The Striker Airmen Coder cohort presents their final project LogICA at STRIKEWERX in the Cyber Innovation Center, Bossier City, La., March 24, 2023. (Sean Green/STRIKEWERX)
By Sean Green | STRIKEWERX Marketing and Communication Director
BOSSIER CITY, La. — The Striker Airmen Coder program welcomed its first data analyst as well as new software developed for Air Force Global Strike Command.
AFGSC devised the SAC program as an effort to develop Air Force coders who can create innovative and efficient technical solutions within their own units.
Staff Sgt. Nicola Baggio, a munitions support equipment crew chief with the 509th Bomb Wing, was SAC’s first Airman in the data analytics immersive. He created a report on the mission readiness of a specific class of trailers, resolving details from maintainer data.
He chose the data analytics portion because it mirrors work in his career field and he plans to use the new skills to dive deeper on different types of data.
“I typically shy away from computer work, and I wanted to put myself into a position that would do nothing but that,” said Baggio. “Coming into this, I had zero experience. I learned a lot and was able to put those new skills to good use.”
A team of four Airmen developed LogICA, while working with the SAC program. This automated training report software tracked Airmen’s progress, eased the ability to label training as complete and show any training deficiency trends.
Master Sgt. Michael Davis, SAC program student, said programs like SAC are derived directly from Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. C. Q. Brown’s “Accelerate or Lose” doctrine.
“It pushes us to be more innovative and collaborative with business partners to make sure our Air Force is as strong and capable as ever,” Davis said.
The five Airmen were selected through an aptitude test before undergoing a coding boot camp for three months. They spent a further three months working with Ruby Shore Software, based in Shreveport, Louisiana, to develop their projects as junior developers.
The SAC program is administered by the Cyber Innovation Center through a partnership intermediary agreement with AFGSC.
“My experience in SAC was great. Being able to work with Ruby Shore Software, a company that does this every day, is an amazing opportunity,” said Airman 1st Class Derell Malone.
Baggio said Airmen wanting new coding or data skills should, “one hundred percent apply for the SAC program.”
“It was a great experience working with the Cyber Innovation Center and Ruby Shore Software. You have different avenues to figure out learning opportunities and gain a new skill set,” said Baggio.
The teams demoed their project March 24 during a presentation held for AFGSC staff and the Office of the Chief Scientist at STRIKEWERX in Bossier City, Louisiana.
The project will now be analyzed by AFGSC for future scalability and further development.