Halfway through October means the AOC Board of Directors elections are halfway over! Be sure to exercise your right as a member of this organization to decide on our future by voting!

You should have received an email with a username and password from our independent election service - Elections On-Line. This password is secure and unique to you. If you didn't see the email from Elections On-Line, try checking your spam folder. If you have not received it, please contact Glorianne O'Neilin.

All AOC members will be able to vote for President-Elect and two At-Large Directors. Members in the Central Region, Mid-Atlantic Region, and Mountain West Region will be able to vote for their respective Regional Directors (Only members of a region can vote for their director.)

Learn more about the candidates. You can read their platforms and watch some of their videos!

Voting ends Oct. 31, so don't delay! Vote now.

AOC 2021, the Association of Old Crow’s International Symposium & Convention, is fast approaching. This much-anticipated return to an in-person event will take place at the Washington, D.C. Convention Center from Nov. 30 – Dec. 2.

Latest Agenda
The agenda is coming together nicely! View the latest schedule.

Register before the price increases
If you have not registered, take advantage of a lower rate before Nov. 5.

Seeking Volunteers
Our volunteers are critical to the success of AOC 2021, interested in being a part of this year's event? Find out more at crows.org/2021Volunteer.

Hotel Information
Be sure to book your room at this year's host hotel, the newly renovated, upscale Courtyard/Residence Inn by Marriott Downtown/Convention Center!

Booth Space Selling Out!
Learn more about exhibitor benefits, rates and how to reserve your booth at 58.crows.org. You can also contact Sean Fitzgerald at Fitzgerald@crows.org or 703-549-1600 x222 for more information.

STEM Competition Now Open!

The AOC STEM Program invites students in grades 9-12 to submit a one- to five-minute video for the chance to win $2,000 for their group and gain access to member benefits to enhance their future career goals. AOC recognizes the importance of educating and guiding the next generation of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians using an interdisciplinary and applied approach. 

Competition Opens: Oct. 1.
Competition Closes: Nov. 30.

This contest aims to encourage and support student STEM groups to consider the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) in their studies. The competition is a chance for your School or STEM team to work on a fun project with an AOC Mentor, learn about the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS) and how it applies to everyday life and a future career. In addition, this competition is an opportunity to win a significant financial award for your school/group and a chance to be informative, inventive, artistic, scientific, technical and creative in a short video.

Learn more.

What SOSA™ Means to the Warfighter
Oct. 14 | 2-3 p.m. EDT

The DOD and the defense electronics industry have been developing the Sensor Open Systems Architecture™ (SOSA) technical standard for the past several years. This panel will discuss the next chapter for SOSA: the introduction of SOSA 1.0; how program offices will apply the SOSA standard to radar, EW and SIGINT programs; and most importantly, how SOSA will impact the warfighter.

Register now.

AOC continues to connect Electromagnetic Warfare practitioners, industry partners, policymakers, and procurement decision-makers.

The year 2020 was a massive interruption to life and business, changing how we work, how we connect and forced us into a new way of doing things. We have created new ways to connect and share with our members through these changing times. We have taken events to a virtual space and created new and exciting opportunities for our members to continue looking to AOC as industry leaders.

Now more than ever it's important to keep in touch and AOC sponsorships are a great way to be part of what's happening right now in the electromagnetic spectrum operations (EMSO) industry.

Partner with AOC to increase your reach!
By partnering with AOC, Industry Partners have a variety of ways to connect with members throughout the year. Stay relevant to your customer base, participate in high-level discussions and, most importantly, nurture relationships with key contacts.

Learn more.

The Association of Old Crows is pleased to provide its online Career Center – the premier resource to connect career opportunities with highly qualified EW, EMSO, CEMA, SIGINT, ELINT & IO talent. You can access the AOC Career Center at https://careers.crows.org.

Featured Jobs:

• EW/RF Systems Engineer – Arcata Associates – Point Mugu, California, United States
• RF Engineer – Integration Innovation, Inc. (i3) –  Huntsville, Alabama, United States

Continuing Resolution, Continuing Technical Advancements with Dr. Bill Conley, CTO, Mercury Systems
Oct. 27 | 12-1 p.m. EDT

This webinar will talk about how rapid integration of technology, largely through open standards, is paramount to being able to being able to gain, and sustain, a technology overmatch without introducing unnecessary complexity into the tactical and operational levels of war. The talk is particularly focused on EMSO systems given their dependence on globally sourced advanced semiconductors.

Speaker: Dr. Bill Conley, CTO, Mercury Systems

There are many things Lt. Col. Crawford Elmer Hicks, USAF (Ret.) was known for: B-17 pilot, prisoner of war, local hero, author. He was all of those things but he was also more than his military record. Crawford was the kindest and most generous soul who opened his heart to all. The 100-year-old Warner Robins resident passed away peacefully at his home on Saturday, Oct. 2.

Part of the Greatest Generation, he was born on Feb. 10, 1921 in Leitchfield, Kentucky. Crawford’s dream from a young boy was to be a pilot. His dream was realized when he joined the Air Corp Cadet Program in 1942 and started flying trainer planes in Albany, Georgia. His first mission in WWII occurred in May 1944. His B-17 was shot down in Germany on his 10th mission. He was a POW for nearly a year before being rescued by Allied Forces on April 29, 1945.

After the war, Crawford spent another two decades in the U.S. Air Force. He served his country for many more years as an attorney in the U.S. Housing and Development Authority. He met Edna Hicks at a dinner at the Warner Robins Officers Club. The irony was that while Edna was in London during the Blitz in WWII, Crawford was defending her country against the invading Germans. The couple married in 2003 and were gracious enough to share their stories about the war countless times. His wife describes Crawford as the biggest flirt one could meet and that he never met a stranger.

The ARCAS rifle sight provides passive range measurement, automatic ballistic correction, detection of fire sources, video motion detection, the ability to shoot around the corner and from the hip, interfaces with tactical command and control; navigation assistance, friend or foe identification, tracking of stoppage and ammunition and weapon zeroing without the need for live fire. (Military & Aerospace Electronics)

The first platoon of the U.S. Army’s Maneuver-Short-Range Air Defense System arrived in Europe five months ago, and the first unit to receive the Stryker-based systems have now put them through their paces ahead of live-fire events and bigger exercises down the road, Lt. Col. Abraham Osborn, the head of 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, said in a statement last week. (Defense News)

The new radar, known as GhostEye MR, is a variant of the company’s GhostEye, Raytheon’s new name for its Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor under development for the U.S. Army. (Breaking Defense)