Recap: Global Warfare Symposium

Key takeaways from Day 1 of GWS:

From Acting Undersecretary Jamie Morin:

• In FY13, space investment makes up 20% of the Air Force investment budget - Dr. Morin
• Through "efficient space procurement" or ESP, USAF thinks it can save more than $1.2 billion as it buys more AEHF and SBIRS satellites
• Space future is bright: Greater coop with allies in space and closer partnerships with industry & "amazing innovative airmen."

 From Bran Ferren:

• Advice from Bran Ferren of Applied Minds, LLC: Air Force should get off GPS in the next 10 years.
• Innovation has never come out of US military's requirements process.
• First suggestion: Fix acquisition, no matter how hard it is. No radical theories needed, only common sense

From Dr. Adam Grissom:

• We must put the nation on sustainable path and avoid cycle of instability leading to fiscal pressure and retrenchment.
• USAF's role in grand strategic challenge? It's about numbers. Combat Air Forces CAN be everywhere at once and have played that role in past.

From the Panel: Challenges of ISR Across the Extended Domain

• There are definite cost benefits to partnering with commercial industry, but also challenges with security and flexibility.
•  Comm. ISR offers: high-positional accuracy; near-real-time delivery; in-theater access; secure, yet shareable; and it is cost-effective.
• Commercial communications to support Pacific pivot will require layered types of bandwidth and frequencies and ability to avoid jammers.

Check out Air Force Magazine's Daily Report for more highlights.

Day 2's agenda includes talks from Gen Shelton of Space Command; Gen James on  Air Force ISR; SpaceX’s Gwynne Shotwell; Col Peck (Ret) on America’s Secret MiG Squadron and two sessions from RAND’s Benjamin Lambeth and Stacie Pettyjohn. And ending the conference will be Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley giving conference attendees an update on the State of the Force.