STARBASE expands young minds

by Senior Airman Ashley J. Thum
4th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

6/30/2015 - SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C.  -- Sixty soon-to-be fifth graders journeyed through the limitless skies of knowledge during the 2015 Science and Technology Academies Reinforcing Basic Aviation and Space Exploration, June 22 to 26.

For nearly a quarter of a century, STARBASE has given children in North Carolina a deeper look at the foundation for Dominant Strike Eagle Airpower.

U.S. Air Force Capt. Tom Morrill, 335th Fighter Squadron F-15E Strike Eagle pilot, has been the program's coordinator for the past two years.

"STARBASE is a week-long science, technology, engineering and mathematics day camp for kids," Morrill said. "The mornings are filled with classroom instruction, and then in the afternoons we bring them on base."

Teachers from local schools taught each of the four flights rocketry, laws of motion, oceans of air, and compass reading, before the flights toured facilities that included the F-15E Strike Eagle simulator and the 4th Operations Support Squadron weather flight.

Tanya Grady, STARBASE rocketry instructor, said the correlation between the classroom topics and the afternoon tours is one of the main benefits of the program.

"I think it exposes the students at a very young age to all of the different possibilities and how we do apply the principles and laws that we just learned in the classroom," Grady said. "They actually get to see it in action."

The Airmen and instructors weren't the only ones teaching. For children with military parents, or those with just a piqued interest in the military, the camp was a chance to show off their knowledge of things like aircraft cockpits and rocket propelled grenades.

However, perhaps the largest impact was made on those students who had no previous interaction with a military base or service members, for whom the camp afforded what could prove to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

"I wanted to be in STARBASE because I knew that we would get to go on base, and I wanted to know what the Air Force does," said Rachel, a STARBASE student. "I went to most of the places on the Air Force base, and it was fun to know because my parents aren't in the Air Force, so I didn't know what the Air Force did."

This year's STARBASE week captured nearly every aspect of the base's mission and how Airmen train to accomplish it. Students were put through their paces during a virtual reality parachute jump in the 4th OSS survival, evasion, resistance and escape building, and caught a glimpse of the behind-the-scenes work at the 4th Component Maintenance Squadron engine repair facility and "Hush House" - where the children marveled at an F-15E engine spouting flames into a specially designed tunnel.

Aviation principles aside, the week also featured tours and demonstrations by the 4th Security Forces Squadron military working dog section, and the 4th Civil Engineer Squadron fire department and explosive ordnance disposal flight.

"We want them to see this base represents more than just the sound of jet noise," Morrill said. "It represents a lot of very proficient people with specific skills."

Rachel said one of those specific skills, that belonging to KC-135 Stratotanker boom operators, was her favorite part of the camp.

"I thought it was really cool to lie down at the end of the plane and see how they refuel the other planes," Rachel said.

Grady, who has worked with the STARBASE program since 1996, said it would be nearly impossible to pinpoint her favorite part of the week.

"It could be something from every day, we had so much fun," Grady said. "Everyone was excellent working with the kids. We couldn't have asked for a better host Air Force base to be on."

Morrill, known to the kids as "Captain Tom," said he hopes that they'll remember what they learned and the relationships they built during their week on base.

"It's a good feeling being the 'face' of the program for the kids and being on a first-name basis with them," Morrill said. "They saw people representing every uniform in the Air Force this week, and they now have a connection with us, not just as STARBASE students, but as members of the community."

Annual registration for the STARBASE program is held in February and March. Due to a limited number of open spots, students may be placed on a waiting list. For more information, contact Janie Best, STARBASE organizer, at (919) 722-5810.

Guidon passed as 21st Space Wing changes command

by Dave Smith

6/12/2015 - PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- Col. Douglas A. Schiess took command of the 21st Space Wing from Brig. Gen. John E. Shaw in a change of command ceremony June 12.

Lt. Gen. John W. "Jay" Raymond, commander, 14th Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) and Joint Functional Component Command for Space, presided over the transfer of command, receiving the guidon from Shaw and passing it to Schiess.

"Sir I assume command," Schiess told Raymond. He set the tone for his command by quoting the sixth President of the United States John Quincy Adams.

"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader," he said.

Schiess said he was glad to be back in Colorado Springs and ready to lead and serve in his new position. A mentor once told him the more you talk, the less time you have in command, and Schiess said the clock is ticking.

"Getting an opportunity to command is very rare; getting to do it again is awesome. It's a dream come true," he said, referring to previous assignments as commander of the 4th Space Operations Squadron at Schriever AFB, Colo. and 45th Operations Group at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Schiess also noted excellent teamwork between the 21st Space Wing, community leaders and mission partners to provide services needed by the nation.

"We will be an integral part of 14th Air Force and Air Force Space Command, working hard together with our sister wings and other mission partners to fulfill the AF mission to Fly, Fight, and Win," said Schiess. "We will work hard every day to provide space superiority to defend the United States and our allies and to provide needed mission and medical support to our many mission partners."

Before concluding his speech, Schiess gave his first official command to the total force personnel of the 21st SW.

"So, I charge every member of the 21st Space Wing to inspire others to dream more, to learn more, to do more and to become more. Be the leader we all hope to serve with," he said.

The 21st SW plays a vital role in protecting space for the nation and its allies. The wing provides missile warning and space control to North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Strategic Command through a network of command and control units and ground based sensors operated by geographically separated units around the world.

The 21st SW is the Air Force's fifth largest wing with consists of a work force of about 4,300 officer, enlisted, civilian and contract employees. The wing covers the globe with locations in seven countries, across 13 time zones, consisting of five groups, wing staff agencies, and 38 units at 21 locations. Along with those components there are 53 mission partners including HQ NORAD, HQ NORTHCOM, HQ Air Force Space Command, and the 302nd Airlift Wing. The wing boasts the largest comptroller's squadron responsible for more than $2 billion annually.

Before taking command of the wing, Schiess was Director of Space Forces, U.S. Air Forces Central Command, U.S. Central Command. This is not Schiess' first time in the area. He served in the 50th Space Wing, Schriever AFB from 2000-2002 and again from 2007-2011. He also served at Headquarters Air Force Space Command from 2002-2003.

DSP satellites: bell ringers for national security

by Airman 1st Class Samantha Meadors
460th Space Wing Public Affairs

6/17/2015 - BUCKLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Colo.-  -- Since the early 1970s, the Defense Support Program has been the backbone of the U.S. ballistic missile early warning system.

This once classified satellite first launched in 1970 providing strategic surveillance with an infrared capability to detect long-range ballistic missile launches.

The mission of the DSP satellite is to detect missile launches using its infrared telescope that recognizes heat against the Earth's surface.

"In 1991, there were 12 foreign ballistic missile programs in the world," Wagner said. "Today over three dozen countries openly acknowledge a ballistic missile program and we have seen the catastrophic effects when these countries use ballistic missiles against each other or even against their own people. These missiles are increasingly lethal and mobile with more reliable, accurate and effective guidance systems. Technology enabled smaller, faster, more accurate, more storable, and inherently more deployable missiles with longer ranges."

During Operation Desert Storm, the growth of nations with tactical ballistic missile capability increased and DSP began to support troops in the Persian Gulf War. After detecting Iraqi Scud launches and providing timely warning to downrange users, DSP began to be used for tactical detection as well.

Scientists are currently in the process of developing methods to use the satellite as part of an early warning system for natural disasters like volcanic eruptions and forest fires.

The DSP constellation was first put in place to address the missile threat posed by the former Soviet Union.

"To understand and counter the threat of a surprise nuclear attack against the United States, we looked to air and then space because we truly needed global reach to see deep into the Soviet Union," said Col. John Wagner, 460th Space Wing commander.

"This was at a time when Soviet missile power was in our faces daily - particularly after the launch of Sputnik."

The early warning system took 15 minutes to provide warning of ballistic missile attack, so national priority was placed on the space-based system known as the Missile Defense Alarm System.

MIDAS was the first infrared detection technology that later became the basis for the DSP.

However, it took millions of taxpayer dollars and nine failed test flights before MIDAS 7 achieved the planned circular orbit in 1963. Since then, the DSP has been used to protect the U.S. and its allies from smaller and faster threats.

"After these initial MIDAS hard lessons, we enjoyed over 40 years of success with DSP," Wagner said. "This program was the first to use mercury cadmium telluride -- the material of choice for today's infrared sensors. Today's DSP spacecraft accommodates 6,000 detectors, uses 1,274 watts of power, weighs 5,200 pounds and is roughly the size of a Greyhound Bus."

The DSP satellites orbit the earth approximately 22,000 miles over the equator. The current DSP spacecraft is more survivable than its predecessors, lasting much longer than designed. It was originally intended to last 30 years, but has exceeded its lifespan over 15 years.

The DSP will eventually be replaced by the Space-Based Infrared System. SBIRS is composed of highly elliptical orbit and geosynchronous Earth orbit satellites.

The satellites' extreme accuracy and precision are designed to deliver timely and precise warning for missile launches to the U.S. government and allies.

"Imagine you're on a bus," said Col. Michael Guetlein, Remote Sensing Systems Directorate program director. "You're 22,000 miles away. You're moving 6,000 miles an hour. You're swinging a 1,000 pound telescope left and right at 10 times a second, 100 percent accuracy, and I want you to do that for 10 years. I want you to be looking down at the earth and I want you to pick out any heat event on the entire face of the earth.  And I want you to discriminate that event from the background. I want you to be able to tell me, is it a missile launch or is it a reflection off the ocean surface?"

That's what our satellites are out there doing, he added.

The SBIRS constellation falls under the Overhead Persistence Infrared program. The constant surveillance of the satellites keeps the U.S. and its allies safe.

"OPIR is not in our face, but it's the one thing that's keeping us safe on a day-to-day basis," Guetlein said. "It is the cornerstone of nuclear deterrence."

(Information from www.losangeles.af.mil and the Air Force Association Mitchell Institute Friday Space Group Seminar "Space Support to the Warfighter" was used in this article)

Air Force intel pros use Web-based remotely piloted aircraft application

By Master Sgt. Amaani Lyle , Secretary of the Air Force Command Information

Published June 26, 2015

WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Using existing technology, a team of Air Force intelligence experts have developed a new Web-based program that saves lives and money, while enhancing the “eyes in the sky,” the centerpiece of the $80 billion remotely piloted aircraft industry.

On June 24, the innovators received the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation Achievement Award for developing the Surveillance Intelligence Reconnaissance Information System (SIRIS), a scalable, revolutionary approach to reshaping RPA collaboration among ground, air and intelligence users in friendly and enemy battlespace.

Affordable web-based solution and leveraging existing technology

“We chose a Web-based solution that does not require a costly retrofit of the platform, and we created rapid innovation that was non-compartmentalized,” said Stephen Coffey, the Web innovations deputy director, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Innovations Directorate, Headquarters Air Force, Pentagon.

The same technology behind remotely piloted aircraft deployed high above Afghanistan’s mountainous terrain would have been critically valuable to first responders at the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, and in other large-scale events or incidents, Coffey and his colleagues said.

But the expansion and interoperability of RPA deployment has ascended to the forefront of industry, first responder and military discussions -- with good reason, Coffey and his team assert.

“I was trying to find a way to leverage industry, government-owned solutions and do it for no cost,” the former squadron-level intelligence professional said.

Requiring only a Web browser and Google Earth access, (SIRIS) data encompasses imagery, full-motion video, mission planning files, aircraft locations, sensor points, signals intelligence and even weather, which can make the system of import to everyone from farmers to firefighters to law enforcement.

But the “eyes” began to get legs in March 2015, following an incident downrange, which heightened the urgency to refine and swiftly field the technology, said Chris McDonald, assigned to the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Innovations Directorate, Headquarters Air Force, Pentagon.

Originally designed to surveil in a permissive environment, a deployed MQ-1 was shot down over Syria, prompting intelligence officials to collaborate online and in Nevada with subject matter experts to develop a decisive threat warning that could integrate existing technology.

“We modified our technologies within the squadron operations center, which is part of the weapons system,” McDonald said. “But if you’ve got an airplane flying overseas and an (operations) center stateside, there’s a disconnect.”

Soon, analysts realized SIRIS’s provision of essential data, such as when or where a shooter might attack an aircraft, gives the remote pilot a greater opportunity to navigate the RPA away from troublesome airspace.

To set the groundwork for SIRIS, the intel team had the Air Force Research Lab’s Human Factors Development team create the Internet Coordinate Extractor, which monitors RPA chats and plots them in Google Earth.

But constantly monitoring 30-35 different chat rooms and trying to swiftly filter only pertinent information proved to be daunting.

“It’s really hard to focus on multiple screens at one time; you lose things and that could cost lives and money,” Coffey said. “So (ICE) allowed us to focus on Google Earth in the moment, so instead of looking at two windows, I’d look at one.”

With government-owned code and specifically-designed human factors, the intelligence team, in just four days, built on the ICE concept to display data succinctly in a format familiar to pilots.

But understanding how to apply and how to train people to apply the technology is what Coffey and his team call “disruptive,” particularly under the lens of manpower.

“Each of us bring a different perspective to an innovative thought,” Coffey said. “Applying technology without the skill craft … had atrophied for us, since RPAs had not been shot at for 20 years. Time was not our friend in this particular case, so it’s important that we had early adoption of the technology.”

Whether in facilitating communication among Airmen or even among other countries, such as NATO allies, some of whom have recently acquired Global Hawk Block 40, the intel team sustains efforts to make data transferable and accessible.

“We found out young Airmen and even the pilots didn’t know how to talk to each other or what to expect from each other,” said Col. Frances Deutch, Ph.D., Intelligence Innovation Programs director. “So if SIRIS and similar programs are how we’re already doing business, why don’t we make these applications better interact as a suite? Data should be agnostic.”

SIRIS beyond the battlespace

In August 2013, a GPS-guided MQ-1 Predator relayed infrared images to California National Guard firefighters, who battled a raging Rim Fire that blazed across more than 160,000 acres -- leaving much of Yosemite National Park and its surroundings silted in ash and dense with smoke.

“Because of the SIRIS tool, I literally was in my apartment drawing, circling and dropping points for the California wildfire chief in the middle of his firefighting,” Coffey said.

The plane significantly improved responders’ abilities to predict the fire’s direction and determine the sources of greatest intensity.

Once the fire ended, Coffey and his team arrived to California for a debriefing with the fire chief.

“The chief literally started crying and told me, ‘you have no idea the lives you saved because of that,’” he said.

Evolution of a technology revolution

In 2012, AFRL scientists and engineers partnered not only with in-service labs, but actually linked with joint service labs including Washington-based U.S. Naval Research Lab, the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Project Office, Huntsville, Alabama; Air Force Research Laboratories at Wright-Patterson, Ohio; and Rome, New York; and U.S. Naval Air Weapons Stations at Patuxent River, Maryland; and China Lake, California.

Linking the labs, Coffey said, enabled him to employ niche skill sets of each facility.

“We found that collage of people to actually vet the technologies we defined through (joint urgent operational needs) and common sense,” he said. “We would try to find the best of breed, but we let the doctors in the labs analyze that for us and then pick the best of breed -- and they did that on their own dime.”

The team then worked with industry to ensure they released the projects as government-owned without the need for proprietary rights or licensing.

“Because we’ve partnered with these industries, they often come to bear and allow us to use technology that we had not considered in one realm (but proves effective) in another,” Coffey said.

Writing unclassified code was another cornerstone of the project, Coffey said, since it ensured the technology was transferable across multiple interfaces.

Way ahead for RPAs, SIRIS

Ultimately, RPAs will do a lot more than provide ISR and close air support as threat awareness and threat detection emerge on a more sustainable platform, according to McDonald.

“We’re trying to get the user in front of the technology, then they can tell us in a more succinct and specific manner what information they need,” he said.

The familiar social media formatting for this data will only expedite early adoption of the technology by millennials, the team contends.

“By creating a sandbox, we were trying to create a place where Airmen can develop the code and park it there then our developers can pick through it and help them write it,” Coffey said. “So now they feel enabled and it’s empowered them to be innovative.”

BITI awards contracts, upgrades Air Force cyber infrastructure

by Justin Oakes
66th Air Base Group Public Affairs

6/18/2015 - HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. -- The Base Information Transfer Infrastructure program office here recently awarded four contracts geared at recapitalizing or replacing critical network components.

BITI is responsible for upgrading the Air Force's cyber infrastructure and provides both hard-wired and wireless network capabilities to 175 active duty, Reserve and Air National Guard bases worldwide.

According to program officials, the four contracts mark the first round of recapitalization efforts for 44 installations in the operations and support phase for both wireless and wired systems. The total value of the contracts is approximately $24 million with an expected completion date of September 2016.

Full deployment is anticipated for February 2017.

"BITI efforts are effective in mitigating vulnerabilities against cyber attacks," said Adam Hurst, BITI program manager. "However, to ensure the network sustains its reliability, maintainability, availability and equipment certifications, component refreshes are needed every few years."

The recapitalization will update hardware such as core and critical distribution nodes every five years once the initial installation is complete. The five-year update is in alignment with industry standards for commercial-off-the-shelf refresh cycles on BITI-related network components.

According to Hurst, this will drive out obsolete equipment that could introduce vulnerabilities to the network.

BITI also has the capability to address the growing demand for additional bandwidth, which is driven by voice, data and imagery requirements. If requirements are approved, the program will adjust to meet the users' data transport needs.

"We will be looking at several different initiatives in order to provide better capabilities and lower costs," Hurst said. "Some of these include expanding the wireless networks, right-sizing the network to accommodate increased bandwidth requirements and supporting the transition to the Joint Information Environment. BITI will also look at new ways to architect the network and new equipment technology in order to provide the best data transport solution."

With 800,000 users worldwide, the Air Force network infrastructure that BITI provides affects every single Airman. It allows service members to communicate via email, access mission applications and even conduct wireless F-22 Raptor maintenance, such as running diagnostics.

BITI, which is part of the much larger $3 billion Combat Information Transportation System program, began in the 1990s, but at the time, dealt strictly with wired networks. BITI-Wired provides base-wide connectivity for all core facilities deemed mission essential while maintaining connectivity to all other base network users.

These "turnkey" active-duty, Guard and Reserve installations include a distribution system element, such as fiber optics, a manhole and duct system; inside plant element, consisting of power, ground, cooling and physical security; and a network element, which includes switches for distribution and user access.

The wireless component of BITI was added in 2005.

Beginning in 2011, the BITI-Wireless began to upgrade elements of the system starting with the authentication server. Later, the wireless controllers and access points were updated.

The BITI wireless component of the program will be added to the recapitalization effort beginning in fiscal year 2016.

"The recent contract awards are a step in the right direction toward updating our Air Force cyber infrastructure," said Col. John Bedingfield, C3I and Networks Infrastructure Division senior materiel leader. "The contributions made by the BITI team are vital to the Air Force network and impacts every Airman across the globe."

Next generation fighter technologies tested during Alaska military exercise

NE15 Joint Information Bureau Public Affairs

6/25/2015 - JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- The past meets the future when a distinctive looking aircraft with the nose and electronics of an F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter and the body of a 1960's passenger jet participates in one of the U.S. military's largest electronic warfare exercises.

A modified BAC 1-11 serves as a flying test platform for the F-35's AN/APG-81 active electronically scanned array radar (AESA) and its AN/AAQ-37 distributed aperture system (DAS) which provides F-35 pilots with 360-degree spherical situational awareness and target tracking capabilities.

"Northern Edge offers an excellent opportunity to observe some of the F-35's electronics in a robust and joint environment," said Air Force Major Scott Fann, F-35 Joint Program Current Capabilities Lead. "During this U.S. Pacific Command exercise, we are focused on some of the advanced capabilities of the distributed aperture system and the jet's electronic counter measures."

While flying over the skies of Alaska, the F-35's radar demonstrated robust electronic protection, electronic attack, passive maritime and experimental modes, and data-linked air and surface tracks to improve legacy fighter situational awareness. It also searched the more than 50,000 square mile exercise area for surface vessels, and accurately detected and tracked them in minimal time.

The F-35's AESA radar and DAS are produced by Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems and work together to simultaneously detect and track air and ground targets within the battlespace. The system enables pilots to see in all weather conditions, day or night. It automatically warns pilots about incoming threats and then pinpoints the location of the threat for tactical maneuvering.

"Having the F-35's flying test platform participate in this joint exercise helps us confirm the maturity and utility of key capabilities," said Fann. "It also helps us identify areas that might need refinement before we enter formal operational testing."

Northern Edge 2015 gathered more than 6,000 active duty, National Guard and Reserve component Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard military participants the opportunity to train together in Alaska's vast Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, including the Gulf of Alaska maritime training area.

NAVIDFOR Ensures Shipboard Systems Interoperate

By George Lammons, NAVIDFOR Public Affairs

SUFFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- When multi-unit groups deploy, Sailors and Marines can be confident in the interoperability of their computer and communications systems because a Navy Information Dominance Forces (NAVIDFOR) team ensures those systems work and are ready to go to sea.

Deploying Group System Integration Testing (DGSIT) process is a fleet-directed program to test interoperability of all computer and communications systems and networks on all amphibious readiness groups (ARG), carrier strike groups (CSG) and Marine expeditionary units (MEU). NAVIDFOR does the testing to support the fleet.

"All of these units have to talk to each other across numerous complex systems and system-of-systems," said Mike Caldwell, the DGSIT Atlantic program manager. "Through deckplate testing and mentoring, we make sure that all those systems integrate. We also coordinate rigorous follow-on actions, teamed with system commands and regional maintenance centers, to resolve as many interoperability issues as possible prior to deployment."

The DGSIT charge is to test, in a stressed operational environment, all the command, control, computer, communications, combat, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C5ISR) systems - all of the Information Dominance systems - and to validate the C5ISR modernization efforts for the numbered fleet, Marine expeditionary force, deploying group commander and technical program office.

Consequently, testing teams examine the systems and software during pre-deployment work-ups.

"The best way to validate performance of C5I systems is to test interoperability and integration in a stressed operational environment," Caldwell said. "The systems and Sailors are under pressure because of the tactical exercise demands. It is probably the first time that collection [of Sailors] has worked together, and it may be the first time those ships have worked together. But the team is there to make sure everything works for both advanced training and deployment."

The stressed operational environment can mimic a deployment operations tempo, ensuring crews and systems can do their work no matter their operational demands and conditions. The test teams check the systems typically in a pre-deployment group sail at-sea environment. The team also tests MEU systems in a field training exercise as a precursor to at-sea testing of the ARG/MEU team.

Caldwell said the final integration test (FIT) teams are always customized by the core NAVIDFOR DGSIT team coordinators of five or six because each ARG, MEU and CSG is a unique composition of units and associated C5ISR configuration. Planning starts about six months before the test teams embark on units, and the entire process takes about eight months from pre-test planning to the final report submission. Caldwell said a FIT team consists of up to 70 system experts. Their underway testing period lasts about a week as they check key data and voice system paths on all the ships and units in the group.

"The whole process involves extensive coordination with units, staffs and C5I system program offices," he said.

Teams identify all of the hardware and software issues and build a hot wash report that identifies all interoperability issues and reports it to the appropriate program office. A Pacific team, based in San Diego, tests all the Pacific-based CSGs, ARGs and MEUs - including those homeported in Japan.

Caldwell said that on average the DGSIT groups find 60 to 80 C5I systems issues. The team members also make recommendations on-scene and mentor Sailors operating the systems who may be unfamiliar with a system's nuances. During the test period, team members are able to fix about half the problems they discover. They resolve nearly all of the remaining issues before the deployment.

The 8- to 10 percent of the issues that cannot be fixed, usually software-related, is reported to the program office, who may offer a work-around or a way to mitigate the issue.

The process is also valuable to the program offices because it provides feedback on how the systems work in "pressurized" operational conditions. Program offices can use these lessons-learned to improve hardware and software, training and system maintenance.

Caldwell has plenty of data to back up his statistics. He said the process is fleet-directed, so it has been followed for 20 years or more. Before the establishment of NAVIDFOR in October 2014, the DGSIT process was executed by a series of commands - Navy Cyber Forces, NETWARCOM, and before that by the Atlantic Fleet and Pacific Fleet commanders.

NAVIDFOR was established to improve the generation and sustainment of ID force readiness across the Navy under a single TYCOM. Since Oct. 1, NAVIDFOR has been consolidating and aligning missions, functions, and tasks previously managed by separate ID commands (specifically, Navy Cyber Forces Command, Fleet Cyber Command, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, and the Office of Naval Intelligence).