By Robbin Laird Recently, I visited New River to talk with the team doing the Log Demo in support of the CH-53K. A decade ago I visited the Osprey maintainers standing up the Osprey at New River as well. I have republished a number of those interviews from a decade…
By Robbin Laird During my visit to 2ndMAW in January 2019, I had a chance to talk with the Commanding Officer of MAG-26, Colonel Boniface. I have had the opportunity to talk with Chris Boniface several times since we first met at the Bold Alligator exercises almost a decade ago.…
By Robbin Laird A decade ago I was present at the creation of the Osprey nation and did many interviews and visits as the aircraft was stood up and supported in operations. It was such a different aircraft from the CH-46 that the maintainers with whom I met a decade…
By Robbin Laird With the coming of software upgradeable aircraft which have health management systems built in, there is a strategic opportunity or better put, a strategic imperative, to leverage those systems to gain knowledge and mastery of a combat fleet. The opportunity is there to gain predictive knowledge about…
As new aircraft enter the combat fleet, there is a clear opportunity to shape new approaches to sustainment for global operations. This is especially true if the aircraft in question is bought and operated by allies as well as US forces.’ The core promise of the F-35 global enterprise rests…
By India Strategic New Delhi. In an effort to evaluate its own ‘Rapid Airlift Capability’ and to enhance crew currency in the role, Western Air Command (WAC) of the Indian Air Force (IAF) on December 18 airlifted a record 463 tonnes of load from its airbase at Chandigarh to airfields…
By Robbin Laird The RAAF F-35s on on their way to Williamtown and thereby opening the F-35 Aussie fleet operations in-country. As the Aussies work out their sustainment approach on the various airbases where the F-35s will operate in normal times as well as crisis times, the F-35 partners of…
On 28 November 2018, after more than 400 days out of the water, Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Arunta undocked to finalise her midlife capability assurance program upgrade at BAE Henderson Dockyard, Western Australia. The upgrade included significant improvements to major platform systems such as the communications centre, radar systems…
