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Policy Blog
- “Mad Dog” Defanged: How A Missing Missile Defense Report Explains Mattis’ Impending Departure (From Forbes)
During his first month in office, President Trump directed separate reviews of the nation’s offensive nuclear posture and ballistic missile defenses. The offensive forces review was done on time, in January of this year. The missile defense review never was completed — probably in part because it posed a threat to the status quo in national security policy. Secretary of [ Read More…]
- Daniel Gouré, Ph.D.
- Will The Air Force Please Make Up Its Mind About OA-X (From RealClearDefense)
It’s a trainer. It’s a close air support platform. It’s a sensor node in a multi-domain command and control network. It’s a test of the Air Force’s ability to do rapid acquisition. It’s a means of providing partners and allies with a relatively simple, low cost, easy to maintain and highly effective platform for conducting counter-terrorism missions. These are all [ Read More…]
- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D
- Why Does The U.S. Army Need Ten Years To Begin Fielding A New Recon Helicopter? (From Forbes)
The U.S. Army retired its last Kiowa scout helicopter last year, nearly 50 years after Kiowa first joined the force. But the Army didn’t have a dedicated armed reconnaissance helicopter to replace the venerable airframe, because three attempts to find a successor had been canceled. Instead, it ended up modifying Apache tank-killers, which are not ideal for the armed recon [ Read More…]
- Asian Missile Defense Is The Next Lever To Move Kim Jong-un On Denuclearization
When South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in visits North Korea next week, hopes for a concrete step towards denuclearization will soar. The denuclearization of North Korea could put presidents Trump and Moon in the history books. But President Trump is in no hurry. He has repeatedly said that denuclearization could go as fast, or as slow, as Kim Jong-un wishes. In April, Kim Jong-un floated a two-year timetable for denuclearization when he met President Moon. National Security Advisor John Bolton has [ Read More…]
- How Electric Vehicles Can Support the Grid
Executive Summary Click here to read the full report as a pdf. Many people recognize that electric vehicles benefit the environment, but fewer realize the electric grid can operate more efficiently with these cars. They are cheaper to maintain and operate than traditional cars and can flexibly respond to grid demand by charging during off-peak times. With their storage capability, electric cars can also incorporate more renewable energy sources, provide backup power during outages and export electricity to the grid. Worldwide [ Read More…]
- U.S. Air Force Leaders Seek 24% Increase In Force Size To Support Trump Defense Strategy (From Forbes)
The Secretary of the Air Force on Monday revealed her service’s internal estimate of how much it must grow to successfully execute the Trump administration’s defense strategy. The Air Force needs to add 74 operational squadrons to the 312 it already has — a 24% increase — for a total of 386 squadrons. And it needs an additional 40,000 personnel to populate the squadrons. It also needs to modify the mix of warfighting systems in the fleet as the main [ Read More…]
- Grover Connell: An American Original
Long time Lexington friend and supporter Grover Connell passed away in May at age 100. Here is the second blog we are publishing in his memory, by our Chairman Jim Courter: The first time I had dinner with Grover Connell, his wife Pat, daughter Terry and other family members, I was told by one of his children, “Jim, you will find out this is a one drink, two dessert family”, referring of course to Grover but everyone else followed [ Read More…]
- U.S. Growing Dependent On Russia For Satellite Propulsion Systems (From Forbes)
There was a time when America was the dominant global provider of thrusters for maneuvering satellites in space. That time is long gone. Other nations have subsidized their industry to catch up, and Russia seems to have established a clear lead in the marketplace. That’s especially true in the use of so-called electric propulsion for moving commercial geostationary satcoms. It seems ironic that Russia is taking market share among U.S. satellite makers at the same time Congress is insisting the [ Read More…]
- Army Futures Command Must Perform Miracles (From RealClearDefense)
In recent public statements, General John Murray, the newly-confirmed commander of the Army’s fledgling Futures Command, has been downplaying expectations for his new organization. He cautioned listeners not to expect miracles from the new organization. The trouble with this perspective is that the current state of the Army requires some miracles. Virtually the entire array of Army ground and aerial platforms are in serious, in some cases desperate, need of modernization. In addition, at the end of the Cold War, [ Read More…]
- Reconciling Priorities In The India-U.S. Relationship (From RealClearWorld)
Last week saw significant advances in the U.S-India defense relationship as U.S. Secretaries Mattis and Pompeo, accompanied by Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford, traveled to India to meet with Ministers Swaraj and Sitharaman. However, New Delhi’s relationships with Russia and Iran may act as a roadblock to future collaboration. The Trump administration’s challenge will be to determine how to balance its partnership with India with policies that target Washington’s own opponents. Fortunately, India’s foreign policy may be useful to the [ Read More…]
- Getting School Districts Ready for the Military Student Identifier
Executive Summary Click here to read the full report Those who serve active duty in our nation’s military are often quite familiar with making sacrifices as part of fulfilling their service. So, too, are their families, and even their school-aged children, for whom the common realities of life in the military present frequent challenges to succeeding academically, and even non-academically, in school. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is now starting to impact state and local educational systems across the [ Read More…]
- The KC-46 Is On The Cusp Of Transforming U.S. Air Mobility (From RealClearDefense)
Last week, the KC-46 Pegasus aerial refueling aircraft passed one of its two final milestones prior to entering service with the U.S. Air Force. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) granted the platform a supplemental type certificate, the second of two FAA certificates that will permit the aircraft to operate in U.S. airspace. While the Pegasus still must be granted its military type certificate, which covers specialized military functions and systems, all testing required for this certificate has been accomplished. Now [ Read More…]
- SpaceX Abandons Plan To Make Astronaut Spacecraft Reusable; Boeing Sticks With Reuse Plan (From Forbes)
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has backed away from plans to build a reusable spacecraft that can carry astronauts to the International Space Station and then return to Earth in a powered touch down on land. Instead, its Crew Dragon space capsule will splash down at sea — just like the cargo version of Dragon — and as a result not be resusable by astronauts. This is a surprising turn of events for Musk, who four years ago claimed SpaceX’s approach to [ Read More…]