Reshaping DoD Business Rules: Leverage Allied Investments in Building Out US Capabilities

08/31/2017
2017-08-29 By Robbin Laird The title of this piece might seem obvious -- why would not the US do everything possible to put the best equipment into the field? The answer is simply that the foreign investment equation is largely absent in the US political calculus. There would be no…

Group Captain Braz on the RAAF and the Way Ahead on Electronic Warfare: Shaping a Core Distributed Capability for the Integrated Force

08/31/2017
2017-08-28 By Robbin Laird On August 23, 2017, the Williams Foundation held a seminar on the future of electronic warfare. At the heart of the Seminar and the discussion were the presentations by Group Captain Braz of the RAAF, a key figure in the introduction of the Growler into the…

An Update on Wedgetail: And Shaping a Way Ahead with a Software Upgradeable Multi-Mission 21st Century Combat Capability

08/29/2017
2017-08-23 By Robbin Laird During my current visit to Canberra in August 2017, I was able to continue my discussion with Officer Commanding No 42 Wing, Group Captain Stuart Bellingham about the Wedgetail and its evolution. After the recent presentation by the head of the USAF Materiel Command underscored the…

The Way Ahead for the RAAF in an Integrated Defense Force: The Perspective of the New Air Commander Australia, Air Vice-Marshal Zed Roberton

08/24/2017
2017-08-21 By Robbin Laird During the current visit to Australia, I had a chance to talk with the newly appointed Air Commander Australia, Air Vice-Marshal Zed Roberton. I have had the chance to talk with him before so this meeting was more in the mode of continuing the conversation and…

Operating in Contested Airspace: Air Commodore Lennon Discusses the Way Ahead for the Lift and Tanking Fleet

08/23/2017
2017-08-18 By Robbin Laird During my current trip to Australia, I had a chance to talk again with the Air Mobility Commander of the Royal Australian Air Force, Air Commodore Richard Lennon. We last met earlier this year at Amberley Airbase. During that visit, Air Commodore Richard Lennon, the head…