Air Force Network Defense Perspective

According to the chapter's March guest speaker, Col. Mark S. Kross, USAF, commander, 26th Network Operations Group, in this information age, there is a new battlefield. It is called "cyberspace," he stated, and it is in this new battlefield that war is waged daily to protect an essential military resource-networks. For U.S. forces, and the Air Force in particular, networks have evolved to become an integral part of every mission capability. It is because of this network-centric evolution that these networks must be defended from adversarial attack. Col. Kross focused on the question of what makes network defense a true Air Force operation, rather than solely a traditional information technology activity. Of primary concern are the people, tools, intelligence and planning that compose the network defense mission. These key principles are what will ensure networks remain operational for the successful completion of future missions.