The capacities of our airspace control apparatus were brought into bolder relief beginning around 2004 by operations in Iraq. This glimpse into the future included the demands of manned military, civil aviation, other government agency, special operations, and coalition aircraft, along with exploding numbers of unmanned military aircraft, which were all taxing the airspace control system. Moreover, combat operations called for greater volumes of ground-based fires that needed integration into the airspace. As was becoming apparent through the Iraq experience, deconflicting operations mainly through traditional procedural control methods are not adequate for present and future operations. Uses of airspace continue to expand, often retarding rather than enhancing integrated and timely responses. The Joint Air Ground Integration Cell is improving integration at the division level through existing systems and personnel that will work in tandem with new systems and technologies to benefit future airspace and fires integration.

Close air support (CAS) response times have been dramatically reduced in Afghanistan and not through any single change of procedure or policy. Rather, strong relationships throughout the command have created a trusting atmosphere. The result is more attention to excellence with all parties contributing ideas and enhanced performance. With the whole team working more imaginatively and diligently, time has been shaved away at many points. Common predeployment training is the key to developing these relationships. When that is impossible, command and control units should call on adjacent units during deployment so relationships can form. Using high fidelity situational awareness to apply operational art to the CAS portions of the air tasking order improves the effectiveness, efficiency, and response times for CAS. Empowering Flight Duty Officers to make decisions and act on them at once eliminates time-consuming collaboration between the decision and execution. A culture of continuous improvement is also vital.

Ballistic missile defense (BMD) is an inter-Service mission of increasing significance to geographical combatant commanders. Aegis BMD deployed on USS Ticonderoga guided-missile cruisers and Arleigh Burke guided-missile destroyers has become a high-end enabler for U.S. forces and their partners and allies in the full range of operations in locales where threats are proliferating. Aegis BMD with its focus on warships, along with the overall Aegis Combat System, has the flexibility to provide the “regionally concentrated, credible combat power” the national maritime strategy calls for. It is thus an essential link in the larger BMD structure and the centerpiece of the Phased Adaptive Approach for regional BMD President Obama announced in 2009. Using allied and partner Aegis-compatible ships will assist in securing command and control interoperability and cost-effective burdensharing. It is an example of networking and leveraging assets to create allied and partner synergies in an era of declining defense budgets.