General Feehan sees ESC systems at work during global tour

  • Published
  • By Kevin Gilmartin
  • 66 ABW Public Affairs
HANSCOM AFB, Mass. --  In a recent whirlwind trip that included stops in Hawaii, Japan, several Southwest Asian countries and Great Britain, Electronic Systems Center Vice Commander Brig. Gen. Terry Feehan had the opportunity to meet with several of the center's customers and get valuable feedback on their requirements.

While in Japan, General Feehan attended the ribbon cutting of Japan's new air and theater ballistic missile defense system.

"ESC supported the development and integration, and the end result is the first truly integrated (Air, Naval, and Ground Force) defense system in the world," he wrote in a recent update to the ESC work force. "Japan has the highest end radars, Aegis cruisers, and newest Patriot missiles. The best part of the system is that it will be fully interoperable with U.S. forces in the region."

The general said that America's 5th Air Force, which is on the ground in Japan, 13th Air Force, which is responsible for the air battle in the Pacific, and U.S. Joint Forces Japan are working with ESC to guarantee timely transfer of missile track and command and control information.

"This huge bilateral effort will enable Japan to take a more prominent role in their own defense, and help protect both American citizens and our nation's interests in the theater," General Feehan said. He offered "mega kudos" to ESC's Foreign Military Sales team and the MITRE experts working this project.

While in Japan, the general had a chance to meet with the chief of staff of the country's Air Self-Defense Forces.

"He grilled me on our acquisition process," General Feehan said. "They are having challenges with their new cargo plane and wanted to know how we do business. My bottom line was that you need government experts in many areas and that partnership with contractors involves trust, but also verification."

During a stop in Hawaii, the general met with officials from both Pacific Air Forces and Pacific Command.
"You can imagine the challenges of operating across the Pacific and in an AOR that covers half of the world," the general wrote. "The areas they need our help most in are improved Intelligence, Surveillance, and Recognizance, enhanced theater ballistic missile defense, greater voice and data capacity, cross-domain data sharing, and secure/survivable communications. Bottom line, we need to help them operate with a diverse coalition and across tremendous distances. Specific programs will hear more particulars."

After a red eye flight back to ESC Headquarters, General Feehan was soon back on the road, accompanying Gen. Donald J. Hoffman, commander Air Force Materiel Command, on a check of the systems ESC develops and sustains.

While in Southwest Asia, they met with hundred of U.S. Airmen, and came away impressed.

"They toured us through their facilities and equipment, we ate with them, held mentoring sessions, attended retreat ceremonies, and even did push-ups together," he said. "Their attitude and pride are amazing, their sense of mission and accomplishment is inspiring, and their understanding of their role in preserving America and in freeing oppressed people is humbling. Most were young. They joined our Air Force knowing about the hardships and deployments. They truly answered a call to something greater than self, and they are the very best of America. I took the names and phone numbers of many of their parents, and have called about half so far. These parents are full of worry, but also full of pride."

Although an arduous trip by C-130, KC-135, and C-17, General Feehan said the trip was "way cool."

"We were crammed in with 51 Army troops and ten pallets of cargo," he said. "We watched airmen load and unload in such a precise routine that it seemed almost mechanical. And we saw junior enlisted, NCOs, and officers all pushing, pulling, and working together. We wore our body armor, helmets and weapons. We had lift off times of 0100, 0120, 0200, 0230, and 0420."

The trip took General Feehan and General Hoffman to bases in Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait, and other countries in the region. The bases varied in size, with some "sprawling compounds larger than many stateside bases," to others smaller than Hanscom. All the bases had critical missions, he said.

"We spoke to fighter, AWACS, tanker, JSTARS, Predator, Reaper, Global Hawk, U-2, RC-135 and every type of C-130 crew, he said. "We watched the Combined Air Operations Center in action, and saw our logistics, personnel, and finance systems in operation. And, we watched our ISR, Ground Motion Target Indicator, and command and control systems direct and manage the battle. All the while, we were protected by our security systems and enabled by our deployable airfields. The systems of ESC were everywhere, enabling, directing, and leading the fight."

General Feehan got a lot of feedback from ESC's customers, and is providing that directly to each program team. In general, however, he said, "the resounding chorus was, 'speed up what we have, give us more bandwidth, and deliver what you have in development.' We're seen as critical partners at every base, and we owe them our best."


Aside from meeting with ESC's customers, the general visited the Air Force hospital in Iraq, where he was surprised to see that the majority of the in-patients were Iraqi.

"The U.S. policy is to treat any critical-care patient who needs care," he said. "We saw children as young as four, elderly people, families, and even prisoners. The heart and goodness of America was strongly on display."


The general reported that America's coalition partners were highly visible throughout his tour, with host nations providing security and base support.
"Our closest allies jointly manned our CAOC and flew at our side," General Feehan said. "One African nation even provided first-class security at our main hospital. The coalition numbers were not as great as ours, but the dangers they share and the impact they provide are very real."


Wrapping up his update to the work force, General Feehan wrote, "Please accept the challenge to support our deployed troops, and feel the immense respect of our nation for your effort."