Background. AOCs require Block 20 Lite Hardware and Block 20 Weapons Systems. The AOC Falconer weapon system is rapidly approaching a major upgrade from legacy 10.1 to modern Block 20 technology necessary to secure and enable Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) of air, space, and cyberspace. The absence of an ARC Block 20 AOC weapon system fielding plan on par with the Active Component, if unresolved, will significantly detriment the ANG’s ability to provide the support aligned AOCs depend on for proficiency, combat mission ready (CMR) manning and distributed JADC2. AOCs operate with reduced manning levels and increasing operational requirements. AOCs increasingly depend on augmentation, distributed operations and continuity of operations capabilities. A critical enabler to this operational capability provided by the ANG is the AOC Falconer Lite weapon suite installed at Air Operations Groups (AOGs) and specifically the system’s ability to support CMR training and standalone operations in Contested, Degraded and Operationally limited (CDO) environments. The current Block 20 plan does not include fielding hardware to ANG AOGs. Instead, ANG units are expected to access the weapon system solely through a cloud environment with considerations for external network outages scoped only to potential multiple network paths. This approach presents multiple challenges to ARC AOGs combat mission readiness/operational training, ongoing distributed operations, and effective reach-back capability for aligned geographic AOCs. It presents a risk to the mission when a unit’s sole access to their weapon system that resides in a cloud environment is through a cyber enabled environment that is actively contested and/or degraded, or simply a network outage. The current plan to field Block-20 hardware only to active-component AOCs is inconsistent with Program Action Directive 102, presenting a risk to readiness and potential risk to mission during operations necessitating Distributed Operations, Split Operations, Reach-Back, and Continuity of Operations. The six ANG AOCs require one Block-20 Lite AOC-Weapons System, or interim weapon system, each consisting of scaled down hardware and software to directly support aligned AOC requirements for CMR augmentation and distributed operations.