08/02/2011 - Recently, Second Line of Defense sat down with Admiral Currier, the Deputy Commandant (Mission Support) of the USCG, to discuss the importance of the new National Security Cutter in executing the national maritime strategy. The NSC provides a focal point for deployed defense and security capabilities afloat and…
08/02/2011 - The introduction of non-US stealth aircraft into the global competition is a significant development. The Chinese and Russians have introduced developmental prototypes that signify both capabilities and intentions to enter the stealth aircraft game. The former Secretary of Defense indicated that this competition was years away; but it…
Service Life Extension Program (SLEP): Investing in Going Backwards By Michael W. Wynne, 21st Secretary of the USAF 08/02/2011 - Pressure is growing on the DoD budget. Perhaps 80 billion, 400 billion or whatever on top of the one hundred billion in savings that has been demanded by the outgoing…
07/31/2011 Terrorist-Criminal Pipelines and Criminalized States By Douglas Farah Conclusions 07/ /2011 - The trend toward the merging of terrorist and criminal groups to mutually exploit new markets is unlikely to diminish. Both will continue to need the same facilitators, and both can leverage the relationship with the other to…
The Missing Element from the “Sustainment” Debate By Dr. Robbin Laird 08/01/2011 - In the wake of the headlines about the trillion-dollar airplane, F-35 sustainment costs have been tossed into the political fray. According to a single line in an unreleased SAR report, the F-35 fleet is projected to cost…
The Impact of A New Upgrading and Sustainment Approach An Interview with Scott Ogden 08/01/2011 - A key element in understanding the Cultural Revolution associated with the 5th generation aircraft is the dramatic change in how maintenance and sustainment can be done fleet wide and in terms of global sustainment. …
What Weapons that Wait? By Dr. Scott C. Truver 07/30/2011 - “I have always deemed it unworthy of a chivalrous nation,” Adm. David G. Farragut wrote in 1864, after he “damned the torpedoes” at Mobile Bay. “But, it does not do to give your enemy such a decided superiority over…
Criminalized States and Terrorist-Criminal Pipelines By Douglas Farah The FARC, Venezuela and Iran 07/26/2011 - While the transnational trafficking and financial operations of the Sinaloa cartel are important, the FARC alliances and actions offer an important look at the use of non-state criminal/terrorist armed groups by a criminalized state. The…
