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Cyberspace career fields, training paths, badge proposed
by
Karen Petitt
Air Force Cyber Command (Provisional) Public Affairs
7/2/2008 - SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFPN) -- Air Force
officials recently proposed a plan to develop its enlisted and
officer corps into Airmen who specialize in establishing,
controlling and fighting in the cyberspace domain.
That's according to Maj. Gen. William T. Lord, the Air Force
Cyber Command (Provisional) commander who referenced AFCYBER's
force development intent during a recent cyberspace symposium
in Marlborough, Mass.
"We've created a roadmap that outlines our efforts to
establish cyberspace operators, specialists, analysts and
developers who grow from a basic understanding of cyberspace
doctrine to experts in their respective fields," he said.
"Along with outlining specific career fields that can be used
throughout our Air Force, we also looked at how we can
deliberately manage their career to grow cyberspace warriors,
leaders and future visionaries."
Cyber warriors will be identified as operators -- officer and
enlisted members who plan, direct and execute offensive and
defensive actions; specialists -- enlisted communications and
information personnel who specialize in technical aspects of
cyberspace; analysts -- officer and enlisted intelligence
personnel with the technical foundations to support cyberspace
operations; and developers -- primarily officers and enlisted
with advanced skills for designing and modifying software and
hardware packages.
This roadmap provides details about cyberspace operators and
specialists. Particulars for analysts and developers are
expected to be outlined later this year. These changes will
affect approximately 30,000 active-duty members and about
2,000 Guard and Reserve forces currently performing
cyber-related duties.
Maj. Timothy Franz, the AFCYBER (Provisional) chief of force
development, said numerous teams will be meeting throughout
the coming year to fine tune the changes.
"We have a lot of work ahead of us still, but we know the
direction we're headed," Major Franz said. "We're now working
on an implementation plan that will define specific goals,
objectives and tasks to make this vision a reality. Some of
these tasks can be worked quickly and others will take a few
more years."
Along with identifying career specialties, the roadmap also
outlines education and training paths. Professional
development for the approximately 30,000 civilians in
cyberspace is still under review, but they will also be fully
integrated into the implementation plan.
Cyberspace specialists
Members in the communications and information mission areas
will transition to 15 new 1B Air Force specialty codes. This
will require the phase out of the current 2E
(communications-electronics), 3A (information management) and
3C (communications and computer systems) specialties.
All cyber enlisted members will start off with a 1B0 or 1B1
specialists skill set. As they enter their retraining window,
a select few will have the opportunity to retrain into a 1B4
operator specialty. The 1B4s will possess new skills being
developed to work on-net (1B4X1) and electronic (1B4X2)
warfare missions. As cyberspace operators, they will attend
additional cyber warfare training.
Cyberspace operators
Most officers will have technical, and possibly graduate-level
technical degrees, but all will develop a breadth of knowledge
and experience within cyberspace. The paths for officers will
allow them to be technically proficient in many areas of
cyberspace and, as they progress, develop a breadth of
leadership skills required for senior leadership.
Current plans call for two new officer AFSCs: a 17D cyberspace
warfare operator, which will require the phase out of the 33S
(communications-computer) specialty; and a 12W electronic
warfare officer, which will be a subset of today's 12X combat
systems officer community.
Both the 17D and 12W AFSCs will be further developed under the
oversight of a Cyberspace General Officer Steering Group with
recommendations expected for later this year.
Cyberspace training
Cyberspace specific content is being added to the enlisted 2E,
3A and 3C basic technical (pipeline) courses. However, plans
call for these courses to transition to the new AFSCs by 2010.
This will be the first group affected by the implementation
plan.
Along with new pipeline schools, more advanced training will
be available through cyberspace 100/200/300/400 series of
supplemental courses intended to focus on professional
development throughout their careers. These courses will
impart cyber-related knowledge, skills, and ability
appropriate to an individuals' grade and experience, as well
as provide exposure to aspects of the cyber warfare mission
area which they may not have had experience. Cyber warriors
will also attend formal training units that will be specific
to their duty locations and missions.
In addition, there'll be "gap training" to transition existing
communications and information personnel to their new
cyberspace specialties. The gap training will be provided
through a blended approach of computer-based training,
targeted career development courses and mobile education teams
as necessary. Specifics of courses and training content are
yet determined.
Cyberspace badge
During the symposium, General Lord also revealed the proposed
badge that will identify future cyber operators. The badge
features lightning bolts to signify the cyberspace domain,
center bolts taken from the navigator badge and the Air Force
seal to signify cyberspace's worldwide power and reach and its
common lineage and history of electronic warfare officers, and
orbits to signify cyberspace's space-related mission elements.
And, like other specialty badges, it will identify skill
(certification) levels. Final approval and specifics of the
wear criteria is under review at the Air staff.
The way ahead
"Simply inserting new material about cyberspace power into
current specialties will not suffice," General Lord said. "We
must develop future leaders who understand how cyberspace
operations integrate with conventional kinetic operations at
all levels of command, with our sister services and throughout
the Defense Department. Our teams of experts will spend the
next few years further refining and developing what we've
outlined in this roadmap. We all have a role in defending our
cyberspace capabilities, but now we're on our way to having a
specific cadre of professionals who'll help work to manage,
deconflict, direct and integrate cyberspace operations."
1B enlisted specialists/operators
The enlisted force provides the technical depth needed to
execute tactical missions. While the proposals call for the
phase out of the 2E, 3A, 3C AFSCs, a review is also being done
of the 1A3 (airborne mission systems) as cyberspace may use
portions of this skill set as well.
For now, the proposed new specialties are:
1B0X1 -- knowledge operations: They will possess application
and presentation networking skills necessary for content
management, retrieval and presentation.
1B0X2 -- cyber systems operations: They will focus on servers,
data storage, software applications, system technologies,
protocols, standards and client interfaces.
1B0X3 -- cyber surety: They use information technology
resources to monitor and evaluate policy and procedures to
protect clients, networks, data and voice systems and
databases from unauthorized activity.
1B0X4 -- computer programmer: They will develop and
standardize tools and interfaces as well as possess the
ability to transform raw data into actionable command and
control information. They will also translate operational
offensive and defensive requirements into program code to
ensure freedom of maneuver in the cyberspace domain.
1B1X1 -- client systems specialist: They will integrate and
sustain common client-level voice, data and video devices with
a primary focus on end user devices.
1B1X2 -- cyber transport systems specialist: They will focus
on sustainment of the network and telecommunication
infrastructure, distribution media, cryptographic equipment,
etc.
1B1X3 -- radio and frequency transmissions systems
specialists: They understand space, radio and satellite
systems technologies and configurations required to integrate
and sustain airborne and terrestrial multimode, multiband
radio frequency systems to include wireless voice, data and
video systems.
1B1X4 -- cyber spectrum specialists: They engineer, nominate
and assign frequencies to support communications requirements
and coordinate frequency needs with federal, military and
civil authorities.
1B1X5 -- radar systems specialists: They understand radar
technology to support airfield, weather and early warning
radar system missions. They will perform search, intercept,
identification and location of sources radiating
electromagnetic energy for purposes of threat recognition.
1B1X6 -- airfield systems specialist: They will understand
meteorological, navigational and air traffic control radio,
console and recorder technologies and will meet all national
airspace system certification requirements.
1B1X7 -- cable and antenna systems specialist: They will link
the base campus voice, data and video networks and focus
primarily on external communications cables and radio
frequency antenna systems.
1B1X8 -- control systems specialist: They monitor and control
emergency and distribution management systems, and supervisory
control and data acquisition systems.
1B1X9 -- mission systems specialist: They will perform
cyberspace-related duties on airborne platforms and will
primarily operate, maintain, repair and test airborne
communications, sensor, computer and electronic systems.
1B4X1 -- on-net operations: These are network warfare
operators who provide net attack, defense and exploit
capabilities to disrupt, deny, degrade or destroy information
or the delivery systems themselves. (Operators will retrain at
the three- to five-year point.)
1B4X2 -- electronic warfare operations: They will integrate
and sustain operations across the electromagnetic spectrum and
will perform search, intercept, ID and location of sources for
threat recognition and implement electronic protect and attack
measures. (Operators will retrain at the three- to five-year
point.)
(Source: U.S. Air Force) |
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