Author Archives: Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D
Air War: Too Costly in Every Way
Letter to the Editor Published in The New York Times
To The Editor:
The chart depicting military-aircraft operating costs that accompanied Eric Schmidtt’s May 2 Week in Review report offered a telling lesson about war costs. It showed that the [Read More...]
U.S. Shipbuilders: The Tide Begins To Turn
Article Published in the Sea Power Magazine
There is a saying among economists that a rising tide lifts all boats. With defense spending expected to rise significantly in the years ahead, the nation’s shipbuilders hope that adage also applies to [Read More...]
Graying Airpower Puts U.S. At Risk
Article Published in Aviation Week and Space Technology
Every year the U.S. Air Force puts on an “Aerospace Power Demonstration” in Florida to display to the public its proficiency in wielding the weapons of modern air warfare. It’s the service’s [Read More...]
Fear of Flying: America’s Aging Fleet of Military Aircraft
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for inviting me to participate in today’s discussion of aging military equipment. I will limit my remarks to military aircraft, the area where aging equipment raises the most serious operational and [Read More...]
Letter to the Editor, The Washington Post
To the Editor:
Stephen S. Rosenfeld expresses an oft-repeated criticism of military planning when he asserts that the Clinton Administration’s new national-security strategy is making America “Ready For The Last War” (January 15). But he is wrong on at least [Read More...]
Air Force Faces Challenges In Accomplishing Its Mission In Future
Article Published in The Colorado Springs Gazette
On the eve of a new millennium, the U.S. Air Force is the most powerful military aerospace organization in the history of mankind. Its diverse inventory of over 4,000 combat-ready aircraft dwarfs the [Read More...]
NATO: Fifty Years and Counting…Down?
Article Published in the Defense Daily Network
In April, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization will mark the fiftieth anniversary of its founding and, like many 50 year-olds, it is starting to show signs of a mid-life crisis. NATO was established [Read More...]
Investing in Defense
Letter to the Editor Published in The New York Times
Michael O’Hanlon’s proposals for restructuring defense investment priorities (“How Much Military?”) reflect a distinctly unrealistic view of threats, technology and politics.
Mr. O’Hanlon dismisses current spending plans for the top [Read More...]
V-22 Versatility Argues For Faster Production
Issue Brief
No one much misses the Soviet Union, but there is at least one positive thing that can be said about the threat the Soviets posed to U.S. security during the Cold War: it focused policymakers’ minds on the [Read More...]
HEAVY SEAS: The U.S. Shipbuilding Industry Struggles To Stay On Course
Article Published in the Armed Forces Journal International
In summer of 1990, as the Soviet empire was rapidly unraveling, the U.S. Navy’s Sea Systems Command prepared an assessment of the U.S. shipbuilding industry. As the main organization responsible for the [Read More...]