Two U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II's assigned to the Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211, 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, conduct an aerial refuel with a U.S Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker during a combat mission over Afghanistan, Sept. 27, 2018. The F-35Bs conducted their first combat strike in the U.S. Central…
By Robbin Laird At the International Fighter Conference 2018, one of the key themes was the standup of the F-35 in several air combat forces, and the impact of this effort on the way ahead for air combat forces. One of the presenters at the conference was an experienced F-16…
By Robbin Laird At the International Fighter Conference 2018, Air Marshal (Retired) Geoff Brown provided an overview of how the RAAF has shaped a way ahead along with the Australian Defence Force to craft what they refer to as a fifth-generation combat force. In the case of the Royal Australian…
By Dr. Gary Schaub, Jr. Acquiring new combat aircraft is a big deal. The combat aircraft fleets of most Western countries are nearing the end of their useful service life and therefore must be replaced. Such acquisition programs have been among the most expensive ever pursued and have therefore been…
By Robbin Laird Because the F-35 has been built from the outset on a digital thread production approach and foundation, the program can incorporate, and contribute to a broader set of industrial transformations, known as Industry 4.0. In other words, the F-35 can produce an innovative combat aircraft but it…
By Ian McDonald AM, MSc, DipEng & AVM John Blackburn (Retd) AO, MA, MDefStud The phrase “5th Generation” (Gen) is often dismissed as just another fad, whilst totally missing the paradigm shift in both technology and operations that is implied or intended by it. It is envisaged that mature 5th…
Don Kinard, Senior Fellow for F-35 Production, provided an overview on the history and the evolution of the F-35 production process. It is a process built around digital thread production and is both benefiting from and contributing to what is called industry 4.0. According to Wikipedia, Industry 4.0 is defined…
By Robbin Laird When looking at the evolution of an air force, the normal focus is upon the platforms they fly and the evolution of what those platforms can do organically. With regard to the evolution of the Royal Danish Air Force this would mean focusing upon F-16s and their…
