By Guy Martin Draken International has begun flying supersonic, radar equipped Mirage F1M fighters to support US Air Force (USAF) combat training at Nellis Air Force Base after the aircraft were returned to service by Paramount Aerospace Systems. The fully modernized Mirage F1Ms, predominately flown by the Spanish Air Force…
By Robbin Laird A decade ago I went to a series of Bold Alligator exercises. These exercises were generated to reshape a return to the sea for the US Navy and USMC team after a long period of focus on the land wars. A whole generation of Marines had seldom…
By Robbin Laird As the first combat force in the world to operate the F-35, the Marines experienced the challenge but also the impacts of what a fifth-generation aircraft can deliver to the battlespace. At the heart of what a four-ship formation of F-35s can deliver is an integrated core…
By Robbin Laird After my visit to Perth and the Henderson Shipyard, I had a chance in Canberra to discuss the new class of OPVs with the senior leadership team in Navy and the Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG) within the Australian Department of Defence. Participating in the discussion…
By Andrew McLaughlin When introducing a new capability, a major factor in its success – or otherwise – is its ability to be successfully integrated with other capabilities. This has become particularly crucial with the plethora of increasingly capable and expensive new generation capabilities coming on board, each of which may have multiple sensors which generate huge amounts of…
By Robbin Laird The first time I met Vice Admiral (Retired) Tim Barrett was at the 2016 Williams Foundation Seminar in which he addressed the evolving role of the Australian Navy in the transformation of the Australian Defence Force. He provided a keynote presentation to the August 2016 Seminar on…
As the Japanese focus on strengthening the perimeter of their defenses of Japan, new systems are being procured and modifications to platforms being made. The purchase of Ospreys and F-35s both As and Bs, along with the modification of Japanese helicopter landing ships are entailed as Japan looks to its…
By Robbin Laird On March 12, 2020 I had a chance to visit HMAS Sterling and to visit the HMAS Rankin, one of the Collins class submarines homeported at HMAS Sterling on Garden Island. When I informed a senior U.S. Navy Admiral that I was going to visit the Royal…
