The first and only USAF C-130 squadron based in the Southwest Asia theater has one airlifter that is hauling not supplies but a communications suite to provide better communications capability for ground convoys. Personnel from all the services operate the Joint Airborne Command and Control Command Post—or Jackpot to squadron members—which fits into the back of a 777th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron C-130 and relays communications. Officials say the Jackpot system, in the few weeks it has flown, has gotten praise from ground commanders.
Fresh off a meeting of the national armaments directors of NATO and the European Union, Pentagon acquisition and logistics chief William A. LaPlante said the allies and partners are moving toward not simply interoperable munitions, but “interchangeable” as well. The 45 directors met to discuss how they will provide military…