The Administration has announced ambitious plans for the development and deployment of the SM-3 missile in filling in the missile gap, which has been created by the planned withdrawal of the missile defense system to have been deployed in Central Europe. SM-3 is a development program which includes a major…
Rotorcraft are significant contributors to military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. They provide combat support, logistical lift, troop transport, medivac, and integrated C4ISR for the battlefield. The Iraq conditions have provided significant stress on the fleet and the need to provide engineering and maintenance solutions for operating in sand, heat…
A key transformation of the US military associated with the experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan has been the use of the Internet and mobile communications to support deployed troops and distributed operations. The deployed force is relying increasingly on mobile video as well as data provided via a secure internet. …
The acquisition of new tankers for the USAF remains challenging, as it gets underway for the third iteration. Virtually every aspect of the bids has been contested in blogs, newspaper, the GAO and commented on by various pundits. Whether the politics surrounding the bids can be attenuated to ultimately serve…
Dick Kugler has recently published an interesting examination of the tough question of how one would deter a nuclear-armed Iran.[1] (http://www.ndu.edu/ctnsp/Def_Tech/DTP%2067%20Deterring%20Iran.pdf). He examines this from the standpoint of how the U.S. could spearhead an extended deterrent regime to deal with the emergence of a new nuclear power in the Middle East.…
A new approach to maritime security which provides for layered defense of the American homeland built around maritime domain awareness is viewed as a crucial effort in the United States. To build capabilities for the new approach requires redirecting U.S. maritime capabilities away from an emphasis on overseas presence and…
[caption id="attachment_630" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Michael Wynne at Normandy"][/caption] Secretary of the Air Force Donley together with the Air Force Chief of Staff Schwartz wrote an oped over this past summer wanting to put the contentious F-22 debate behind them. With their then recent installation and the heated debate on 'next…
Reports of China's impending decision to restrict exports of rare-earth minerals has suddenly awoken the U.S. government to its dependence on China for virtually all of the permanent magnets and rare-earth materials used throughout the defense industrial complex. China controls more than 95 percent of the world's supply of rare-earth…
