{"id":29186,"date":"2017-12-08T19:32:45","date_gmt":"2017-12-08T19:32:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2017\/12\/08\/squadrons-atomic-leadership-style-could-become-a-model-for-the-air-force\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:07:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:07:15","slug":"squadrons-atomic-leadership-style-could-become-a-model-for-the-air-force","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2017\/12\/08\/squadrons-atomic-leadership-style-could-become-a-model-for-the-air-force\/","title":{"rendered":"Squadron\u2019s \u2018atomic leadership style\u2019 could become a model for the Air Force"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

BEALE AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. \u2015 The U-2 is one of the Air Force\u2019s oldest aircraft, having been flown since the 1950s, but the 99th Reconnaissance Squadron here isn\u2019t waiting for the Pentagon to improve the venerable spy plane.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, the squadron\u2019s pilots, maintainers and mission planners have taken procurement into their own hands, and regularly chat with Silicon Valley companies about new commercial technologies that can make them better informed and more effective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dragon Lady pilots here wear pressurized space suits because their aircraft fly so high \u2014 but they now also wear Garmin watches and bring commercial tablets into the cockpit with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The combat system officers responsible for mission planning, navigation and sensor preparation \u2014 all challenging tasks due to the rapidly changing nature of the battlefield and the sophistication of the U-2\u2019s sensors \u2014 will soon have new state-of-the-art computers to help synthesize data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This gear and more was purchased by the squadron itself for about $3.3 million, and the 99th is working with leading technology firms to test out other products that could improve operations. All with little supervision from the Pentagon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U-2 squadron\u2019s innovative leadership style, which has made these advances possible, has attracted the attention of Chief of Staff Gen. Dave Goldfein, who has made \u201crevitalizing squadrons\u201d one of the priorities of his tenure. He is interested in seeing if some of the lessons learned could be applied to other squadrons across the service.
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\u201dGen. Goldfein has told me as a commander to get ready for the fight,\u201d Lt. Col. Matt Nussbaum, commander of the 99th Reconnaissance Squadron, told Defense News, a sister publication, during a Nov. 30 interview here. \u201cI cannot succeed at the mission he\u2019s laid out for me if I wait on the Air Force to give me the answers,\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t