By Carmen Gentile

HE U.S. NAVY’S NEW generation of warships is generating lots of buzz in defense circles. With stealth and maneuverability in mind, the multi-mission vessels are designed for a land-attack role, including potential conflicts in the Pacific region. Under the Obama administration, the Pentagon said it was shifting its attention to the waters off China to counter that country’s increasingly aggressive posture at sea. Beijing is expanding its own navy and has built artificial islands with landing strips, creating a fixed position away from the mainland from which to launch attacks and counter maneuvers. Given this and the growing threat from

Russia, U.S. Navy officials decided that their fleet would do well to add speed and elusiveness to its capabilities, in order to reach potential enemy waters without being detected. “These (next-generation U.S. Navy ships) were designed to operate in ‘denied environments,’ ” said Phillip Lohaus, a security studies research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. Clandestine operations in support of U.S. special operations forces are just one potential use for the newest ships in the world’s largest navy. With the South China Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Baltic Sea and the coasts of Africa as potential hot spots, Lohaus said, the new vessels are ideal for inserting troops into places where forces don’t want to be seen landing.

Among the vessels garnering the most attention are the new Zumwalt-class destroyers. The first — the USS Zumwalt, commissioned in October — has the sleek lines of a surfaced submarine, or as some have suggested, the 19th-century ironclads such as Civil War rivals USS Monitor and Merrimack. The unusual shape gives the ship its stealth capabilities, making it difficult to track on radar — technology also seen in the angular B-2 stealth bomber. The Navy had planned to purchase 30 of the 600-foot ships, which carry 158 sailors and air crew, but now plans for only three of the $4.4 billion vessels. Critics have said that the ships, first proposed in the early 1990s, are too expensive, their level of stealth unnecessary and possibly antiquated and the design potentially

unstable. In its first few months of operation, the USS Zumwalt has encountered a few problems: The Navy says it can’t afford the $800,000 rounds needed for the ship’s gun systems; and in late November, it broke down and had to be towed through the Panama Canal. The Zumwalt’s weapons systems includes the 155mm Advanced Gun System (AGS), capable of a maximum sustained firing rate of 10 rounds per minute at ranges of up to 83 nautical miles, according to designer BAE Systems. It also has two 30mm close-in guns and 80 vertical launch system cells, capable of firing current and future missile technologies. Lohaus noted, however, that the Zumwalt doesn’t have the same firepower as its

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THE DEPARTMENTS: NAVY predecessors and “shouldn’t be considered replacements for other destroyers.” The other two ships in the Zumwalt class are the USS Michael Monsoor, christened in June and named for a Navy SEAL awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor, and the USS Lyndon B. Johnson, still under construction. The Zumwalt class is not the only one with stealth capabilities, however. The San Antonio class, with 12 ships including the USS San Antonio LPD-17, are 684-foot amphibious transport dock ships capable of surreptitiously landing as many as 800 Marines by helicopter and landing craft. Launched in 2003, the San Antonio has seen its share of action, most recently off the coast of Yemen in October when it and the destroyer USS Mason came under fire. Neither ship was damaged. Bryan Clark, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and Navy veteran who served as special assistant to the chief of naval operations, said the LPD-17 is an ideal ship for establishing an “amphibious advance base.” For instance, the San Antonio would be ideal for setting up a base on an island, somewhere like the Philippines, providing cover with surface-to-surface missiles. “Now you have a coastal cruise missile position for potentially targeting Chinese ships,” he said. However, China isn’t the only would-be adversary with which these and other ships are designed to do battle. Piracy in southeast Asia and off both coasts of Africa, mostly around the Horn of Africa near Somalia to the east and the Gulf of Guinea in the west, remains a very real concern for Navy ships tasked with patrolling commercial shipping lanes. With high-seas brigands in mind, enter the littoral combat ship (LCS). The LCS is relatively small compared with the Zumwalt and San Antonio. The USS Independence, for example, is just 419 feet long and requires a crew of fewer than 50 sailors to operate. Its trimaran hull is designed for speed and can operate in shallower coastal waters. Although it is smaller than the Navy’s other warships, this LCS has a hangar large enough to hold two 65-foot MH-60 helicopters or one helicopter and several unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones. The smaller LCS is ideal for countering pirates known to prey on ships off the coasts of Somalia and Nigeria, where large oil tankers and cargo ships pass. In addition to being faster in the water and more maneuverable than larger vessels, they are also cheaper than the others — about $476 million per ship, according to chief contractor Lockheed Martin, although cost overruns have made the LCS more expensive than originally projected. “What the Navy is trying to do over the (next) five years is come up with more affordable ways to deal with these mis-

sions,” Clark said. But the LCS program has also had its share of problems, including mechanical breakdowns and damage to several ships. Most recently, the 2-month-old USS Montgomery experienced a major crack in its hull after running into a concrete structure in the Panama Canal. Clark noted that the Navy’s LCS “could certainly keep the commercial shipping lanes unimpeded” by piracy, although “China and Russia are going to be more problematic in coming years.” Both countries are unquestionably ramping up their navies, with China’s fleet expected to match the U.S. Navy in size (although not quality of warships) by 2020, according to Mira Rapp-Hooper, a senior fellow with the Asia-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. The Chinese activity, as well as Russian investment in its own fleet and the respective military postures of both countries around the world, especially in Ukraine and Syria, the China coast and Southeast Asia, has some officials in Washington clamoring for more vessels to be added to the U.S. fleet of 272 active ships. “One of the main challenges as (the Navy) engages in peacetime competition is how much (the Pentagon) should invest in new high-tech platforms considering their high price tags,” said Rapp-Hooper. “If it comes at the expense of other vital defenses and services, then it is overkill.” The annual cost of the Navy’s shipbuilding plans is about $20 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office. A nonpartisan defense review panel in 2014 recommended that the service have betweeen 323 and 346 ships in the coming decades. The Navy’s current 30-year plan is to expand the fleet to 308 ships. President-elect Donald Trump said on the campaign trail that he wanted to see the Navy increase its fleet to 350 ships, an idea that’s been met with mixed reviews at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill. However, Trump adviser and former Sen. Jim Talent, R-Mo., sat on the 2014 panel that supported the 346-ship Navy, an indication that the service may increase in size. Defense Secretary Ash Carter has not been a fan of the “more ships is better” approach. In a memo obtained last December by Bloomberg News, he wrote that the Navy “has overemphasized resources used to incrementally increase total ship numbers at the expense of critically needed investments in areas where our adversaries are not standing still, such as strike, ship survivability, electronic warfare and other capabilities.” The coming year and administration should see continued debate over the concept of quality versus quantity and whether the Navy puts more ships out to sea.

A LOOK AT 2016

U.S. NAVY

▲ Two Russian fighter jets flew within 30 feet of the USS Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea in early April. Secretary of State John Kerry called the encounters “reckless” and said that under the U.S. military’s rules of engagement, the Russian jets could have been shot down. Russia’s defense ministry later denied any wrongdoing, saying the maneuvers were “performed strictly in accordance with the international regulations on the use of airspace.” uIn the Blue Angels’ first fatal accident since 2007, Marine Capt. Jeff Kuss died in a crash in Smyrna, Tenn., on June 2 during a practice run. The incident was later attributed to pilot error and fatigue; the famed demonstration flight team changed procedures after Kuss’ death to prevent similar crashes. uThe U.S. Navy coastal patrol ship USS Firebolt was forced to change course in September after being harassed by — and nearly colliding with — fast-attack craft from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in international waters in the central Persian Gulf. It was the third time in less than a month that Iranian ships sailed in front of a U.S. naval vessel in the region, prompting concerns that harassment of U.S. ships could spark an incident. uRussian jets continued to buzz U.S. military forces, with a Russian Su-27 Flanker flying within 10 feet of a Navy P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft over the Black Sea on Sept. 7.

LT. MATTHEW BERNIARD/NATO

▲ The Navy deep-sixed all of its 91 enlisted ratings titles on Sept. 29, marking the beginning of an overhaul of the rigid career structure that has existed since the Continental Navy in a radical shift sure to reverberate through the fleet and veterans. “We recognize that’s going to be a large cultural change,” Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Adm. Robert Burke told Navy Times. uAfter being attacked by missiles from Yemen in the Red Sea in early October, the destroyer USS Mason fired back in defense. No sailors were injured, and the ship was undamaged. In retaliation for the incident, the USS Nitze destroyed three radar sites in Yemen.

— Carmen Gentile; Mark D. Faram and Sam Fellman contributed

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: MARINE CORPS advantage of the technologies and talk with their chain of command about ways they can be used to make us better. So we’re trying to facilitate that. The other day, I got a 30-page paper from a sergeant who had ideas about everything from the way the Defense Department is organized to how we ought to run our chow halls. It was pretty good. A lot of thought and energy went into it. I contacted him back and then sent it out to our leadership and said, ‘You need to read this, not just because there are some good ideas, but because this is what our noncommissioned officers are talking about.’ We’ve got a lot of smart men and women out there, and hopefully leadership will listen to their good ideas.

CPL. SAMANTHA K. BRAUN/U.S. MARINE CORPS

Gen. Robert Neller speaks at the 35th Annual Veterans Day Ceremony at Quantico National Cemetery in Virginia in November.

MARINE CORPS COMMANDANT

Gen. Robert Neller, commandant since September 2015, addressed some of the major issues confronting the service in an interview with USA TODAY’s Gina Harkins.

The Marine Corps is working on a plan for what it should look like in the year 2025. What does that effort entail? What skills/equipment do you think Marines need for the future fight? NELLER: We’ve looked really hard at what we believe the future operating environment is going to be, and we believe that there are capabilities that we’re going to need in order to operate more effectively in the future. As we look at potential adversaries, there are certain capabilities like cyber, information operations, intelligence analysis, electronic warfare, engineering (and) air defense we need to build up. We also need to bring robotics and other artificial intelligence into the fight. We’ll

still be organized as Marine air-ground task forces, but what’s in those task forces is going to be different because technology is changing so fast. You’ve been pushing for more innovation in the Marine Corps. Why is it important for Marines at all ranks, from junior enlisted to general officers, to be thinking about ways the service can be improved? I’ve always felt personally that we’ve not really leveraged the talent, intellect and skills of our junior Marines or our enlisted Marines as a whole. For the young men and women that join our corps today, technology is something they’ve grown up with. I think we’d be kind of ignorant if we didn’t try to challenge them to take

The Marine Corps paused all flight operations this summer after a string of fatal crashes. Are you concerned that federal spending cuts have negatively affected aviation readiness? What steps is the Marine Corps taking to ensure it has enough flyable planes and helos to carry out its missions? We’re in the process of replacing every model-type series airplane we have, and when you’re in transition, there’s always stress on the force. You have to train people to fly the new aircraft, you have to do maintenance and you have to get the parts support. We’re not in a good place. We probably didn’t bring aircraft back from Iraq and Afghanistan like we should have. We left them over there too long — particularly the rotary-wing aircraft. We should’ve brought them back to reset them. When you don’t have enough planes, pilots don’t get to fly. And when they do fly, they fly them hard, so that puts a burden on the maintainers. It’s starting to improve. This last year, flight hours are up for our pilots. Money isn’t going to fix everything, but if we were able to procure new aircraft faster and get a higher-level parts support, it would help. You’ve talked about trying to stop suicide — not only when people are in uniform, but also once they’re out. How can Marines tackle this issue? It’s a really tough issue. We’re encouraging units to hold reunions and reach out to new veterans. We’ve had a number of reunions recently for Marines who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and we’re sharing tips with other units on how to do that. I think it’s difficult sometimes when you leave the force and take off the uniform. You have to find a way to replicate that cohesion and camaraderie, especially if you’ve served in combat. They miss their friends and they miss the feeling of belonging to something that was important to them. For the Marines who are still in, we can help solve any problem you have, whether it’s a relationship, a family thing, a debt —

we can get through this. ... There’s help there; talk to your chain of command. What steps has the service taken to prepare combat units for having female Marines serve in new roles now that all jobs are open to women? How many female Marines have moved into those previously closed fields? When the decision was made to open all roles to women, we had a plan in place requiring any applicant who wanted to serve in those jobs — male or female — to meet certain fitness requirements before going to boot camp. We then developed another series of standards for Marines who graduate from boot camp who are training at their schoolhouses for those jobs. In order to pick up the specialty, they have to meet the requirements set for their job. There are three female enlisted Marines who are headed to infantry units: two mortarmen and one machine gunner. They were part of the group who volunteered to attend infantry training battalion and then participated in the Ground Combat Element Integrated Task Force test. After investigating a recruit’s death at Parris Island (South Carolina) earlier this year, there were allegations of hazing by drill instructors in at least one training company. What is the service doing to reassure parents concerned about their sons and daughters shipping off to recruit training? I believe that the leadership and drill instructors at both recruit depots understand their mission to train and produce Marines. We’ve done this pretty effectively for the past 241 years. I would tell any parent that we appreciate the fact that their son or daughter has the conviction and commitment to be a United States Marine. We take that obligation seriously. You give us your sons or daughters to go on this journey with us and we’re going to take care of them. I’d welcome them to come down anytime and see the training and would hope to see them at graduation so they can see the transformation. I think they’ll be pleased with what they see. Marines will have a new commander in chief starting in January. As the service chief, how are you preparing for that change? We’ll work with the transition team. The current administration is still running the show until Jan. 20, so for us, we’re following our orders and doing our missions. When the president-elect is inaugurated on Jan. 20, if we get changes to existing orders, then we’ll follow those orders. But right now we’re working and doing our mission as United States Marines. To me, it’s interesting to watch and hear the discussions, but really it’s just another day in the office.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: MARINE CORPS A Marine holds the newly developed “Black Hornet” unmanned aerial system during a high-tech training exercise in California in August.

FIGHTING SMARTER Marines test new gear to take on tech-savvy enemies

By Gina Harkins

ECHNOLOGY ON THE BATTLEFIELD is changing faster than ever, and the U.S. Marine Corps is gearing up for a more complex fight. Hundreds of infantry Marines have been carrying out hyper-realistic war games while equipped with high-tech

robots, drones and self-driving vehicles. Their mission: to use the gear to defeat a near-peer enemy at the same time techsavvy militants cause unrest in the region. It’s a scenario similar to that in eastern Ukraine in 2014, when Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula, when a large country’s military moved in against rebels. The experiments, which have been

LANCE CPL. JULIEN RODARTE/U.S. MARINE CORPS

playing out in California’s Mojave Desert this summer and fall, marked the start of a new 10-year plan designed to help Marines keep their edge on the battlefield. “The character of warfare is changing,” said Lt. Gen. Robert Walsh, the head of Marine Corps Combat Development Command. “When you look at what’s going on around the globe, you can see — with the proliferation of technology and the threats that are out there today — that it’s becoming more like a peer threat.” While Marines were busy fighting insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan, potential adversaries were watching, Walsh said. Countries such as Russia, China and Iran have identified the U.S. military’s strengths — and its weaknesses. Some of those countries now have precision-guided weapons, improved information warfare capabilities and the ability to carry out

sophisticated cyberattacks, he added. “All of the sudden you look around and you say, ‘Wow, there are some capabilities out there that we’re not really set up to operate against very well,’ ” Walsh said. At the same time, tools such as unmanned aerial vehicles and night-vision devices have become easier to obtain, which allows the enemy to operate in areas the U.S. military once dominated. Stateand non-state actors can now quickly purchase these inexpensive items online. The Islamic State group has been flying small unmanned aircraft over northern Iraq to collect intelligence. The terror group is also using drones as weapons. In October, The New York Times reported that two Kurdish fighters were killed when the small IS drone they captured blew up as they tried to dismantle it. In order to win future fights, the Marines

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: MARINE CORPS are now turning to a method they’ve relied on in the past: innovation. “We know from our history that when we innovate well, we do well in the next war,” Walsh said.

BOTTOM-UP INNOVATION

When Marines are between major wars, they are always trying to “look over the next hill,” said Lt. Col. Dan Schmitt, futures analyst at the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory, based at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia. With technology changing so rapidly, thinking about the next combat environment is crucial, he said. That’s why the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory (MCWL) — which is tasked with “shaping tomorrow’s Marine Corps” for future operations, according to its mission statement — is not only observing the experimental war games in California but also hosting service-wide innovation challenges and disruptive-thinking conferences. LANCE CPL. JULIEN RODARTE/U.S. MARINE CORPS “Our best ideas come from the bottom Marines rush to provide support in the all-terrain MRZR, a tactical vehicle designed for up,” Schmitt said. “They come from within extreme conditions, during a training exercise in California in August. our ranks and from the people standing next to us — not necessarily from the top down.” “If the Marine Corps is buying an iPhone In order to create a playground of unit. That Marine would be responsible for 6 today, the 7 has already come out,” Walsh sorts for innovative thinking, Marines coordinating the team’s use of unmanned said. “And the 7 has more technology.” experimenting with the new gear during technologies. The enemy is not restrained by strict this year’s exercises weren’t told how or On a larger scale, Marine Corps leaders acquisition processes when it comes to when to use the technology, said Maj. Jason are weighing whether to boost the size buying new technology, Dempsey said. Dempsey, the Warfighting Lab’s operations of the service’s cyber or intelligence “They have the ability to equip officer. fields as warfare gets more technical. themselves in a day by ordering something “We said, ‘Hey, you guys get dropped Walsh and other leaders are conducting a online, but we — as a Marine Corps and as into this environment, how do you force-structure review that will determine a military — have to wait seven years to operate?’ ” he recalled. whether the Marine Corps needs to invest field equipment,” he said. “I think we’re They watched as the Marines used the in more tech-savvy fields while decreasing doing the Marines and our Marine Corps a gear in ways that made the Marines more the size of others. disservice when we have to wait that long.” lethal and more likely to survive, Dempsey In a time of global and budgetary As a fix, Walsh said he is looking into said. They flew small micro-drones that uncertainty, Schmitt said he’s encouraged rapid prototyping, which would allow the fit into the palms of by the way the Marine Marine Corps to quickly buy small batches their hands out ahead Corps is carrying out of equipment that can be used experiof the squads to collect these experiments. “Our best ideas mentally. The military often waits for a 100 intelligence. They sent “What I’m seeing is percent fix, Dempsey said, but there’s armed robots into my peers and superiors come from the often equipment available immediately that enemy tunnels and used really leaning on the bottom up. They will meet 90 percent of the service’s needs. self-driving tanks to younger generation of Dakota Wood, a retired Marine officer move heavy equipment Marines to keep bringing come from within and senior research fellow for defense they carry into combat. good ideas up,” he said. our ranks.” programs at the Heritage Foundation, a In all, the Marines “That’s encouraging.” conservative think tank in Washington, were given 33 different — Lt. Col. Dan Schmitt, GET GEAR FAST D.C., said the Marine Corps’ innovation types of equipment to Marine Corps One of the most efforts are “just what is needed at this time try, but instead of being Warfighting Lab immediate changes the of extraordinary technological upheaval.” overwhelmed by the Marine Corps can make Having the ability to experiment with gear, Walsh said, they to remain competitive is new gear before the next battle will wanted more. Today’s to get new equipment into Marines’ hands improve Marines’ ability to execute their Marines are comfortable using new faster. mission, he added. technology, he said, and they integrate it Too often, Walsh said, the Marines “It is very hard, if not impossible, to into their missions in creative ways. are fielding gear that’s already outdated know beforehand what specific advanceThat could change the future makeup because technology changes so fast. Much ment in capability a given technology of the Marine Corps as leaders observe of what the Marines need is available will deliver, hence the importance of whether infantry units need new personnel “off the shelf,” he said, but the military’s experimentation in a broad set of condito focus on integrating the new gear. acquisition process is so complicated tions,” Wood said. “The Corps seems to be At the squad level, for example, the there’s often a better version available by committed to this and I think this is a very Marines are experimenting with adding the time the gear makes it to them. good thing.” another person to the traditional 13-person

A LOOK AT 2016 uTwelve Marines were killed in January when two CH-53E Super Stallion heavy-lift helicopters collided off the coast of Hawaii during a nighttime training mission. A report released in October listed the cause as a combination of pilot error, poor training and command problems. ▼ In March, about 100 members of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit were sent into Iraq to guard a local base ahead of the effort to retake Mosul from the Islamic State group. Staff Sgt. Louis Cardin, a 27-year-old field artilleryman, was killed during a rocket attack.

CPL. ANDRE DAKIS/U.S. MARINE CORPS

uTwo women were approved for transfer into infantry jobs in May after the Marine Corps opened all positions to female troops. One of the women requested to become a machine gunner and the other a rifleman. uIn June, the Marine Corps announced that the word “man” would be stripped from 19 job titles. The move followed a push by Navy Secretary Ray Mabus to make all service titles gender-neutral. uThe Marine Corps took steps in September to improve the environment at the fabled Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island in South Carolina after an investigation into a recruit’s death there uncovered allegations of hazing and abuse. The recruit, Raheel Siddiqui, jumped a stairwell railing and fell nearly 40 feet to his death just days after he arrived at boot camp in March. uThe Marine Corps announced in October that a force of about 300 would be sent to Norway in 2017, just 1,000 miles from Russia’s border. — Gina Harkins

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THE DEPARTMENTS: AIR FORCE and situations, both conventionally and strategically. The ability to integrate strategic bomber forces in a variety of missions is key to ensuring the United States is able to honor our security commitments. Furthermore, the mission was specifically designed and closely coordinated with NATO to ensure we are integrating our bomber capabilities with their military assets to the maximum extent, strengthening and improving our interoperability as we work toward mutual goals. There has been a big push from ground troops and some members of Congress to keep the A-10 Warthog flying. What are the Air Force’s plans for future close-air support capabilities that protect U.S. troops on the ground? Support of our ground forces is one of the Air Force’s most important missions. Today in the Middle East we are providing close-air support with a multitude of aircraft to include the A-10, AC-130, F-15E, F-16, B-1, B-52 and RPAs (remotely piloted aircraft). As we look ahead, we are considering several options to ensure we continue to grow the right people and have the right aircraft for the close-air support mission. Options include keeping the A-10 longer as well as defining requirements for a new aircraft.

Gen. David Goldfein, sworn in as Air Force chief of staff in July, succeeded Gen. Mark Welsh III, who retired. CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES

AIR FORCE CHIEF OF STAFF Gen. David Goldfein, chief of staff since July 2016, addressed some of the major issues confronting the service in written responses to questions from USA TODAY.

The Air Force has been flying some training missions it hasn’t flown since the end of the Cold War, like sending B-52 bombers over the Arctic earlier this year. What message does that send to NATO allies? What message does it send to Russia? GOLDFEIN: Our bomber crews participated

in Polar Roar, which was a great opportunity to strengthen their interoperability with key allies and partners by conducting intercept training with NORAD-assigned Canadian and U.S. fighter aircraft. Exercises like Polar Roar demonstrate the ability of the U.S. bomber force to provide a credible, flexible and always-ready capability to respond to a variety of potential threats

What have been some of the Air Force’s biggest successes this year in the ongoing fight against the Islamic State? Today, the Iraqis are leading the current battle to retake Mosul from ISIL — or Daesh, as our Middle East partners refer to them. And in many ways, this is the culmination of two years of precise and devastatingly effective coalition airpower. Airmen from the U.S. and many other partner nations have helped to enable our Iraqi partners on the ground by significantly impacting ISIL’s ability to conduct operations, recruit and retain forces and sustain their dwindling resources. We are conducting the most precise air campaign in history, and we are able to attrite ISIL and its capabilities anytime, anywhere while minimizing the impact to civilians on the ground. Just as we have done from the beginning of Operation Inherent Resolve, our airmen will continue to fly in support of Iraqi forces as they press the attack against ISIL and seek to liberate their nation once and for all from this terrorist group. The Air Force is sending enlisted airmen to drone flight training, paving the way for them to become the first enlisted pilots since World War II. Why was it important to open up that field to the enlisted side? ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaisance) remains the No. 1

most-requested capability by our combat leaders. It’s important we flex to provide that capability. One way we’re doing that is opening the RQ-4 Global Hawk career field to enlisted pilots. We have selected the first 10 enlisted pilots for RQ-4 training and they will complete their flight training in 2017. We’re taking a deliberate approach so we know what works and how best to integrate our highly capable enlisted force into flying this aircraft. What is the Air Force doing to improve diversity in the ranks for women and minorities? Let me start off by saying that diversity and inclusion are warfighting imperatives ... that help the Air Force create a competitive advantage over our adversaries. There are skills, insight and cultural understanding in every community which we must capitalize on as an Air Force. At the end of September, the Air Force rolled out its second batch of 13 diversity and inclusion initiatives. The efforts were in recognition of the fact that in order to remain the world’s best air force, we must compete for talent, innovation and expertise in new and creative ways. Our goal is to retain current talent while at the same time attracting new talent from across the diverse U.S. population in order to build the Total Force of tomorrow. The military could face another round of across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration next year. How would that affect the Air Force? Relief from sequestration is critical. A return to sequestration-level funding will devastate readiness and modernization; it will force the Air Force to depart from a long-term, strategic planning framework in favor of one that triages only those things absolutely required in the short term. Operating at a sequestered level in the future will result in an Air Force that is less ready and less capable. Airmen will have a new commander in chief starting in January. As the service chief, how are you preparing for that change? Peaceful transitions of power are a hallmark of our democracy. But all transitions take effort, and we will be working diligently to ensure the new administration understands our service and our capabilities as well as be ready to respond to requests for information as the administration settles in. As a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, I’ll also be charged to support our Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Gen. Joe Dunford, as we provide our best military advice to the new president. Within the Air Force, my focus will remain on the mission of our service, our airmen, and our ability to remain the most capable air force on the planet.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: AIR FORCE The Air Force is trying to increase the number of unmanned-vehicle pilots, with new initiatives that include training for enlisted airmen.

TECH. SGT. NADINE BARCLAY/U.S. AIR FORCE

BATTLING FOR PILOTS Air Force, commercial airliners compete for skilled aviators

By Gina Harkins

HE AIR FORCE IS fighting to retain its top pilots as commercial airlines lure them away from the military with promises of lucrative salaries and more stable work schedules. Airmen are trading flight suits and combat missions for crisp blazers and new routes with companies like United, Delta and American airlines. The exodus has left Air Force leaders scrambling to make military careers more attractive to pilots — especially in the small fighter community, where officials consider the retention problem a crisis. “As of the end of (fiscal year 2016), we are more than 700 pilots short of our requirement,” said Maj. Bryan Lewis, an Air

Force spokesman at the and medical groups are Pentagon. The Air Force still advising local troops goal is 3,400 fighter who are taking on the “We need higher pilots; it is currently at Taliban. bonuses for our 79 percent of the goal Service officials with 2,700. “If the trend estimate the pilot shortaviators. ... We’re continues unmitigated, age could last a decade pulling out the we will be unable to man or longer as commercial our frontline combat airliners report record stops to improve squadrons within the profits at the same next 18 months.” time they’re backfilling quality of life.” That could leave thousands of positions — Deborah James, airmen struggling to vacated by retiring baby Air Force Secretary carry out some of their boomers. missions in the Middle Airlines will likely East. Airmen regularly recruit between 3,500 drop bombs on Islamic and 4,000 new pilots State group targets in Iraq or Libya. They from both military and civilian ranks each also fly daily missions in Afghanistan where year, said Col. Farley Abdeen, the chief of Air Force security forces, civil engineers the Air Force’s Total Force Aircrew Manage-

ment Integration division. The Air Force, by comparison, only trains about 1,200 new pilots each year, he said. “They’re hiring about three times as many as we produce,” Abdeen said. “That will have a direct impact on our retention.” The challenge has the potential to spill into other communities, too. As the commercial use of the unmanned aircraft (or drones) becomes more popular outside the military, for example, the Air Force could face another pilot shortage in its unmanned communities in years to come.

MAINTAINING THE EDGE

With pilots eyeing attractive compensation packages from commercial airlines, top Air Force leaders are taking a serious look at what they can do to retain more airmen. Air Force Secretary Deborah James

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THE DEPARTMENTS: AIR FORCE

AIRMAN 1ST CLASS BRITTAIN CROLLEY/U.S. AIR FORCE

Brig. Gen. Jeannie Leavitt, the Air Force’s first female fighter pilot, took command of the 57th Wing at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, the first woman to run a combat fighter wing.

SENIOR AIRMAN JEREMY L. MOSIER/U.S. AIR FORCE

A U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II taxis after landing at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho. The new jet was declared ready for combat in August. asked Congress to approve a move that would nearly double experienced pilots’ yearly retention bonuses to $48,000 — up from the $25,000 they’ve received since 1999. The Air Force requires pilots to stay in uniform for 10 years, and they begin to receive the bonuses once they do. “We need higher bonuses for our aviators,” James said during this fall’s annual Air Force Association conference. “We are particularly concerned about our fighter pilot retention, and we’re pulling out the stops to improve quality of life and the quality of their service.”

Steeper bonuses could go a long way in getting pilots to sign on for more time in uniform. Fewer pilots have taken the bonus in recent years, and when it comes to fighter pilots, “the trend is worsening,” Lewis said. Bonus “take rates,” as the Air Force calls them, have fallen. As of September, the overall take rate for all pilots plummeted to 47 percent, down from 55 percent in 2015. Ideally, Lewis said, the Air Force would like to retain between 65 percent and 70 percent of its pilots. Decades of combat operations are taking

a toll on the fighter pilot community in particular, Lewis said. Toward the end of the Cold War in the late 1980s and early ‘90s, the Air Force had 134 fighter squadrons. Now that number is down to 55 — 31 of which are active duty. With the war on the Islamic State heating up in recent years, the Air Force was able to halt its personnel drawdown, adding back 7,000 troops in 2016 with plans to do the same next year. But it’s still leaning on Reserve and Air National Guard squadrons to carry out global missions, said Col. Jason Cockrum, the deputy chief of staff for the Air Force operations chief of staff. Air Force leaders surveyed some of its busiest airmen, like drone and fighter pilots, to identify ways their quality of life could be improved, Cockrum said. What they found, he said, is that airmen tend to find their missions overseas to be rewarding. When they came home, though, training requirements and other duties still pulled them away from their families. Brig. Gen. Brian Kelly, the director of the service’s military force management policy, said the quality of life for airmen and their families must be a top priority. While Air Force leaders can’t always control how often or to where airmen deploy, they can try to make the quality of life better when they’re home. The Air Force has already tried to reduce training requirements and extra duties, getting rid of some of the non-essential tasks. “It’s the hours away from their families, those other sacrifices that you want to be able to minimize,” Kelly said. “All those things help us reduce the extra friction and help us with retention.” To fill its manning gaps, the Air Force is also trying to make more pilots, recently sending its first crop of enlisted airmen to flight training school to become drone pilots. The service is also trying to move more of its most in-demand pilots through the training pipeline, including pilots of unmanned aircraft (RPA pilots) and fighter pilots, said Erika Yepsen, an Air Force spokeswoman. Last year, the Air Force trained about 250 fighter pilots; this year, Yepsen said, they hope to train 350. “To support the increase in fighter pilot production, we will also stand up two new F-16 flying training squadrons in the next few months to help absorb the new pilots coming through training and ensure they transition from new pilots to skilled aviators as quickly as possible,” she said. While producing new pilots is important, Kelly said, the Air Force suffers when it can’t hold on to skilled airmen. “When they exit to go fly for the commercial airlines or something else, we’ve lost experience,” Kelly said. “With each new pilot we produce, there is a loss of 10 or 11 years’ experience compared to those who’ve just gone out the door.”

A LOOK AT 2016 u In April, the Air Force sent B-52 bombers to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility for the first time in decades to bomb Islamic State targets in Iraq and Syria. u The first woman began training to become a tactical air control party airman in July, just months after all combat jobs were opened to female troops. The unidentified woman, an enlisted airman, was injured that same month and was unable to continue training.

SENIOR AIRMAN MICHAEL HUNSAKER/U.S. AIR FORCE

▲ Gen. David Goldfein became the new chief of staff of the Air Force in July. Goldfein previously served as the Air Force’s vice chief of staff. He received his commission from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1983, and has flown combat missions in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo. uThe Air Force declared its F-35A joint strike fighter jet ready for combat in August. Goldfein said the fifth-generation fighter aircraft was “ready to deploy and strike welldefended targets anywhere on Earth.”

SENIOR AIRMAN BREEANN SACHS/U.S. AIR FORCE

▲ In October, four enlisted airmen began training to become drone pilots. The airmen — three master sergeants and one technical sergeant — will be the first enlisted personnel to fly the RQ-4 Global Hawk once they complete their training. — Gina Harkins

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: NATIONAL GUARD

GUARD DUTY

The National Guard pivots from disaster to civil unrest to special events

NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Members of the National Guard watch as people write tributes to Justin Carr and other victims of violence in Charlotte, N.C. in September. The National Guard was deployed to help patrol the city after protests broke out over the fatal police shooting of Keith Lamont Scott; Carr was killed by a civilian during the second night of protests.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE DEPARTMENTS: NATIONAL GUARD By Dan Friedell

IVIL UNREST, BAD WEATHER and bookkeeping problems kept the National Guard busy in 2016, especially as the year began to come to a close. Unofficial statistics from the Guard’s public affairs office show more than 1.28 million mandays under state active duty. Much of the Guard’s work made national news. In late September, the North Carolina National Guard was deployed in Charlotte during three days of protests that came after local police shot and killed a 43-year-old African-American man, Keith Lamont Scott. Gov. Pat McCrory declared a state of emergency and asked for help controlling the sometimes-violent protests and enforcing an overnight curfew. The turmoil in Charlotte came between two of the worst weather episodes to hit the southeastern United States in years. Catastrophic flooding in much of southern Louisiana in August, triggered by 2 feet of rainfall in three days, became the worst natural disaster to hit the U.S. since Hurricane Sandy in 2012, according to the American Red Cross. At least 13 people died, nearly 60,000 homes — most without flood insurance — were affected, and Gov. John Bel Edwards put the early damage estimate at more than $8 billion. More than 3,600 guardsmen were deployed to assist in that disaster. Then, on Oct. 8, Hurricane Matthew struck the U.S. Matthew moved through Haiti as a powerful Category 4 storm, but made U.S. landfall as a Category 1. Although it came ashore near McClellanville, S.C., its heavy rain and accompanying storm surge caused serious flooding in parts of Florida, Georgia and North Carolina. The U.S. death toll was 49, and about 550 died in the Caribbean. Damage costs could be as high as $10 billion. More than 6,000 guardsmen were mobilized to assist. But perhaps the stormiest news came in late October, as the Los Angeles Times and other news organizations reported that the Pentagon was attempting to make thousands of guardsmen and veterans repay re-enlistment bonuses of between $10,000 and $25,000. More than 10,000 affected troops were in California, which has one of the largest National Guard units in the country. The bonuses, designed to either encourage retired guardsmen to re-up or to keep active members from retiring, were paid upfront in the mid-2000s when the Pentagon was trying to beef up the ranks for troop surges in Iraq and Afghanistan. Only certain categories of guardsmen were supposed to get the bonuses, and an audit that began after a 2010 federal investigation revealed that many more received bonuses than should have. The California Guard’s incentive manager pleaded guilty

A LOOK AT 2016 Here is a snapshot of events the National Guard worked on in 2016:

BILL PUGLIANO/GETTY IMAGES

▲ Humanitarian aid, including the delivery of drinkable water to Flint, Mich., in January. JOHN MOORE/GETTY IMAGES

Threats of terror attacks linked to the November presidential elections led the National Guard to deploy troops throughout New York City, including Grand Central Station. Both presidential candidates spent election night in Manhattan.

to filing $15.2 million taxpayers,” Defense in false claims and Secretary Ash Carter “Why do service was sentenced to 30 said in a statement. months in federal Carter said the members stay in? It’s prison. government is those moments where After the audit obligated to use was completed in taxpayer dollars you’re in the middle of September, however, responsibly, so an operation and you retired soldiers — some soldiers may many of whom still need to repay look to your left and had not known their bonuses. But right and there’s people the bonuses were at the same time, improperly given he said the process doing amazing things — received surprise should relieve the bills asking for the burden on fault-free that you didn’t even money back with Guard members. know they were capable interest. Some The Department of veterans had their Defense wants all of. It’s inspiring.” wages garnished. cases resolved by — Col. Ed Bush, public affairs officer Spurred by pleas July 1, 2017. for the Louisiana National Guard from politicians “It has been including House Maa busier than jority Leader Kevin average year,” McCarthy and Minority Leader Nancy said Col. Ed Bush, a public affairs officer Pelosi, both from California, the Pentagon for the Louisiana National Guard. “I’ve announced Oct. 26 that it was suspending never seen so much flooding in so many its efforts to recoup the bonuses until a completely different parts of the state. more fair system could be implemented. Certainly Katrina (in 2005) was the heavy “This process has dragged on too long, hitter of them all, but the pace has been for too many service members. Too many like nothing I’ve ever seen. I think we’d all cases have languished without action. be happy if it were a pretty calm year next That’s unfair to service members and to year.”

SEAN RAYFORD/GETTY IMAGES

▲ Relief after natural disasters including Hurricane Matthew, flooding in Louisiana and West Virginia, and wildfires in the Southeast in November. uExplosive ordinance disposal in Louisiana and Kosovo, among other places. uSpecial events including the Boston Marathon in April, the national political conventions in July and football championship games. uRetrieval of a runaway military blimp in Maryland in October. — Dan Friedell

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

A CAPRICIOUS ENEMY

Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia is one of the military installations already seeing the effects of climate change. The low-lying region has experienced a 14.5-inch increase in sea level since 1930.

Climate change: the next great national security threat By Brian Barth

HEN RAY TOLL, A Navy meteorologist and oceanographer, moved to Virginia Beach to take a position at Naval Station Norfolk, he was in charge of weather forecasting for ships and submarines at sea in the Atlantic and Mediterranean. Any time a hurricane or other severe weather posed a threat to the seamen and vessels under his watch, he was required to remain on duty at Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command for the duration of the storm. The only problem — sometimes those same storms prevented him from getting to work. The base is located in Virginia in the low-

lying Hampton Roads area, which includes the cities of Virginia Beach, Norfolk and Newport News, and it has the highest rate of sea-level rise on the East Coast — approximately 14.5 inches since 1930. “My neighborhood floods routinely from garden-variety thunderstorms, so getting to work can be a challenge,” said Toll, now retired from the service. So, Toll would head to his station while the storms were still calm, just in case. “I was the one that had to sleep there overnight to make sure that I was accessible to the admirals that I was advising. I would tell my wife, ‘I’m sorry. I can’t take a chance during this upcoming hurricane or nor’easter and not be able to get to work when people are counting on me.’” Flooding is a constant challenge for the

SEAMAN DANIEL C. COXWEST/U.S. NAVY

more than 80,000 active-duty personnel and 30,000 civilians who work at Naval Station Norfolk, most of whom commute to work from off base. And these days the flooding problem isn’t just during storms. “Sunny-day” flooding — when high tides correspond with a wind blowing onshore that pushes the water to new levels — is increasingly common in the area. According to the World Resources Institute, sunnyday flooding, also referred to as nuisance flooding or tidal flooding, occurred an average of 6.6 days per year in the city of Norfolk between 2010 and 2014. At Naval Station Norfolk, such flooding may occur 280 times per year by 2050, according to a 2016 study by the Union of CO N T I N U E D

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

PETTY OFFICER 3RD CLASS ANTONIO P. TURRETTO RAMOS/U.S. NAVY

Hurricane Sandy triggered flooding at Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia in 2012. Located a few miles from the Atlantic Ocean, the base could be affected by rising sea levels.

Concerned Scientists, which was based on ated with climate change, such as drought, a climate model that assumes 1.4 feet of wildfires and extended heat waves, also additional sea-level rise by mid-century. stand to have an effect on military readiWhile flooded roads already affect basic ness at installations across the planet. operations at the base on Many experts have a regular basis, damage put forth the theory from major storms is also that climate change will “By the time we adding up. Capt. Dean cause unprecedented VanderLey, commanding geopolitical instability as finally decide officer of Naval Facilities shifting weather patterns (climate change) is Engineering Command create conflicts over Mid-Atlantic, said that natural resources and really real, we will $6 million in damage cause populations to be have put an awful occurred in October as displaced. a result of Hurricane President Obama, lot of runway Matthew. Between 12 along with numerous behind us.” and 18 inches of water scholars, has suggested infiltrated a number of that severe drought was — Retired Navy Rear Adm. buildings, and utility lines a significant factor in the David Titley and other infrastructure Syrian civil war, as farmrunning beneath the ers migrated to cities base’s massive piers were seeking work, leading to damaged by high water. social and economic strife that extremist He said the Navy is well aware of ideologues were able to exploit. the problem, but the magnitude of the In 2015, the Pentagon, which had situation has prevented any firm solutions previously described global warming as from taking shape thus far. “We don’t a “threat multiplier,” released a detailed know what the solution is at this point,” report that concluded, “Global climate he added. “We have some time to figure it change will aggravate problems such as out, but at the same time we can’t have our poverty, social tensions, environmental eyes closed. We need to be ready.” degradation, ineffectual leadership and weak political institutions that threaten WEATHER WARNINGS stability in a number of countries.” The security challenges of climate Retired Rear Adm. David Titley, who change are by no means limited to Naval served as the director of the Navy’s Task Station Norfolk and the surrounding Force on Climate Change in 2009, worries area. The Union of Concerned Scientists that the abstract nature of the problem estimates that in a 3-foot sea-level rise will prevent substantive action before it is scenario — which they believe may too late. “Sea-level rise is actually a lagging be reached in the next 50 years —128 indicator because you have to have had so Department of Defense installations in the much heat to actually melt the ice that by United States would be threatened with the time we finally decide this is really real, frequent flooding, almost half of which are we will have put an awful lot of runway naval installations. Other extreme weather events associCO N T I N U E D

PETTY OFFICER 3RD CLASS JOSEPH CRUMMER/U.S. COAST GUARD

Preparing for Hurricane Hermine, Fireman Sofia Garcia places sand bags around an entrance to Coast Guard Station Yankeetown in Florida in August.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

54 behind us,” he said. “Then the options to prevent really catastrophic change become much narrower.” Titley’s point of view is informed by his 32-year career in the Navy, much of which was spent studying military strategy in the Arctic region and the national security implications of a thawing polar ice cap. He believes that the Arctic Ocean may thaw enough in the next 20 years to permit regular shipping across the Transpolar Sea Route — straight over the North Pole, linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans — likely triggering an explosion of natural resource exploration and complicating relationships with other countries that have an avowed stake in the region, such as Russia. The U.S. has only two icebreaker ships in service, one of which has exceeded its service life by a decade; Russia reportedly has more than 40 ships, with more in production. “It takes 10 years from the time the Navy starts thinking about a new ship, to the time you actually put it in the water, and then we expect it to last about 30 years,” said Titley. “Whether we realize it or not, the Pentagon today is building the Navy that is going to be around in the middle of the century. We don’t know what the geopolitical environment and Arctic is going to be in the future, so we need to hedge. “When the president turns to the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2050 and says, ‘What are you guys doing to reduce tension up there?’ that’s a bad time to be shrugging your shoulders.”

PLANNING FOR SEA RISE

Long before the Arctic Ocean melts, climate change will present many practical challenges that will affect daily operations at U.S. military installations across the planet. In the Hampton Roads area, the Navy is working with a wide range of military and civilian stakeholders to create a workable long-term plan for adapting to sea-level rise. The Hampton Roads Sea Level Rise Preparedness and Resilience Intergovernmental Planning Pilot Project, a two-year effort that concluded in the summer of 2016, mapped out a framework in which local, state and federal agencies could collaborate on finding solutions. The project was led by Toll, the Navy meteorologist and oceanographer, who is now the director of the Center for Sea Level Rise at Old Dominion University in Norfolk. The goal, said Toll, was to create a template that can be used in other regions of the country threatened by rising seas. While infrastructure planning is often segmented in discrete political jurisdictions, he added, the pilot project took a “whole-of-government” approach to climate change mitigation in order to make the best use of limited financial resources to build levees and sea walls, elevate homes and businesses off the ground or even relocate entire neighborhoods or military facilities.

ENSIGN BRIAN P. HAGERTY/U.S. COAST GUARD

Petty Officer 2nd Class James A. Bowell lowers researchers onto the ice off the Chukchi Sea, north of the Arctic Circle, in July. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Healy was deployed to the Arctic to study the effects of decreased ice coverage. “Water flows independent of government boundaries, so for a truly integrated, regional approach to coastal resiliency, all echelons of government must contribute for the most effective and efficient use of the American tax dollar,” said Toll. Now that the pilot project has concluded, Toll said all the agencies and political jurisdictions involved must start sharing data on what is actually happening along the coast. He said that until recently, sea-level data in the Hampton Roads area came from a single buoy in the Chesapeake Bay, but there are now numerous entities monitoring coastal conditions. Toll is hoping to herd them together as “an integrated regional and coastal resilience monitoring network,” where data is available in real time on a single website. “We have to get much better at the granularity of where these tidal flooding events are going to occur,” Toll said. “Every federal agency that is going to put a tide gauge in the water has to be integrated with all the non-federal groups doing the same, so all the data can be shared … (and) the models can then be improved and we can get more accurate predictions going forward for real-time threats like hurricanes and for long-term archiving so we can see trends like sea-level rise. All of these programs have to start aligning.” There is some indication that such an alignment is starting to happen. Obama issued a memorandum in September that

PETTY OFFICER 2ND CLASS CHRISTOPHER M. YAW/U.S. COAST GUARD

A young polar bear, seen from the deck of the Coast Guard Cutter Healy, rests on a piece of ice in September in the Arctic Ocean. directed the heads of all executive departments and agencies “to ensure that climate change-related impacts are fully considered in the development of national security doctrine, policies and plans.” This past summer, the DOD announced funding for a “joint land use study” to be carried out by Naval Station Norfolk and several other bases in the region in

conjunction with the cities of Norfolk and Virginia Beach; and the U.S. Department of Transportation has established the Hampton Roads Climate Impact Quantification Initiative to bolster the data collection and planning efforts in the region. “We’re off to a good start,” said Toll. “We just have to figure out a way to continue this.”

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

A sailor with 553 Cyber Protection Team opens a network monitoring program during a training exercise at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., in August.

CPL. GARRETT WHITE/U.S. MARINE CORPS

VIRTUAL COMBAT Cyber Command conducted its first public operations in 2016, heralding a new 21st century theater

By Adam Hadhazy

ROM THE FIRST RECORDED naval engagements more than 3,000 years ago to the biplanes overflying World War I battlefields, warfare has continually crossed into new and groundbreaking territories. Warfare’s newest domain — cyberspace — lacks the same grand sense of tangible place as the land, the sea or the air; rather, it is a global network of computers over which staggering amounts of information travel.

Yet cyberspace is no less important for national security. As enabling technologies like the internet and mobile devices have become ingrained in global societies as well as their militaries, the Department of Defense is keenly focusing on the cyber realm. “The cyber threat is one of the greatest challenges we face,” said Marcel Lettre, undersecretary of defense for intelligence, in a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee in September. This past year saw a major development in the emerging theater of cyberwarfare:

For the first time, the U.S. “deployed” cyber troops against an adversary. In late February, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter announced that the U.S. had begun attacking the communications networks of the Islamic State. Rumors of hacking and counterhacking by governments the world over have swirled in recent years, but never before had such capabilities been laid bare. “A military organization has gone public saying it is engaging in offensive cyber operations — that is a historic first,” said Peter Singer, a strategist and senior fellow

at the think tank New America and an expert on 21st-century security issues. The efforts have bolstered conventional military operations, underway since October, conducted by the Iraqi army with U.S. assistance to remove ISIS from the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. The cyber salvos were fired by members of U.S. Cyber Command, created in 2009 and located at Fort Meade, Md., in the National Security Agency (NSA) headquarters. The command has brought together CO N T I N U E D

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58 components from all four military branches to defend the DOD’s information networks, conduct cyber operations against adversaries and protect critical online infrastructure so that the U.S. and its allies remain free to act in cyberspace as they please. The tip of Cyber Command’s spear is the Cyber Mission Force, a dedicated unit formed in 2012 that will consist of 6,200 military personnel in 133 teams when fully staffed. The force should reach its full operational capacity in October 2018, after additional training and experience, and will operate in both offensive and defensive modes in cyberspace.

OUT IN THE OPEN

For years, the U.S. has demurred on its alleged cyber capabilities and cyberweapons, such as the Stuxnet computer virus that destroyed centrifuges in an Iranian uranium enrichment plant in 2009. Much of Cyber Command’s capabilities still remain classified. No longer, though, will all cyber assets remain mere scuttlebutt. “Cyber is a domain like air, sea and land,” Cyber Command’s deputy commander, Lt. Gen. James K. McLaughlin told the House Armed Services Committee in June. “As we continue to conduct cyber operations in support of broader operations, like we are doing against ISIL, we expect to talk about it with increasing openness.” That first declaration of cyberwarfare in 2016 was further meant to warn other potential U.S. cyber opponents such as Russia, China and Iran, as well as non-state actors, that the U.S stands ready. “In part, that idea of publicly acknowledging the fact that we were using cyber as a capability to counter ISIL was not just

to signal ISIL, but was also to make sure others are aware that the Department of Defense is investing in these capabilities (and) we are prepared to employ them, within a legal, lawful framework,” said Adm. Michael Rogers, commander of Cyber Command and NSA director, in testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee in September.

▶ Russian agents are also the chief suspects in breaches of unclassified email systems the past two years at the State Department, the White House, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Democratic National Committee. The vulnerability of these computer systems speaks to the broader U.S. government’s reliance on the relatively unprotected commons of cyberspace. WHAT LIES AHEAD “The internet is now crucial to anything Numerous incidents in recent years offer and everything that the military wants to a taste of cyber aggressions that could rise do,” Singer said. “Right now, 98 percent to the level of national of the United States’ security, for both military military communications and civilians: go over the civilian“A military ▶ In March 2016, the owned and operated Department of Justice internet.” organization has issued an indictment A particularly against hackers at Iranian egregious example, short gone public saying government-backed of cyberwarfare but it is engaging in companies who had certainly of foreign attacked the networks cyber-meddling, suroffensive cyber of at least 46 financial rounded the recent operations — that institutions and corpresidential elections. porations in the U.S. to U.S. intelligence is a historic first.” disrupt business. agencies linked hacks of — Peter Singer, ▶ The same hackers Democratic Party orgastrategist and senior fellow, also broke into the nizations’ and campaign New America computerized controls officials’ email accounts of a small hydroelectric back to Russia. The dam in New York’s stolen emails, released Westchester County in 2013, perhaps as by Wikileaks, roiled an already volatile a dry run before targeting a larger facility. election season; some think that the leaks (The dam was not operating at the time, may have helped Donald Trump win the however, so no damage was done.) presidency. Lawmakers and other officials ▶ Utilities generally make attractive had already expressed concern ahead of targets. In December 2015, a hack, the election that Russia might tamper with allegedly from inside Russia, on a regional the vote data-collection process. electricity distribution company in Ukraine In a September hearing, senators caused power losses to 225,000 customers. suggested that voting systems should be

ALEX WONG/GETTY IMAGES

A federal grand jury in March indicted seven Iranians who worked for companies linked to their government on charges of hacking numerous financial institutions and corporations in the U.S., disrupting the businesses.

deemed critical infrastructure, alongside financial systems, nuclear power plants and power grids, thus perhaps coming under the aegis of Cyber Command. “If there were scenarios where we could envision attacks having significant consequences in our electoral context, we really do need to consider that,” Lettre said.

CYBERWARFARE’S TOMORROW

To keep up with the rapidly evolving, potentially escalating cyberspace domain, the DOD is also fostering a next generation of cyber soldiers. For instance, the NSA assists in running summer cybersecurity-themed camps at the K-12 level for students and teachers to cultivate interest and talent, further aided by relationships with more than 200 U.S. universities. In November, the DOD announced a new Vulnerability Disclosure Policy, “a ‘see something, say something’ policy for the digital domain,” Carter said in a statement. The policy creates a path for security researchers to test and find DOD vulnerabilities and report them. But Rogers acknowledged that the DOD recognizes that humans at their keyboards will not suffice. The agency is therefore highly focused on utilizing automated, “smart” computer systems with artificial intelligence capabilities. Such systems could identify threats and deploy countermeasures at a speed and scale human operators could never remotely achieve. “We’re very much interested in artificial intelligence, machine learning,” Rogers said in his Senate testimony. “Because if we’re just going to make this a largely human capital approach to doing business, that is a losing strategy.

CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES

Navy Adm. Michael Rogers, commander of U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency, publicly acknowledged this year that the U.S. is taking the offensive in cyberattacks in an attempt to undermine the Islamic State and other cyber opponents.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

2 OSHKOSH DEFENSE; MAJ. BRANDON MOTTE/PEO SOLDIER

HIGH-TECH

SHOPPING A sneak peek at the newest military tech and gear for 2017

By Erik Schechter ROM UPGRADED FIFTH-GENERATION FIGHTERS and jungle boots that won’t get waterlogged to advances in laser defense systems, here’s what to expect in military gadgets and equipment next year:

1. JOINT LIGHT TACTICAL VEHICLE

The U.S. Army and Marine Corps plan to conduct live-fire testing on low-rate production models of the new Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) at the beginning of 2017, said Col. Shane Fullmer, JLTV project manager at the Army’s PEO Combat Support and Combat Service Support. Built by Oshkosh Defense, the JLTV is designed to fill a capability gap between the Humvee and the mine-resistant, armored protective vehicles known as MRAPs. It comes in four variants: a general-purpose truck; a close-combat weapons carrier; a heavy gun carrier; and a two-door utility pickup version. If all goes well with the live-fire and other technical testing, the JLTV will advance to a formal military operational test and evaluation at the end of 2017, with a decision on full-rate production to be made the following year. Should the Army and Marines OK full-rate production, the two services plan to obtain 54,599 vehicles by the mid-2030s, according to Fullmer.

2. INTEGRATED HEAD PROTECTION SYSTEM

Move over, Enhanced Combat Helmet! The U.S. Army will manufacture and test its new modular, multiconfiguration Integrated Head Protection System (IHPS) throughout 2017, said Maj. Brandon Motte, the assistant product manager for head protection at the Army’s PEO Soldier, which oversees equipment development. Part of the Army’s total-body Soldier Protection System, the IHPS includes a lightweight helmet, ballistic applique and a mandible-visor arrangement that covers the face. The science fiction-y configuration of helmet plus face protection “is primarily for turret gunners,” Motte explained. The Army currently uses the Advanced Combat Helmet in garrison and the tough but lighter weight Enhanced Combat Helmet (ECH) in the field. The ECH, however, was only intended as a stopgap until the IHPS reaches Army inventory in 2018. CO N T I N U E D

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3. NEW JUNGLE BOOTS

The U.S. Army plans to begin issuing a new jungle combat boot to soldiers in the Pacific theater in March. The boots currently in use are designed for arid heat typical of the Middle East, including Iraq and Afghanistan; in a tropical environment, they absorb water and can turn soggy and heavy. Initially, the Army looked to the commercial market for its new jungle boots but failed to find ones that were strong, comfortable and quick-drying. So the Army’s Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center in Massachusetts has been experimenting with five different designs, including jungle boots that have thick soles, thinner “Panama soles,” multiple drain holes and rough-out leather for quick drying.

4. ELECTRONIC WARFARE PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT TOOL

Learning from its experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. Army has over the past several years boosted its electronic warfare capabilities. Yet despite these advances, management of the electromagnetic spectrum — the coordination of electronic warfare capabilities and cyber operations, de-conflicting of various radio and radar signals, etc. — has remained basic. That’s why the service will begin deploying the Electronic Warfare Planning and Management Tool (EWPMT) in 2017, noted Lt. Col. Marc Dorrer, product manager for Electronic Warfare Integration at the Army’s PEO Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors. The EWPMT is a software application that will be delivered in steps, or “drops,” every 15 months. The first drop will be geared toward electronic warfare officers and electromagnetic spectrum managers, providing them with a common operating picture — a computer display that tells a user where all relevant players and infrastructure are — to plan, coordinate, manage and streamline electronic warfare

3 U.S. ARMY PEO IEW&S

5 SPC. AUDREQUEZ EVANS/U.S. ARMY; U.S. ARMY

activities. “Every battle during the next war will start with the control and dominance of the spectrum,” Dorrer said.

5. ARMY GROUND ROBOTS

Over the last 15 years, the U.S. Army has purchased some 7,000 different types of ground robots. Now the service wants to phase out those disparate models and replace them with two modular robots: the medium-size Man Transportable Robotic System and the smaller Common Robot System-Individual. Both systems will begin production activities in 2017, said Bryan McVeigh, force protection project manager at the Army’s PEO Combat Support and Combat Service Support. “What we are doing here is we are finally getting away from buying one-trick ponies and going into true programs of record,” he said. By shifting to a common chassis, power requirements and messaging format, the Army hopes to save money on platformspecific parts, payloads and training. Those funds may be used to support research and development on new payloads for the explosive ordinance disposal, engineering and chemical defense communities, McVeigh said.

6. F-35 JOINT STRIKE FIGHTER

Major developments are in store for the U.S. Air Force variant of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter in 2017, said Lt. Col. Steve Speares, deputy division chief at Air Combat Command’s F-35 system management office. First, the service plans to take delivery

CHRIS SAUERS/U.S. ARMY

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STAFF SGT. MADELYN BROWN

of 26 new F-35A aircraft from contractor Lockheed Martin. The Air Force currently has an inventory of 100 F-35As and plans to acquire a total of 1,763 jets over the program’s lifetime. Second, the Air Force will finish testing the aircraft’s Block 3F software — programs that give the jets full warfighting capability. Operators then will develop and test tactics for the upgraded aircraft. Compared with the F-35As that reached initial operating capability in August, jets with the more advanced software are expected to network better, use their 25mm guns against ground targets and deploy electronic warfare countermeasures. “We’ve taken the handcuffs off,” Speares said. The Air Force plans to complete its first operational F-35 squadron at Hill Air Force Base in Utah in 2017 and begin a second one in September.

7. SELF-PROTECT HIGH ENERGY LASER DEMONSTRATOR

It will be years, not decades, before U.S. fighter jets are armed with counter-missile laser cannons. That said, the Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator (SHiELD) program managed by the Air Force Research Laboratory in Ohio is scheduled to see a number of significant developmental milestones as a prelude to an airborne test in 2018-2019, program manager Richard Bagnell said. As conceived, SHiELD will comprise a laser beam control system and integration system that the Air Force hopes will serve to shoot down incoming anti-aircraft weapons. Eventually, however, the technology could be used to destroy ground and airborne targets. The use of an electric laser is a major turning point in directed energy research, noted Janet Fender, director of science and technology at Air Combat Command. Previously, the Air Force worked with chemical oxygen-iodine lasers, but they proved to be bulky and came with caustic and depletable stores. The SHiELD technology has been developed to be lightweight enough to fit on a fighter jet. According to Fender, the increased efficiencies with electric lasers have given the research a new lease on life.

AIR FORCE RESEARCH LABORATORY; NASA/NRL/UC BERKELEY/ICON; U.S. MARINE CORPS

8. SPACE WEATHER INSTRUMENT

U.S. troops rely on over-the-horizon radar and radio to spot the bad guys and coordinate the movement of friendly forces. One way of doing so is by bouncing signals off the Earth’s ionosphere, where the sun’s rays create a layer of electrically charged particles. “It’s like a metal in a way, it reflects like a mirror,” said Charlie Brown, a physicist at the Naval Research Laboratory’s Space Science Division in Washington, D.C. But the ionosphere is not a perfectly static mirror. Current research shows it’s influenced by weather in the atmosphere below it, so the Naval Research Laboratory has developed a special payload to monitor changes at this level and plans to launch it

aboard the ICON satellite in June 2017. The payload, called the Michelson Interferometer for Global High-resolution Thermospheric Imaging (MIGHTI), will measure the effects global wind and temperature have on the ionosphere by looking at the natural glow created by oxygen atoms, providing a better understanding of the “ripples that mess up the mirror,” Brown said.

9. AN/TPS-80 GROUND/AIR TASK ORIENTED RADAR

Set to be fielded at the end of 2017, the AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) is an easy-to-transport, expeditionary radar developed by the U.S. Marine Corps to do the work of five different radar platforms — three that are still in

service and two that have been retired. “We are going to have a common logistics train among different parts of the Marine Corps,” said Roy Barnhill, deputy program manager for G/ATOR. Not only that, the multi-role radar has better range and a more discrete detection capability than the systems it is replacing. G/ATOR’s sophisticated signal processing “enables the Marines to pick out legitimate targets from the clutter much better,” Barnhill noted. The Marine Corps intends to field G/ ATOR in two blocks. Block 1 will provide early warning on incoming cruise missiles, drones and manned aircraft, while Block 2 will detect and track enemy rocket, mortar and artillery fire, locate its point of origin and direct counterfire missions.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

U.S. sailors and Marines attached to Joint Task Force Matthew deliver food to a Haitian village in October after Hurricane Matthew.

HELPING HANDS Humanitarian missions assist those in need, build goodwill

PETTY OFFICER 2ND CLASS HUNTER S. HARWELL/U.S. NAVY

By Adam Stone

HEN AIR FORCE COL. Leslie Maher arrived in Haiti this fall, she found a tattered nation. “They were devastated out there. The shelters were destroyed. There was no clean body of water visible anywhere. The roads, you couldn’t even discern where they were. In just one flight, we saw at least 12 bridges that were washed out,” she said. In the days after Hurricane Matthew ravaged the island in October, Maher’s 621st Contingency Response Wing arrived on the scene to deliver

hygiene kits, food, water, tarps and other urgently needed supplies as part of Joint Task Force Matthew (JTF-Matthew), which drew personnel, ships, aircraft and other resources from across the armed services. Humanitarian aid is an integral, if largely unheralded, component of the U.S. military mission. Around the world and on home soil, service members are called upon frequently to aid populations in distress. A sampling of missions from the last year helps tell that story: uIn September 2015, the Navy’s Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort returned to its home port at Naval Station

Norfolk after a six-month humanitarian mission bringing medical and construction assistance to 11 nations in Central America, South America and the Caribbean. uIn December 2015, in the 64th annual Operation Christmas Drop — the Department of Defense’s longest humanitarian airlift mission — the U.S. Air Force, Japanese Air Self-Defense Force and the Royal Australian Air Force together dropped food, supplies and toys in support of some 20,000 people to islands throughout the Northern Marianas Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and Palau. uIn April, the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION conducted relief flights under the direction the state do not,” said Lt. Gen. Jeffrey S. of the Japan Self-Defense Force after the Buchanan, commander of U.S. Army North Japanese island of Kyushu was hit by a (Fifth Army), based at Fort Sam Houston in series of earthquakes. Texas. “Let’s say we need a power generauThat same month, members of Army tion ship off the coast. There are none of Joint Task Force-Bravo partnered with those in the National Guard, but the Navy Panamanian Public Forces to contain has those things. If we need a significant multiple life-threatening wildfires. Aircraft airlift, or combat doctors trained to do from the 1st Battalion, 228th Aviation Regisurgery in the field, those things don’t exist ment at Soto Cano Air Base in Honduras in any big way outside the military.” helped contain the blaze, defending some The military activates these assets 45,000 residents of Darién Province. with care, especially when delivering aid Not all of the missions are disasteroverseas. JTF-Matthew brought more than related: In August, Army Reserve soldiers 600,000 pounds of humanitarian relief supfrom the 7th Mission Support Command plies, but it also provided the amphibious joined with Army Reserve soldiers from assault ships USS Iwo Jima and USS Mesa the 412th Theater Engineer Command Verde, a helicopter sea combat squadron and helped build fencing and signage for a and members of Navy Expeditionary Lithuanian orphanage. Combat Command. Do that incautiously, These operations, generally carried out and you risk looking like an invading force. under crisis circumstances, can become “We are never the sole agency. We are anything but routine. In May 2015, for working for the State Department, and instance, six Marines were killed in a we are always invited in,” said Col. Ryan helicopter crash while serving as part of a S. Rideout, who leads the 24th Marine task force that distributed some 200,000 Expeditionary Unit, which was part of JTFpounds of relief supplies to Nepal’s Matthew. “There are times when we might residents and evacuated be able to provide more victims after a magnitude capability than what is 7.8 earthquake there. asked for. But we have to For those who have keep in mind that if we “If we need ... trouble connecting the play that role, people will doctors trained to dots between guided start to depend on us. We missiles and bottled want to stay behind the do surgery in the water, military planners scenes, so the governmake the case for ment we are assisting field, those things humanitarian aid as a stays legitimate.” don’t exist in any vital component in the To ensure the military’s modern defense mission. relief work is understood big way outside “A key tenet of and accepted, the the military.” counterinsurgency is to services train routinely win the hearts and minds with other nations. — Lt. Gen. Jeffrey S. of the people. You have For instance, the Buchanan, commander of to separate the good guys Navy’s Pacific Partnership U.S. Army North from the bad guys and engages U.S. sailors when you see the good aboard the USNS Mercy guys, you assist them in in annual relief drills every way that you can,” said Army Col. alongside military personnel from numerJohn Thompson, who helped organize ous countries; this year, the mission was earthquake relief in Pakistan while serving hosted by Indonesia, East Timor, Malaysia, in the Middle East a decade ago. “A lot of the Philippines and Vietnam. It’s an people don’t see past the headlines, but important exercise in partnership-building, in fact, we built a lot of schools in Iraq and said Lt. Cmdr. Arlo Abrahamson, spokesAfghanistan.” person for the Navy’s Task Force 73, based Today, Thompson organizes rescue in Singapore. efforts closer to home. As a defense “The relationships we foster through coordinating officer, he synchronizes the Pacific Partnership allow military and Army’s domestic emergency relief effort in civilian partners to come together when the southeastern U.S. with the efforts of the it really matters, to tackle real-world Federal Emergency Management Agency’s challenges,” he said. Region IV leadership in the same area. Those challenges may not always be That work put him on the scene for a what people expect to encounter when hectic few days in the run-up to Hurricane they sign on to wear the uniform. But for Matthew. As the storm approached, he military people who have been sent to organized liaison officers in an eight-state deliver aid, the work can have a lasting region to coordinate with FEMA repreimpact. sentatives. He instituted plans to engage “This is one of the most fulfilling things in the kinds of high-intensity, specialized we do,” Maher said. “People come into the activities states sometimes cannot fulfill military because they want to serve, and on their own, including swift water rescues when a humanitarian moment comes up, and intensive air searches. that is a real opportunity to fulfill that goal. “We have unique capabilities on the It becomes a very satisfying mission for federal side that the National Guard and everybody involved.”

PETTY OFFICER 2ND CLASS BRITTNEY CANNADY/U.S. NAVY

A civilian volunteer examines a patient in Honduras during Continuing Promise 2015, an annual U.S. Southern Command mission to provide non-emergency humanitarian aid.

U.S. NAVY MILITARY SEALIFT COMMAND

The USNS Mercy returns to port after a disaster response preparedness mission.

CAPT. JENNIFER GILES/U.S. MARINE CORPS

Earthquake relief supplies are ready for Japan in a Marine Corps warehouse.

PFC. EMILY HOUDERSHIELDT/U.S. ARMY

Army Spc. Raven Henderson holds a child during a project to rebuild a fence at a Lithuanian orphanage in August.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE TROOPS

HONOR THE FALLEN We pay tribute to the U.S. service members who lost their lives while supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, Operation Freedomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sentinel, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Odyssey Lightning in 2016.

Army Pvt. Christopher J. Castaneda, of Fripp Island, S.C., died Nov. 19, 2015, on Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, in a noncombat-related incident.

Air Force Maj. Adrianna M. Vorderbruggen, 36, of Plymouth, Minn., died Dec. 21, 2015, of wounds suffered when her patrol was attacked by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.

Air Force Staff Sgt. Michael A. Cinco, 28, of Mercedes, Texas, died Dec. 21, 2015, of wounds suffered when his patrol was attacked by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.

Air Force Staff Sgt. Peter W. Taub, 30, of Philadelphia, died Dec. 21, 2015, of wounds suffered when his patrol was attacked by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.

Air Force Staff Sgt. Chester J. McBride, 30, of Statesboro, Ga., died Dec. 21, 2015, of wounds suffered when his patrol was attacked by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Joseph G. Lemm, 45, of Bronx, N.Y., died Dec. 21, 2015, of wounds suffered when his patrol was attacked by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.

Air Force Staff Sgt. Louis M. Bonacasa, 31, of Coram, N.Y., died Dec. 21, 2015, of wounds suffered when his patrol was attacked by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.

Army Staff Sgt. Matthew Q. McClintock, of Albuquerque, N.M., died Jan. 5 in Marjah district, Afghanistan, from wounds suffered when the enemy attacked his unit with small arms fire.

Air Force Maj. John D. Gerrie, 42, of Nickerson, Kansas, died Jan. 16 in Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, from a non-combatrelated incident.

Blane D. Bussell, 60, of Virginia, a U.S. Navy civilian employee assigned to Naval Support Activity Bahrain, died Jan. 26 in Manama, Bahrain, of noncombat-related causes.

Army Sgt. Joseph F. Stifter, 30, of Glendale, Calif., died Jan. 28 at Al Asad Airbase, Al Anbar province, Iraq, from wounds suffered when his armored Humvee was involved in a roll-over accident.

Marine Staff Sgt. Louis F. Cardin, of Temecula, Calif., died March 19 in northern Iraq from wounds suffered when the enemy attacked his unit with rocket fire.

Air Force Airman 1st Class Nathaniel H. McDavitt, 22, of Glen Burnie, Md., died April 15 in southwest Asia as a result of injuries sustained after extreme winds caused structural damage to the building in which he was working.

Marcus D. Prince, 22, of Norfolk, Va., a U.S. Navy civilian employee assigned to USNS Pecos, died April 26 in Juffir, Bahrain, of noncombat-related causes.

Michael M. Baptiste, 60, of Brooklyn, N.Y., a U.S. Navy civilian employee assigned to Naval Support Activity Bahrain, died April 28 in Juffir, Bahrain, of noncombat-related causes.

Navy Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Charles H. Keating IV, 31, of San Diego, died May 3 in Tall Usquf, Iraq, of combat-related causes.

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THE TROOPS

Army 1st Lt. David A. Bauders, of Seattle, died May 6 on Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, in a noncombat-related incident.

Navy Seaman Connor Alan McQuagge, 19, of Utah, died May 26 of a non-combat-related injury while underway in the Red Sea.

Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Andrew J. Clement, 38, of Peabody, Mass., died June 21 of a noncombat-related injury while deployed to Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti.

Air Force 1st Lt. Anais A. Tobar, 25, of Miami, died July 18 in southwest Asia from a non-combatrelated injury.

Air Force Lt. Col. Flando E. Jackson, 45, of Lansing, Mich., died Aug. 4 in southwest Asia from a non-combat-related injury.

Army Staff Sgt. Christopher A. Wilbur, 36, of Granite City, Ill., died Aug. 12 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, from a noncombat-related injury.

Army Staff Sgt. Matthew V. Thompson, 28, of Irvine, Calif., died Aug. 23 in Helmand province, Afghanistan, of injuries caused by an improvised explosive device that detonated near his patrol.

Army 1st Lt. Jeffrey D. Cooper, 25, of Mill Creek, Wash., died Sept. 10 in Kuwait from a noncombat-related injury.

Army Warrant Officer Travis R. Tamayo, 32, of Brownsville, Texas, died Sept. 16 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in a non-combat-related incident.

Navy Airman Devon M. Faulkner, 24, of North Carolina, died Sept. 20 of a non-combat-related injury while underway on the USS Wasp in the central Mediterranean Sea.

Army Staff Sgt. Adam S. Thomas, 31, of Takoma Park, Md., died Oct. 4 in Nangarhar province, Afghanistan, from injuries caused by an improvised explosive device that exploded during dismounted operations.

Army Sgt. Douglas J. Riney, 26, of Fairview, Ill., died Oct. 19 in Kabul, Afghanistan, of wounds received from encountering hostile enemy forces.

Michael G. Sauro, 40, of McAlester, Okla., an Army civilian assigned to McAlester Army Ammunition Plant, died Oct. 19 in Kabul, Afghanistan, of wounds received from encountering hostile enemy forces.

Navy Chief Petty Officer Jason C. Finan, 34, of Anaheim, Calif., died Oct. 20 in northern Iraq of wounds sustained in an improvised explosive device blast.

Army Capt. Andrew D. Byers, 30, of Rolesville, N.C, died Nov. 3 in Kunduz, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained while engaging enemy forces.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Ryan A. Gloyer, 34, of Greenville, Pa., died Nov. 3 in Kunduz, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained while engaging enemy forces.

Army Staff Sgt. Matthew C.Lewellen, 27, of Lawrence, Kansas, died Nov. 4 in Jafr, Jordan, of wounds sustained when his convoy came under fire entering a Jordanian military base.

Army Staff Sgt. Kevin J. McEnroe, 30, of Tucson, Ariz., died Nov. 4 in Jafr, Jordan, of wounds sustained when his convoy came under fire entering a Jordanian military base.

Army Staff Sgt. James F. Moriarty, 27, of Kerrville, Texas, died Nov. 4 in Jafr, Jordan, of wounds sustained when his convoy came under fire entering a Jordanian military base.

Army Spc. Ronald L. Murray Jr., of Bowie, Md., died Nov. 10 in Kuwait in a non-combat related incident.

Army Sgt. John W. Perry, 30, of Stockton, Calif., died Nov. 12 of injuries sustained from an improvised explosive device in Bagram, Afghanistan.

Army Pfc. Tyler R. Iubelt, 20, of Tamaroa, Ill., died Nov. 12 of injuries sustained from an improvised explosive device in Bagram, Afghanistan.

Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott C. Dayton, 42, of Woodbridge, Va., died Nov. 24 in northern Syria of wounds sustained in an improvised explosive device blast.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Allan E. Brown, 46, of Takoma Park, Md., died Dec. 6 at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Md., of injuries sustained from an improvised explosive device in Bagram, Afghanistan, on Nov. 12.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE TROOPS Lt. Col. Shawna Kimbrell is the Air Force’s first African-American female fighter pilot.

COMBAT FOR ALL Expanded roles promise equal opportunities, obligations for women

AIRMAN 1ST CLASS ASHLEY WOOD/U.S. AIR FORCE

By Matt Alderton

ATEY VAN DAM WAS a freshman at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., when she made up her mind to serve in combat. The Sept. 11 attacks happened during her freshman year. “Of course, I wanted to get in the fight, but the only way for me to do that offensively was in the air,” recalled van Dam, who wanted to become an infantry officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. Unfortunately, direct ground combat roles in infantry, armor, reconnaissance and special operations had been closed to women since they were first admitted to join the services in 1948. Because the

Marine Corps has allowed women to serve in combat aviation roles since 1994, van Dam applied instead for flight school and became one of the first 10 women to ever pilot an AH-1 Cobra attack helicopter. Then, in January 2013, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced his intention to end the Pentagon’s direct ground combat exclusion rule for female service members following a three-year period during which the services could study the issue and request an exception. “At that point, I was an instructor at the Quantico Marine Corps Base, which is where we train all our (junior officers). I looked around and saw this amazing talent pool of young Americans who’d volun-

teered to serve their country in a time of war, and I realized what a shame it was that we weren’t taking advantage of that full talent pool by allowing women to serve in combat arms positions,” said van Dam, who co-founded No Exceptions, a coalition of post-9/11 military veterans advocating combat inclusion as a means to military readiness. “Although I’m a huge believer in equal opportunities for women, our goal wasn’t women’s rights, per se; it was the belief that our country is best served when we have the strongest talent in the most challenging jobs.” Now a graduate student at Johns CO N T I N U E D

WOMEN WELCOME Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced that the Department of Defense would open all military occupations and positions to women “without exception” as long as they qualify and meet specific standards effective Jan. 3, 2016.

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UT-P1612091926U-685496

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THE TROOPS Hopkins University, van Dam is among those who celebrated last year when Defense Secretary Ash Carter made good on Panetta’s promise: The Department of Defense, he announced, would open all military occupations and positions to women “without exception” as long as they qualify and meet specific standards effective Jan. 3, 2016. “The secretary has made it clear that he wants to be able to draw from … 100 percent of American society to get the best we can possibly get into our military,” said Peter Levine, the acting undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness. “In his view, if we’re excluding women from the universe we’re drawing from, we’re limiting ourselves.” Indeed, the number of applicants for all enlisted positions across the services has been falling since 2009, according to a 2016 report prepared for Levine’s office by CNA, a non-profit research and analysis organization. “The environment for recruiters is likely to become significantly less fertile in the near future,” CNA concluded in its report, noting a 42 percent decline in military applicants — from 374,368 in 2009 to 216,182 in 2014, the most recent year for which there are data. Recruitment was one impetus for the policy change. Another was the decade of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, during which women demonstrated their competence in combat despite their formal exclusion from it. “Women had been allowed to serve in support roles … in rear echelons that were supposedly more protected. But for periods in both Iraq and Afghanistan, the most dangerous place to be was in the rear because you were transiting roads that were studded with IEDs,” explained defense analyst Nora Bensahel, a distinguished scholar in residence at American University’s School of International Service. “Women were already being wounded and killed; it became harder and harder to justify excluding them from combat because combat was everywhere.” In fact, one of the first U.S. casualties of the Iraq War was Spc. Lori Piestewa, whose official job was to keep track of her unit’s supplies. She died when her convoy was attacked in the first days of the war in 2003. The Air Force has allowed women to serve in most combat aviation roles since 1993. The Navy, meanwhile, has allowed women to serve on combat ships since 1994, and on submarines since 2011. When Panetta and Carter made their announcements, therefore, all eyes were on the Army and Marines, the latter of which requested — and was denied — a partial exception to combat integration based on a controversial study suggesting males physically outperformed females in marine

CPL. AARON S. PATTERSON/U.S. MARINE CORPS

U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Amanda Sallee executes pullups during physical training. Women are eligible for any combat position in the military as long as they meet specific standards.

SCOTT OLSON/GETTY IMAGES

RUDY GUTIERREZ/EL PASO (TEXAS) TIMES

Staff Sgt. Jennifer Garza disciplines her Marine recruits during boot camp at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C.

Then-Pfc. Lori Piestewa checks equipment before deploying for Iraq in 2003. She was one of the first to die in that war.

combat training. Nearly a year into combat integration, the Marines continue to drag their heels relative to the Army, observers report. “As the service that is most steeped in its own traditions, the Marine Corps has always been resistant to change from the outside,” explained Bensahel, who said the Army has been more proactive about promoting opportunities for women, and faster to execute on them. Still, both services say they’re fully committed to the Pentagon policy. “The Marine Corps is currently executing the new force integration policy with no foreseeable obstacles,” said Marine Corps spokesman Maj. Garron Garn, who added that there are currently more than 550 female Marines, 180 of who have been as-

signed — in both combat and non-combat roles to previously all-male units. In the Army, two active component captains have already been trained and transferred into the infantry, according to Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Jennifer Johnson, who said 10 non-commissioned Army National Guard officers have likewise been trained and transferred into infantry and armory occupations, with another five currently completing training. Other milestones include the 24 women who have completed infantry and armor commissioned-officer training and the more than 160 enlisted female recruits who will begin training for infantry and armory occupations in February. Both the Army and Marines are taking a “leader-follower” approach to integration,

Levine said: “First, they’re laterally moving women into leadership positions … so new recruits have role models to look up to … who are the same gender they are. Once we have people in leadership positions we’ll be more prepared to move (women) into the enlisted ranks.” Although women’s introduction to combat roles has been swift, their integration will be slow, van Dam predicted. “Integration is going to be a long process,” she said, adding that most young women will take a wait-and-see approach to ground combat roles, pursuing them only after pioneers have made the seat warm for them. “There’s always someone who has to break the headwinds. For the person who comes behind them, the headwinds will be a little weaker, and for the person behind them a little weaker still. And so on and so forth until finally you get to a point where it’s really not a big deal.” The headwinds aren’t just social. “The physical requirements for these positions are considerable,” Bensahel said. “You need women who are not only interested in these positions, but who have done the physical training that’s required to serve in them.” How to provide women with the motivation to seek combat roles and the muscle to fill them is a complicated question that could take years to answer. Opening all jobs to anyone who can do them, however, is a strategic first step on which the Pentagon believes future military victories rest, officials said. “Not only is it the right thing to do, but it’s in the best interest of our military and our readiness to be accepting of those who are qualified to serve,” explained Levine, who said the Pentagon is working hard to establish objective standards for combat service that can be applied universally to men and women across all military branches. “We want to have the best force possible, and we think we can achieve that by being open to all types of people as long as they meet our standards.” As for the next frontier: Now that they have equal opportunities, many military women also want equal obligations — including mandatory selective service registration for women when they turn 18. In late November, Congress dropped the requirement from the National Defense Authorization Act, but President Obama still supports it. Unresolved issues like sexual assault and access to reproductive health care mean women will continue to face challenges in the armed forces. Their newfound opportunities in combat, however, mean they’ll be more prepared than ever to confront the challenges they face at war. “There will always be ways to make things better (for women),” van Dam concluded. “But as a country, we’re going to be stronger for this.”

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE TROOPS Even activities as simple as recreational sports — here, a Joint Warrior Competition at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti — can result in troop injuries that affect readiness.

FIT TO FIGHT

STAFF SGT. PENNY SNOOZY/U.S. AIR NATIONAL GUARD

Health issues can keep service members from being ready to work By Mary Helen Berg

HE PHRASE “WOUNDED WARRIOR” conjures images of soldiers injured in combat. But warriors face physical health issues off the battlefield too, and these problems make it difficult to deploy when duty calls. For example, recent headlines have

raised concerns about how the bulging waistlines of some U.S. soldiers may affect readiness. But weight gain is just one threat to soldiers’ health. “The No. 1 health concern for service members, by far, is injuries — both non-duty-related and duty-related,” said Dr. David Smith, deputy assistant secretary of defense for health readiness policy and oversight.

Musculoskeletal injuries, obesity, fatigue and other non-combat health issues impede military readiness and prevented 17 percent of active-duty soldiers from timely deployment, according to the Army’s most recent Health of the Force report, published in November 2015. Some health threats, like the Zika virus, CO N T I N U E D

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THE TROOPS may be prevented through vigilance and hopefully, a future vaccine, military medical experts said. In other cases, military culture needs to evolve to alleviate the problems that affect troop health.

ZIKA

U.S. soldiers face a relatively new health threat in the Zika virus. The Aedes aegypti mosquito species that carries the disease can be found near 190 military installations, and the Department of Defense confirmed 156 cases of Zika within the military health system as of Nov. 30, including four pregnant service members and one pregnant dependent, with new cases reported each week. The mosquito-borne (and sometimes sexually transmitted) illness can cause mild short-term symptoms such as a fever, rash, headache and joint pain. But if passed from mother to child during pregnancy, the virus can produce devastating birth defects such as microcephaly, resulting in the malformation of the baby’s head and brain. In February, the DOD offered to relocate pregnant family members of active-duty and civilian employees in Zika-affected areas. So far, one service member has requested relocation, said Air Force Maj. Ben Sakrisson, a DOD spokesman. The military has long fought mosquitoborne diseases; malaria is an old foe, as is the dengue virus, which is transmitted by the same species that spreads Zika, said Navy Capt. Tim Burgess, director of the infectious diseases clinical research program at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS). In November, researchers at the Walter

Reed Army Institute of Research — named for the man who discovered that mosquitoes can transmit yellow fever — began human clinical trials for a Zika virus vaccine, and other vaccine-related studies are underway. In the meantime, Burgess recommends that soldiers use plenty of mosquito repellent and cover bare skin. “It’s something we’re watching,” Burgess said of Zika. “We hope that it doesn’t exert a large amount of morbidity or morality burden among our troops or beneficiaries.”

OBESITY

The overweight and obesity epidemic that plagues nearly 70 percent of the country’s adults has caught up with the armed forces. Thirteen percent of Army soldiers were classified as obese during Army physical fitness tests, according to the 2015 Health of the Force report. Across the military, the number of overweight service members rose steadily from 2011 to 2015, with 7.8 percent tipping the scales too far last year, according to a 2016 Defense Health Agency report. The increase in overweight and obesity rates could reflect changes in record keeping, and may not accurately represent the numbers of out-of-shape soldiers, the report cautioned. At the same time, the report warned, excess weight and body fat “have a detrimental effect on operational effectiveness and increase the risk of both acute an chronic health effects,” including musculoskeletal injury and cardiovascular disease. Military officials disagree on what these statistics mean for troop readiness. For one thing, weight data can be deceiving, said

JAMES GATHANY

The Aedes aegypti mosquito, which carries and spreads the Zika virus, can be found near 190 U.S. military installations.

STAFF SGT. MICHAEL ELLIS/U.S. AIR FORCE

Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, is among the installations that have embedded athletic trainers into their physical training programs to prevent injuries.

Dr. Amy Millikan-Bell, said Lt. Col. Robert Oh, medical adviser for the who served as lead “Our service Army Public Health physician for the Army’s members have Center. Performance Triad, a The data doesn’t recent health initiative to a well-deserved “take into account the improve readiness. reputation for fact that because our “If we have a healthier soldiers tend to be more fighting force with aptoughness ... (but) muscular and strong and propriate lean body the best way to fit than the average U.S. mass, we know that the population, their weights strength and conditioning stay tough is to are higher because we can give our soldiers stay healthy.” muscle mass is denser can reduce musculoskelthan any other kind of etal risk,” he said. — Dr. David Smith, tissue,” Millikan-Bell Sprains, strains and Department of Defense noted. “So, the more fractures sideline about musculature you have, 55 percent of Army your weight is going soldiers each year, to be higher, even if you are more fit and according to the Health of the Force report. healthier.” Most injuries occur as a result of overexerThe DOD is currently reviewing its 2002 tion; half were connected to physical policy on physical fitness and body fat, training or sports. which could redefine weight and body Some of those injuries could be preventmass requirements for soldiers, Sakrisson ed if soldiers were better informed about said. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter also safe and appropriate exercise, and weren’t recently announced that fitness standards expected to push through pain, said Col. for recruits will be updated. Anthony Beutler, director of the USUHS Regardless of potential policy changes, Injury Prevention Research Laboratory. overweight soldiers remain a concern. A 2016 Army Institute of Public Health “Obesity is a threat to readiness since survey done at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort it raises the potential for injury and the Sam Houston in Texas revealed that development of a variety of illnesses that soldiers “believe that such injuries are can reduce a service member’s physical inherent to (their) job, and are even a way fitness,” the DOD’s Smith said. to ‘screen out the weak.’” Military leaders don’t prioritize injury INJURIES prevention, and in fact, encourage overIn fact, obesity is actually a “significant training, survey respondents said. risk factor” for musculoskeletal injury, “Changing the mentality of injury is the military’s biggest health problem, a must within the military,” stated one

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE TROOPS

MASTER SGT. MARK BURRELL/U.S. ARMY

Army Reserve Spc. Tatyanna Holley wakes up at National Training Center Fort Irwin, Calif., during a training exercise in September. Service members often sleep in unusual and uncomfortable places, making it difficult to sleep well. Military doctors are beginning to place more emphasis on getting enough rest to do the job well. anonymous respondent. “Teaching people that it’s OK to seek help because no one is Superman would do wonders for maintaining the fighting force as a whole.” The warrior ethos that serves soldiers so well in combat can sometimes prove to be a liability off the battlefield, Beutler added. “Part of our training has to be a recognition that there’s a time for warrior ethos then there’s a recovery phase where it’s not just OK, but it’s encouraged, to find out, ‘What’s going on with this shoulder that bothered me when I was deployed?’ ” he said.

SLEEP

In the U.S., lack of sleep is a health

hazard that leads to car accidents, dangerous errors in judgment and health problems such as obesity, depression and anxiety, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But in the military, “a service member’s ability to perform with little or no sleep has traditionally been viewed as a ‘badge of honor,’ ” a 2015 Rand Corp. study found. One-third of soldiers get five hours sleep or less per night, and 10 percent have sleep disorders, making it a top health concern, according to the Health of the Force report. Service members are a “perpetually sleep-deprived group,” said Lt. Col. Ingrid Lim, the leading sleep expert for the Office of the Army Surgeon General. And military

leadership will need to make adjustments to resolve the problem. “It’s almost as if we have to overcome the fear of the leader that (sleep) is going to ruin their soldier, and their training schedule and their battle rhythm,” Lim said. The amount of sleep a service member gets affects readiness, performance, decision making, reaction time and long-term physical and mental health, she added, and it should be viewed as a valuable resource that can be managed. The Army’s Performance Triad emphasizes sleep, nutrition and exercise as equally important, and encourages military leaders to use strategies such as

“sleep banking” to promote longer hours of rest when possible. Units that have experimented with sleep banking have seen positive results that include better gunnery scores and fewer incidents of domestic violence, Lim said. Maintaining the health of 1.3 million active-duty service members is a monumental task, but ultimately, troop readiness is easier to attain when military and medical missions align, health experts agreed. “Our service members have a welldeserved reputation for toughness in the defense of our nation,” Smith said. “But from a medical perspective, the best way to stay tough is to stay healthy.”

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Irresistibly adventurous. Meet our new app, now with virtual reality. Be transported to unusual destinations, must-see landmarks, and the hidden gems for your inner world-traveler.

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THE TROOPS

The creative work of art therapy, such as this mask made by a service member, can help those in the military with mental health issues.

ERASING THE STIGMA Pentagon makes inroads in decreasing negative perceptions of mental health treatment

By Patricia Kime

RMY MAJ. GEN. JOHN Rossi was just two days from getting his third star and taking command of Army Space and Missile Defense Command when he took his own life July 31 in his quarters at

Redstone Arsenal in Alabama. As a senior officer, Rossi, 55, had encouraged soldiers to seek help if they struggled with stress or were experiencing mental health issues. The general even carried a card in his wallet with photos of 10 soldiers who died under his command at Fort Sill, Okla., including four by suicide.

Yet, despite his extensive understanding of suicide and mental health care, Rossi killed himself. And two months after his death, the Army took the unprecedented step of disclosing the cause, calling it a â&#x20AC;&#x153;painful reminder of the tragedy of suicide. CO N T I N U E D

MATTHEW BREITBART/NATIONAL MUSEUM OF HEALTH AND MEDICINE

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE TROOPS

PETTY OFFICER 1ST CLASS JAMES STENBERG/NAVAL HOSPITAL PENSACOLA

Cmdr. Joe, a military stress and welfare dog, visits Marines at the Naval Air Technical Training Center aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida in May. He’s trained to detect signs of stress or depression in people, so that clinicians can engage them.

JEFF CRAWLEY

In March, Maj. Gen. John Rossi displayed a card including the names of four soldiers who died from suicide. Rossi took his own life in July.

“Suicide knows no common race or age, gender or position,” the statement read. “We will continue to work with and teach our leaders to create an environment where it’s OK to ask for help no matter your position or rank.” The suicide rate in the U.S. military in 2014 (the most recent figures available) was twice that in 2002 — nearly 20 per 100,000 compared with 10 per 100,000, and it has remained both high and steady since 2009. Diagnostic rates for mental health conditions also have skyrocketed in the armed forces during roughly the same period, by 75 percent from 2005 to 2015. To protect service members and their families and preserve military readiness, the Pentagon has launched numerous mental health programs and suicide prevention

initiatives, including resilience training (such as teaching skills to cope with stress or trauma) and campaigns that encourage troops to seek behavioral health treatment. But changing the military mindset from one of self-reliance and self-determination to acceptance of care has been anything but easy. And military officials and civilian health experts remain divided as to whether the efforts are actually working. A Government Accountability Office report released in April found that 37 percent of all active-duty personnel surveyed in 2011 — more than 600,000 troops — believed that seeking mental health care through the military would likely damage their careers. A GAO analyst told USA TODAY in May that the 2012 results of the survey, which have not been

made public, showed the percentage barely budged. “They haven’t been able to get their arms around it,” said Brenda Farrell, the GAO analyst who led the review. “(The efforts) have not eliminated stigma, and one can even argue that they haven’t made a dent,” said retired Army Col. Carl Castro, a former director of Army behavioral health research who now works for the University of Southern California. But Navy mental health director Cmdr. Kenneth Richter, a psychiatrist who has deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan with Marine infantry units, said he has seen a “palpable change” in attitude among Marines and sailors toward mental health care. “Over a decade of observation, there has

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE TROOPS been an evolution of thought, a destigals in primary care clinics to help ensure Tricare officials said the adjustments put country: “In some military communities, matization. I’m not going to say the battle that patients who come in for physical the program’s mental health benefit on they are seeking care and talking about has been permanently won but there is a ailments can access mental health profespar with federal Mental Health Parity Act it more openly. In others, we aren’t there widely accepted notion now of ‘Hey, you sionals if they need them. requirements, but they also underscored yet.” need to get some help,’ ” he said. That approach has been highly effective, the Pentagon’s commitment to caring for Castro said neither the military services And Navy Capt. Mike Colston, head of said Army Lt. Col. Chris Ivany, chief of Tricare beneficiaries, according to John nor the Pentagon have conducted rigorous the Defense Centers behavioral health in the Davison with the Defense Health Agency. research as to whether their suicide of Excellence for PsyArmy surgeon general’s “(Several Tricare reviews) made prevention programs and anti-stigma chological Health and office. “If you just look at specific recommendations on updating campaigns work. And he said without “We are driving a Traumatic Brain Injury, the number of soldiers the program to reflect best practices an understanding of what constitutes an change around the said the current force is and the number of (apand standards of care that the rest of the effective program, suicide numbers could the “most treated cohort pointments), it tells us country is using,” Davison said. “The White remain high and troops will continue to culture of emoin the history,” with there is some progress House and the department were very combalk at getting mental health care. tional well-being mental health visits up … we have tried to mitted to providing mental health parity “But I think it’s important to note, 300 percent since 2001. move mental health even though Tricare is not subject to the however, that at least the conversations are and how it is con“Stigma is a real providers closer to the laws that apply to insurance companies.” happening at all levels, from generals and nected to physical issue. We recognize point of need to reduce Barbara Van Dahlen, founder of Give An admirals to the most junior soldiers, sailors, that despite our best barriers to care, includHour (giveanhour.org), a nonprofit that airmen. Before, we didn’t even have that,” well-being.” efforts, there are going ing distance to care and coordinates free mental health counseling Castro said. — Barbara Van Dahlen, to be folks who view not knowing where to go for military personnel and their families, Van Dahlen agreed. She said the reaction founder of Give An Hour psychological help as a for care,” Ivany said. said the Tricare modifications, along with to Rossi’s suicide is an indication of a sea weakness or they worry In early October, the other efforts to promote mental wellness, change in the military mindset. “A decade about being ridiculed, Defense Department such as DOD’s Real Warriors campaign ago, he would have been seen as a loser discriminated against or have issues of overhauled its Tricare military health (realwarriors.net) and the AfterDeployment who gave up and quit,” she said. “But that’s trust … but mental health visits have program to expand mental health coverage, online outreach program (afterdeployment. not the case anymore. We are driving a quadrupled in (the Defense Department) eliminating annual inpatient mental health dcoe.mil), provide more opportunities for change around the culture of emotional and people are staying in care,” Colston service limits and broadening outpatient troops. well-being and how it is connected to said. substance abuse treatment, among other But she added that acceptance of physical well-being. This genie is not going According to the Defense Health Agency, changes. treatment still remains uneven across the back in the bottle.” troops, family members and retirees made 3.27 million mental health appointments at military hospitals and clinics and 17.7 million at civilian mental health providers in 2015. To reach their target audience, the services each have adopted different approaches to provide troops access to counselors and care. The Army, for example, has put mental health clinics near operational units and barracks so soldiers can easily get to their appointments. The Air Force recently completed a six-month program that placed counselors at installations with “high-risk” units — those with a high percentage of suicides or significant operational stressors. “The surge was very favorable. An overwhelming majority found the military family life counselors to be highly effective, well integrated into the units and doing what they are designed to do, which is to decrease barriers to help-seeking behavior,” said Maj. Joel Foster, chief of Air Force deployment mental health. And the Navy and Marine Corps continue to rely on a 6-year-old program, Operational Stress Control and Readiness (OSCAR), which embeds psychologists and psychiatrists with units. “When you see a doctor or social worker eating in the same chow hall, working out in the same fitness centers, doing the same hikes that Marines do, there’s a decreased barrier to that person. Initial contact could be a curbside thing, just talking a little bit, which could lead to an office visit,” Richter AIRMAN JACKSON HADDON/U.S. AIR FORCE explained. U.S. Air Force Capt. Karen Harmon and Airman 1st Class Jacob Cote are among the specialists at Altus Air Force Base, Okla., who help fellow All three military medical commands service members work through mental health issues. also have placed mental health profession-

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE TROOPS

Marine Sgt. Adrian Johnson talks to representatives of Airstreams Renewables about job opportunities at a career fair in March. Active-duty troops are encouraged to think about life after military service.

LEAVING THE MILITARY LIFE

CPL. JULIO MCGRAW/U.S. MARINE CORPS

How the transition from active duty to civilian status has evolved

By Karen Asp

HEN TODD A. WEILER moved out of active duty in 1991 after serving as an Army attack helicopter pilot, the path to civilian life wasn’t exactly smooth. Instead, it was a “transactional, rubber-stamped process” where military members moved from one table to another, often in a gym setting,

he said. “The transition process was as close to being broken as it could be,” said Weiler, now the assistant secretary of defense (manpower and reserve affairs), who left with neither a résumé nor much information about where to go next. But that was then, and this is now, and fortunately, the current transitional process resembles nothing like what Weiler experienced. Today, military members

are more prepared than ever to re-enter civilian life.

THE TRANSITION STARTS FROM DAY ONE

The stresses that military members face when returning to civilian life are undoubtedly similiar to the ones Weiler encountered. However, there are two CO N T I N U E D

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THE TROOPS

FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES; PROVIDED BY UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-STEVENS POINT; NORIKO KUDO/U.S. ARMY

Clockwise from left: Army Sgt. Kierre Tate checks out potential careers at the first Los Angeles International Airport job fair in September; Air Force veteran Nicole Harsh developed an interest in computers during her service, and is now seeking a college degree in computer programing; Army Sgt. 1st Class David Thorpe practices a one-on-one mock job interview. major differences: The In fact, service transition has become members who are leavmore seamless; and it ing the military actually “I get to go home prepares individuals have to complete three tonight. I don’t much better. “Today, it’s requirements at least less transactional and 180 days before leaving mind what our more about a life-cycle the military. They must: process,” Weiler said. ▶ Participate in tough days look That was the goal of counseling to develop an like.” Congress when it created individual transition plan — Bernard Bergan, the Transition Assistance and identify their career Afghanistan combat Program in 1991. Since planning needs. veteran and Microsoft then, there’s been a push ▶ Sit in on briefings employee to help service members that explain benefits figure out how to use from the Department of their military experience Veterans Affairs and how in civilian applications. to obtain them. “We’ve put a lot of emphasis on helping ▶ Attend an employment workshop that service members translate their military gives them tools and resources to seek skills and education into specific career employment opportunities. tracks,” Weiler said. “It’s the intangible qualities of military To that end, the process begins the experience that are the most valuable,” minute a service member enters the wrote Jim Michaels, a USA TODAY military. Many already know how long reporter and Marine veteran, in a column they’re going to serve, and they begin to in late 2015. “If you survive the Army’s make plans for the next chapter in life Ranger School or a year of combat in as soon as they enter — even if they’re Anbar province, Iraq, you have probably considering a long military career. As a demonstrated a level of intestinal fortitude result, no matter when their service ends, that goes beyond what is required to roll they’re equipped with the resources, skills out the latest iPhone app.” and educational experiences needed to Air Force veteran Nicole Harsh developed step back into civilian life, Weiler said. an aptitude for computers in her six years

of service, and decided to pursue a degree in computer programming when she became a civilian. She said the lessons she learned in the military are helping her at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. “Team-building skills definitely come in handy in college — especially when you’re working in groups for classes,” Harsh said. “The military also helped me become dedicated. So when you’re working on something for a class, you keep working on it. You don’t put it off; you don’t half do it. You actually work on it.” The military also has a safeguard in place to ensure that individuals have met specific Career Readiness Standards. During capstone events when they meet with their commanders, service members who haven’t met these benchmarks or don’t have a solid transition plan are handed over to a partner agency that steps in to help.

THE FUTURE OF THE TRANSITION PROCESS

Weiler would like the transition process to become even less of an event than it is today. “In the future, this should just be a normal part of business so that it’s incorporated in the way we live our lives in the military.” The military is also focusing its efforts on spouses and families. “From getting

spouses more involved to helping kids understand their new life, we hope to play a bigger role,” Weiler said. Some businesses are still adapting to veterans and their unique job experience; the tech industry, in particular, according to Michaels’ column. “We’re still crawling, but we’re making huge progress,” said Chris Cortez, a retired Marine major general who is Microsoft’s vice president of military affairs. Doug Stone, a retired Marine major general who has run several technology companies, told USA TODAY that he has learned to avoid talking about his military background, which includes running detainee operations in Iraq, with business colleagues. “They really pigeonhole you very quickly, and you can’t convince them otherwise,” he said. “There is a complete misunderstanding, particularly in tech, about what people do in the military.” But Bernard Bergan, a 32-year-old soldier who served a year in Afghanistan’s Helmand province and now works at Microsoft, has found that exposure to combat has helped keep stress in perspective. “I get to go home tonight,” Bergan once reminded a colleague who had commented on how stressful one workday was. “I don’t mind what our tough days look like.”

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THE TROOPS Petty Officer 1st Class Robert Henderson meets his newborn child for the first time on his return from training exercises. Nearly half of all military children are younger than 5.

PETTY OFFICER 3RD CLASS JAMES LEE/U.S. NAVY

STANDING WATCH How the DOD takes care of military children

By Karen Asp

T’S A FACT THAT you have to be at least 17 years old to serve in the military. But there are actually millions of kids under that age who also are serving their country, albeit not in the capacity you might think. These are the nearly 2 million children in military families, and while their parents are making sacrifices for this country, so, too, are they, from frequent moves with their families to months and years spent away from their military loved ones. In the absence of one or sometimes two parents, it takes a village to raise a military child, including the support of the Department of Defense, which provides services from cradle to young adulthood to ease the challenge. Being a kid in and of itself isn’t easy these days, given the massive amount of social pressure. Add the complexities of having parents or caregivers in the military — the relocations, the stress of being separated from a deployed parent, the fear that a parent might not come home — and the task of being a child gets exponentially more difficult. According to the Department of Defense, active-duty and reserve members have about 1.7 million children ranging in age from infant to age 18; there are another 130,000 dependents counted as children ages 19 to 22. All rely on DOD for one aspect of their lives — health care — but many also receive services from DOD ranging from child care and education to relaxation and recreation programs. That’s why the DOD has been working since the late 1970s to create the Family Readiness System, which supports the unique needs of military families. From teachers and child care workers to family advocacy specialists, a network of individuals exists to provide support for military children through the various child development programs, education services and community offerings. Military children face a number of challenges their civilian counterparts don’t have to deal with, the most obvious being repeated transitions into new schools, some in new countries. “Most kids are switching every two to three years,” said Barbara Thompson, director of the DOD’s Office of Family Readiness Policy. In fact, the average military child moves six to nine times during a K-12 school career, about three times more often than children in nonmilitary families. Of course, the deployment of a caregiver is another major stress point for children. “So many events happen in children’s lives, from birthdays to school graduations, and not having that special caregiver with you CO N T I N U E D

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THE TROOPS

AIRMAN 1ST CLASS RANDALL MOOSE/U.S. AIR FORCE

A child performs push-ups with a Marine volunteer during a program that gives children a perspective on what it’s like to be on a military deployment. can be extremely challenging,” Thompson ▶ And for children ages 6 through 12, said. school-age care programs provide services To give military kids better quality of life, before and after school, on holidays and DOD offers programs that serve children during the summer. Some of these from birth through 18 years old — proprograms are run through military family grams that, according to Thompson, have services programs or under partnerships a 97 percent national accreditation rate. with organizations such as the Boys & Girls Many are targeted at young families since Clubs of America and 4-H Clubs. so many military chilThe DOD also operates dren are younger than 5 its own school system, years old, including 42 with 168 accredited percent of active-duty schools for about 73,100 “(Military kids and troops’ kids. students K-12 in 11 families are) the Finding good child foreign countries, care is a top concern seven states and two U.S. strength of the for any parent and territories. military parents are no There are also specialarmed forces ... different. To ease military ized programs that and the nation.” members’ stress of focus on more complex — Gen. Joseph Dunford, finding decent child care, issues or provide for very chairman of the the DOD offers several specific needs, many Joint Chiefs of Staff options: provided by nonprofit ▶ It operates more groups seeking to supthan 700 military child port and strengthen development centers military families. around the world that serve about 200,000 For example, Sesame Street for Military children daily. The facilities, which usually Families (sesamestreetformilitaryfamilies. accept children up to 5 years old, provide org) is designed to help younger children year-round care during the standard work through deployments, relocations, combatweek, Mondays through Fridays. related injuries and even grief, providing ▶ For children up to 12 years, certified videos and downloadable PDFs for parents family child care providers are another and caregivers to incorporate into teaching option, providing care to children in private moments. The Comfort Crew for Military homes on or off base during the workweek Kids (comfortcrew.org) provides motivaor on nights and weekends by agreement. tional speakers who help military children

U.S. MARINE CORPS

Sgt. Christina Thuman and her son Caleb, 4, view the Bat Ray display at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif.

develop self-confidence and emotional resiliency in the face of stressful situations. And Military OneSource — the DOD’s referral resource — also offers resources to support children during a parent’s deployment, including age-appropriate books and videos. The Military Child Education Council (militarychild.org) provides advice for elementary, junior high and high school students to help them transition smoothly into new schools. These children also have access to community-based programs, such as the 4-H Clubs’ camps for military children (4-hmilitarypartnerships.org) or Purdue University’s Military Teen Adventure Camps (ag.purdue.edu), which help kids ages 14 to 18 build self-confidence, leadership and teamwork skills. Many of these programs are free to military families or offered at a reduced price. “There’s so much information and so much going on that we rely heavily on spouses to help us spread the word,” Thompson said. Military children are honored every April, known throughout DOD as the Month of the Military Child. Events vary from one military installation to another, but include picnics, parades, fairs, festivals, and art and poetry contests. “During this month, we recognize the contributions military children have made to our military missions,” Thompson said. Schools near military installations also

are urged to show their support, she added. “Schools can certainly highlight military children during this month,” she said. There’s even a special day called Purple Up — the color purple symbolizes all branches of the military. Usually held on April 15, the day encourages civilians to wear purple as a way to show support for military kids. Each year, a nonprofit organization, Operation Homefront, also honors a Military Child of the Year for each armed service, recognizing outstanding youngsters who have excelled in academics, volunteerism and leadership. According to Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the resilience of military children “is absolutely what has allowed (DOD) to do the things we’ve asked our armed forces to do for the last 14 years.” For Dunford, who, along with wife Ellyn raised two children, Patrick and Kathleen, military kids and families are “the strength of the armed forces ... and the nation.” “I can tell you from personal experience, there’s no way I’d be standing here today — that after 39 years of active duty I’d still be doing this — if our children hadn’t had the resilience to deal with the military lifestyle, and if Ellyn and I didn’t think we could move our children from place to place and from school to school, and that somehow they’d figure out a way to adapt and become young adults contributing to society,” Dunford said.

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THE TROOPS

Col. John Klein and Senior Airman Deirde Jones inspect the Travis (Calif.) Air Force Base Commissary in August. More than 12 million people shop at commissaries worldwide.

THE FUTURE OF COMMISSARIES

DeCAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 25th anniversary puts a spotlight on military shopping By Karen Asp

HE DEFENSE COMMISSARY AGENCY (DeCA) turned 25 on Oct. 1, a Hallmark-worthy occasion for the organization that functions as a grocery store for active and retired service members and their families. Yet its role goes beyond that: It also provides a sense of community and a taste of home for those living the military life. Technically, DeCA is older than 25. Commissaries have actually been around

for 149 years (the 150th anniversary will be celebrated next July 1). But in the beginning, the four branches of the military each had their own commissary system. After studies revealed that consolidating efforts would yield greater efficiency, the four systems became one in 1991. Today, DeCA operates 238 stores in the United States (including Guam and Puerto Rico), Japan, South Korea, Germany, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Portugal and the Netherlands. There are nine central

distribution centers in Europe, the Pacific and Alaska and a central meat processing plant in Germany that supplies goods to Alaska and overseas stores. Approximately 12 million people are currently authorized to shop in the commissaries. They include active and retired members of the armed forces and reserves, plus cadets and midshipmen at the military academies; members of the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service and CO N T I N U E D

HEIDE COUCH/U.S. AIR FORCE

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

THE TROOPS the National Oceanic and Atmospheric to download digital coupons. DeCA even Administration; 100 percent disabled sells gift cards for military families. veterans; Medal of Honor recipients; family THE CHALLENGE members, surviving spouses and orphans OF THE FUTURE of service members; and Department Yet DeCA is facing several challenges. of Defense civilian workers stationed For starters, the commissaries are located overseas. on military installations where at one time “The commissary benefit has historically about 70 percent of active-duty personnel been considered an integral element of lived. Today, only about 25 percent of the military benefits package,” said Chris active-duty personnel live on base, one of Burns, executive director of business the reasons for a decline in the number of transformation for DeCA. “We pride commissary patrons, Burns said. ourselves in enhancing the readiness of In 2015, DeCA recorded about 89 million our troops by giving their dependents and transactions in commissaries family somewhere safe to worldwide. That number has shop so our troops can stay been as high as 98 million. focused on their mission.” IN 2015, DeCA “There are so many more DeCA not only provides a safe and secure shopping LOGGED ABOUT places to buy groceries these days, and with more personenvironment but also savings nel living off the installation, on grocery and household they’re choosing to shop at items. Patrons pay only cost other places, which means plus a small administrative our margins are getting surcharge; commissaries are squeezed,” Burns said. not permitted to set prices Reduction in the number to make a profit. Prices of active-duty forces and may sometimes be higher MILLION married service members as than civilian grocery stores, TRANSACTIONS well as increased restaurant which, unlike commissaries, spending have also driven may cut prices sharply to IN ITS down transaction numbers. draw in customers. COMMISSARIES. More importantly, “We offer quality Congress has told DeCA, the products at lower prices most legislated part of the for military families,” said military — with nearly any new program Burns. Some commissaries even have requiring congressional approval — that it sushi bars, delis and bakeries. “The benefit can’t afford its current funding. helps our authorized patrons and their “The Department of Defense has families — especially those stationed in directed us to implement changes that will high-cost-of-living urban areas — make reduce reliance on appropriated funding ends meet by the price savings provided by while maintaining the current level of the commissaries.” commissary patron savings,” Burns said. That savings also extends to taxpayers, “Congress and the department are looking as it would cost the government twice the for the commissary system to run more current $1.4 billion appropriation to simply like a business and generate revenue to give people a food allowance rather than offset operating costs wherever possible.” providing commissary services. To reach this goal, DeCA will be taking Commissaries are also more than a measures including the development of shopping experience; they provide a sense a pilot program to implement variable of community for military personnel and pricing and introducing private-label their families. products. DeCA is also improving shelf “Spouses, off-duty personnel and stocking — making sure the right products retirees, in particular, love to shop in the are on the shelves for customers —and commissary, as it’s a place to socialize and looking to expand areas of e-commerce. be with others who share the burdens of A new CLICK2GO program at commismilitary family life,” Burns said. saries at the Army’s Fort Lee, Va., base (also And commissaries give overseas patrons DeCA headquarters), as well as Offutt Air a taste of home, because many products Force Base near Omaha, Neb., and Travis are American staples not always available Air Force Base in northern California, alin other countries, from brand names such lows customers to buy groceries online and as Kellogg’s, Kraft and Procter & Gamble. pick up their order curbside. DeCA wants To keep patrons happy, DeCA continues legislative approval to expand CLICK2GO. to expand its offerings and meet requireYet no matter how much DeCA changes, ments to become more financially lucrait will always be the commissary its tive. For instance, in 2015, it introduced patrons have relied on for almost 150 free in-store Wi-Fi to commissaries years. As Burns said, “Surveys consistently worldwide and also maintains a strong rate commissaries as one of the top nonpresence online, using social media to alert pay benefits, and we have no intention of customers to promotions and events. A changing that.” Commissary Rewards Card allows shoppers

AIRMAN 1ST CLASS PRESTON CHERRY/U.S. AIR FORCE; JACOB SIPPEL/NAVAL HOSPITAL JACKSONVILLE

Commissaries design events to draw in customers and provide a sense of community. Air Force Staff Sgt. David Gomez races down an aisle during a contest for free groceries at Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany, and Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Land takes information on the benefits of quitting smoking at Naval Air Station Jacksonville in Florida.

USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION

MEDALS OF HONOR

BRAVERY UNDER FIRE By Tom Vanden Brook

JAY LAPRETE/USA TODAY

Retired Lt. Col. Charles Kettles gives a thumbs-up in May after co-piloting a UH-1 Huey helicopter like the one he flew in Vietnam. The Army veteran received a Medal of Honor from President Obama in July for conspicuous gallantry in 1967, saving 44 soldiers. By Fernanda Crescente

HE DETAILS OF THE heroism that saw Lt. Col. Charles Kettles given the Medal of Honor this summer came back clearly and quickly even five decades later. Kettles, 86, of Ypsilanti, Mich., recalled the events of May 15, 1967: flying his UH-1 helicopter repeatedly into heavy fire to save the lives of dozens of soldiers ambushed by North Vietnamese troops in the Song Tra Cau river valley; then coaxing his seriously damaged and overloaded helicopter to safety with the last eight soldiers who had been left behind. The official narrative of that day reads: “With complete disregard for his own safety ... without gunship, artillery, or tactical aircraft support, the enemy concentrated all firepower on his lone aircraft. ... Without his courageous actions and superior flying skills, the last group of soldiers and his crew would never have made it off the battlefield.” Kettles was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama at the White House in July for his heroism in 1967.

“Let’s face it, we’ve had a couple of tough weeks,” Obama said, referencing the summer’s racial tensions, police shootings and other world turmoil. “For us to remember the goodness and decency of the American people, and the way that we can all look out for each other, even when times are tough, even when the odds are against us — what a wonderful inspiration. “As many people have said, nobody deserves it more than Charles Kettles of Ypsilanti, Michigan,” Obama said. “Many believe that, except for Chuck. ... In many ways, Chuck is America. (There) are entire family trees made possible by this man.” Kettles told USA TODAY that when he landed after the intense, dangerous mission, he thought “that’s what war is.” Kettles’ actions were documented and saluted long ago — he was awarded the second-highest award for bravery, the Distinguished Service Cross. Kettles completed another tour in Vietnam and retired from the Army as a lieutenant colonel. That’s where the story would end, if not for William Vollano, an amateur historian who was interviewing veterans for the Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project.

Vollano’s prodding led the Army to reopen Kettles’ case and determine that his actions merited the Medal of Honor. Coincidentally, the military is also reviewing the actions of hundreds more troops in the post-9/11 era to see whether they, too, should receive upgrades of their Distinguished Service Crosses or Silver Stars. “Having failed to give our veterans who fought in Vietnam the full measure of thanks and respect that they had earned, we acknowledged that our failure to do so was a shame,” Obama said. “We resolve that it will never happen again.” For dozens of soldiers, Kettles’ decisions kept their names from being etched on the Vietnam War memorial with the 58,000 others who died. “That’s what matters,” Kettles said. “I don’t know if there’s anyone who’s gotten a Medal of Honor who deserved it more,” said Roland Scheck, a crew member who had been injured on Kettles’ first trip to the landing zone. “There’s no better candidate as far as I’m concerned.” Contributing: Tom Vanden Brook and Gregory Korte

MAGINE YOURSELF IN THE most dire circumstance — held hostage, say, by the Taliban. You’d want a guy like Chief Special Warfare Operator Edward Byers Jr. looking for you. Byers received the Medal of Honor Feb. 29 for helping rescue an American doctor in Afghanistan in 2012. The sixth Navy SEAL to receive the award, Byers, 36, joined the Navy in 1998, became a hospital corpsman, then a SEAL, and has deployed 11 times. He’s earned five Bronze Stars with valor and been awarded two Purple Hearts. If not for his “conspicuous gallantry,” the details of that Dec. 8, 2012, mission would remain secret. His SEAL Team Six, the elite unit that killed Osama bin Laden, had been sent to rescue Dilip Joseph, an American doctor taken hostage by the Taliban. After a rugged four-hour hike, Byers and his SEAL teammates approached the building where CHIP SOMODEVILLA/ GETTY IMAGES Joseph was being held. Navy SEAL Edward The first SEAL Byers Jr. wears his in, Chief Petty Medal of Honor Officer Nicolas after a ceremony at Checque, 28, the White House in was killed by February. fire from an AK-47. Byers barreled in next, killed one guard and tackled another man. He held that man with one hand while adjusting his night-vision goggles with the other, then killed him. Then Byers heard somebody speaking English and hurled himself on top of that person — Joseph — to protect him from the bullets. At nearly the same instant, Byers grabbed the last guard by the throat and pinned him to the wall where he was fatally shot by other SEALs. Five Taliban lay dead, and Byers, a trained paramedic, sought in vain to revive Checque. “The loss of Nic Checque is a tragedy,” Byers said. “However, he died a warrior’s death. And that night was a success in everyone’s mind because we brought back an American hostage. That was our mission; it was a hostage rescue.”

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