Attributable to Pentagon Spokesman Eric Pahon:
Deputy Secretary of Defense Dr. Kathleen Hicks departs on domestic travel Wednesday, August 17, to visit Tennessee, Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana.
At the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, Deputy Secretary Hicks will highlight department efforts to strengthen American manufacturing and supply chain resilience. She will visit multiple facilities which include joint DoD-DoE projects, job training programs, and interact with the scientists and students who are doing research in energy storage, materials science, and other critical areas.
At Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, Deputy Secretary Hicks will visit the Air Force Research Laboratory to discuss research into cutting-edge innovation, experimentation, and partnerships with academia which further national security objectives.
At U.S. Transportation Command at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, the deputy will gain insight into future mobility, lift, and sustainment requirements, and receive an update on efforts to integrate artificial intelligence and Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) into our logistics systems.
At Purdue University, Indiana, she will visit faculty and PhD students who are focusing their work on hypersonics and other key national security areas and visit the Hypersonics Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center (HAMTC) to gain greater insight into future approaches to hypersonic systems. She will also receive briefings on microelectronics programs and microelectronics workforce development. She will also deliver a speech followed by audience Q & A.
Throughout her travel, Deputy Secretary Hicks will focus on linking the department’s resources to our strategic competition priorities, including the pacing threat of China, and ensuring DoD remains the world leader in cutting-edge innovation.