Airmen of the 682nd Air Support Operations Squadron at Shaw AFB, S.C., are nearing the end of testing on the new Gateway vehicle mounted communications system, which enables an Air Support Operations Center and Joint Terminal Attack Controllers to click a button to get vital targeting data to pilots instantly. A test of the system during a recent Central Command Air Forces Atlantic Strike exercise showed a 47 percent reduction in the time needed to exchange data. “Anytime we can process and take out targets faster and more efficiently, it can potentially save the lives of US troops and friendly forces,” said SSgt. Ryan Fausey, 682nd ASOS fighter duty technician. The unit’s new advanced Gateway is one of the first operational in the Air Force and is going through the final stages needed before deployment into combat operations. (Shaw report by SSgt. John Gordinier)
The U.S. supports “a stronger and more capable” European defense, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said during an Oct. 22 press conference in Brussels—but that defense should not duplicate the functions and capabilities of the NATO alliance.