05/27/2015: A P-8A Poseidon from Patrol Squadron (VP) 45 captures surveillance footage of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) conducting land reclamation operations in the South China Sea. Credit:Fleet Combat Camera Pacific:5/20/15 According to CNN, while operating in international airspace, the Chinese regularly threatened the P-8 during its mission. The…
2015-05-17 By Robbin Laird This September, the Osprey will reach an 8-year mark in its operational deployment history. In September 2007, the Osprey was deployed for the first time to Iraq. The USMC Commandant Conway and Deputy Commandant of Aviation Castellaw announced and made the decision to deploy the Osprey…
2015-05-15 By Robbin Laird At the Copenhagen Airpower Symposium, a major theme was the impact of the F-35 on the transformation of airpower for the smaller or medium sized air forces. The coming of the F-35 was gaining momentum, and now those airpowers which are procuring the F-35, are thinking…
2015-05-24 The first photos show an F-35B Lightning during flight operations aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1). There are six F-35Bs aboard the ship, 4 from Yuma (Green Knights) and two from Beaufort (the Warlords). [maxgallery id="77762"] USS Wasp, with VMFA-121 and VMFAT-501 embarked, is underway conducting…
by Robbin Laird © 2015 FrontLine Defence (Vol 12, No 3) The tragic May 9th crash of an A400M (MSN 23), near the Airbus final assembly plant near Seville, Spain, reminds us of how risky the introduction of new systems can be. Due to be delivered to the Turkish Air…
2015-05-23 By Robbin Laird During my visit to 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade on March 17, 2015, I had a chance to interview Major General Richard L. Simcock II, Commanding General, 2d MEB, and Major Marcus Mainz, lead 2d MEB planner for Exercise Bold Alligator 2014, where we had a lengthy…
2015-05-22 According to the CO of the Warlords, Lt. Col. Bachmann, there has been rapid progress over the past two years as the Marines prepared their aircraft for integration with the MAGTF. When I last interviewed OD Bachmann, he had just flown the 200th sortie of the aircraft. Fast forward…
2015-05-22 Six aircraft arrived for the opening of OT-1 (first phase of operational testing) on May 18, 2015 aboard the USS Wasp. The six aircraft are from Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501, Marine Aircraft Group 31, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, Beaufort, South Carolina, and Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121,…
