2014-11-09 By Robbin Laird and Ed Timperlake During our visit to the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center, we had a chance to discuss the approach to strike integration being pursued in the training process at the Center with CDR Charles "Scotty" Brown, current STRIKE XO, previous TOPGUN Instructor. Brown…
2014-11-07 By Robbin Laird Visiting the USS Arlington for someone who lived in Arlington on September 11, 2001 is a very poignant event. And it is especially so for someone like me who was in the Pentagon that day. I went into my meeting. Suddenly, I felt the building rock.…
11/08/2014: The Marines and Sailors of 1st Marine Division commemorated the 10-year anniversary of the Second Battle of Fallujah, Operation AL FAJR, by hosting a ceremony at Camp Pendleton. The ceremony honored all service members who participated in the historic battle, and reunited veterans from private to general officer in…
2014-11-06 VMX-22 flew to USS AMERICA and worked with the crew in shaping an initial maintenance regime aboard the ship. The ship has a hanger bay below the flight deck where maintenance is performed, unlike legacy large deck amphibs. The AMERICA class ship has a much larger hangar bay that…
2014-11-08 When a country has joined the F-35 global enterprise, whatever variant they start with they can clearly mix and match going forward. The commonality of the combat systems and the cockpit makes flexibility an inherent capability. Australia has made a clear commitment to the F-35 and to reshaping its…
2014-11-05 Recently, the Rome based think tank, Centro Studi Internazionali, published their look at the F-35 program, its impact on Italian defense and the role of Italy within the global enterprise. The report was authored by Francesco Tosato who is the analyst in charge of military affairs at the Center…
2014-11-03 The Marines this year are celebrating their 239th birthday. A good way to honor the Marines would be not only to remember the battle of Dong Ha, Vietnam, but to honor the men who fought there. The entire Second Line of Defense team wishes to support the suggestion of…
11/06/2014: In a USN story written by by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Steve Hill, Expeditionary Combat Camera and published on 11/5/14: CHARLESTON, S.C. (NNS) -- Spearhead-class joint high speed vessel USNS Choctaw County (JHSV 2) is conducting proof-of-concept testing during Exercise Bold Alligator 2014 as an afloat forward staging…