Remember the Russian Mistral Amphibious Ship? Certainly, the Turks Do

05/03/2020
You may remember that President Sarkozy made a decision to build Mistral amphibious ships for Putin's Russia. But after some serious rethinking, that sale was voided and a new customer sought. Eventually, the customer for the two ships which had been built was Egypt. And if you fast forward to…

Spain, France and UK Work the Next Round of Baltic Air Policing

05/02/2020
Spain, France and the United Kingdom will take up NATO's Baltic Air Policing mission starting in May, guarding the skies over the Baltic region for the next four months. The three NATO Allies are replacing air force detachments from Belgium and Poland which have protected the airspace of NATO’s three Baltic Allies…

A UK Military Response to COVID-19: RAF Helo Support

05/02/2020
Recently, three RAF Puma helicopters have been dispatched to Kinloss barracks in Moray, Scotland. They are there to be able to respond to COVID-19 incidents throughout Scotland. According to a May 1, 2020 story by David Mackay published by the Press and Journal: "One of the Pumas at Kinloss Barracks…

The SEAD Mission in an A2AD World

05/02/2020
By Australian Defence and Business Review The US Department of Defense defines the Suppression of Enemy Air Defence (SEAD) mission as that which ‘neutralizes, destroys or temporarily degrades surface-based enemy air defences by destructive and/or disruptive means.’ The so-called ‘Endless Wars’ in the Afghan and Iraqi theatres have seen US and allied air forces operating…

The Evolving Role of Rotary Wing Platforms in the Integratable Carrier Air Wing

05/01/2020
By Robbin Laird During my last meeting with Vice Admiral Miller in San Diego, we discussed the way ahead with regard to the air wing as it become integrated into a wider kill web concepts of operations. In that conversation, we highlighted the shift as one from building an integrated…

Leadership Lessons Which Should be Learned from the Crozier Case

04/30/2020
Editor’s Note: We excerpted the eight lessons which should be learned from the complete article by Charlie Dunlap, J.D. on the Crozier case. But Dunlap’s comprehensive article published in Lawfire should be read in its entirety and we are posting this excerpt to draw our reader’s attention and suggest they…

A Small Ship but a Significant Shift

04/30/2020
By Robbin Laird When I first came to Australia in 2014, I was asked to write a report for the Williams Foundation on their seminar on the evolution of airpower, which focused in a significant way on the coming of fifth generation aircraft and their impact on airpower modernization.  From…

Rebooting the French Economy with the Help of the Defense Sector

04/29/2020
By Pierre Tran Paris – The armed forces ministry has asked companies to submit ideas for speeding up orders for weapons, as part of a national recovery plan intended to soften the economic and social impact of the coronavirus crisis, industry leaders said. Armed with information from industry, the ministry…