Air Force Cyber Command’s mission remains unclear:
The whole spectrum eh? From radio to gamma rays? I thought we were just talking about cyberspace here. This has been a real problem with the Air Force as of late. The service has been inundated with bureaucratic edifices that clog up productivity while having a negligible impact on the war. The Air Force’s need to hack and to defend against hacks is obvious, so I doubt that anyone challenges Cyber Command’s utility. What is questionable is the value of standing up the enormous administrative component needed to support a Major Command. The Air Force is hard-pressed for money right now, yet they continue to bloat the service with highly expensive, officer-heavy support and administrative units instead of concentrating on the basic mission essentials. Ergo, you’ve got an entire Major Command whose mission is “uncertain.” Cyber Command could be ahead of its time. But if it does exist to defend our networks and hack our enemies back to the stone age, then CC’s battle geeks will need to be quick, adaptable, and surprising in their actions. Unfortunately, excessive administrative bureaucracy specializes in making operations slow, rigid, and highly predictable. Best idea I’ve heard yet on Cyber Command? Stick them in the now-vacant Cheyenne Mountain complex, and put a crazy cigar chomping general in charge of geek-ops.
