By Robbin Laird It will do little if one crafts the force for effective strike and does not work to ensure that the enterprise does not go Winchester much more rapidly than the duration of conflict. This is a major problem and at the first Williams Foundation seminar of 2023,…
By Robbin Laird September 14, 2023 was a significant day in the demonstration of the 21st century version of the arsenal of democracy and Denmark’s role in its realization. The first involved the arrival of the U.S.-led coalition built, sustained and operated high-end combat aircraft, the F-35 in Denmark. [caption…
By Pierre Tran Paris - There is a view that politics is really about personalities. That notion comes to mind after Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury pointed up the frustration of Europe failing to cooperate on arms programs in the light of war in Ukraine - apart from the future…
By Pierre Tran Paris - Belgium has joined as an observer to the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), adding a fourth nation to a partnership which bears French ambitions to boost European defense, amid perception of a leadership competition between France and Germany. “The participation of Belgium as observer will…
By Robbin Laird I first visited the Sikorsky plant in Stratford, Connecticut in 2018 to view the beginning efforts to standup the production line for the new build CH-53K helicopter. I returned in May 2023 to see the progress in doing so as the CH-53K begins its journey to the…
By Pierre Tran Paris - The closed communications system of the F-35 posed problems for flying cooperative combat missions with the planned European Future Combat Air System (FCAS), Eric Trappier, executive chairman of Dassault Aviation, told French senators May 24. “Collaborative combat” consisted of close links between fighter jets, effectively…
In a 20 April 2023, an article by Gregor Ferguson in The Australian provided an overview of the Ghost Shark program. In that article, the author highlighted the anticipated role of the XL-AUV or extra Large Autonomous Underwater Vehicle. “Make no mistake, (XL-AUVs) will be a game-changer,” said former Royal…
By Pierre Tran Paris - France, Germany, and Spain, the partner nations of a European future combat air system, are due to pare down the short list of architecture options for a new generation fighter jet by the middle of next year, an air force officer said. “There is an…