2017-09-15 by Ed Timperlake and Robbin Laird The United States has fought relatively slow-motion wars or “slo mo,” land wars for more than a decade and a half. This does not mean American and Allied combat troops have not experienced the violence and threats commiserate with engaging against a nasty…
09/25/2017: An Australian Defence Force (ADF) Joint Task Group, Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2017, has departed Sydney to participate in a series of key military exercises throughout the Indo-Pacific region. Running from September to November, Indo-Pacific Endeavour will focus on enhancing military cooperation with some of Australia’s key regional partners including Indonesia, Japan,…
2017-09-13 By Robbin Laird The UK has announced its new shipbuilding strategy, one which seeks to leverage the modularity approach introduced by building the new Queen Elizabeth class carriers. Now the First Sea Lord has addressed the question of the role of the maritime sector in generating broader defense transformation.…
2017-09-13 USS Abraham Lincoln, the first US Navy aircraft carrier capable of accommodating the F-35C Lightning II, welcomed the fifth-generation jet fighter on board earlier this month. The “Grim Reapers” of Strike Fighter Squadron 101 (VFA 101), the training squadron for the F-35C, joined the USS Abraham Lincoln while underway on…
2017-09-22 The USS America is the new kid on the block in terms of amphibious warfare. It has been joined in the Alligator Dagger by another new kid on the block as well, the aviation modified support ship, the USNS Puller. USS Lewis B. Puller (ESB-3), (formerly USNS Lewis B. Puller (T-ESB-3)), (formerly T-MLP-3/T-AFSB-1) is the…
2017-09-03 by Ed Timperlake This article argues that payload utility can be a driver for understanding the future development of combat systems. To understand Pu with full honor to John Boyd, it can be noted that Observe/Orient (OO) is essentially target acquisition, and Decide/Act (DA) is target engagement. Thus there…
2017-09-06 The US and allied militaries are working a significant military transformation. This transformation is being driven in part by the shift from engaging in slo mo war to preparing for high intensity and high tempo operations. In many ways, the two key regions where this transformation is being ramped…
09/10/2017: From June to December 2017, Air Force is trialling the use of a Ka-Band Satellite Communication (SATCOM) antenna and suite on board a C-130J Hercules transport aircraft. This SATCOM system provides greater bandwidth than previous systems fitted to the RAAF’s Hercules fleet, and allows live-streaming and transfer of large files…