In September, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Moscow believes that the “irresponsible” statements of the Pentagon on the development of a plan to violate the air defenses of the Russian Kaliningrad enclave are a threat.
At an informational meeting in October, wing commanders who report to the 16th newly formed unit of the USAF specifically discussed “a typical Air Force challenge: how to defeat the integrated Russian air defense systems (IADS),” said the reporter Mark Pomerleau in an article published by the c4isrnet website.
According to him, the scenario consists of several stages, including the first one, which stipulates that the 70th Intelligence, Surveillance and Recognition Wing (ISR) of the USAF together with the Cyber Command and the National Security Agency (NSA) gather intelligence, global surveillance and recognition. data to “know how Russian defense systems communicate, how they are used and where they are.”
After that, the 363 ISR wing would deal with “how to exploit Russian systems and how those systems can harm friendly forces.”
It would be followed by the ninth Reconnaissance Wing, which is equipped with the U-2 spy plane, developing a new electronic warfare suite against IADS.
“Another group, the 480th ISR Wing, which provides capabilities for the Air Force Distributed Common Ground System (DCGS), a global intelligence dissemination platform, has a team dedicated exclusively to IADS,” says Pomerleau.
During the final stage, the 55th Ala, responsible for the ISR in the air and electronic warfare, as well as the intelligence of signals, would help rebuild the offensive, defensive and detection capabilities that “have been stunted throughout the years,” according to Pomerleau, who added that “on the side of electronic support, the service will need help from the NSA.”
Pomerlau quoted General David Goldfein, chief of staff of the USAF, saying during the briefing that the 16th Air Force could become a de-escalation mechanism that can help prevent a possible conflict.
“[…] It is imperative that 1) NATO forces surpass the Kaliningrad air defense stronghold in 14 days to bring into play the alliance’s air power advantages; 2) the forces in place and the reinforcements that arrive quickly endure for 30 days; and 3) heavy reinforcements arrive strongly and enter combat no later than 30 days after the start of hostilities. Today, NATO is not prepared to achieve any of these goals,” said Hooker.
At the same time, he did not give more details about what the armed conflict could cause, he simply stated that Moscow has plans related to the Baltic region.
This followed reports that the Pentagon develops plans to potentially violate the air defense of the Kaliningrad region.
The Breaking Defense media, which quoted the Commander of the US Air Force. UU. In Europe and Africa, General Jeffrey Lee Harrigian said that “if that ever came to fruition, we would be ready to execute.”
Commenting on the matter, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that all Russian regions are properly protected.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, for her part, criticized the Pentagon’s plan as “irresponsible,” adding that Moscow sees it as a threat.
Source: Newsfront
