US Air Force LC-130 Hercules from the New York Air National Guard’s 109th Airlift Wing
Secretary of the Air Force Barbara Barrett unveiled the new, comprehensive Department of the Air Force Arctic Strategy on 21 July. The strategy outlines the Department’s efforts to optimize Air and Space Force capabilities throughout the region in support of the National Defense Strategy.
Barrett stated with respect to the significance of the revised strategy document:
“The Arctic is among the most strategically significant regions of the world today – the keystone from which the U.S. Air and Space Forces exercise vigilance. This Arctic Strategy recognizes the immense geostrategic consequence of the region and its critical role for protecting the homeland and projecting global power.”
The strategy identifies four coordinated lines of effort that Air and Space Forces will use to enhance vigilance, reach and power to the nation’s whole-of-government approach in the Arctic region:
- Vigilance in all domains
- Projecting power through a combat-credible force
- Cooperation with allies and partners
- Preparation for Arctic operations
Vigilance in all domains:
The strategy states that the number one Department of Defense priority is homeland defence. To achieve this objective, Air and Space Forces in the region monitor potential threats across all warfighting domains, including air, space and cyberspace.
US Air and Space Forces are responsible for the majority of Department of Defense missions in the Arctic region, including the regional architecture for detecting, tracking, and engaging air and missile threats.
Space Force personnel in the region are responsible for critical nodes of the satellite control network that deliver space capabilities to joint and coalition partners, as well as the US national command authority.
“Integrating space capabilities into joint operations fuels the joint force’s ability to project power anywhere on the planet, any time,” said Chief of Space Operations Gen. Jay Raymond. “The Arctic is no different. Spacepower is essential to Arctic operations, allowing us to see with clarity, navigate with accuracy, and communicate across vast distances.”
Projecting power through a combat-credible force
US military assets in the region are spearheaded by Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson and Eielson Air Force Base, both located in Alaska, which host fifth-generation fighters as well as transport and refuelling aircraft.
The Air Force also provides the capability to reach remote northern locations via the New York Air National Guard’s 109th Airlift Wing which operates ski-equipped LC-130s that can land on ice.
The combat capabilities of these installations are supplemented by the use of installations in other countries in the region.
“Our unique positioning in locations like Alaska, Canada and Greenland are integrated with multi-domain combat power,” said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein. “These locations harness powerful capabilities, and their unwavering vigilance to protecting the homeland represents a strategic benefit that extends well beyond the region itself.”
Cooperation with allies and partners
The strategy states that alliances and partnerships are key in the Arctic, where no one nation has sufficient infrastructure or capacity to operate alone. Many regional allies and partners have dedicated decades of focus to the Arctic, developing concepts, tactics and techniques from which the joint force can greatly benefit.
The document also noted that Indigenous communities possess millennia of knowledge about the Arctic domain passed down through generations. Working with indigenous communities helps Air and Space Forces understand the Arctic environment, enriches training and exercises, and ensures recognition of their contributions to Department of the Air Force activities.
“Strong relationships with regional allies and partners, including at the local level, are a key strategic advantage for the U.S. in the Arctic,” Barrett said. “U.S. Air and Space Forces are focused on expanding interoperability with peers that value peaceful access in the region, and we appreciate our local hosts that have welcomed Department of the Air Force installations, Airmen and Space Professionals as part of their communities for decades.”
Preparation for Arctic operations
The strategy notes the extra preparations that must be taken prior to undertaking operations in the Arctic region due to the extremely challenging environmental conditions. LINK
The latest US Air Force strategy for the Arctic complements the National Defense Strategy, the overall blueprint for defending the United States and its interests, and the the 2019 Department of Defense Arctic Strategy, which also emphasizes the essential role of US Air and Space Force assets in the Arctic.
Commenting on the US strategy and capabilities in the region, other military analysts have also emphasized that the Arctic is the keystone for global power projection. Alaska offers the quickest flight access from mainland United States to locations across much of the Pacific region and western Russia.
Additionally, with polar ice melting, new and more efficient maritime routes are opening, which is increasing accessibility to Arctic natural resources such as oil and gas reserves and rare earth metals. This is also driving an increase in commercial traffic and international competition, not just from Russia but also from China and other countries.
While vast Arctic expanses formerly served as a strategic buffer for the United States, technological advancements are eroding this natural geographical defence. Russia is investing in Arctic airfields and infrastructure to secure its northern approaches, and now has the largest permanent military presence above the Arctic Circle of any country.
The Arctic is also extremely important for US operations in space, a point that is repeatedly emphasized in the new strategy document.
The US Air Force’s Arctic Zone area of responsibility
The Alaska Radar System and the 50-plus radars that comprise the North Warning System across Canada, for example, have long provided vital early warning decision space for homeland defence and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD.
Locations like Clear, Alaska and Thule, Greenland offer additional advantages for missile warning and defence as well as serving to enhance space domain awareness, helping track more than 20,000 objects daily. The Arctic is also a key post for managing satellites.
“If you’re going to command and control satellites that are in polar orbits, where better to do that than on top of the world at the pole. The geography and position on the globe makes it an extremely advantageous place to operate from,” even if the Arctic does present what the strategy document describes as ‘arctic-unique orbital mechanics and electro-magnetic obstacles’ that the Air Force must overcome.
When Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska receives its full allotment of F-35s, Alaska will host more fifth-generation fighters than any other location in the world. From the perspective of US military commanders, bases in Alaska are positioned so far north and west that they are effectively forward-deployed and provide access to multiple combat command zones, including a large part of the Indo-Pacific Command and European Command zones, while simultaneously covering the core Northern Command zone. LINK
The document notes that Russia has always been a heavy player in the region, stating of its presence and activities in the Arctic:
“Russia’s recent Arctic initiatives include refurbishing airfields and infrastructure, creating new bases, and developing an integrated network of air defense, coastal missile systems, and early warning radars to secure its northern approaches. Further, Russia seeks to regulate maritime traffic on the Northern Sea Route in ways that may exceed its authority permitted under international law.”
The Arctic region is an area where the United States is especially reliant on NATO allies and partners. That means the US should plan for an increase in international military exercises and more spending on interoperable electronic communications, Air Force leaders said.
Over the past year, the US Air Force has conducted air-to-air training with Nordic partners in the Arctic Challenge Exercise, participated in air policing missions over Iceland, and trained with Canadian and joint partners in Arctic Edge, a homeland defence exercise.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein said that the Air Force will be conducting even more exercises in the region in the future, pointing to the four ‘red-flag’ exercises that the service runs on a yearly basis as well as last year’s Arctic Challenge, which, he said, saw 140 different aircraft from nine nations and 4,000 participants.
The revised strategy describes the need to increase training with regional partners and establish new forums with allies to discuss Arctic issues, but does not specify if the United States wants NATO or any other international organization to take that lead role.
“Building these relationships counters influence from adversaries, whose actions are not aligned with U.S. interests, and bolsters U.S. national security,” it reads. “The Department of the Air Force must work to highlight shared goals, ensuring a peaceful and stable region where international norms and standards are upheld. To strengthen collaborative international security relationships.”
In this sense, the biggest area of investment for the Air Force in future arctic operations is not cold-weather specific, but networking between different parts of the Air Force and between the United States and its allies.
Among the Arctic states, Canada, Denmark (which owns Greenland), Iceland, and Norway, are NATO allies, and two others, Finland and Sweden, are NATO Enhanced Opportunities Partners. LINK
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the paper tiger USA has one strategy—fake news….apparently “the nose” jaky Wohl is now tied to Epstein’s girlfriend, Maxwell…..now posts under the pseudonym “bacon”…..after 17 counts of fraud, it is no wonder that she uses numerous CIA created identities
US is no papertiger. You might not like what it do, but its forces are the biggest and best in the world.
As usual You dont follow whats written in the free cuntries of the world and also not what 100% open from Our Parlaments about it. Thats how You create Your deep dark state about it.
Yopu name it fake, because You dont follow what we even can see at internet news as well as in libraries.
None in the whole world is as stupid as Jakob Jawohl. Of anything thats antiwestern propganda even less funny then comic Ali.
r u this stupid—even amerikan military planners now admit their military is incompetent—smaller and less competent than China, India—more numerous, obese and stupefied than and incompetent than Russia, North Korea…losing all wars…because u r a colony of US and will be required to sell Greenland to the USA u fear them….yet they refused to challenge Russia in the arctic, Pridnestrovia, Crimea, Abkhazia, S Ossetia….again your stupidity amuses
Save ye deplorable tranny/homosexual brigade to where the sun won’t shine,no matter what any militarys only as strong as the weakest link you degenerate bilderberg flogged! You don’t realise how developed and how far supreme the far better bred peoples are! fk ye debt kweers,fk ye incestive mentally challenged societys,fk the bilderberg,fk ye cia!
haha so funny putty homosexuals in it Haha. Do it again. They will love You and send donations haha.
And Bilderbegr and incest too. West has everything. Yours are nothing and has nothing.
haha do funny. do do do do. Jokes a la carte and dente.
I was busy with your mom, go back in your closet and wait for me there.
Unfortunatly all more or less is doing that. As for Antarktis we should share and try to keep well by sensible exploying.
It makes sense civile facilities need a build up. More fish can live there and we can eat them. Tranports by ship becomes shorter and many can gain for that and also in the inland by rivers, where it not even becomes easier to live there as well as the minerls and wood can be taken in.
The importance also is in the clmate changes. Soon especially Russia but also USA will loose a lot of the agrable land to warmth and dersert.
That seemes to be compensated by more rain from the not so icy Arctic Sea, because winds will bring water. By that a kind of prediction belt for Russia(and USA) will move north with enough rain and still the magical 4 month growing period for corn. There are problems: Plants cant grow in sand alone, but Russia of today have wast area with a lot of peat bogs.
So in long term the importance should not be underestimated.
I think journalist, politicians and others should focus on how to feed the world in peace instead on radar and missile fokus.
“Unfortunatly all more or less is doing that. As for Antarktis we should share and try to keep well by sensible exploying.”
Antarctica is forbidden for everyone …See what happened to the Americans there in 1947
I’m just giad that us af has FINALLY listened Tommy’s advizes in reacting to high lattitude Putin threats!
A lot of words without saying anything, deploying the F-35 is worse than staying at home, at least start to equip yourself with icebreakers in large numbers, build ships and planes suitable for the polar climate, you will need to double your military budget, you can do it allow you to spend 2 trillion? I think not, so stop wandering and worry about the pandemic that is killing your people in large numbers, a buffoon of a Yankee, your days are numbered even if you think you’re exceptional, you’re just a loser.
Its kind of symbolic. I will remind You the climate changes makes icebreakers mush less important. Big ships or mineral incl oil and containers are very big and strong.
It makes no sense in Our bdgets to compare Covid with wasting military equipment.
USA has no lack of money. Its about what they are used for and what they are not used for.
Their systems are optimized according their capitalistic model where we also about Covid hear about fredom rights but it by many is completly forgotten, that those rights are decided because we also by that has obligations for maintaining andimproving systems named as parlamentarisme and democrasy.
Thats why so many in the Islamic and Russian world dont understandf it and cant compare, because they nopt even has a language for oarlamentarisme even parle means talk and debate and hopefully decide better then that.
The USA problems are visible in peoples head, where too much need changes.
I can mention being rich should not be paying and being plundered by stockholders as in USA. As a whole USA gets the same healtcare as the Skandivians because private companies has the main influence – BUT to double price in taxes.
The main problem we see here in Denmark is, that Our state and Region ownd the hospitals – AND WE OUTSORCE FROM THERE,so the many private companies has to compete.
USA pr tradtion dont trust the state. We do.
USA also get bad products because they wont pay. The police is a good example. Much of the whole context is wrong.
And none should wonder for the devastating results when hurricanes and like that repeat itself again and even worse. Climate change even gets it will be worse.
But the budffer to handle that is not in the state or the Presidential level. Its saved away. You can soso for a periods but the long time results is, You have no organisations with equipment as a buffer. That kind of build up takes years because people are not learned how to use it and what they cant or shall not take care of.
Covid has to be treated as any other influenze incl. pest and the main tecnik is to spread out and avoid what spread it out like body contact, mouth salive or fx spreding by birds and drinking water.
But many more then USA dont learn about that in school and put agressions on people, which do.
The magic trick is to do, what the Goverment supported by doctors do and they make it simple. It is simple. Denmark did it with no masks apart from people with the old people and at the hospitals. We have had less then 2 dead the last 14 days and had 620 dead and many died in the first months because we were surpriced and chocked.
Time to take your meds Jens…
We Danmarks dwelling in chilly Skandonavia for 10000 years have succeeded countering all year long vitamin D deficiency.
Eventually we joined EU and we developed a vaccine that shields north sea sardines against fishscale – viruses. Greenland belongs to the penguins, we support their immigration from the Antarctica. Currently we fund building an iconic mermaid statue on top of Aswan Dam
It is what it is, nothing endures but change, the sorcerer’s apprentice knows better
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSDYnz9tI4A
“I will remind You the climate changes makes icebreakers mush less important”
Nope.
“Big ships or mineral incl oil and containers are very big and strong.”
Unless they are specifically built to get through arctic sea ice a simple shift in wind will leave them stranded in need of rescue by an icebreaker …. not exactly ideal in the age of LEAN management and just in time supply chains.
I stopped there. No sense in reading further when you lead with a fantasy.
“A lot of words without saying anything”
It does kinda read like sitting through a 2 hour powerpoint from the VP of corporate values with a head splitting hangover and only decaf coffee and herbal tea available.
fuck off jew
Big words no substance. No icebreaker fleet, no arctic bases. No long range jet designed for artic operation. No clear strategy. Meanwhile Russia already managed to do all that. Better luck next time…
USA is not interested in the Arctic, the fosil fuel era will be over in 20 years. USA has enough of it for 50, it’s a false flag for Russians to keep the busy.
Fossil is here to stay for another 100 years at least. Because its cheap and easy to store and transfare. Unlike electricity. Russia was develoolping the arctic for 20 years, no false flag needed.
IQ OF YE SHOE SIZE,SERIOUSLY THE #1 COMMODOTY IS OIL,NOT FAKE STOCKS!
The #1 comodity is efficiency of sex work of your mom for my clients.
As everybody can see on this map, we dominate and have taken over Arctic from Russia.
Dream on.
Russia spent huge and developed the pinnacle of defense mechanism for future developments and these vile homosexuals assume they can counter free trades movements,in a jiffy,how pathedics that?
The US is pissed of because it can`t dictate the terms in the Arctics, especially the northern sea route witch goes through Russian territory….and the only country with a ice breaker fleet, Russia can dictate the terms. No US warships to force Freedom of navigation crap. Any warship that wants to sail along the northern sea route must apply for permission 5 weeks beforehand…..Priceless This is not the China sea.
“The strategy states that the number one Department of Defense priority is homeland defence.”
Complete and utter bullshit. Invading North America from the north is logistically impossible. A raid is possible but sustaining a force across thousands of miles of ice and impassable muskeg is impossible. Strategic weapons can come from any direction so focusing on an attack the arctic is meaningless.
Their priority is to seize the mineral wealth of the arctic for US corporate interests and to insure that shipping routes remain in the south outside Russian air defence bubble where the US navy and air force control the shipping lanes and world trade.
The world is changing and not in ways that benefit the USA. Rather than adaptor compete the USA wants it to revert to the 1950’s when the Russians were dirty commies and the Chinese were dirt poor, numerous and starving.
Just once I’d love to see a security agency in the U.S. release the following statement,
“We see no strategic need to be in this corner of the earth unless a local country calls for assistance in the aftermath if a natural disaster or for an emergency rescue operation – 4/1/20xx”
APRIL FOOLS ! ! ! Why do we have to be pricks about everything.