The Perspective of Air Marshal Chipman: Shaping a Way Ahead for the RAAF

04/04/2023
By Robbin Laird I have known Air Marshal Chipman since he was the first co-chair of Plan Jericho. My first interview with him was with his co-chair Jake Campbell, now of Northrop Grumman. In that first interview conducted in their offices in 2015, the emphasis was taking the coming of…

The Shift to Distributed Maritime Operations: The CMV-22B Empowers the Concept

04/03/2023
By Robbin Laird In an interview I did earlier this year with Vice Admiral Whitesell, the U.S. Navy air boss, he underscored that the shift to distributed maritime operations was a work in progress. As he noted: “We are in an experimentation phase. We are working force distribution and integration.…

The Strategic Shift and Australia Recasts Its Defense Policy: The March Williams Foundation March 2023 Seminar

03/31/2023
By Robbin Laird The latest Williams Foundation Seminar was held on March 30, 2023 in Canberra. It was entitled “Sharpening the Edge of Australia’s National Deterrence Capability” and focused on the strategic transition of Australia and the ADF in meeting the challenges of the decade ahead. I asked one of…

Putting the 2023 Australian Strategic Review in Context: An Assessment by John Blaxland

03/28/2023
By Robbin Laird Currently I am in Canberra, Australia to participate in the latest Williams Foundation Seminar for which I write the reports. While visiting, I have the opportunity to discuss strategic issues with a number of analysts and officials while here. This year is noticeable for the coming defence…

China’s Strategic Shift: What are the Implications for the Evolving Global Order?

03/25/2023
By Robbin Laird Dr. Harald Malmgren has described what he and his colleague see as a strategic shift in China associated with the next phase of President Xi’s leadership. The shift from an export-oriented growth economy which is deeply intertwined with the developments in the Western world to one more…

The Next Phase of the Xi Era: China’s Strategic Shift in a World in Flux

03/23/2023
By Robbin Laird The recently concluded Party Congress in Communist China has both consolidated Xi’s control of the Chinese system and turned the country further from its earlier legacy of global engagement built on its powerful export engine. According to my colleague, Dr. Harald Malmgren, Chinese policy under Xi has…

MARSOC and 2nd MLG Prepare for the Entrance of the CH-53K Into the Fleet

03/21/2023
By Sgt. Jesula Jeanlouis CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. – Marine Forces Special Operations Command’s Paraloft personnel teamed up with 2nd Marine Logistics Group’s Air Delivery Platoon to evaluate the secondary mission capabilities of the CH-53K King Stallion helicopter, Oct. 25 – Nov. 3, 2022. This evaluation included day and night aerial…