By Robbin Laird In 2025, four significant books emerged that collectively chronicle the transformation of airpower from its industrial-age roots to its current form as a networked, information-centric enterprise. These volumes, Training for The High-End Fight: The Paradigm Shift in Combat Pilot Training, Remembering the B-17 and Its Role in…
By Robbin Laird For generations, military aviation followed a familiar rhythm. Crises escalated in predictable sequences. Training focused on perfecting physical flying skills. Pilots mastered their aircraft through countless hours of stick-and-rudder practice, building muscle memory that would serve them throughout their careers. That era, according to defense experts examining…
By Robbin Laird The traditional architecture of naval power centered on capital ships projecting force through manned platforms is approaching obsolescence. Western navies stand at an inflection point where incremental adaptation will no longer suffice. The emergence, proliferation, and rapid development of maritime autonomous systems (MAS) demands nothing less than…
By Robbin Laird While finalizing my book to be published later this year, The Lessons From the Drone Wars, I watched a fascinating Wall Street Journal video which highlighted how a drone command center in Ukraine was operating against the Russian aggressor. Throughout the video they showed calibrated attacks on…
By Robbin Laird The deepening partnership between the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) is increasingly at the center of Australia’s defense strategy for the Indo-Pacific. While recent commentary has emphasized the risks of deepened integration for Australian sovereignty, this narrative can underestimate the many advantages…
By Robbin Laird At Marine Corps Air Station New River in North Carolina, a quiet transformation is reshaping the future of American heavy-lift aviation. Marine Heavy Helicopter Training Squadron 302, known by its call sign HMHT-302, has changed in mission by becoming the training squadron now for the CH-53K. What…
By George Galdorisi The U. S. Navy stands at the precipice of a new era of technology advancement. In an address at a military-industry conference, the U.S. Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Michael Gilday, revealed the Navy’s goal to grow to 500 ships, to include 350 crewed ships and 150…
By Robbin Laird The reactivation of Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 264 (VMM-264) represents far more than a simple administrative redesignation or force structure adjustment. It signals the Marine Corps' recognition that its transformation under Force Design 2030 requires expanded, not contracted, capabilities in certain critical areas, particularly in the aviation…
