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Exercise Agile Reaper

12/08/2021
MQ-9 Reapers from Holloman Air Force Base travelled to Marine Corps Base Hawaii for Exercise Agile Combat Employment Reaper during September through October, 2021. The two-week, joint exercise was designed to sharpen combat readiness, increase strategic impact and strengthen deterrence efforts by ensuring tactical proficiency of MQ-9 Reaper aircrew. U.S.…

An Update on European Defense Industrial Cooperation: December 2021

12/07/2021
By Pierre Tran Paris - Airbus Defence and Space and Dassault Aviation are still in detailed talks for a development contract for a next generation fighter, a key element in a planned European future combat air system, said Michael Schoellhorn, chief executive of the Airbus unit. “Some points still need…

The Evolution of the Viper Attack Helicopter: JAGM Testing

12/05/2021
Recently, VMX-1 tested the Viper Attack Helicopter with the JAGM weapon, and for the purpose of enhancing the Marine Corps's capability to support maritime/littoral missions. This is how the December 2, 2021 USMC press release described the effort: HEADQUARTERS MARINE CORPS – Marines from Marine Operational Test & Evaluation Squadron…

Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2021 and Australian Defence

12/05/2021
By Justin Burke The announcement of the AUKUS partnership has prompted the old accusation that Australia is ‘trying to find its security from Asia rather than in Asia’ to resurface in public debate, most recently in former prime minister Paul Keating’s recent National Press Club address. The basis for this…

Moving Beyond Its Legacy Fleet of Mirages and F-16s: The UAE Adds Rafales to Its F-35 Buy

12/03/2021
By Pierre Tran Paris - The United Arab Emirates signed Dec. 3, 2021 contracts worth a total €17 billion ($19 billion) for 80 Dassault Aviation Rafale fighter jets, MBDA missiles, and 12 Airbus Helicopter Caracal H225M helicopters, the armed forces ministry said. The UAE Tawazun arms acquisition authority signed Rafale…

Training for the Interoperable and Integratable Force: Preparing for the High-End Fight

12/01/2021
By Robbin Laird To get the kind of combat effect which U.S. forces seek, integratability of key elements of the force is crucial. It is not the old concept of network centric warfare being pursued, but rather integration of modular capability-based task forces to deliver the desired combat effect in…