Ocean Explorer Exercise 2017

03/01/2017
03/01/2017: According to a story on the Australian Ministry of Defence website published on February 24, 2017, the Australian Navy is hosting a multinational training exercise which features its new amphibious ship. [maxgallery id="94617"] More than 17 ships and aircraft are descending on the Western Australian coast for one of the…

RAAF in Cope North 2017

02/28/2017
02/28/2017: According to a story published on the Australian Ministry of Defence’s website on February 22, 2107, the RAAF is going to Cope North to hone its high end combat skills. [maxgallery id="94631"] The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has deployed to Guam to participate in Exercise Cope North 2017—a high…

Visiting the Prowler: USMC Electronic Warfare Capabilities in Transition

02/27/2017
2017-02-22 By Todd Miller The unmistakable Grumman EA-6B Prowler comes into view on the horizon and streaks low across the hills of southern Virginia. “Dog 31” of the VMAQ-3 Moon Dogs is on a routine low level training mission. The flight ensures pilot and electronic countermeasures officers (ECMOs) realize the…

COPE NORTH 2017

02/26/2017
02/26/2017: According to an article published February 19, 2017 by The Guam Daily Post, Cope North 2017 has begun. U.S. Marines, sailors and airmen are training alongside Japanese and Australian allies as part of the annual Cope North 2017 at Andersen Air Force Base on Feb. 15. Approximately 1,700 service members…

The Norwegian Navy and Shaping Air-Sea Integration for Norwegian Defense

02/24/2017
2017-02-18 By Robbin Laird After the Norwegian Airpower Conference, 2017, I had a chance to talk with the head of the Norwegian Navy, Rear Admiral Lars Saunes. Because this was an airpower conference, the focus on the maritime dimension naturally was primarily focused on air-sea integration in the extended defense…

Why Not Buy Wedgetail and Move Out Beyond AWACS: Coming Terms with a 5th Generation Enabled Force

02/22/2017
2017-02-15 The Aussie Wedgetail has come to Red Flag 2017-1 and has provided advanced C2 and support to a fifth generation enabled air combat force. F-35s, F-22s and advanced legacy aircraft like Typhoons have been supported throughout by the most advanced air battle management system operating today. And it is…

The Norwegian Airpower Conference, 2017: Shaping a Way Ahead for Norwegian and Northern Tier Defense

02/16/2017
2017-02-13 By Robbin Laird During the first week of February this year (February 7-9), the Chief of Staff of the Norwegian Air Force sponsored an airpower conference entitled “Evolution to a Fifth Generation Air Force.” I had a chance as well to conduct a number of interviews while in Norway…