{"id":15559,"date":"2018-02-06T21:58:03","date_gmt":"2018-02-06T21:58:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/uncategorized\/2018\/02\/06\/air-force-to-begin-cyber-squadron-roll-out-in-2018\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T18:04:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T18:04:00","slug":"air-force-to-begin-cyber-squadron-roll-out-in-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2018\/02\/06\/air-force-to-begin-cyber-squadron-roll-out-in-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"Air Force to begin cyber squadron roll out in 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force is readying to roll out the beginning stages of a major <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fifthdomain.com\/dod\/air-force\/2017\/07\/28\/heres-how-the-air-force-is-fighting-in-the-cyber-domain\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">cyber initiative<\/a> in 2018 as it seeks to protect critical missions from cyber harm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The so-called cyber squadron initiative will be moving beyond the pathfinder phase that spanned fiscal years 2016\/2017 and into the enterprise roll out phase this year, Lt. Col. Steven Wieland, chief of the strategy branch within the Air Force\u2019s chief information office, told Fifth Domain during a recent interview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The cyber squadron initiative aims to protect the Air Force\u2019s core missions by establishing and assigning personnel and cyber teams to wings and missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/cyber\/2017\/07\/05\/air-force-chronically-undermanned-in-cyber\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"187\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/air-force-data-analysis.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Air Force &#8216;chronically undermanned&#8217; in cyber<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Air Force was recently criticized by top congressional leaders for appearing to not retain cyber warriors within the cyber mission force.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Following the pathfinder effort, in which the Air Force established 44 teams, the service will now begin to select bases and wings to start rolling out with the next phase. The Air Force created a concept that spells out what the cyber squadron is \u2014 discovering that they had to build a whole squadron structure to support the ultimate goal of protecting aircraft and key cyber terrain on bases to make missions go \u2014 and is looking to institute training and infrastructure, Wieland said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This effort and associated cyber teams are separate from 24th Air Force\/Air Forces Cyber, the Air Force\u2019s service component of U.S. Cyber Command.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1800\" height=\"1200\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/635584711796022946-february-2-frontlines-11jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11110\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/635584711796022946-february-2-frontlines-11jpg.jpg 1800w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/635584711796022946-february-2-frontlines-11jpg.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/635584711796022946-february-2-frontlines-11jpg.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/635584711796022946-february-2-frontlines-11jpg.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/635584711796022946-february-2-frontlines-11jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1800px) 100vw, 1800px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Two F-15E Strike Eagles assigned to the 4th Fighter Wing on their way to Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., in support of Red Flag 15-1, wait to receive fuel from a KC-135R Stratotanker assigned to the 916th Air Refueling Wing Jan. 23, 2015. Red Flag 15-1, featuring aircraft from 21 different U.S. Air Force squadrons, offers realistic combat training involving the air, space and cyber forces of the United States and its allies. (U.S. Air Force photo\/Airman 1st Class Aaron J. Jenne)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The mission defense teams, the specialized cyber teams within the cyber squadrons, will be the \u201cbeat cops,\u201d so to speak, understanding the critical cyber terrain and networks of the wings and missions they\u2019re assigned to even deploying with these units in some cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The MDTs and cyber squadrons will be an organic capability to Air Force wings within the squadron structure, Wieland said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Air Force officials in the past have noted the need for the service to develop its own cyber capabilities to get at service-specific issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s a clear recognition that our service needs an organic cyber capability to get after much of what Cyber Command \u2026 just doesn\u2019t have the bandwidth to do or simply not in their charter, and it\u2019s critical [to the] Air Force,\u201d former Air Force CIO Lt. Gen. William Bender <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/it-networks\/2016\/09\/26\/bender-operationalize-the-cio\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">said<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This organic capability revolves around the Air Force\u2019s five core missions \u2014 air and space superiority; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; rapid global mobility; global strike; and command and control \u2014 and focuses on mission-specific tasks in the air domain. CYBERCOM, Bender said, is concerned with big problems and high-end warfare, such as protecting missile defense systems and air defense systems and assuring the nuclear enterprise and space enterprise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force, he said, needs cyber-minded personnel to assure things like aerial refueling, assigning crews to planes, ensuring planes take off on time and they deliver their payload or complete their mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some of the other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fifthdomain.com\/dod\/navy\/2017\/07\/31\/navy-applies-a-layered-defense-approach-in-cyberspace\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">services<\/a> have taken a similar track, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fifthdomain.com\/dod\/marine-corps\/2017\/10\/25\/marines-training-expeditionary-cyber-defenders-to-join-forces-in-the-field\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">creating organic, service-specific cyber teams<\/a> apart from their contributions to U.S. Cyber Command.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the Air Force, this organic capability \u2014 in the form of a unit at a fighter wing, for example <span class=\"js-paste-start-LVI33IDAB5EQJL7BZ4T4DKC3GI\">\u2014<span class=\"js-paste-end-LVI33IDAB5EQJL7BZ4T4DKC3GI\"> will do functional mission analysis, which disaggregates the mission of the wing assuring sorties get off the ground and bombs get on target, Wieland said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe MDTs, through their cyber squadron, would be responsible for deciding which cyber terrain that they\u2019re going to defend at that point, for how long and in what manner and then make sure that with the ultimate goal of making sure that mission is assured that we can get jets off the ground and bombs on target,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This key cyber terrain for mission defense teams could be traditional IT or operational technology such as industrial control systems or even platforms with cyber systems tied inherently to the platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>How did this start?<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Part of this effort stems back two decades, according to Maj. Gen. Patrick Higby, director of Air Force cyber strategy and policy. When a circuit went out or a server crashed or a radio net went down, if a comm squadron commander went to their wing commander and said they just lost circuit x, y or z, the wing commander would ask what that meant for the mission, he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fifthdomain.com\/dod\/air-force\/2017\/07\/28\/heres-how-the-air-force-is-fighting-in-the-cyber-domain\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">said<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Similarly, the current initiative seeks to ensure the individual squadron level can fight through cyber incidents \u2014 whether from adversaries or insiders \u2014 to make sure the wing commander can complete their mission, even if it\u2019s in a degraded state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With the pathfinder effort that began over the last two years, Wieland said the service intentionally tried to cast a wide net with the 44 units to cover as many of the different Air Force mission sets as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A few examples include units in mobility, special operations, combat forces and space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>What\u2019s next?<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With the enterprise roll out, Wieland noted they will continue experimenting with the make up of the mission defense teams while also prioritizing which wings will get cyber squadrons based on prioritization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The make up of the MDTs will be diverse depending on the mission set they are assigned to, he said. There is no set size or composition defined yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019re not putting out a standard-size MDT to say we have X person-sized MDT for each entity, because that doesn\u2019t make a lot of sense,\u201d he said. \u201cA space system, for example, that controls satellites, is a very different proposition than a C-130. There should be different compositions on those teams.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some pathfinder units incorporated non-cyber personnel and non-communications personnel given their expertise in understanding what the mission and cyber overlay of that mission is, Wieland explained, adding, \u201cI suspect that we will continue to experiment for some time, until each mission finds the fight mix.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This experimentation includes use of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/2017\/04\/11\/air-force-wants-contractors-to-defend-space-systems-from-cyberattacks\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">contractors, as well<\/a>. In some cases, contractors made sense while in other, such as a highly deployable unit, Wieland said they don\u2019t.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Air Force is rolling out the next phase of its initiative that aims to protect the critical Air Force-specific missions that ensure cyber threats are thwarted.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":47638,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":16,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"4":{"categories":["your-air-force","news","daily-news-roundup","newsletters"],"primary_category":"your-air-force"}}},"categories":[10,106,29,16,32],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3268],"class_list":["post-15559","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cyber","category-daily-brief","category-home","category-it-networks","category-newsletters"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"FOB6TQT5IZEUHF4VUD5KUXWAK4","arc_canonical_url":"\/dod\/air-force\/2018\/02\/06\/air-force-to-begin-cyber-squadron-roll-out-in-2018\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented 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