DoD’s Continuous Vetting Begins

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Continuous vetting of DoD employees with, and without, security clearances has begun. All DoD security clearance holders are now subject to continuous vetting to maintain their clearance, reports Military Times. According to a DoD news release, Heather Green, assistant director of vetting risk operations for DCSA, says the new continuous vetting will also include DoD personnel who do not have a clearance.

Eventually, all periodic background checks will be replaced by an automated system that continuous scans databases and receives alerts from other agencies. Federal Times reports that traditionally, the agency that bestows security clearances on government employees re-investigates credit reports, criminal histories, and so on, once every several years. The new vetting process means the DoD, and employees of dozens of other government agencies, will continuously scan background check databases and send relevant findings straight to investigators.

Stars and Stripes reports the Air Force’s F-35A fighter jet successfully dropped mock nuclear bombs this week during training flights to ensure its fulfillment of NATO’s nuclear deterrence mission. The successful test of the F-35A Lightning II came as the 48th Fighter Wing, based at Britain’s RAF Lakenheath, reactivated the 495th Fighter Squadron last week for a new mission in Europe.

F/A-18 corrosion maintenance doesn’t consistently meet Navy and Marine Corps standards, reports Navy Times. The Navy has spent more than $2 billion to address metal corrosion on F/A-18 Hornets and Super Hornets from fiscal 2017 to 2020, but maintainers don’t always conduct inspections that meet departmental standards, according to a new DoD inspector general report. The Navy and Marine Corps are required to conduct inspections every 84 days to tackle issues related to corrosion, according to the report.

The Navy is downplaying the effects of the continuing resolution and has sent no waivers to Capitol Hill, reports USNI News. Last year the Navy had to seek a waiver for the Columbia-class nuclear ballistic missile submarine program, the service’s top acquisition priority for which it was slated to issue an award early in FY21.

 

 

For sale now: US-supplied weapons in Afghan gun shops, reports The New York Times. The Taliban seized troves of American weapons and vehicles from surrendering Afghan soldiers. Now, gun dealers are doing a brisk business. The equipment was originally provided to the Afghan security forces under a US training and assistance program that cost American taxpayers more than $83 billion through two decades of war.

Former administration officials argue over whether keeping US troops in Afghanistan would have helped, reports Military Times. Former US ambassador to Afghanistan, Ryan Crocker, testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee that the US could not have won but could have kept Afghanistan stable and secure for years, but with a permanent American military presence of about 5,000 troops. “There are conflicts that cannot be won in a classical sense, but can be managed,” he said.

USMC LT COL Stuart Scheller, who demanded “accountability” on social media was released from the brig after a week’s stay, reports Marine Corps Times. In August, Scheller posted a video to LinkedIn and Facebook in uniform, calling on senior military leaders to be held accountable for their failures in Afghanistan. He was put in pretrial confinement September 27 and has been awaiting an Article 32 preliminary hearing, which is required before a case can proceed to court-martial. He is being released based upon an undisclosed agreement, according to the Marines.

Military.com reports Veterans Affairs will resume collecting debts from overpaid veterans, ending the nearly 18-month-long suspension of debt collection put into place because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) landed the first two F-35B Lightning II aircraft aboard the Japanese Ship Izumo, at the request of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, reports Naval News.  “This trial has proved that the JS Izumo has the capability to support takeoffs and landings of STOVL (short take-off and vertical landing) aircraft at sea, which will allow us to provide an additional option for air defense in the Pacific Ocean in the near future,” said JMSDF Rear Admiral Shukaku Komuta, commander of Escort Flotilla One.

USS Kearsarge’s emergency diesel generator was “significantly damaged” this spring, reports Navy Times. The Class A mishap happened April 14 while the ship was underway in the Virginia Capes for basic phase sea trials, but not reported on the Naval Safety Center’s mishap report until last month. Class A mishaps involve damages of at least $2.5 million or a fatality or permanent total disability. The mishap does not appear to have affected the 28-year-old amphib’s ability to get underway, as Kearsarge was at sea in recent weeks conducting surface warfare advanced tactical training, according to a Navy release.

Despite months-long deployments to support pandemic relief and aid law enforcement in cities erupting in public demonstrations, as well as the US-Mexico border mission and natural disaster relief, National Guard leaders feel confident the effects of 2020s are not reflected in the most stark way: their suicide numbers, reports Military Times.

NavSec Del Toro’s new strategic guidance focuses on deterring China from invading Taiwan, reports Defense News. “The desired goal, quite frankly, is not to fight China. No one wants to enter into a conflict. … It’s our ultimate responsibility to deter them from what they’re trying to accomplish, including taking over Taiwan. So it’s incredibly important … that we make the investments now, this year, as necessary to actually be able to focus more so on China and many of the other threats that we sometimes face around the world,” he said.

President Joe Biden’s pick for assistant Air Force secretary for acquisition, technology, and logistics, Andrew Hunter, pledges to tackle F-35 sustainment costs and back nuclear modernization, reports Defense News. Hunter is a former director of the Pentagon’s Joint Rapid Acquisition Cell.