The fact that the US Air Force was broadcasting unencrypted video feeds from its drones raises some questions about the USAF’s management philosophy:
The Navy evolved from a situation where when the ship was over the horizon, it was gone. No calling it back except with another ship and no real hope in that case of catching the first. Further, the first ship had to have the authority to do what needed to be done with the confidence that unless it was totally outrageous, it would be ignored or blessed later.The USAF was born with a radio in its ear. Everything was under close control and only some senior Colonel or a General could make important decisions. And that same Colonel or General decided later what an important decision was. The attitude is that it has to be decided up the line. That leads to a failure to learn to trust your subordinates. Ergo, “Can you guarantee that all the encryption keys make it down to the lowest levels in the Army or USMC [United States Marine Corps]? No way.”
Fella doesnt know many Sailors or Marines.
At least the Army could send a courier on a fast horse to catch the dispatched unit. But that didnt always work, Witness JEB Stuart before Gettysburg.
USAF enlisted I encountered back in the day were not trained to make decisions outside their sandbox. Navy Chiefs and senior Marine NCO’s? Yep. Ever hear of the Strategic Corporal? How about the Strategic Airman?
No offense to the Junior Service but I’m just sayin’…