Another Day, Another $678 Million Stealth Jet Wrecked

Lockheed Martin: Price of F-35 going up

U.S. seeks to ease concerns over F-35 delays, costs

The U.S. Defense Department is restructuring for a third time its $382 billion F-35 program with Lockheed Martin Corp to allow more time for development and testing.

And we need a new fighter jet that costs this much because  ???

Japan orders Joint Strike Fighters and Lockheed Martin applauds

Pentagon hails Japan's F-35 order

Sure, now that we have spent all of our money on R&D for this unneeded new stealth jet fighter, let's just share it with the entire world!  During FY2011, we spent
$11.4 Billion on the Joint Strike Fighter
and it still is not complete and has many problems with it.

Again, when is the next war, in which we will need such advanced technology and participate in dog fights ala World War I, going to occur?  With our current technology, I am positive Snoopy will still defeat the Red Baron.

Why are we funding this program, but are considering cutting counter-IED research while troops die in Afghanistan?

More Costly Technological and Performance Problems with the Joint Strike Fighter

More problems with F-35 joint strike fighter are revealed

With all of the problems this expensive project has had, the only reason this project is still being allowed to go forward is:  1.  R&D money, and 2. "Lockheed has 6,100 people working directly on the F-35 program in Fort Worth. About 3,000 are production workers, and the rest are in development and support. Without increased production, employment at the plant won't grow and may decrease as development and engineering work winds down."

Again, when do we plan on fighting a fighter jet on fighter jet war?  Is there one on the horizon that I don't see?  Why do we need such an advanced fighter jet?  Oh, but funding for counter-IED research needs to be cut while troops die in Afghanistan.  Right.

Boeing may exceed aerial tanker cost ceiling by $500 Million

Does this surprise anyone?

Pentagon loses its hypersonic jet on test

How much does this program cost? Don't we have first-strike capability with nuclear submarines?

With Air Force's new drone, 'we can see everything'

This seems like very promising technology. It is funny how the AF is already framing its argument about how important they are and that ground troops won't be needed as much. It sounds very similiar to their "air power" argument at the end of WWII and during the Cold War arguing that bombing alone can win wars.

The Air Force placed a contractor on the set of a reality TV show to learn how to pick out the interesting scenes shot from cameras simultaneously recording the action in a house. And taking a page from high-tech companies such as Google, the Air Force will store its reams of video on servers placed in used shipping containers in Iowa.

The Air Force is looking to mount wide-area surveillance cameras on airships that can stay aloft for up to two weeks.

"This is all cutting-edge technology that is being fielded in a short period of time," said retired Lt. Gen. David A. Deptula, who served as deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

"If you look into the not-too-distant future, what these technologies will allow us to do is remove more and more ground forces and replace them with sensors where we normally would have to rely on people going somewhere to find something out," he said.

End the Defense Monopolies

How about cutting JSF because there won't be many air-to-air battles in the near future?

Star Wars 2010? U.S. military launch space plane on maiden voyage... but its mission is top secret

Back in the 60's, I had a weather changing machine that was, in essence, a sophisticated heat beam which we called a "laser." Using these "lasers," we punch a hole in the protective layer around the Earth, which we scientists call the "Ozone Layer." Slowly but surely, ultraviolet rays would pour in, increasing the risk of skin cancer. That is unless the world pays us a hefty ransom.

Pratt and Whitney

Northrop Grumman pulls out of tanker deal

Boeing KC-767A

I love how the last paragraphs of the article allude to the most likely reason Northrop Grumman pulled out and Washington-based Boeing will win:

But with Northrop out of the competition, the Pentagon can now "move quickly to replace the Air Force’s aging fleet of KC-135 tankers," said Washington Democratic Rep. Norm Dicks, who is in line to replace the late Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) as head of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.

“I applaud the Northrop Grumman Corp. for its assessment and its decision not to delay the procurement by submitting a bid and requiring the government to conduct another lengthy competition,” Dicks said.

Gates orders Air Force and Navy to study joint weapons system

In the weapons field, the QDR talks of expanding the capability of a new Virginia-class nuclear submarine with long-range cruise missiles, and of pressing ahead with the Navy's unmanned combat aerial system, being worked on jointly with the Air Force. The latter is a fighter-size, carrier-launched unmanned vehicle that can be refueled in flight. It would provide intelligence and go on strike missions before returning to the carrier. The goal is to begin flight testing this year and get delivery of the first operational unit in 2015.
Studies are looking also at defensive and offensive advances in the electronic warfare field to protect U.S. weapons systems and disable those of enemies, in space, air or on land. The QDR says that "to counter the spread of advanced surveillance, air defense and strike systems, the department has directed increased investment in selected capabilities for electronic attack."

Borrow a flak vest, Mr. Secretary...

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (pbuh) will give a speech to the Air Force Association on Wednesday going into the "lion's den" as Paul Bedard states in the article linked above.

Air Force Training More Pilots for Drones Than for Manned Planes

The Air Force will train more pilots to fly unmanned aerial systems from ground operations centers this year than pilots to fly fighter or bomber aircraft, Gen. Stephen R. Lorenz, the commander of Air Education and Training Command, told an audience Friday... Will the unmanned aircraft ever completely replace either bombers or fighters? In delivering weapons on target, [Air Force deputy chief of staff for ISR, Lt. Gen. David] Deptula said, "Yes, you bet."

It is funny how much a few budget cuts and a cargo pilot chief of staff could do for the Air Force. ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaisance) used to be predominantly Army and Marine scout-speak... now it is increasingly rolling off the tongues of senior Air Force officers. If you ask me, Predators, Reapers, and Rovers (can you believe that ground troops can now speak to AF personnel without a TACP?!?!) are doing a whole lot more for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan than missile defense and 24/7 bomber patrols are doing...

Pentagon eyes accelerated "bunker buster" bomb; Q2 Earnings Reports

The Air Force will do anything to keep their share of the bloated defense budget, which is almost always the biggest piece of the pie because of R&D and weapons technology. First it was the F-35, F-22, new fuel tankers, and now they are focusing on a new "bunker buster" to counter the perceived threats from North Korea and Iran. Boeing, who posted a 17 percent Q2 profit primarily because revenue from the integrated defense systems unit rose 9 percent to $8.7 billion, is more than willing to get another big government contract and build as many "bunker buster" bombs we "need."

"The Air Force and Department of Defense are looking at the possibility of accelerating the program," he said. "There have been discussions with the four congressional committees with oversight responsibilities. No final decision has been made."

The precision-guided weapon, built by Boeing Co (BA.N), could become the biggest conventional bomb the United States has ever used.

Carrying more than 5,300 pounds of explosives. it would deliver more than 10 times the explosive power of its predecessor, the 2,000-pound BLU-109, according to the Pentagon's Defense Threat Reduction Agency, which has funded and managed the seed program.

Chicago-based Boeing, the Pentagon's No. 2 supplier by sales, could be put on contract within 72 hours to build the first MOP production models if Congress signs off, Bourland said.

Other defense industrial complex giants did not fare as well as Boeing did in the second quarter of 2009. Only Raytheon posted a profit. Northrop Grumman reported a Q2 profit decline, BAE posted a loss despite producing the MRAPs being used in CENTCOM today, Lockheed Martin reported a decline, and General Dynamics reported a loss.

Eliminate the Air Force? Call to Service?

The author makes three great observations: the Air Force needs to be fully integrated into the joint service team, the up or out system of military promotion is broken, and a call to national service is needed.

While I do not go as far as calling for the elimination of the Air Force (it is politically untenable; once you create a bureaucracy it can never be eliminated) in order to get the Air Force to play well with its sister services, Secretary Gates (pbuh) has gone very far. He fired the the Secretary of the Air Force and Air Force Chief of Staff last year and then made a cargo pilot (BLASPHEMY!!!) the new Air Force Chief of Staff. If this didn't send a message to the fighter pilot elite (and to a lesser extent bomber pilot elite), I don't know what does. It tells them that air power (Airp!) alone will not win wars, you are not as relevant as you think, and you better support your sister services through logistics (e.g. flying C-130s and supporting the ground war with UAVs).

I would love to know what my old graduate professor, a retired Air Force Colonel working at Northrop Grumman that gave me a B+ for arguing against a leap ahead defense planning, is doing right now. I'm very proud of that B+...

Contractors Defend Their Programs as Pentagon Cuts Loom

A continuation of the Bush 43 version of SDI/Star Wars should be the last priority for this Congress and the President...


How about President Obama just calls one more prime time news conference and announces, "My fellow Americans, good evening. Tonight I will outline my three-part nuclear deterrence policy. The first part is called 'massive retaliation.' If you have any questions regarding this phrase's entomology, please reference President Eisenhower's massive retaliation policy and visit our new website http://www.visittheflintstones.gov/ which outlines the policy. The second part involves an affirmation along the lines of, 'Yes, we maintain second strike capability and we will make sure that I stay king of the First Strike Mountain; no one will ever push us off.' Finally, here is a picture of my family's new dog. His name is Airp... he is pretty fat now, but I won't give him any more biscuits until he looses some weight. What country or terrorist organization would attack us now that I am starting a worldwide fashion trend leading to gross overpopulation of such cute Portuguese Water Dogs? God Bless America!"

Airp's Cousin, NorthyG

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Support For Lockheed Joint Fighter is 'Very Strong," Gates Says

The pricetag of this project - $298 billion - will probably double once a contract is signed and suddenly a new technology is developed that absolutely must be added to the F-35. This is one of the many reasons why the bottom-up defense appropriations process must be changed. Instead of the Secretary of Defense telling the service secretaries what their budgets are, at the DoD the Secretaries of the Army, Air Force, and Navy, tell the Secretary of Defense what they budgeted for. Then, minimal cuts are made and the DoD budget, second in size only to the Social Security budget, is given to the president.

Although Secretary of Defense Gates has done a great job and fought the Air Force on numerous occasions, his support for the Joint Strike Fighter goes against all of the reform he has been preaching. The Joint Strike Fighter is the epitome of Air Force excess. Less than three years ago, the F-22 Raptor, which the F-35 is supposed to replace, entered service (December 2005). Now the same company that developed the F-22 (Lockheed Martin) is pitching the F-35 to the Air Force and is gaining traction. At a time where there are two wars going on, emerging near peer competitors with inferior MiG based aircraft, and a flailing economy, the F-35 does not seem to be the correct use of government money. To top this off, what are the chances of air to air combat happening anytime soon? Perhaps we should be focusing on the emerging threat of cyber war or other possible forms of war as we leap into the Fifth Generation?

Disputed $15 Billion Air Force Copter Deal Still Moving Forward

More idiotic spending by the Air Force... since when do they need helicopters? Since when are they authorized helicopters? When they broke off from the Army a line in the sand was drawn - the Army cannot have fixed wing aircraft because the Air Force will specialize in fixed wing aircraft and provide for the Army whatever they need. This morphed into the idea that the Air Force can win wars all by themselves (Air Power!) and they do not have to help anyone except: 1. the Air Force, 2. the defense industry and their retired officers who now work for defense contractors, 3. the Air Force. Apparently I was wrong in assuming since the Army cannot have fixed wing aircraft that would mean that the Air Force cannot have helicopters. My logic was wrong because the only necessary condition is the Army not having fixed wing aircraft! What was I thinking?!

Georgia accuses Russia of waging 'cyber war'

Georgia's accusations come on the heels of Estonia's accusations from May 2007. Obviously, cyber war is going to be a major part of any conflict in the future and will be used to degrade communications. These facts combined with millions of cyber attacks waged on the United States by China each day highlight another American achilles heel now that we seem to be getting a little better at counterinsurgency... perhaps we should spend more on cyber war defensive and offensive measures, rather than Star Wars or the Joint Strike Fighter pictured above.

UPDATE (August 13, 2008): Before the Gunfire, Cyberattacks