Then-Brig. Gen. Luke Cropsey, Department of the Air Force Integrating Program Executive Officer (PEO) for Command Control Communications and Battlefield Management (C3BM) provides an overview of the progress being made to stand up the directorate to the audience at the 9th Annual Life Cycle Industry Days (LCID) in Dayton, Ohio, July 30, 2024. (U.S. Air Force photo by Jim Varhegyi)
As program executive officer for command, control, communications and battle management, he's played a leading role in the development of the DAF Battle Network.
Lt. Gen. Francis L. Donovan, vice commander, United States Special Operations Command speaks with a Naval Special Warfare (NSW) operator and a Navy Diver during a visit to Naval Special Warfare Group 1 in San Diego, Feb. 11, 2025. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class David Rowe)
A Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS) successfully launches from the flight deck of the Independence-class littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) while operating in the Arabian Gulf on Dec. 16. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Kayla Mc Guire)
“This first successful launch of LUCAS from a naval vessel marks a significant milestone in rapidly delivering affordable and effective unmanned capabilities to the warfighter,” said Vice…
Admiral Kevin Lunday prepares to testify during his confirmation hearing to be the commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee in the Russell Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on November 19, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Heather Diehl/Getty Images)
Derrick M. Anderson, nominee to be assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-Intensity conflict, arrives for his Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen building on Thursday, September 18, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump addresses the nation from the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on December 17, 2025. (Photo by Doug MILLS / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
U.S. Coast Guard fast response cutter USCGC Clarence Sutphin Jr. (WPC 1146) sails alongside a MARTAC T-38 Devil Ray unmanned surface vessel in the Arabian Gulf, June 1, 2023, during exercise Eagle Resolve 23. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. James Webster)
As the Coast Guard embraces these new systems in what it has deemed historic drug hauls, leaders are also wary about how its expansive, but tech-reliant maritime…
Spc. John Grayson, an MQ-1C Unmanned Aircraft System repairer and crew chief stands next to the MQ-1C Gray Eagle Unmanned Aircraft System at Forward Operating Site Powidz, Poland, March 25, 2025. (U.S. Army photo illustration by Sgt. Charlie Duke)
For years, the MQ-1C Gray Eagle has occupied the skies for division-sized formations, but it requires a runway to launch. As battlefields become more complex, autonomized and…
U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Raun Howell, 6th ARW command chief, second from left, shakes hands with Gen. Johnny Lamontagne, Air Mobility Command commander, at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, June 9, 2025. Lamontagne arrived to attend CORONA South 2025, a conference held bi-annually that allows Air Force leaders to discuss strategy and policy. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Derrick Bole)
The Air Force has been without a Senate-confirmed vice chief since February, when Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth fired Gen. James Slife from the position.