From the Crows' Nest

In this episode, join host Ken as he unravels the intricate world of the congressional defense budget process. Joined by Madison Arcangeli, Katy Nazaretova from Forza DC, and Paul Arcangeli, former Staff Director of the House Armed Services Committee, they delve into the blend of procedures and politics that shape the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and the Defense Appropriations...

Effective communication and decision-making are critical for success in multi-domain operations (MDO) in today's fast-paced world.  While in Germany attending AOC Europe, Host Ken Miller took the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Thomas Withington, newsletter editor for Armada International, who shares the most important lessons we've learned in achieving multi-domain integration. Ken and Dr. Withi...

Congress is marking up the U.S. defense budget, and the budget's priorities could have implications for how the U.S. strategizes EMS superiority. In this episode, Ken Miller talks with John Knowles, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Electromagnetic Dominance , to discuss the current state of the EMSO community and the priorities of the U.S. defense budget moving forward. Ken and John discuss Congr...

The US-China competitive relationship is very complex, reaching every aspect of society, the economy, and the military. In this episode, Ken Miller talks with Dean Cheng of the U.S. Institute of Peace about China’s doctrine on information dominance and its implications for global power politics. Dean Cheng is the Senior Advisor for the Institute of Peace and Senior Fellow at the Potomac Institute...

The topic of Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) always brings up many different perspectives and ideas for its execution and implementation. Ken Miller talks with EW Writer and Analyst Dr. Thomas Withington about the latest developments of JADC2 and its implications for modern warfare.   Dr. Withington is the newsletter editor for Armada International and shares his analysis of what JADC...

The U.S. relies highly on GPS, navigation timing systems, and satellites. And recently, GPS was labeled as a single point of failure for America by the Director of Resilience on the National Security Council. To discuss the impacts of this, Ken Miller talks with Dana Goward about the significance of GPS today and the potential risks posed by interference and spoofing. As President of the Resilient...

The power struggle between the U.S. and China is all too familiar. After the Chinese-operated balloon traveled from the Aleutian Islands down to the US Heartland, the defense community is speculating if this was simply another chapter in our power struggle or if China is seeking specific intelligence from the US. In this episode, Ken Miller talks with journalist Michael Fabey about the implication...

We all face complex challenges to global security and can examine these issues from many different perspectives. One of these perspectives is fiction storytelling, which often comes close to fact and reflects current problems. In this episode, Ken Miller talks with author Jeffrey Fischer to discuss his military fiction books and how to use these stories to help us learn, adapt, and explore creativ...

Directed energy has progressed significantly in the past year, with warfighters field-testing multiple prototypes. But how can we ensure the technology is operationally relevant from the lab to the user? Ken Miller talks with Christopher Behre about how the directed energy community is progressing and scaling directed energy weapons that ensure mission success.  Chris Behre is Principal Engineer f...

The production of state-of-the-art microelectronics is the most complex engineering feat that humans have been able to achieve. But the US has struggled to maintain its competitive edge in microelectronic manufacturing. In this episode, Ken and the Draper Team continue their discussion and explore solutions that address our problems in the microelectronics supply chain.  The US has lost a great de...

Microelectronics is one of the United States’ biggest security risks, and the supply chain remains vulnerable. In this episode, Ken Miller continues the microelectronics discussion to understand how the United States should invest in its industry partners to maintain its competitive edge in the global market and maintain national security. To find this out, Ken sits down with Jennifer Santos and h...

Entrepreneurs in defense face a difficult challenge; navigating red tape and developing innovations for bureaucracies is no easy task. In this episode, Ken Miller talks with entrepreneur and business executive Rick Lu to discover how entrepreneurs and startups can get through the door of agencies to develop niche technologies that satisfy all stakeholders. Rick Lu has over 30 years of experience i...

Microelectronics is in the news and a key focus of current legislation. It is a part of everything we do in the military and business. But do we properly understand the microelectronics sector to make the right business, government, and policy decisions? In this episode, Ken Miller dives deeper into the topic with scholar and author Chris Miller to better understand the history of chip design and...

In this episode of From the Crows’ Nest, host Ken Miller, is joined by author, futurist, and former NSA official, Dr. Eric Haseltine . Ken also welcomes special co-host, Retired US Air Force Brigadier General Guy Walsh, now serving as the Executive Director of the National Security Collaboration Center at the University of Texas San Antonio. Ken, Guy, and Eric discuss how to pursue innovation in l...

In this episode of From the Crows’ Nest, host Ken Miller sits down with special guests Eric Bamford, International AOC Board Member from the Norwegian Air Forces and Bob Andrews, AOC Director of Global Events. Ken and his guests discuss innovation and workforce development from a NATO perspective and what lessons NATO can learn from the current Russian invasion of Ukraine. For more information on...

In the episode of From the Crows’ Nest, host Ken Miller sits down at AOC 2022 with Mr. David Tremper, Director of Electronic Warfare in the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. David is the U.S. Department of Defense’s senior leader providing guidance and advocacy for U.S. development and acquisition of EW capabilities and systems. Ken and Dave discuss a range o...

In this special episode of From the Crows’ Nest recorded from AOC 2022 in Washington, DC, host Ken Miller is joined by guest John Knowles, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Electromagnetic Dominance (JED), the AOC’s official publication. Ken and John talk about the concept of an Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations (EMSO) playbook and what it means for stakeholders across the military and industry,...

AOC President Glenn “Powder” Carlson is passing the baton on to AOC Vice President and President-Elect Brian “Hinks” Hinkley. In this transition of power, Glenn and Brian give us a state of the union on the EMS community. Host Ken Miller talks with Glenn and Brian about the lessons the US needs to learn about EMS dominance and how the AOC will continue to advance EMS operations and support future...

We often focus most on developing offensive capability, but countermeasures are often overlooked and command & control systems are left completely vulnerable. Host Ken Miller talks with David Tilton and Dr. Nathan Hansen of the Electromagnetic Security Consortium (ESC) to find out how we can address emerging threats to electromagnetic security and provide greater protection for critical infras...

With recent arms transfers and sales to Ukraine, how close is Ukraine to reaching EMS superiority in the war with Russia? Host Ken Miller talks with Jeff Fischer, retired US Air Force Colonel, about how Ukraine can achieve EMS superiority and how the allies are playing a role in it. They also dive into the implications for nations supporting Ukraine and explore what methods Russia might use to for...

Maneuvering and winning in the new era requires an EMSO playbook. But what plays should we include in it, and why do we need it? Host Ken Miller talks with Dr. Bill Conley and John Knowles about strategies to include in our playbooks that can be rapidly implemented before the “game” starts, and how this will be addressed at AOC's 2022 annual international symposium and convention . They also dive...

In this episode of the From the Crows’ Nest, host Ken Miller, welcomes back ForzaDC’s Madison Strader Arcangeli and Katy Nazaretova to discuss where Congress stands on the annual defense budget as they break for August and enter the fall with mid-term elections on the horizon. Madison and Katy share some important updates EW funding and amendments, and they offer what they expect to see of the bud...

Host Ken Miller sits with Eric Colon, Director, Strategic Solutions for EW and Cyber at Corvus Consulting, LLC. Eric is a senior subject matter expert on the evolution of Army electronic warfare and cyber electromagnetic activities (CEMA). Ken and Eric discuss how the Army faces an array of complex threats from China, Russia, and other peer competitors.  Now more than a decade since the inception...

In this episode of From the Crows’ Nest, host Ken Miller is joined by Brigadier General Guy Walsh, USAF (Ret.). Gen. Walsh is currently the Executive Director of the National Security Collaboration Center at the University of Texas San Antonio (NSCC).  They discuss the state of cyber operations today across the Department of Defense and homeland security agencies. Gen. Walsh highlights the need to...

In today’s episode of From the Crows’ Nest, Host Ken Miller is joined by Dr. Adam Lowther to discuss the evolution of US nuclear weapons policy since the end of the Cold War and into this new age of Great Power Competition.  Global security is changing rapidly, and we are required to rethink our underlying assumptions, especially as Russia invades Ukraine and China opportunistically takes advantag...