Northrop Grumman reports that detection of hostile ground fire has been added to the capabilities of its Electro-Optical Distributed Aperture System. The AN/AAQ-37 was designed for use by F-35 Lightning IIs for simultaneously detecting and tracking aircraft and missiles in every direction and for providing visual imagery for day or…
2013-03-10 by Robbin Laird I was spending my Sunday working on the last chapter of our book on shaping a 21st century Pacific strategy. The F-35 among other systems figures prominently in how to build a 21st strategy, not simply funding a 20th century residue. We have interviewed many of…
2013-03-10 By Col Bradley Weisz, Deputy Commander ESG 2, Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek, VA The ARG-MEU is a very flexible instrument. But as the demand side remains high, and the strategic environment evolves in the 21st century, some changes in operational art are both possible and necessary. The purpose…
2013-03-09 According to a Lockheed Martin press release, a new F-35B has flown but this time with a new Center Wing Assembly produced in Georgia. The first Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] F-35 Lightning II with a Center Wing Assembly (CWA) built at the Lockheed Martin facility in Marietta, Ga., was…
This video shows the arrival of another F-35A to Nellis AFB. The Weapons School at Nellis and the Marine Corps MAWTS at Yuma can drive significant innovation in their services as the F-35 rolls into the operational fleets. Lt. Col. Benjamin Bishop, the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron director of…
2013-03-05 by Robbin Laird and Murielle Delaporte This past Saturday, we attended the christening of the latest US Navy ship at General Dynamics’s NASSCO shipyard in San Diego. Fully loaded, the new ship will displace more than 80,000 tons – yet it isn’t an aircraft carrier. Instead, the USNS Montford…
2013-03-08 While the US dithers on offshore patrol boats, Canada doesn't. Ottawa’s plan to bolster the navy’s fleet nudged toward the drawing board Thursday after it signed a contract to design the next generation of Arctic offshore patrol ships. The deal with Irving Shipbuilding of Halifax is worth an estimated…
2013-03-08 By Richard Weitz In the past decade, Sino-African relations have increased in importance. Recent trends point to Chinese involvement in three areas of interest: economic policy, diplomacy, and military cooperation. Beijing’s policies with reference to sub-Saharan Africa reflect clear goals: 1) expanding export markets (to Africa’s growing middle class) 2) …
