Museum of Aviation hosts national security forum, raises awareness of emerging technology

WARNER ROBINS – The Museum of Aviation hosted its third annual National Security Forum bringing together leaders in technology, military and industry on Feb. 6.

The theme this year was “Industry and Sustainment in a Digital World.” The forum introduced various panelists who discussed how advancements in new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Robotics are transforming military logistics, manufacturing, defense operations and commercial supply chains.

Attendees were encouraged to ask questions to panelists, including Retired United States Air Force General Philip M. Breedlove, Greg King, Associate Vice President at Georgia Institute of Technology, Lieutenant General Dale R. White, Robert McMahon, and Retired USAF Brig Gen. John C. Kubinec, who served as the panel’s moderator.

78^th Air Base Wing Commander Col. Deedrick Reese said this year’s theme aligns perfectly with Robins 2041 vision. He said in 2041, Robins Air Force Base will be 100 years old, marking 100 years of commitment, service and providing combat capability to the nation. However, the installation is still in an outdated 1941 structure, Reese said.

“As we push forward and we bring together events like today, our focus remains on creating a future-ready installation,” he said. “One that integrates advanced technologies, enhances readiness and secures the vital mission sustainment necessary for national security, so we do this for another 100 years; we have to modernize the installation.”

Former Senator Sam Nunn gave opening comments. He believes America needs to lead in innovative technology for security and prosperity.

Nunn is affiliated with the Nuclear Threat Initiative, which examines the dark side of science and technology, starting with nuclear and bioweapons. He said they strive to ensure countries and entities worldwide take care of dangerous materials and prevent terrorism. 

The organization also supports civil nuclear power, but strives to have the safety, security and control over those weapons to be able to reduce them.

Nunn believes events like the National Security Forum are important because they talk about the United States’ warfighting and prevention capacity. He said the logistics at Robins Air Force Base plays a role in preparing the USAF. He said manufacturing in the country supports the wars happening in Ukraine and the Middle East. This comes with its challenges, which were discussed in the forum.

AI was also heavily discussed, and Nunn believes people must know how far they go with AI and keep “mankind in the loop.”

“Human beings have to be involved. We have to bring values, and we have to bring ethics, and we have to bring decision making and wisdom to the equation,” he said.

Nunn also shared the country has great potential with AI, robotics, machine learning and quantum computing. 

“In the final analysis, we have to have man in the loop, and I would say these days for sure women in the loop; so many women making tremendous contribution to our nation,” he said

Nunn said he learned a lot from attending the forum. He shared one of the things he learned was challenges, especially with the budgeting process in congress. He said when congress does not pass its budget on time, it disrupts the planning process and makes inefficiencies almost impossible for people managing programs and acquisitions.

Nunn believes it is important to be aware of emerging technologies because it will not only affect the military, but the whole commercial cycle; it is already affecting lives worldwide.

“We got to take the tremendous potential of artificial intelligence and make sure we take advantage of those opportunities for the betterment of mankind, but we’ve guard against the downside, the dark side,” he said.

Nunn said fighting the “dark side,” takes the private sector, engineering scientific community, governmental regulatory bodies and citizens participating to make sure technology works in favor of mankind and people will not suffer risks, such as misinformation.

“We have a different set of challenges in terms of accurate information than we’ve ever had before. Accurate information is fundamental to the democratic process and to [the] democratic government,” he said. “People have to be informed of the truth; dealing with truth [and] dealing with accurate information is absolutely imperative for our economy, for our security and for our democracy”

Nunn said whenever he visits middle Georgia, he feels like he is back home. He said the Museum of Aviation is a great museum and many people in middle Georgia played a role in its success. He has also enjoyed watching the growth in Warner Robins and Perry.

“That’s always exciting, seeing people work together. One of the things that’s been gratifying to me in the last couple of years is watching the county commissioners, the hospital authority and the Department of Education in Houston County all working together,” he said. “That’s really unusual and there’s some tremendous potential here in the medical field and I think it’s because we’ve got a great leadership and a great education system.”

To view the livestream of the National Security Forum click here.