Air Force, Navy take steps to restore nuclear forces' reputations.

• Author: Magnuson, Stew

A November report on the state of the U.S. military's nuclear weapons delivery programs was the latest in a long list of indignities that have plagued the Air Force and Navy.

When it came to the two services' nuclear weapons enterprise, the report written by retired Air Force Gen. Larry D. Welch and retired Navy Adm. John C. Harvey said, what enterprise?

"The review did not find a coherent, integrated structure and synchronized set of activities that could be characterized as a DoD 'nuclear enterprise,'" the report said.

The Welch-Harvey review, along with an internal report, were ordered by then Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel following missteps, scandals and long-term neglect by the two services responsible for delivering the nation's nuclear weapons. While the Department of Energy develops, manufactures and maintains the warheads, the Air Force and Navy must ensure that the personnel and platforms are in place to deliver them.

Controversy has touched upon all three legs of the so-called nuclear triad: intercontinental ballistic missiles, airborne bombers and submarines.

An early indication that something was wrong came in 2007 when six AGM-129 ACM cruise missiles--each loaded with a nuclear warhead--were mistakenly transported from Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota to Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. No one noticed the missing warheads for 36 hours.

Later came scandals in both services where junior officers cheated on qualification exams.

Meanwhile, the Air Force put control of its bombers and missiles under one roof when it created its Global Strike Command in 2008. Consolidating the two missions was an attempt to solve some of the problems facing the nuclear enterprise.

Six years later, Welch and Harvey's "Independent Review of the Department of Defense Nuclear Enterprise" found that little had changed. It generally lauded the lower ranking servicemen and women who had to contend with the draconian responses to the earlier scandals, but slammed leadership for not straightening out systemic problems and for failing to provide personnel with the equipment and conditions needed to carry out the mission.

Maj. Gen. Garrett Harencak, Air Force assistant chief of staff for strategic deterrence and nuclear integration, said the report was tough to swallow, but a necessary exercise to put the Air Force on the right path.

"Yes, some of the recommendations were critical. Most of them were spot on. Some stung a bit. Some left a mark, but in the end, it was vitally important for us to get that out into the light of day," he said at an Air Force Association breakfast.

The Air Force prior to the November release of the independent review was already taking measures to reform the way it conducts operations under the force improvement program.

Of the 114 recommendations given to the Air Force, it agreed with 112 of them, Harencak said. It is currently tracking a total of 175 items that need to be accomplished. Some...