2015-01-22 Murielle Delaporte, the Co-Founder of Second Line of Defense and the editor of Operationnels SLDS, is currently with one of the two NATO counter-mining groups. Her full report will appear on the Operationnels website and magazine. The change of command of the group is held twice a year and Dutch Navy…
2015-01-22 When visiting the Gerald R. Ford and making the trek to the bridge, one notices quickly that the deck space in front of the island is significantly expanded over a Nimitz class carrier. We talked with the Captain and a construction engineer about the changes on our visit to…
2015-01-19 Although the F-22 and F-35 have flown together previously, now training to bring together the core competencies of the two systems into a coherent combat force has begun. As the former head of the Air Combat Command put it in an interview with Second Line of Defense: People focus…
2015-01-17 By Robbin Laird The Royal Australian Air Force is in the throes of significant modernization. As I wrote during my visit earlier this year to Australia about the process of change: The Aussies entered the 21st century with an aging Air Force. The silver lining in that difficult position is…
2015-01-15 By Robbin Laird and Ed Timperlake Nellis AFB, Nevada A new chapter in developing the next generation of combat airpower has just opened at the USAF Weapons School, Nellis AFB. We attended the arrival ceremony of the first fully operational F-35A into the USAF Weapons School. F-35s have been…
01/13/2015: Soldiers from the 3rd Squadron, 2d Cavalry Regiment arrive in Latvia for Operation Atlantic Resolve to live and train with NATO partners and allies. Credit:2nd Cavalry Regiment:1/12/15 According to an article by Cheryl Pellerin published January 12, 2015 on the DoD website: U.S. Army troops resumed Operation Atlantic Resolve…
2015-01-12 During our last interview with the then head of the Military Sealift Command, Admiral Buzby, the reinvention of the Ponce was a focus of attention. In an article published on April 12, 2012 we highlighted the importance of the reinvention. The USS Ponce (LPD-15) was launched on 20 May…
2015-01-12 For the first time, the new Australian airborne early warning and C2 aircraft is operating in combat. Australia’s Air Task Group (ATG) consisting of six RAAF F/A-18F Super Hornets, an E-7A Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft and a KC-30A Multi-Role Tanker Transport aircraft continue to support Operation…