Author Archives: Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D
Alternatives to New Submarines: Two Awful Ideas Issue BriefOver the past ten years the number of attack submarines in the U.S. fleet has declined 40%. Meanwhile, the amount of secret intelligence-gathering the sub force has been asked to perform has doubled. Even though two-thirds of all [Read More...]
Bring the Marine Prowlers Home Major Hofer provides important insights into the tug-of-war between regional commander-in-chiefs and Marine air-ground task-force commanders concerning who shall have primary claim to EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare aircraft. He correctly identifies the main cause of the problem: a failure by [Read More...]
The Real “Readiness” Gap Issue BriefThe Washington Post introduced a much-needed note of realism into the election-year debate of military preparedness on September 24 when it published an editorial entitled “Mismatch in Defense.” It cited a Congressional Budget Office estimate that in order [Read More...]
A Decade of Decision Looms for Undersea Fleet Issue BriefThe charts at the bottom of the page tell a striking story of the fate that has befallen America’s attack- submarine fleet in the post-communist era. Attack subs are the boats that carry out every undersea mission except [Read More...]
Order of Battle for Tomorrow’s Wars Article Published in The Wall Street JournalAndrew Krepinevich’s Sept. 1 editorial-page essay “Ready for the Wrong War” offered important insights into the flaws in current defense strategy. His core thesis – that future adversaries will acquire long-range missiles and [Read More...]
Prowler Has Role Article Published in the Defense NewsLuke Hill’s article, “Mock Air Wars Test NATO Gear Against Russian Battery,” in the Aug. 28 issue, was quite illuminating.
Apparently, policy-makers on both sides of the Atlantic have belatedly realized it was a [Read More...]
Airborne Laser: A Ray of Hope for Missile Defense Issue BriefThese are strange days for supporters of national missile defense. After years of resisting any defensive deployments, the Clinton Administration has acknowledged the need for some protection against rogue-state missiles. However, the range of disagreement between Democrats and [Read More...]
Rebuilding America’s Defenses: Access Problem Ignored Issue BriefA conservative think tank called The Project for the New American Century has completed a two-year study of U.S. defense needs. It is issuing a report entitled “Rebuilding America’s Defenses” that clearly is aimed at influencing the next [Read More...]
Missile Defense Neglected Fundamentals Issue BriefThere’s a growing debate about missile defense in the national media. Much of it is recycled from debates in the 1960’s (Sentinel/Safeguard) and 1980’s (Star Wars). Missile defense, it is said, may “destabilize” the nuclear balance or lead [Read More...]
Joint Strike Fighter Opportunity Costs Issue BriefThe biggest program in the Pentagon’s weapons-purchasing plan for the next 20 years is the Joint Strike Fighter. The Clinton Administration wants to buy 2,852 of the stealthy fighter-bombers in three different versions for the Air Force, Navy [Read More...]