Denmark, Greenland and the F-35

06/13/2019
The Russians have expanded the perimeter of their defense capabilities in the Arctic and in so doing have raised concerns from the other Arctic powers. This is clearly a core concern for the Nordics and an important input to their defense modernization efforts, nationally and collectively. And certainly, the Nordic…

F-35 Flies with P-51 at Defenders of Liberty Air Show

06/12/2019
A P-51 Mustang and an F-35A Lightning II fly in formation during the Twilight Show at Barksdale Air Force Base, La., May 17, 2019. The Twilight Show allowed air and ground crews to practice processes and procedures a day before the Defenders of Liberty Air & Space Show LA, UNITED…

F-35 Demo Team performs at the Defenders of Liberty Air & Space Show

06/06/2019
The F-35 Demo Team performed during the Defenders of Liberty Air & Space Show at Barksdale Air Force Base, La., May 18, 2019.  [maxgallery id="125435"] The 13-minute performance featured 14 aerobatic maneuvers that fully showcase the capabilities of the F-35.   BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, LA, UNITED STATES 05.18.2019 Photo…

Astral Knight 2019

06/05/2019
The U.S. Air Force will lead exercise Astral Knight 19, scheduled to take place in the beginning on June, primarily taking place at Aviano Air Base, Italy, and other locations in Croatia, Germany, and Slovenia.  Astral Knight 2019 is a joint and multinational exercise that will involve airmen, soldiers and…

F-35 Demo Team at Defenders of Liberty Air And Space Show, May 2019

06/04/2019
Captain Andrew "Dojo" Olsen, an F-35 Demonstration Team pilot and commander, performs aerial maneuvers in an F-35A Lightning II before the Defenders of Liberty Air & Space Show. BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, LA, UN 05.17.2019 Video by Senior Airman Stuart Bright  2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs 

Strategy, Concepts of Operations and Technology: The Challenge and Opportunity of Shaping a Distributed C2 Enabled Force

05/20/2019
By Robbin Laird I would argue that the US and its allies are not so much facing a great power competition. I would refer to it as a global contest between 21st century authoritarian powers and the liberal democracies. And on each side of the competition there is significant cross learning…

Competitive Cross-Learning: The 21st Century Authoritarian Powers and the Liberal Democracies

05/12/2019
By Robbin Laird The Trump Administration's National Security Strategy underscored the return of great power competition. By so doing, they did focus much more on the world as it is, rather than the last Administration which focused more on the world one might wish existed. But neither really capture the…

The F-35 and the Warlords: A Look Back and a Look Ahead

05/10/2019
We recently visited the Warlords at Beaufort MCAS. We had a chance to meet with the CO of the squadron and to watch flight demos at this year's airshow hosted by Beaufort MCAS. This gave us a chance to reflect back at the more than a decade of dealing with…