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Drones a Critical Component for Marine EW Tactics Industry News AOC News & Events AOC Chapter News and Events Spectrum Visualization Challenge

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REGISTER NOW: 46th Annual Collaborative EW Symposium, April 25-27, Pt. Mugu, CA
"Collaborative Electronic Warfare: Enabling Collaborative EW Through Innovation and Invention"

As EW warfighting requirements continue to evolve in their complexity and interdependency, it is clear that future EW systems must work collaboratively with other Air, Ground, Surface Space and Cyberspace systems. The 46th Annual Point Mugu Electronic Warfare Symposium will facilitate the exchange of enabling concepts and provide a venue to disseminate current research in the fields of Collaborative Electronic Warfare. Prominent leaders, contributors and representatives from the United States and Australian military, government, academia and industry will come together to address current Electronic Warfare gaps and emerging technologies in Collaborative Electronic Warfare required to address these gaps.

View the Conference Page for the Draft Agenda

FREE COURSE

New Threats Require New EW Approaches - No cost 4-hour course
Instructor: Mr. Dave Adamy
Monday, April 24 | 2:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Embassy Suites Mandalay Bay
Sponsored by Rohde & Schwarz

We are facing an array of new threats that have been developed specifically to overcome the EW approaches we have been using with great success since Viet  Nam. This short-course deals with the features of these new threats and the way they impact EW operations. The new threats have significantly more lethal range, increasing levels of Electronic Protection, and increasingly sophisticated RADAR processing power.  Click here to download the flyer about course and instructor.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS



LtGen Jon M. Davis
Deputy Commandant for Aviation,
Headquarters Marine Corps

VADM Paul Grosklags
Commander, Naval Air Systems Command

Rear Admiral Christian "Boris" Becker
Program Executive Officer for Command, Control, Computers, Communications and Intelligence and Program Executive Officer for Space Systems

RDML Bret C. Batchelder
Commander, Navy Warfare Development Command

RDML Brian K. Corey
Commander, Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division
Assistant Commander for Test and Evaluation,
Naval Air Systems Command

Mr. William Flynn, SES
Director for Innovation and Integration and Senior Advisor for Space for the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Information Warfare (OPNAV N2N6)

Register Now!

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2017 AWARD NOMINATIONS: Recognize Colleagues and Units by May 1
Honor those who have furthered the discipline of Electronic Warfare (EW), Information Operations (IO), Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations (EMSO) and the AOC! Both individually and collectively, you have the knowledge and experience in the Electromagnetic Spectrum community, so you are among the best qualified judges of those accomplishments that deserve international recognition. Whether it be for a single outstanding contribution or unit achievement, an act of courage or heroism or long and valued service that has pushed the frontiers of EMS technology and its applications, we want to receive your nomination!

Recognize your colleagues by nominating someone for one or more of the AOC’s 2017 individual or unit awards.
Head to crows.org to view all the awards and full descriptions. You can nominate a person/unit for more than one award, if you so choose. Download the nomination form from crows.org and fill one out for each recipient you would like to nominate.

Nomination forms are due by May 1st, 2017. Don’t wait, nominate someone today.

Nomination Form

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AOC VIRTUAL SERIES: Smart Antennas, April 20
Thursday, April 20, 2017 | 18:00-19:00 UTC / 14:00-15:00 EST

Smart Antennas are the new generation of antennas that can adapt to a wide range of conditions, environments, and threats.  These antennas are called smart because of their capacity for self-healing when damaged, nulling jamming signals when threatened, beamsteering towards signals of interest, adaptively tracking, and a variety of other "adaptive" capabilities.  Smart Antennas have application in all frequency ranges and can range in complexity from very simple to very complex.

Register Now


Gold Sponsor

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REGISTER NOW: 9th Annual EW Capability Gaps and Enabling Technologies Operational & Technical Information Exchange, May 9-11, Crane, IN
EW warfighting requirements continue to evolve in their complexity and capability to meet Air, Ground, Surface, Space, and Cyberspace requirements. The 9th Annual Electronic Warfare Capability Gaps and Enabling Technologies Operational & Technical Information Exchange will provide a forum for EW professionals from the military, government, industry and academic fields, to discuss issues related to the requirements of EW programs, platforms and operations. This capstone event will focus on the identified gaps and technologies the services require to ensure EW maintains freedom of maneuver through the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS) in support of achieving commanders’ objectives. Speakers and presenters will look back at the previous few years and identify progress made to ensure the success of the warfighter in tomorrow’s battlespace.

Register Now

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KEY SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED: International & Foreign Military Sales (FMS) Electronic Warfare Symposium and Workshop, May 15-19 in Atlanta
U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) and Direct Commercial Sales (DCS) of sensitive military technologies, like Electronic Warfare, can be difficult to understand and navigate for International Partners and U.S. Defense Industry. U.S. Export laws, such as the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), requirements for Export Licenses, and in some cases Congressional approval, can be confusing and complicate the sale of EW systems and associated technical support. This conference provides an educational opportunity and forum for U.S. Government, U.S. Defense Industry, Academia and International partners to share information and provide updates on FMS and DCS program policy, processes and improvements.

HIGH RANKING SPEAKERS



Lt Gen Bob Elder (Ret.)
Symposium Chair

Mr. John A. Weida, SES
Director Policy, Programs & Strategy, Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force for International Affairs (SAF/IA)

Ms. Lisa Fruge-Cirilli
AOC President



Maj Gen Michael Rothstein,USAF
Deputy Asst Secretary Plans, Programs,
& Operations, Bureau of Political-Military
Affairs, US State Department

Air Brigade General Leopoldo Porras
Chilean AF
Head of the Division of Engineering and
Support Systems of Weapons    

Brig Gen Gregory J. Touhill, USAF (Ret.)
Former Chief, Office of Military
Cooperation-Kuwait, U.S. Embassy
Kuwait 2009-2011
 


Col Michael (Torch) Schnabel
Chief, Disclosure, Weapons, and Tech Transfer Division
(SAF/IAPT)

CAPT Laura Schuessler
PMA-272, NAS Patuxent River, MD

Colonel Jong Lee, USA
PMO-ASE, Redstone Arsenal, AL




MG Volodymr Havrylov
Defense Attache, Embassy Ukraine

Mr. Scott Boyd
Chief of the EW & Avionics Div, Agile Combat Support Directorate,
Air Force Life Cycle Management, Robins AFB

Register Now

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AOC VIRTUAL SERIES: EW vs Cyber, May 4
Thursday, May 04, 2017 | 14:00-15:00 EST

Throughout its history, EW has repeatedly been "superseded" by newer concepts and all but forgotten - at least until the shooting starts, at which point the cost of catching up is always high. As the new concept on the block, cyber is currently attracting significant attention and funding, potentially to the detriment of EW. More worryingly, cyber practitioners sometimes argue that the EMS is part of the newly-defined cyber domain, thereby effectively claiming that EW is subordinate to cyber. Is this the end of the EW world as we know it?

This webinar will investigate the relationship between EW and cyber from a technical perspective rather than from a policy perspective. The notion that EW is subordinate to cyber or vice versa will be considered and possible answers provided. Some differences between the two domains will be highlighted, and the suggestion that these domains are equivalent will be explored. Finally, a possible mechanism to facilitate understanding the relationship between EW and cyber will be developed.

Register Now


Gold Sponsor

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SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITY: AOC Spectrum Visualization Challenge
The AOC and Raytheon are partnering to sponsor a Spectrum Visualization Challenge (SVC) -- a pilot scholarship opportunity for undergraduate students pursuing STEM-related fields of study. The SVC challenge is to visually represent and explain electronic warfare (EW), which takes place within the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS). If you are interested in entering or would like to learn more about the competition, please click here.

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SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED: AOC EW Europe - Advancing EW and Electromagnetic Operations Together, June 6-8

Exhibition Space Sold Out!
The Call for Papers has ended and resulted in a great program covering the entire AOC Mission Area – see some of our speakers below.

View the Current Conference Programme

AOC EW Europe will be held in perhaps the world’s most iconic city – London. It will consider the future of EW and EM Operations in the changing light of current and emerging threats, including Hybrid Warfare and Anti Access/Area Denial (A2/AD) where potential opponents are out-performing the West. It will consider the possible responses and how thinking and attitudes must change and examine the new capabilities that will be required across all lines of development, by all services, in all countries in the free world.

The conference will include plenary sessions and twin-tracks focusing respectively on operations, capability and defense lines of development, and industry developments and inventiveness. AOC EW Europe 2017 will bring together the communities involved in EW, SIGINT, C4ISR, Cyber EM Activities (CEMA) and more. Speakers will include leaders and operators from the military, government, academia, S&T and R&D communities and crucially, industry. This is an unclassified truly-global EW networking, exhibition, workshop and conference and not to be missed.

CONFIRMED SPEAKERS INCLUDE:

Air Marshal Philip Sturley CB MBE BSc FRAeS CCMI, Conference Chairman, RAF (Retd), UK
Lisa Frugé-Cirilli, AOC President, US
Air Commodore John Philliban RAF, Head Joint User C4ISR & Cyber, Joint Forces Command, UK
Professor David Stupples, Professor of Electronic & Radio Systems, Director of EW Research, City, University of London, UK
Professor Amit Mehta, College of Engineering, Swansea University, UK
Lt Col Mark Stoter, Commanding Officer 14 Signal Regiment (EW), UK
Dr David Stoudt, Engineering Fellow for Directed Energy, Booz Allen Hamilton, US
Dr Robert Pearson, Director Land Systems, Technical Director, Chemring, UK
Wg Cdr Garry Crosby RAF (Retd), Head of Studies & Research, Airborne & Space Systems, Leonardo, UK

Register Now

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KEYNOTE SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED: 8th Annual Cyber/Electronic Warfare Convergence Conference, June 6-8
June 6-8, 2017 | SPAWAR, Charleston, SC

Electronic Warfare and Cyberspace technical capabilities are becoming more technically similar. However, the communities which practice these disciplines remain largely separated and vary widely across the military Services in terms of their equipment, unit organization and operating methodologies. This conference provides the EW and Cyberspace communities an opportunity to collaborate and discuss capabilities, TTPs and research in EW and Cyberspace operations to enable more rapid deployment of new and improved capabilities. The EW/Cyberspace Convergence Conference identifies ways to develop advanced technologies and systems to address the changing battlefield dynamics of the digital age and bring EW and Cyberspace together for the Warfighter!

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS



Lieutenant General Jon M. Davis
Deputy Commandant for Aviation, Headquarters Marine Corps    

Brigadier General Ryan Herritage (invited)
Dep Dir, Future Operations,
J3USCYBERCOM

Major General James Livingston, USMC (Ret.)
Medal of Honor Recipient



Vice Admiral Jan Tighe (invited)
Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Information Warfare/
Director of Naval Operations

Major General Burke "Ed" Wilson
Deputy Principal Cyber Advisor to the Secretary of Defense and Senior Military Advisor for Cyber and Office of the Under  Secretary of Defense for Policy, Office of the Secretary of Defense


Register Now

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AARDVARK ROOST CHAPTER: EW South Africa 2017, International Conference and Exhibition, November 6-8
The Association of Old Crows (AOC) Aardvark Roost Chapter is hosting the Electronic Warfare South Africa 2017 International Conference & Exhibition from 6 to 8 November 2017 at the CSIR International Convention Centre in Pretoria, South Africa. EW South Africa 2017 will be the premier event to enhance your networking with military leaders, policy makers and electronic warfare practitioners. The exhibition running alongside the conference allows visitors to meet with industry solutions providers and to see demonstrations of the latest innovations and technologies shaping the future of electromagnetic operations.

We would like to take this opportunity to invite you to join a global audience of EW military, government and industry stakeholders at this international defence forum.

We encourage you to take advantage of engagement opportunities presented by the forthcoming event such as an array of sponsorship options, exhibition and delegate packages. For information in this regard please consult the event sponsorship and exhibitor prospectus below, or contact Conference Consultancy, Mrs Corné Engelbrecht at +27 (0)12 349 2301 or corne@confsa.co.za.

More information

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This two day workshop will cover the basics of emitter geolocation plus recent advances in the field. Emitter geolocation is the identification or estimation of the real-world geographic location of an object that emits some type of signal, such as a radar, mobile radio, RFID or even an acoustic source. In its simplest form geolocation involves the generation of a set of geographic coordinates and is closely related to the use of positioning systems. The techniques of emitter geolocation apply regardless of the spectral range of the emissions and typically involve estimation of the Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) and/or Frequency Difference of Arrival (FDOA) among multiple spatially diverse detectors. Applications of emitter geolocation are also numerous ranging from asset tracking to traffic monitoring to defense uses such as battlespace management.

Presenter: Professor Mark Fowler from SUNY Binghamton
Learn More...

 

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CALL FOR PAPERS: Pikes Peak Roost EW Olympics and Symposium, July 13-14
The Association of Old Crows (AOC) - Pikes Peak Roost Chapter will host the 2017 Electronic Warfare Olympics & Symposium on July 13th & 14th, 2017 in Colorado Springs, CO.

The 2017 Electronic Warfare Olympics & Symposium will improve the capability, and marketability, of spectrum warriors by building the local EW/IO community. and bringing awareness to the capabilities in the region. The event will consist of speakers, government and industry exhibits, and Electronic Warfare Olympics. The Olympics will be a series of team-based technical challenges of varying distance and difficulty with respect to modern digital warfare. Topics will be focused on Electronic Warfare, but will also involve Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Space.

CALL FOR PAPERS
We are now accepting speaking proposals for this event. Abstracts will be evaluated by The Association of Old Crows Pikes Peak Roost Chapter. Proposals should be relevant to the requested topic. You may submit more than one abstract. Papers are due May 26.

Call for Papers Details
Register Now

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VISIT THE AOC JOB VACANCIES PAGE: Post Your Jobs
Employers can post on the Job Vacancies page for free. Follow the guide located HERE to provide information on posting a job listing. Submitted listings will remain live for 30 days. The AOC will not format or edit submitted postings, and will not respond to any questions from candidates concerning postings. We are hoping members and sponsors will take advantage of this free AOC service. Complete the guide linked above and submit to Tim Hutchison at hutchison@crows.org.

Job Vacancies Page

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Unmanned aircraft will be a key pillar for and a major component of the Marine Corps’ electronic warfare strategy, according to the service’s 2017 Aviation Plan, released at the end of March. "UAS are a planned critical component of the [Marine Air Ground Task Force] EW concept," the plan said. "Coupling new UAS employment concepts with emerging payloads provides the Marine Corps the ability to influence the EM Spectrum--providing additional critical advantages in the battle space. UAS provide the MAGTF commander with a persistent lethal and flexible capability." (C4ISRNet)
Learn More...

 

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The head of the U.S. Air Force's tanker fleet wants a "cloaking device" capable of hiding his giant aerial refueling planes from enemy eyes. The service is worried that such planes would become easy targets in a war scenario involving large, capable air forces such as Russia or China. Almost all major air forces rely on aerial refueling tankers to extend keep their planes flying, to extend their patrol times or help them cross vast distances. Without tankers, the F-35A Joint Strike Fighter would have a combat radius (the distance a combat aircraft can travel one way, expecting combat, fully loaded with weapons) of less than 600 miles. (Popular Mechanics)
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The global proliferation of Russian and Chinese weapons massively increases the likelihood that US Army forces will confront tanks, drones, electronic warfare systems, precision munitions, armored vehicles and artillery made by near-peer competitors. Although the prospect of major-power mechanized ground war between the US and Russia or China may not seem likely, the US Army is tasked with the need to be ready for any ground-combat scenario. What this means, Army leaders expained, is that the current and future combat environment the globe is both increasingly urban and armed with Russian and Chinese-made tanks and weapons. Scout Warrior)
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The 480th Aircraft Maintenance Unit’s Avionics Shop here underwent a Combat Shield evaluation March 20–24. A Combat Shield evaluation team from the 16th Electronic Warfare Squadron at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, conducted the annual inspection to gauge the effectiveness of the threat-detection systems and countermeasures aboard the F-16 Fighting Falcons assigned here. Combat Shield members use a USM-642 Raven signal generator that simulates real-world radar emissions to conduct the testing. The evaluation team hooks the signal generator to an aircraft with cables. Then, the team uses the device to send threat signals, which mimic an enemy attack, to the aircraft. (DVIDs)
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The Canadian navy is planning to load electronic jamming equipment into remote control surface drones that could be used to protect Canadian frigates from anti-ship missiles. The gear would "provide jamming capability against anti-ship missile threats," say relevant documents, which also stated the equipment could be used for radar testing and training. The electronic warfare payload must include "real-time, trainable and stabilized video surveillance capability," and be able to identify designated threats, say the documents, quoted on localxpress.ca. (I-Hls)
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Mounds of green sea bags litter the area as Marines and loved ones say their final goodbyes and see-you-later’s to each other. Marines assigned to Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 3, Marine Aircraft Group 14, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, left for their squadron’s final deployment from Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, March 29, 2017. "We’re basically going to keep our guys safe," said Staff Sgt. Alex Warrens, a fleet administrator with VMAQ-3. "We can facilitate the ground troop’s actions through what our platform does. It’s a safety blanket for them. Years ago, my brother-in-law was in the Army in Afghanistan, and my unit was providing coverage for them. It really brings it home for me that those guys on the ground have that extra bit of safety." (DVIDs)
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Over the past 40 years, Marine EA-6B Prowlers have been called upon to serve our nation in contingency operations from aircraft carriers and expeditionary airfields all around the globe. For good reason, the legendary Lt. Gen. Tom Miller Jr., best known as the father of the USMC Harriers, called the EA-6B our most important aircraft. A Feb. 7 celebration of the 40th anniversary of the first Marine EA-6B Prowler flight marked an aviation milestone, as the Prowler is now the longest serving jet airplane in Marine Corps history. Its legacy continues as the latest generation of Marines are proudly serving with it at home and abroad until its final sunset, now scheduled for 2019. (Marine Corps Times)
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Among the consequences of a crowded electromagnetic spectrum is noise – a lot of it – created mostly by an influx of wireless and other emitters generating a cacophony of signals of varying frequencies and modulation schemes. Ongoing efforts to share and make more efficient use of available spectrum appear to be falling short as the U.S. military relies more heavily on mobile communications while retaining its ability to counter, for example, electronic warfare tactics. (Defense Systems)
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The head of all U.S. forces in the Pacific canceled a planned carrier exercises and port visits in Australia and redirected the Carl Vinson carrier strike group to the waters off the Korean Peninsula as the U.S. weighs a series of limited options for dealing with an increasingly unbalanced and dangerous North Korean regime. In a release Saturday afternoon, U.S. Pacific Command announced the cancellation and redeployment of Vinson. Announcing carrier movements in advance is rare, and generally done to send a clear message. (Navy Times)
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If things go south, high-end American fighters may take on top-of-the-line Russian anti-aircraft missiles. For years, the U.S. military has been fretting about the return of conflicts in which air defenses play a big role. If tensions escalate in Syria, high-end American fighter jets might face off against Russia’s top-of-the-line anti-aircraft missiles — and both sides will quickly learn who has the edge. Russia began moving its high-end, ready-for-World-War-III air defense equipment into Syria early on in the conflict. (Defense One)
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In the event that the United States decides to expand its air campaign in Syria to either carry out additional punitive strikes or to overthrow the Assad regime, the Pentagon has more options than simply relying on stealth aircraft to suppress or destroy enemy air defenses. While the U.S. Air Force is a staunch advocate of relying on stealth publicly, there are others ways to defeat advanced Russian air defenses such as the S-400 or S-300V4. Indeed, even the Air Force’s own tactical gurus at its Warfare Center at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, acknowledge that stealth works best when used in concert with electronic warfare. (The National Interest)
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In 2016, VAQ-130 Growler Electronic Attack aircraft worked hard to deny the ISIS militants the ability to communicate. Islamic State militants rely heavily on COTS (Commercial Off The Shelf) and DIY radios along with smartphones to communicate, browse the Internet, send emails, exchange messages, dispatch orders, trigger IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) etc. Various platforms of the US-led coalition that fights ISIS in Syria and Iraq continuously work to snoop into Daesh comms, intercept the signals emitted by their devices and, if needed, make such communication impossible (by disturbing the comms or attacking the cell towers or targeting specific high value individuals using cell phones). (The Aviationist)
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Lockheed Martin views the multi-domain warfare concept as so important it is funding and holding a series of classified war games to explore strategies, Concepts of Operation and weapons to see how they might perform taking on an A2/AD opponent. The second game begins today and ends Thursday. As Breaking D readers know, the Multi-Domain approach is relatively simple in concept: use data from below and above the sea, from the land, from the air and from cyber and space, gather it together, analyze it at incredible speed and then attack the enemy from whatever domains and in whatever ways a combination of machines and humans decide will work best. (Breaking Defense)
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The rapidly changing battlefield landscape is shaped by technological advances and ever-advancing peer actors. That means the military must make adjustments to be able to compete and dominate in futuristic operating environments. While the services are all pursuing multi-domain battle concepts, or seamless operation and coordination across the five domains of warfare, forces organized around the military’s newest domain of warfare ― cyber ― are also reevaluating their posture as they are being formed. (C4ISRNet)
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