Air Force Cuts Mean Service Is ‘Slowly Going Out of Business’
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A year has passed since Congress passed and President Obama signed into law the Budget Control Act-the legislation mandating sequestration. Funding cuts that once seemed politically remote now loom large for leaders increasingly anxious about the impact $1.2 trillion in automatic budget reductions will have upon their respective districts and states. An estimated two million… Keep reading →
First Air Guard Pilot To Fly F-35 Gives A Positive Review: Slideshow
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While the active-duty Air Force and the National Guard are at odds over budget cuts in Washington, the relationship seems smoother at Florida’s Eglin Air Force Base, where an Air National Guard officer assigned the an active-duty 33rd Fighter Wing became the first Guard pilot to fly the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the controversial product… Keep reading →
Pratt & Whitney Bets Big Profits Loom, If F-35 Stays Healthy
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HARTFORD, CT: Aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney proudly predicts it will double its revenues this decade from $12 billion in 2010 to $24 billion in 2020 — but the company admits it will have to get through some lean years first. On both the commercial and military sides, key Pratt & Whitney programs are… Keep reading →
Be ‘Dominant’ In Pacific, But Make Nice With PRC, Singaporean MoD Tells U.S.
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WASHINGTON: The US plays a “dominant role” in keeping the peace in the Pacific, and that’s a good thing, said Singaporean Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen — but the US still needs to cooperate with China, not confront or contain it. That’s the word to the wise from one of America’s closest military partners in… Keep reading →
China Does Nothing to Stop Counterfeit Defense Parts; Findings ‘Should Outrage Every American’
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CAPITOL HILL: “These findings should outrage every American.” Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is a tough former prosecutor but he rarely offers such sweeping condemnations as he did today when releasing the findings of a congressional sting operation designed to test whether China had changed its ways and had started… Keep reading →
Obama’s Shift-to-Asia Budget Is a Hollow Shell Game
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If you take the Administration’s word for it, the most recent defense budget represents a sober-minded and far-thinking strategic shift from the Middle East to Asia, creating a smaller, high-tech force oriented increasingly towards inter-state conflict and deterrence. Many are even comparing the Pentagon’s current vision with that of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld,… Keep reading →
Iranian Sabre-Rattling Won’t Spark Arms Race, Analysts Say
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WASHINGTON: American allies in the the Middle East won’t be rushing to flood their arsenals with U.S. military hardware as a result of Iran’s recent aggressiveness in the region, according to defense experts. Tehran set off a seemingly dangerous game of one-upmanship with Washington and its allies this week when it threatened to take control… Keep reading →
Air Force Doesn’t Know Aircraft Operations, Maintenance Costs; Audit Needed
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Winslow Wheeler, one of the Washington’s most respected defense budget experts, has penned a detailed analysis of how much the Pentagon pays for maintenance and operations to keep its planes in the air. Below, we offer a very condensed version of his report. The Editor. Early in a weapon program’s history, there is virtually always… Keep reading →
Boeing Touts F-15, F-18 for Overseas Sales
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Boeing, sensing that Lockheed Martin’s formerly unassailable sales pitch for the F-35 has been dramatically weakened by the rash of cost and schedule increases, has come to the Paris Air Show eager to convince foreign governments that their F-15 and F-18 are the right thing to buy instead. Boeing has argued that the F-18 E/F… Keep reading →