Shimon & Ofra,

Thank you, this is all far above expectation and we appreciate it. The heart of the trip for us is SOD and we look forward to that. However, the interaction with the IAF is incredibly valuable, and we will hopefully trade learning with them and build some lasting relationships and maybe fly together in the future. I will work with Dudi on the IAF schedule. I changed the schedule on our free days so we split our time between Jerusalem and the Golan, none of it will impact your schedule with us, here it is.

Hilton in Tel Aviv

14th September - Arrival

15-16th, IAF program (Hatzerim)

17th-19th, SOD workshop part I (Military Colleges Base, Glilot)

King David in Jerusalem

19-21nd, Tour Jerusalem and North

Scots Hotel, Tiberius

21-22 Golan, Brief from Shimon and BG Amit Fischer

Hilton in Tel Aviv

23rd Sunday SOD workshop part II (Military Colleges Base, Glilot)

24th, SOD workshop part II (Military Colleges Base, Glilot)

25-26th, IAF program (Hatzor)

King David in Jerusalem

27-28th, Tour Masada & vicinity through departure

* We are good on tour guides, we will free roam mostly and have one or two lined up, plus we have Alice!

* Happy to skip the Mitla pass and a tour to the south (Gaza/ Sinai) due time/logistics and there is so much disruption.

* We will keep our evenings free as you suggest

* Keep us posted on any dinners, tracking the 24th

* Hope the country votes wisely, we all need good leadership!

Jonathan’s To Do List -

1) Hotels’ dates are being changed now

2) Final list of participants

Attendees

- LtCol Jonathan Barber, Special Assistant to the Commander, 4^thFighter Wing

- LtCol Jonathan Bott, Commander 333 Fighter Squadron, F15E

- LtCol David Cochran, Commander 58 Fighter Squadron, F-35A

- LtCol William Wooten, Commander 492 Fighter Squadron

- LtCol Prichard Keely, Future Weapons Integration, F-15E

- LtCol Brent Petersen, School of Advanced Air and Space Studies Grad, Weapons Officer

- Dr. Alice Butler-Smith, Professor, School of Advanced Military Studies

- Major Arlen Walker, Wing Weapons Officer, Lakenheath AFB

- Maj Logan Russell, Former Assistant to the Deputy Commander USAFE

- Maj Cahn Wadhams, Assistant to MG Tom Miller, ACC Logistics, Engineering, Force Protection

- Maj Jonathan Menashi, Commander Logistical Readiness

- Maj Mike El Mann, Director of Operations, 4th Training Student Squadron

- Maj Aaron Brady, SAMS Student, A-10 Weapons Officer

- Maj Adam Thompson, F-35A Pilot

- Captain Alexander Meyer, F-35A Pilot

- Captain Meghan Booze, F-15E Virtual Reality and Future Fighter Training Unit

- Captain Sean Lipkin, F-15E Virtual Reality and Future Fighter Training Unit

- Captain Michael Frey, Chief of Training, 333 Fighter Squadron

- Captain Joseph Bledsoe, Flight Commander, Future Fighter Training Unit Program

3) Two laptops for SOD workshops (VGA/HDMI connectors) are packed

4) We will have an informed brief on the current Strategic/Operational situation in Syria et large for the SOD workshop inquiry.

5) I will pass the reading you send to the team and it'll be read

6) Looking forward to meeting MG Itai Virob, does he like a certain bottle? Gentleman Jack Daniels or Scotch?

7) Expedition ACTUM!

Very Respectfully,

Jonathan

On Tuesday, August 20, 2019, 11:36:09 AM CDT, Ofra Graicer <ofragr@me.com> wrote:

Shalom Jonathan,

Following a coordination meeting held at our base this morning, Please see an updated schedule + your To Do list.

14th September - Arrival (lodging in Tel Aviv)

15-16th, IAF program (Hatzerim)

17th-19th, SOD workshop part I (Military Colleges Base, Glilot)

20-22nd, Tour North (accommodation: Scots Hotel, Tiberius)

23-24th, SOD workshop part II (Military Colleges Base, Glilot)

25-26th, IAF program (Hatzor)

27-28th, Tour Jerusalem & vicinity through departure (accommodation: King David, Jerusalem)

* Detailed breakdown of IAF program will come from Dudi I assume, if there isn’t one circulating already.

* Detailed breakdown of the SOD workshop will follow; in general terms working hours will be 9-17 at the base.

* Tour North:

Friday/ Saturday - Free schedule. We have many recommendations and I will send them separately.

Sunday - Shimon and I will join you for the day, starting with a brief from 210 (Golan Heights) Regional Division Commander, BG Amit Fischer, followed by Shimon’s brief on ’73 Ops, wine or beer tasting and whatever we could squeeze prior to returning to Tel Aviv;

* Tour Jerusalem:

Friday - Nick is looking into hooking you up with the USSC delegation and a program they can come up with. Otherwise our people will provide you with a tour guide to make best use of that day.

Saturday - Free schedule, depending on your departure time & your energy level.., you may opt to either drive to Massada National Park/ Kumran National Park (where the ancient biblical scrolls were found), or Enot Tzukim Natural Reserve. I can also hook you up with a guide who runs kayak paddling tours in the Dead Sea.

* We are not planning a tour to the south (Gaza/ Sinai) since the situation might turn volatile. If during your stay you insist on it, we will try to figure it out.

* We left your evenings free so you can rest and reflect. We strongly suggest to not fill them up with more ‘meetings’ and ‘briefings’.

* Leaving room for spontaneous dinners, drinks and all upon your arrival. The only evening we may make arrangements is for the 24th.

* The 17th is election day here, so it’s going to be interesting days on top of our plans.

Jonathan’s To Do List -

1) Change hotels’ dates: 14-20 Tel Aviv; 20-22 Tiberias; 22-26 Tel Aviv; 26-28 Jerusalem

2) Send us final list of participants when you have it, for Base permits

3) Bring two laptops for SOD workshops (VGA/HDMI connectors)

4) Prepare to present an informed brief on the current Strategic/Operational situation in Syria et large for the SOD workshop inquiry. We dim relevant anything between Turkey, Kurdistan, Iraq and Iran AO… Consult USAF, CENTCOM and SOCOM personnel, so we have a good foundation to work with. (IDF/IAF personnel will provide the Israeli brief)

5) Have your team read the materials we will send next week.

6) Get ready to meet our Commandant, MG Itai Virob, during your stay (he expressed interest in meeting your group, probably a one hour exchange or maybe a dinner)

7) Give this expedition a name, or I will coin it : Expedition ‘Rev’

Hope it makes sense, if not fire away,

Cheers,

Ofra

Ofra Graicer, PhD

www.ofragraicer.com

ofragr@mac.com

Mobile: +972-54-4772732

Tel Aviv, Israel

On 16 Aug 2019, at 19:29, Jonathan Barber <jonbarber25@yahoo.com> wrote:

Shalom Ofra!

Thanks very much for the info, we are really looking forward to learning from you and Shimon and also building relationships and learning from the IAF. The overall schedule sounds excellent, and I prefer to leave the whole two weeks up to Shimon's opinion and creativity. He and you know best what would be beneficial.

General Intent:
Learn Systemic Operational Design from Shimon and Ofra and execute a staff ride that conveys the human and physical terrain and shows SOD in action in the IDF and specifically IAF. Build relationships with the IAF, specifically the fighter squadrons and command.

There are two areas we are interested in engaging with the IAF because we are currently redesigning them in our Air Force.
1. Fighter pilot training, how that is structured, tracked, and executed. We are brining four captains that can specifically engage in this area, they have a significant budget and authority to create a system for our Wing and are looking for ideas. We are trying to train a better quality pilots faster with virtual reality, AI, and more flexible and tailored systems. I believe most of the pilot training is done at Hatzerim where the 69 squadron is located.

2. We would like to talk to the IAF about base resiliency, agility and maneuver with regards to operating within a significant surface to surface missile threat of an adversary.

Those are two important subject areas to talk to the IAF about, but we are certainly interested in anything else from an operational, army, commando, regional command, and terrain point of view that you and Shimon consider important.

Coordination: The USAFE Israeli desk and DAO coordinated with the IAF and gave me this info, 69 squadron "Hammers" will host out of Hatzerim with Maj David "Dudi" Staroselsky (IAF) as POC, Dudi.staroselsky@gmail.com. I emailed Dudi that I would run everything through you first. I'm happy to coordinate directly with him if you would like me to, but I'll let you make the decision so we don't step on each others toes or double book anything.

Also, we asked LtCol Unruh (deputy DAO at the embassy) if there was a possibility to make it into the Sinai to see Mitla Pass. It was just to see if it is possible for now. Let me know if you think this is useful. I'd also like the team to see the Golan where the 77th Brigade fought the Syrian armor if you think that is worthwhile. It is beneficial for pilots to travel to and stand on the terrain and understand the ground troops perspective and concept of maneuver. We move at the speed of sound and operate in the EMS at the speed of light, but if we cannot cognitively connect to the ground we limit the overall power of the team.

The esss official approval from Secretary of the Air Force/International Affairs is at the bottom of this email for MG Virob.

Currently I have hotels booked in the following locations, we can change these as necessary, they were just a guess at where we'd be.
Should we plan on being at Hatzerim when we are with the IAF or multiple locations? It is 1:22 drive from both Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

14-21 Sept: Hilton in Tel Aviv
21-23 Sept: Scots Hotel in Tiberius
23-28 Sept King David in Jerusalem

Are these dates what you are thinking?
14-15 sept with the IAF
16-24 with Shimon and Ofra
25-26 with the IAF
27 Sept we wanted to show the team Jerusalem and Masada but this is flexible

Also, I will make sure the DAO sends the official request through to MG Virob.

Very Respectfully,
Jonathan
Attendees (18 total, we are a big group and have 6-7 vehicles so happy to split and engage with different areas or bases during the staff tour if that helps)
-      Dr. Alice Butler-Smith, Professor, School of Advanced Military Studies
-      LtCol Jonathan Bott, Commander 333 Fighter Squadron, F15E
-      LtCol David Cochran, Commander 58 Fighter Squadron, F-35A
- *LtCol William Wooten, Commander 492 Fighter Squadron
-      LtCol Prichard Keely, Future Weapons Integration, F-15E
-      LtCol Brent Petersen, School of Advanced Air and Space Studies Grad, Weapons Officer
-      LtCol Jonathan Barber, Special Assistant to the Commander, 4^thFighter Wing
-      Maj Logan Russell, Former Assistant to the Deputy Commander USAFE
-      Maj Cahn Wadhams, Assistant to MG Tom Miller, ACC Logistics, Engineering, Force Protection
-      Maj Jonathan Menashi, Commander Logistical Readiness
-      Maj Mike El Mann, Director of Operations, 4th Training Student Squadron
- *Maj Aaron Brady, SAMS Student, A-10 Weapons Officer
-      Maj Adam Thompson, F-35A Pilot
-      Captain Alexander Meyer, F-35A Pilot
-      Captain Meghan Booze, F-15E Virtual Reality and Future Fighter Training Unit
-      Captain Sean Lipkin, F-15E Virtual Reality and Future Fighter Training Unit
-      Captain Michael Frey, Chief of Training, 333 Fighter Squadron
-      Captain Joseph Bledsoe, Flight Commander, Future Fighter Training Unit Program

*LtCol Wooten and Maj Brady may not attend the whole trip

On Thursday, August 15, 2019, 10:41:57 AM CDT, Ofra Graicer <ofragr@me.com> wrote:

Good morning Jonathan,

Shimon had a long chat today with an IAF officer who assumed responsibility for your visit. I wasn’t in on the call, so I am passing Shimon’s update:

1. IAF Collab - Our airforce people are taking this visit more seriously than you could have hope for and see a real opportunity here for professional collaboration. They are preparing to host you for a total of four days, two at the beginning and two at the end, including joint simulations.

2. Shimon is going to update our Commander, MG Itai Virob, of your expedition, at the beginning of next week. Since no formal request has arrived at his HQ, it would be best if you can send me an updated list of participants (rank and role), and general guidelines of your intent (no more than one to two paragraphs).

So, you can see just like any other military, the AF people are quicker than the Land Forces…

But time is running short, and Shimon has ideas how to fill your days besides IAF and SOD (staff rides and so…). If you want us to pursue this further, let me know. And remind me your final dates of travel, assuming you will be staying in Tel Aviv the entire time? Or Jerusalem as well? Also, if you have already made plans with other people here on specific dates, let me know as well so we don’t double book (:

Cheers,

Ofra

----- Forwarded Message -----

From: BARBER, JONATHAN M Lt Col USAF ACC 4 TS/19-CTE <jonathan.barber.1@us.af.mil>
To: DeStazio, John M <DeStazioJM@state.gov>; DeStazio, John M <DeStazioJM@state.gov>; Unruh, Nicholas D <UnruhND@state.gov>; Randal Allen <randal_allen@yahoo.com>
Cc: BURNS, WILLIAM R Lt Col USAF USAFE HQ USAFE-AFAFRICA/A39 <william.burns.1@us.af.mil>; KEELY, PRICHARD R Lt Col ACC SAF/333 FS <prichard.keely@us.af.mil>; 'jonbarber25@yahoo.com' <jonbarber25@yahoo.com>; LAWS, JOSEPH M Lt Col US Air Force SAF SAF/IARC <joseph.laws@us.af.mil>; Randal Allen <randal_allen@yahoo.com>; FLINT, LEE A GS-14 USAF USAFE USAFE A3/A39 <lee.flint.2@us.af.mil>; SCHMIDT, JAMES L Maj USAF USAFE USAFE A3/AETC (Holy) <james.schmidt.2@us.af.mil>; allice.a.butler-smith.civ@mail.mil <allice.a.butler-smith.civ@mail.mil>
Sent: Thursday, August 8, 2019, 6:25:52 PM CDT
Subject: FW: [Non-DoD Source] Fwd: Israel Trip

Col DeStazio:
Sir,

Below is the esss from Col Manning at SAF/IA. He said approval wasn’t necessary just coord for Situational Awareness but signed it to make passing it to the IDF easier. Part of our team has been in contact with LtCol Unruh, and I’ve been in contact with Gen Shimon Naveh (ret) and Dr Ofra Graicer at the IDF Generals course. General Naveh agreed to teach us a one week course in between the General classes then possibly guide us on a staff tour the second week. The only coordination I am aware of left to do is if you could forward this esss to MG Itai Virov who is Gen Naveh’s direct boss and Commander of the Military Colleges to get his formal approval of this trip. I am aware that the Generals course building is undergoing renovation and it may or may not work for our group. We will be staying at the Hilton in Tel Aviv and I can rent a room to meet for $500 a day, but are you aware of any other US facilities in Tel Aviv we could use to meet with 20 people from 15-10 Sept?

Also, in addition to the staff ride Shimon organizes we are very interested in engaging with the IAF with regards to agile basing, Fighter Pilot training, and fifth gen integration during our second week 22-26 Sept. Our team consists of F15E, F35, A10 ops, logistics, maintenance, and a design theory professor from SAMS. Gen Naveh mentioned he is limited in his IAF contacts so we would greatly appreciate any help in that area.

Very Respectfully,
Jonathan Barber, LtCol, USAF
Special Assistant to the Commander, 4th Fighter Wing
Seymour Johnson AFB, NC
719-200-6437
jonbarber25@yahoo.com

From: "Manning, Daniel R (Beef) Col USAF SAF-IA (USA)" <daniel.r.manning2.mil@mail.mil>
Date: August 7, 2019 at 17:00:13 EDT
To: "jonbarber25@gmail.com" <jonbarber25@gmail.com>
Subject: FW: Israel Trip
Retry again.

From: Manning, Daniel R (Beef) Col USAF SAF-IA (USA)
Sent: Wednesday, August 7, 2019 3:16 PM
To: 'BARBER, JONATHAN M Lt Col USAF ACC 4 TS/19-CTE' <jonathan.barber.1@us.af.mil>
Subject: FW: Israel Trip

Retry

From: Manning, Daniel R (Beef) Col USAF SAF-IA (USA)
Sent: Monday, August 5, 2019 3:59 PM
To: 'BARBER, JONATHAN M Lt Col USAF ACC 4 TS/19-CTE' <jonathan.barber.1@us.af.mil>
Cc: Montgomery, Brian R Col USAF 4 FW (USA) <brian.montgomery@us.af.mil>; Blanchette, Wayne C Col USAF SAF-IA (USA) <wayne.c.blanchette.mil@mail.mil>; Laws, Joseph M (Jaws) Lt Col USAF SAF-IA (US) <joseph.m.laws.mil@mail.mil>
Subject: RE: Israel Trip

Concur. Sounds like a great trip.

All the best
Beef

DANIEL R. MANNING, Col, USAF
Deputy Director, Regional Affairs
International Affairs

DSN: 225-2129
Comm: 703 695-2129
SIPR: Daniel.r.manning2.mil@mail.smil.mil

From: BARBER, JONATHAN M Lt Col USAF ACC 4 TS/19-CTE <jonathan.barber.1@us.af.mil>
Sent: Monday, August 5, 2019 3:21 PM
To: Manning, Daniel R (Beef) Col USAF SAF-IA (USA) <daniel.r.manning2.mil@mail.mil>
Cc: Montgomery, Brian R Col USAF 4 FW (USA) <brian.montgomery@us.af.mil>
Subject: Israel Trip

Col Manning:
Sir,

BLUF: A group of 16 individuals including some airmen from both the 4^th and 48^th Fighter Wings will be visiting Israel in late September for professional development and relationship building both internal to the USAF and external to our partner nation of Israel. This trip has been coordinated through SAF/IA, USAFE A5, and the SAMS faculty at Fort Leavenworth, KS. The trip is funded at the unit level for all participants. See below and the attached document for further SA. Please let me know what questions you have regarding this information.

Office                                      Action                         Last Name/Rank/Date
4 FW/SAC                              Coord                          Barber/Lt Col/26 Jul 19
4 FW/CCEA                           Coord                          Ivory/TSgt/26 Jul 19
4 FW/CCE                              Coord                          Trott/Maj/26 Jul
4 FW/CV                                Coord
4 FW/CC                                Coord
SAF/IA                                   Approve/Coord

----------------------------------STAFF SUMMARY SHEEET-----------

AO: Lt Col Jonathan M. Barber, 4 FW/SAC, Cell 719-200-6437, DSN 722-0101

SUSPENSE: 1 Aug 19

SUBJECT: TDY Field Work – Israel 12-28 Sep

1. PURPOSE: Network US and IDF Army and Air Force to create an environment of innovation and familiarize the USAF with the complexities and origin of the complexities of Israel’s strategic setting and draw lessons for the application of Air Power to achieve US national military strategy. Emphasis is human centered, IOT enable participants to think in systems, orient on the origins of complexity in any context – to learn to ask questions from a non-Western, holistic, frames of reference.

2. BACKGROUND:
Strike Eagle aircrew attending the School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas visited Israel on a monograph research trip. This resulted in a relationship with General Shimon Naveh (retired) and Ofra Graicer who teach the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) General’s course. They use complexity theory to teach an approach to operational art that uses tactical action to accomplish national strategy. General Naveh agreed to teach a one week course to the attendees listed below as well as help coordinate a follow-on week of touring IDF locations around Israel. The purpose of the trip is to learn valuable lessons from a critical regional ally by attending the IDF generals course and engaging with IDF regional commands and Israeli Air Force (IAF) Wings to see their theory of operational art in practice, how the IDF integrates air and land power, fifth generation integration, and how they achieve political objectives in a complex socio-political environment with Air Power. Additionally, Seymour-Johnson AFB is innovating the application of combat power through Operation RAPID FORGE and FTU NEXT. Relationship building and information sharing with the IDF will enhance and inform the growth of this mission as the IDF shares similar challenges. The relationships and ideas that generated this trip were created at SAMS and SJAFB and need approval through SAF/IA to begin coordination with the IDF to accomplish the desired learning objectives listed below.

3. DISCUSSION: Desired Learning Objectives
1.      Gain an understanding of Israel’s strategic and operational challenges and how Systemic Operational Design approaches these challenges. Action: Attend IDF General’s Course led by Shimon Naveh the first week. Tour North and South regional commands to see the implementation of operational art.
2.      Understand the new challenges in a rapidly changing global and regional context. Examine Israel’s missile threat challenges and bring lessons back for RAPID FORGE 2020. Action: See the physical and human terrain the IDF operates in and visit IAF commanders to discuss how the IAF applies current weapon systems through organization, operational theory, and planning against the proxy, great power, and precision missile threats in the region.
3.      Discuss fifth generation integration with fourth generation, IADS, intel, cyber, and space. Action: Visit F-35 and F-15E squadrons and discuss achieving strategic objectives through the application of new technology against a changing threat landscape.
4.      Understand how IAF manages human capital through production, development, and sustainment of fighter pilots. Action: Engage with IAF training command and bases to glean best practices and innovative ideas to implement new technology into the changing USAF fighter pilot pipeline.
5.      Build lasting relationships between the USAF F-15E Strike Eagle Community, Army leadership of SAMS, and our closest ally in the Middle East AOR.

4. RECOMMENDATION: SAF/IA approves 4 FW/CC to fund TDY.

//SIGNED//
JONATHAN M. BARBER, Lt Col, USAF
Special Assistant to the Commander
Cell: 719-200-6437
jonathan.barber.1@us.af.mil

Tab
Israel proposed draft itinerary

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