the association of old crows

Volume 35, Issue 2 1 April-June 2018

AOC – The Electronic Warfare & Information Operations Association Billy Mitchell Chapter □ 5430 Tulip Bend □ San Antonio, TX 78253 □ (210) 279-9837 □ [email protected]

The Association of Old Crows and AOC Education Foundation

Billy Mitchell Chapter

“El Grito del Cuervo”

The Cry of the Crow

HISTORY

The Billy Mitchell Chapter (BMC) in San Antonio, Texas, is a member of the Mountain-Western Region

of the Association of Old Crows, Inc. (AOC) and the AOC Educational Foundations, Inc. (AEF). The Billy

Mitchell Chapter (BMC) was chartered in 1968 in San Antonio, Texas. It was the 24th Chapter of the AOC.

Located in the nation's highest concentration of Information Operators, the BMC has an active membership

of 300 military and civilian personnel with numerous corporate alliances. The BMC has always had an

active luncheon program with speakers on current EW/cyber activities and functions.

Since its beginning, the BMC chapter has been an active member of the San Antonio community by

supporting numerous events such as the Alamo Regional Science and Engineering Fair with – providing

judges and awards to the category winners. Most recently, the BMC has supported the National Collegiate

Cyber Defense Competition held in San Antonio and provided scholarships to the local Cyber Patriot

winners, -- a national high school level competition. The BMC has supported many ROTC programs at the

college and high school levels with awards recognizing outstanding students. Since the scholarship

program began in 1986 the BMC has awarded over $356,000 to deserving students.

The above mentioned activities and the dedicated men and women of the BMC contributed to the BMC

winning the AOC Chapter of the Year award many times for both the large and the medium chapter

category. The BMC was named Chapter of the Year (Large Chapter Category) for 15 consecutive years

from 1993 to 2008. BMC members have served on the AOC Board of Directors and many have been

recognized for their contributions to the AOC by being awarded the Gold Medal, the Silver Medal, Life

Time Achievements Awards, and numerous competitive awards

MISSION STATEMENT

The Billy Mitchell Chapter (BMC) is the San Antonio-based chapter of the international Association of the

Old Crows (AOC). It is a volunteer, nonprofit, educational organization dedicated to advocating for a

strong national defense with an emphasis on electronic warfare and the other core capabilities of

information operations (IO): computer network operations, operational security, military deception, and

military information support operations (formerly PSYOP); it is also dedicated to fostering communication

and interaction between professionals in each of these national defense areas; it supports America’s

maintenance of the technological edge by awarding scholarships annually to San Antonio students whose

interests are in engineering, math, or the physical sciences; it raises the profile of the AOC in San Antonio

by participating in local events such as Fiesta, Cyber Caucuses, etc.; it supports DoD events by periodically

hosting local social or professional events for major non-AOC meetings and conferences.



Table of Contents

Chapter History and Mission 1

Board of Directors 2

BMC Social at “The Cove” 3

May Membership Meeting Re-Cap 4

June Membership Meeting Re-Cap 5

Crow Feathers 8

Announcements 10

Contact Info 10

BMC-AOC Board Members and Committee Chairs

Position Name email

President/Awareness/Social John Langford [email protected] Vice President/Awards/Goals Gary Henley [email protected]

Secretary / Speakers Programs Kent Namikas [email protected]

Treasurer/Historian Francisco Ball [email protected]

Scholarships/STEM/Networking Sam Smith [email protected]

Member at Large (appointed) Raul Huerta-Mendez [email protected]

Advocacy & Awareness Marc Jamison [email protected]

AOC Liaison/Membership J.J. Romano [email protected]

SWRI Liaison Jim Moryl [email protected]

Newsletter/Elections/Bylaws Ross Vincent [email protected]

Military Liaison (appointed) VACANT

Visit the AOC Jobs Board at http://www.myaoc.org/EWEB/dynamicpage.aspx?webcode=career_center

http://www.myaoc.org/EWEB/dynamicpage.aspx?webcode=career_center



AOC-BMC Social at “The Cove”

15 April 2018

The Association of Old Crows Billy Mitchell Chapter (AOC-BMC) kicked off their first social

during their 50th anniversary year as a chapter with an informal event hosted at “The Cove” near

downtown San Antonio on Sunday afternoon on 15 Apr 2018. “The Cove” is a nationally

acclaimed eclectic venue featured on the TV show “Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives” for their famous

fish tacos. Sunday afternoon turned out to be an absolutely gorgeous day with highs in the mid

70’s. The BMC rented eight tables for BMC guests near their outdoor Texas Bar and provided

dozens of mini-fish tacos, along with burger sliders, nachos, chips and salsa. The BMC also

provided ample drink tickets for guests to select from over 100 different beers or homemade root

beer. The event was attended by military, government civilians, contractors, and their families to

include kids. The highlight of the day was a raffle for a free glider aircraft ride provided by long-

time AOC member and BMC board member J.J. Romano. The winner was the spouse of a local

lifetime AOC member!



Vigilant Prospector: Next Generation ELINT Flagging

9 May 2018 BMC – AOC Luncheon By Kent Namikas

On Wednesday 9 May we had another successful luncheon

at the Lackland Club. We had about 25 attendees at the

event. Lt Col Clay “Deuce” Small, Commander of the 453d

Electronic Warfare Squadron spoke to us about Vigilant

Prospector (VIPR): Next Generation ELINT Flagging. Lt

Col Small has spoken to the chapter before and he was

providing an update on the progress that they have made over

the past few years in the area of flagging. He also wanted to

brag a little about his unit before he moves on to the Joint

Information Operations Warfare Center.

Lt Col Small explained how legacy flagging tools use

serialized, intercept-centric processes which require manual intervention for several steps in the overall

flagging process. While the VIPR system provides a holistic, emitter-

centric characterization & change detection process. This is a true

paradigm shift in the way flagging is accomplished. In general the

system “remembers’ what the electromagnetic environment looked like

yesterday and looks for changes in that environment. VIPR

accomplishes this by leveraging highly redundant “big data” then

detects anomalies to provide updates to several ELINT databases. The

system requires fewer manual steps than the legacy system thus requires

less manpower to operate. During two proof of concept exercises they

ran the legacy system alongside VIPR. VIPR required 84% less

manpower yet provided between 100% and 350% more updates. This

paradigm shift in the flagging process is required to meet the needs of

5th generation aircraft. VIPR achieved IOC in February.

Lt Col Small also

discussed some of the

updates to Improved Many-on-many (IMOM) and Distributed

Integrated Constructive Environment (DICE). Improvement

to these models are critical to enable mission planning and

training in a realistic live, virtual, constructive (LVC)

environment. He went on to discuss how IMOM is being used

to enable near-real-time decision aids for crews in flight. The

Air Force Future Operating Concept states that the Adaptive

Domain Control mission includes the ability to operate in and

across air, space, and cyberspace to achieve varying levels of

domain superiority over adversaries seeking to exploit all

means to disrupt friendly operations. Domain superiority is that degree of dominance that permits the

conduct of friendly operations at a given time and place without prohibitive interference by an adversary.

The 453 EWS is helping the Air Force to achieve EMS Superiority.

After the presentation the Vice President of the BMC, Mr. Gary John Langford thanked Lt Col Small for

the informative briefing and presented him with a memento.



BMC Field Trip to 558th Flying Training Squadron

6 June 2018 By Kent Namikas

On Wednesday, 6 June the Billy Mitchell Chapter went on a field trip to the 558th Flying Training

Squadron at Randolph AFB. A total of 23 members listened to Capt “POG” Eshleman discuss the

Marine Corps Electronic Warfare training conducted at the squadron. POG began his career as an

enlisted Marine then transitioned to the Officer Corps as a pilot for remotely piloted aircraft (RPA).

He is currently an instructor for the Marines that go through training at the 558th.

Before POG began his briefings, Lt Col

“SPA” Bissonette, the Commander of

the 558th, said a few words of

introduction about the squadron and the

training program. He said that, in

addition to the Marines’ EW course, this

one squadron qualifies about one third

of all pilots produced in the Air Force!

Then POG took the stage to present his

briefing (which was actually three

briefings in one).

First POG briefed about the mission of the 558th. He explained how the squadron produces both

RPA pilots and RPA sensor operators. After some initial training for the pilots at Pueblo Colorado

(the Air Force’s Initial Flight Training Program – IFT)and for the sensor operators at Lackland

AFB, the students report to the 558th. Their training with the 558th is 3.5 months for the pilots and

1.5 months for the sensor operators. After graduation they branch off to separate formal training

units for their assigned weapon systems.

Next POG talked about Marine Corps operations in the EMS. He discussed the general

organization of a Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF). He explained how changes in the

operating environment and the threat are driving changes in the MAGTF. The Marine Corps

Operating Concept 2016 places more emphasis on cyberspace and the EMS. As a result, the

Command Element is being reorganized as the MEF Information Group (MIG) to encompass

operations in the information environment. Three of the eight sections within the MIG deal with

operations in the EMS: Radio Battalion, Communications Battalion and Intelligence Battalion.

The Marines have already completed many of the foundational documents to make this new

structure a reality. EMS Operations (EMSO) is a fundamental element of the new system. The

USMC’s EMSO Concept was signed in October 2017. Each MEF will have a battalion of EW

Marines in the Radio Battalion and the Air Wing will have Intrepid Tiger 2 (IT II) pods for all

TACAIR.



Finally POG talked about their EW training. With the retirement of the Prowler, EW expertise in

the Marine Corps is diminishing. The class taught at Randolph is currently the only EW course in

the Marine Corps; but that is only temporary. Leadership is working to determine the long term

solution. The EW course is being taught to the Marine graduates of the RPA program. He teaches

up to 24 students per class and up to seven classes per year. The course is a two week block of

instruction and leverages other EW training venues (Aviation Electronc Warfare School, Joint EW

Theater Operations Course, etc.). He also has guest instructors come in from the Joint Electronic

Warfare Center at Lackland and from the SIGINT Operators course at Goodfellow AFB. Aside

from the classroom instruction, POG has established an extensive reading list for the students.

After the presentation John Langford presented Capt Eshleman with a plaque to thank him for the

very informative briefing and for hosting the BMC at Randolph. In addition, John called up Kent

Namikas and presented him with a plaque to thank him for his dedicated service to the Billy

Mitchell Chapter. Then the entire group went outside for a few pictures in front of the T-29. The

T-29 was the old navigator trainer prior to the T-43. There was also a variant of the T-29 that was

modified for EW training. Several members that attended the briefing had flown on the T-29. All

in all it was a great day to be a member of the BMC!



This month, we have another installment of “Crow Feathers” – little known stories from the history

and technology of EW. We owe a big thanks to members of the 563d EWS – creators of the

original Crow Feathers Companion Reader.

Suter—Father of Red Flag

He was a hard-living, no-nonsense fighter pilot—and he fundamentally changed how the Air

Force conducts operations. Then Major Richard “Moody” Suter got a vision—legend has it that

he wrote it down on a napkin at a bar. That idea became Exercise RED FLAG in 1975. Today,

RED FLAG is the largest air exercise in the world. Generations of aircrew have learned valuable

lessons from these exercises. This is the story of the man who created them.

There were many difficulties facing the Air Force in the years after the Vietnam War. One of

those concerned our air combat skill. The statistics did not look good. Our kill ratio in the air had

been very low, and the death rate among our pilots had been very high. The top leadership in the

Air Force was not satisfied with the current state of aircrew combat training.

(Left) Not a good day—an F-4 is caught in the crosshairs of an antiaircraft gun in an early RED FLAG. (Right) Col Richard Suter left a permanent mark on the Air Force.

“Moody” Suter had a plan to fix that problem. He had discovered that a flyer was most likely

to get shot down during his or her first 10 combat missions. He argued that if he could get a bunch

of flyers together in a large exercise and have them go against a realistic threat, they could safely

fly those first 10 crucial missions at home and live to apply the lessons they learned. That threat

became the aggressors, fighter pilots who flew aircraft simulating potential enemies. The aircraft

were U. S. fighters painted to look like Russian fighters. The pilots used Soviet-style tactics. In

addition, there was an array of simulated ground threats like surface-to-air missile systems and

antiaircraft guns. Suter dreamed this up while stationed at Nellis AFB NV. He took his dream

with him to a staff job at the Pentagon. He campaigned hard to get the idea approved. Senior

officers were concerned that emphasizing realism might come at the expense of safety. Suter



assured them it would not and that this exercise would be a winner for both realistic training and

safety.

Suter’s tenacity paid off and his dream came true on November 29, 1976 when the first-ever

EXERCISE RED FLAG was held at Nellis, which is near Las Vegas. The event featured 37

aircraft: F-4D’s, F-105’s, F-5’s, T-38’s, OV-10’s, HH-53’s, and EC-121’s. With a staff of

only five, Suter pulled off an amazing 4-week exercise with astounding results and no accidents.

The scenario involved a strike force with supporting assets against an integrated and realistic

force of air and ground threats.

RED FLAG has evolved and grown tremendously over the years. It is the largest flying exercise

in the world where up to 250 air and space units and over 750 aircraft vie for air supremacy over

the mountains of central Nevada against what has become the world’s most intense and best-

trained IADS. An important facet of RED FLAG is the inclusion of electronic warfare in all

exercises and the specialization that occurs during GREEN FLAG exercises—which concentrate

on integrating EW assets into the fight.

More importantly, the lessons learned from these exercises have now been applied in combat

several times over. From limited actions in the 1980’s to DESERT STORM to the War on Terror,

the Air Force has at least three generations of air warriors who have trained in the Nevada desert.

Suter’s vision has come true. Our aircrews who get RED FLAG experience seem to fare better

when they go to war.

(Left) “Smoky SAMs” simulate the launch of surface-to-air missiles on the RED FLAG ranges. They are used to provide a little visual realism. (Right) This Russian Hind helicopter has been added to the aggressors’ arsenal in recent years. Their weapons include a full range of real and simulated threats.

Suter himself was a remarkable character. He was very sure of himself—to some he may have

seemed arrogant. He seemed to delight in being able to irritate people with his pithy statements,

which have become revered in the world of fighter pilot folklore as “Suterisms:”

If a flyer showed up in the morning looking a bit rough, he would say, “The fruit flies are

circling his head.”

If he thought someone was not too smart, he would say, “He looks at his name tag a lot.”

And if a superior officer asked him a question, he would answer, “We are looking at a glaring

glimpse of the obvious.”



Announcements

AOC-BMC STEM Program Support

The BMC has partnered with Northside ISD’s Dr. Hector P. Garcia Middle School to support

science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education for our next generation of leaders.

If you would like to help out with the STEM program, you can contact either Ms. Wernli

([email protected]) or Ms. Schantz ([email protected]). If you would like to help

with the robotics program you can contact Mr. Barksdale ([email protected]). You will

also need to complete a volunteer application / background check form on the district website:

(https://hrvolunteer.nisd.net/TempMod.nsf?Open).

The Association of Old Crows

and AOC Education Foundation Billy Mitchell Chapter 5430 Tulip Bend

San Antonio, TX 78253

(Voice) (210)279-9837

(E-Mail) [email protected]

Newsletter Editor: R. Vincent

Telephone: 210-977-5927

(e-mail) [email protected]

We’re on the web at https://www.crows.org/chapters/billy-mitchell-home-page.html

mailto:[email protected]

https://hrvolunteer.nisd.net/TempMod.nsf?Open

https://www.crows.org/chapters/billy-mitchell-home-page.html

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