By Robbin Laird, Research Fellow, Williams Foundation, Canberra A great photo opportunity was provided by the arrival of the first two F-35s from the United States to their operating base at Williamtown Air Base in Australia on December 10, 2018. [maxgallery id="121867"] But as the saying goes “fortune favors the prepared.”…
By Robbin Laird Normally, the TLP is held in Spain at Albacete Airbase. We visited Albacete Airbase in 2016 and talked with Spanish Air Force pilots concerning their Eurofighter operations at the base. As we noted at the time: “Albacete flies a regular Quick Reaction Alert force to provide for…
By Robbin Laird The RAAF F-35s on on their way to Williamtown and thereby opening the F-35 Aussie fleet operations in-country. As the Aussies work out their sustainment approach on the various airbases where the F-35s will operate in normal times as well as crisis times, the F-35 partners of…
By Murielle Delaporte With the fiftieth anniversary of "May ’68" this year, many activist groups in France tried last spring to recreate it. It did not happen then, but a new effort has been launched in the past couple of months to make it happen, although the motivations, conditions and…
By Robbin Laird "Royal Australian Air Force personnel deployed to Luke Air Force Base in Phoenix, USA prepare the aircraft they will bring home in December 2018. Royal Australian Air Force pilots and maintenance personnel are embedded within United States Air Force units and partnering with Lockheed Martin to prepare…
Recently, the RAF hosted the latest iteration of the Point Blank exercises. The French joined the exercise held in the UK for the first time this year. 26 fighter juets plus combat support units participated in the exercise held November 26, 2018 over the North Sea. Two UK F-35Bs, four…
By Pierre Tran, Paris A planned F4 upgrade of the Rafale fighter jet will serve as technology demonstrator for network capability of the Future Combat Air System, said the Air Chief of staff, Gen. Philippe Lavigne. “Studies are fine but we need a demonstrator to see if the technology works,” Lavigne…
By Ed Timperlake USNA 69 As we approach the Army-Navy game this coming Saturday, we want to honor an earlier Naval football star who has gone on to life an incredible life. And this week, we are honoring as well another heroic naval aviator, President George H.W. Bush. William Faulkner in…
