The Secretary of the Air Force,sometimes referred to as the Secretary of the Department of the Air Force,is the head of the Department of the Air Force and the service secretary for the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. The secretary of the Air Force is a civilian appointed by the president,by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The secretary reports to the secretary of defense and/or the deputy secretary of defense,and is by statute responsible for and has the authority to conduct all the affairs of the Department of the Air Force.
Edward "Pete" Cleveland Aldridge Jr. is an aerospace engineer and former government official in the U.S. Defense Department. He was also selected as a payload specialist for the Space Shuttle mission STS-62-A,scheduled to launch in July 1986. The mission was canceled after the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in January 1986,and Aldridge never flew.
Michael Walter Wynne is an American politician and business executive and was the 21st United States Secretary of the Air Force. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates asked for and received his resignation on June 5,2008,in the wake of the 2007 United States Air Force nuclear weapons incident and the mistaken shipment of Minuteman III parts to Taiwan in 2006,followed by an investigation by and a critical report from Admiral Kirkland H. Donald regarding the Minuteman incident.
GPS Block III consists of the first ten GPS III satellites,which will be used to keep the Navstar Global Positioning System operational. Lockheed Martin designed,developed and manufactured the GPS III Non-Flight Satellite Testbed (GNST) and all ten Block III satellites. The first satellite in the series was launched in December 2018.
Space Systems Command (SSC) is the United States Space Force's space development,acquisition,launch,and logistics field command. It is headquartered at Los Angeles Air Force Base,California,and manages the United States' space launch ranges.
The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment,or USD (A&S),is the Principal Staff Assistant (PSA) and advisor to the Secretary of Defense for all matters relating to acquisition and sustainment in the Department of Defense. This includes the DoD Acquisition System;system design and development;production;logistics and distribution;installation maintenance,management,and resilience;military construction;procurement of goods and services;material readiness;maintenance;environment and energy resilience;utilities;business management modernization;International Armaments Cooperation,Cooperative Acquisition and International Agreements,Promoting exportability of military components to allies and partners;nuclear,chemical and biological defense programs;and nuclear command,control,and communications.
The Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (SAF/AQ) is a civilian position in the Department of the Air Force that is appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate. This position is established under Title 10 US Code Section 9016 and is one of five Assistant Secretary positions under the Secretary of the Air Force. The Assistant Secretary reports to the Secretary of the Air Force.
Military acquisition or defense acquisition is the "bureaucratic management and procurement process",dealing with a nation's investments in the technologies,programs,and product support necessary to achieve its national security strategy and support its armed forces. Its objective is to acquire products that satisfy specified needs and provide measurable improvement to mission capability at a fair and reasonable price.
The United States under secretary of the Army is the second-highest-ranking civilian official of the United States Department of the Army,serving directly under the United States Secretary of the Army. The Secretary and Under Secretary,together with two military officers,the Chief of Staff of the United States Army and the Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army,constitute the senior leaders of the United States Army.
The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering,abbreviated USD (R&E),is a senior official of the United States Department of Defense. The USD (R&E) is charged with the development and oversight of technology strategy for the DoD. The post has at various times had the titles Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering,or Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E). The latter title has itself historically varied between the rank of under secretary and that of assistant secretary.
Paul Garrett Kaminski is a technologist and former U.S. government official,best known for his leading role in the development of stealth aircraft.
Heidi Shyu is an American engineer who has served as the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering in the Biden administration since July 25,2021. She previously served as the United States Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition,Logistics,and Technology ASA(ALT) from 2012 to January 30,2016.
The United States Army Acquisition Corps (AAC) is the officer / NCO corps of the United States Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW),a branch which includes civilians,officers,and NCOs. The Acquisition Corps is composed of army officers who serve in acquisition,a specialized form of product development,fielding,and support and Noncommissioned Officers who specialize in Contracting,Level I Program Management and Purchasing. These officers begin their careers in the other branches of the army for eight years,after which they may elect the Acquisition branch as their career as assistant program managers (APMs),program managers (PMs),and program executive officers (PEOs). The Noncommissioned Officers (NCOs) are reclassified in the Army Acquisition NCO Corps after serving 7-10 years in their respective enlisted career management fields,and serve primarily in the Army Acquisition Career Management Field - 51 and (MOS) 51C. 4% percentage of the Army Acquisition Officers serve among the 40,000 members of the army acquisition workforce,6% in MOS 51C - Acquisition,Logistics and Technology Contracting Noncommissioned Officer,and the remainder 90% percentage consist largely of Department of the Army civilians.
The AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile (JATM) is an American beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) under development by Lockheed Martin. Designed to address advanced threats,the missile is expected to replace or supplement the AIM-120 AMRAAM currently in US service. The United States Department of Defense (DoD) considers the AIM-260A JATM program to be the number one air-delivered weapon priority for both the Air Force and the Navy;and its acquisition out-prioritizes other weapon system improvements and modernization efforts on any fielded aircraft.
The Joint Artificial Intelligence Center (JAIC) (pronounced "jake") was an American organization on exploring the usage of Artificial Intelligence (AI) (particularly Edge computing),Network of Networks and AI-enhanced communication for use in actual combat. In February 2022,JAIC was integrated into the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO).
William B. Roper Jr. is an American physicist and foreign policy strategist who served as the 13th Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition,Technology and Logistics,overseeing procurement for the U.S. Air Force and Space Force from 2018 to 2021. Before taking office he served elsewhere within the Department of Defense as founder and director of the Strategic Capabilities Office,and prior as Ballistic Missile Defense System Architect at the Missile Defense Agency. He was also a member of the 2018 National Defense Strategy steering group. He is currently the CEO at Istari,as well as serving as senior advisor at McKinsey and Co.,and teaching at Georgia Tech.
The Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Space Acquisition and Integration (SAF/SQ) is a civilian position in the United States Department of the Air Force that is appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate. This position is established under Title 10 US Code Section 9016. The assistant secretary reports to the Secretary of the Air Force.
The Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) is a United States Air Force (USAF) sixth-generation air superiority initiative with a goal of fielding a "family of systems" that is to succeed the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor. A crewed fighter aircraft is the centerpiece program of NGAD and has been referred to as the Penetrating Counter-Air (PCA) platform and is to be supported by uncrewed collaborative combat aircraft (CCA),or loyal wingman platforms,through manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T).
Andrew Philip Hunter is an American defense official and policy analyst who is the 14th and current assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition,technology and logistics (SAF/AQ). Prior to becoming an Air Force Assistant Secretary,he was the director of the defense industrial initiatives group at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Before joining CSIS,Hunter spent 15 years as a staffer in the U.S. House of Representatives,and as a senior procurement official at the Department of Defense during the Obama administration.
