The Illinois Congressional delegation, led by Sen. Dick Durbin (D), Rep. Jerry Costello (D), and Rep. John Shimkus (R), last week sent Air Force Secretary Michael Donley a letter, urging him to locate the service’s new cyber central at Scott AFB, Ill. In their view, Scott can handle additional missions—it already houses US Transportation Command, Air Mobility Command, an AMC numbered air force, and numerous other Air Force and DOD entities—and, in Costello’s words in a joint statement, is “a perfect fit” for USAF’s new cyber NAF. Scott is on the list of potential sites the Air Force released last month, but it faces stiff competition from the other five locations, including Barksdale AFB, La., which currently hosts the start-up cyber operation. According to the Illinois delegation’s letter, the St. Louis area offers “the scientific and technical expertise needed in the Cyber Command workforce.” And, it states, “The security and force protection exceed Air Force standards and guidelines and are well suited to support Cyber Command requirements and high-speed network capacity.” Durbin notes, too, that Scott plays “an essential role … in the region’s economy” and the new NAF would “create more good-paying jobs in the Metro-East area.”
DNI: Cyber Is The Common Weapon Among Top Adversaries
April 17, 2021
The top four U.S. adversaries--China, Russia, Iran and North Korea--are improving their military capabilities but relying increasingly on cyber means to challenge the U.S. and blunt its influence around the world, the intelligence community's annual threat assessment says. The report comes amid military tensions with both China and Russia.