Airmen of the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw AFB, S.C., earlier this month participated in an exercise with pilot volunteers of the South Carolina wing of the Civil Air Patrol. This iteration of the frequently occurring Fertile Keynote exercise allowed Shaw’s F-16 pilots who protect the skies of the US Eastern Air Defense Sector against unauthorized air intruders to practice interdicting slow-moving, small general-aviation platforms flown by the CAP pilots in various scenarios, such as a small aircraft not responding to air traffic controllers instructions. “This training is critical for real-world, slow-mover intercept,” said Capt. Joe Palen, 20th FW air sovereignty alert assistant director of operations. Being able to go up against the small aircraft adds realism to the ASA training, he said. (Shaw report by SSgt. John Gordinier)
Unmanned aerial vehicles and autonomous aircraft may provide a solution to operating in heavily contested domains such as the Taiwan Straits, according to a panel of expert who suggested operationalizing artificial intelligence for such purposes sooner rather than later. The group gathered virtually to help launch the Mitchell Institute for…