Archives
Recent
C-17
Caught between the escalating price for its major acquisition programs and shrinking budgets, perhaps the Department of Defense (DoD) could be forgiven for going overboard in its efforts to control costs. Unfortunately, many of the Pentagon’s initiatives in this area are ill-considered and likely
. . . Read more
Date:
10/4/2012
For the past three years I have been arguing on this site and elsewhere that the Obama Administration’s campaign of insourcing, which is taking work done for the government by the private sector and turning it over to government employees and facilities, was misguided. I believe that insourcing
. . . Read more
Date:
10/7/2011
The U.S. Air Force currently operates two types of jet-powered cargo planes capable of traveling intercontinental distances: the giant C-5 Galaxy and the smaller but more nimble C-17 Globemaster III. There are 111 Galaxies in the fleet, and the service plans to own a total of 222 Globemasters when
. . . Read more
Date:
10/4/2010
America came of age and the U.S. aircraft industry became a recognized force to contend with when Charles Lindbergh flew the Spirit of St. Louis from New York to Paris in 1927. The Spirit was based on the Ryan M-2 mail carrier modified to increase its range. The Spirit of St. Louis
. . . Read more
Date:
8/12/2010
Over the past few years, Congress has continued to fund production of the C-17 airlifter despite the insistence of Air Force leaders that they had bought all the strategic lift they were likely to need. I supported continued funding for three reasons. First, C-17 is the best long-range airlifter
. . . Read more
Date:
5/13/2010
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is continuing his crusade to transform the way in which the United States conducts national security affairs. The most revolutionary Secretary of Defense since Robert McNamara (and a much better one), Gates’ vision encompasses changing the way the Department of
. . . Read more
Date:
4/22/2010
If you want to understand why President Obama's job-approval level has fallen to 38% among independents in Ohio -- the most important "swing state" in the electoral system -- then take a look at what our Republican-holdover defense secretary is saying about weapons systems. Having already wiped
. . . Read more
Date:
2/24/2010
There has been too much attention focused on President Obama’s refusal to do the “pivot” with respect to domestic policy. A pivot is moving from one position on the political spectrum to another. The notion was that in the aftermath of the Massachusetts senatorial election with the loss of the Kennedy
. . . Read more
Date:
2/19/2010
During budget briefings this week, defense secretary Robert Gates has gone out of his way to insist that the time has come to end production of the C-17 airlifter. Gates acknowledges that the C-17 is a versatile carrier of cargo, troops and other items, but argues that the 223 planes on order are
. . . Read more
Date:
2/3/2010
A draft overview of the defense department's fiscal 2011 budget request highlights a handful of weapons programs as key to current and future military operations. The document was leaked last week, but media reports have only mentioned a small portion of its content. The chapter of the overview
. . . Read more
Date:
1/27/2010