2016-04-06 By Robbin Laird and Ed Timperlake During the OT-2 aboard the USS Wasp, a young British maintainer made a simple point about the F-35: Lt. Cdr. Kitchen from the Royal Navy commented during a round table aboard the Wasp in May 2015: “The F-35 can be surrounded by myth…
2016-03-25 By Robbin Laird The RAAF’s Williamtown Air Base is the home of key current combat assets, the historic home of several legacy air assets, and the future home of a major part of the F-35 capability. This was my third visit to the base, the first being to 2nd…
2016-03-06 By Robbin Laird The MAGTF and the USN-USMC team are working on shaping a 21st century approach to joint operations from the sea. There is a broader transformation of jointness being shaped by the evolution of the amphibious forces has escaped attention as precisely what it is – the…
2016-03-04 The HMAS Canberra is part of the Australian aid effort to Fiji to help in the wake of Cyclone Winston. According to the Australian Ministry of Defence: On Tuesday March 01, HMAS Canberra steamed towards cyclone devastated Koro Island to assist with the Fiji Government's disaster relief effort. Australian…
2016-03-03 By Robbin Laird A key argument for buying newer platforms compared to older ones is the savings built into a new platform over the operational and logistics costs of the older platform. In the commercial airplane business, both Boeing and Airbus design and build their newest platforms with significant…
2016-03-05 According to a story published February 17, 2016 on the French Ministry of Defense website, the French A400Ms are starting to provide support directly from French territory to Gao in Mali. [maxgallery id="85414"] On February 15, 2016, an A400M flew directly from the Orleans base to the regional capital…
2016-02-18 By Robbin Laird, Ed Timperlake and Murielle Delaporte Logistics is the oft forgotten dimension of combat power. For the sea services, this means that the key role of the Military Sealift Command (MSC) can never be overlooked or forgotten. It is just a notable fact that the MSC can…
2016-02-12 by Senior Airman Alex Fox Echols III It is a given that no aircraft leaves the ground unless it is working properly. But that challenge is multiplied here during the three-week Red Flag 16-1 exercise. Hundreds of aircraft maintainers assigned to flying squadrons from around the world work long hours…
