Unmanned Air Flights Stop at the Only Official U.S. Military Base in Africa

09/30/2013
2013-09-30 By Guy Martin The US military has stopped flying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from its main African base in Djibouti after a string of crashes, moving operations to a remote desert airstrip. Camp Lemonnier, next to Djibouti’s international airport, is the only official American military base on the African continent…

Declaring IOC for the F-35B and Going to Japan: Lt. Col. Gillette Discusses the Approach

09/29/2013
2013-09-29 During the visit of Secretary Wynne to the 33rd Fighter Wing, we accompanied him on the visit and add some meetings of our own. Among the most notable of those additional meetings was an opportunity to sit down with two USMC leaders in the process of the roll out of…

In Praise of the LCAC

09/28/2013
2013-09-28 A compilation of photos and videos for the Men and Women of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps assigned to the Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) and all its support groups such as the U.S. Navy Amphibious Warships LPDs, LSDs and LSTs. The Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) is a…

Visiting the Ready Room of VMFAT501: Leveraging Combat Experience to Prepare the F-35B for Deployment

09/26/2013
2013-09-26 By Robbin Laird and Ed Timperlake During the visit of Secretary Wynne to the 33rd Fighter Wing, we accompanied him on the visit and added some meetings of our own. Among the most notable of those additional meetings was an opportunity to sit down with two USMC leaders in the…

Shaping the Weapons Approach for the F-35B: Leveraging the Harrier Experience

09/25/2013
2013-09-26 Although the F-35B is a new aircraft, and new skills are being learned, the USMC is clearly harvesting experience where relevant to shaping the combat approach of the new aircraft.  In a discussion with a combat-hardened Marine who is a weapons loader for the Harrier, the shaping of the approach…