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Admiral Says China Outnumbers U.S. in Attack Submarines
The Chinese navy now operates a greater number of attack submarines than the U.S. Navy and is rapidly expanding the scope of their undersea missions and patrols, U.S. Navy leaders told Congress Wednesday.
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Why the New Bomber is a Good Investment
Should the bomber go the way of the battleship? That is what T.X. Hammes recently suggested here at War on the Rocks (“Rethinking Deep Strike in the 21st Century”). Hammes urged policymakers to abandon the U.S. Air Force’s Long Range Strike-Bomber (LRS-B) program. Recalling procurement debacles like the B-2 and F-35 programs, Hammes argued that policymakers and planners should avoid the risk of another such acquisition fiasco and instead give standoff missiles and the emerging technology of autonomous drones a chance. Hammes compared the Air Force’s effort to field another manned bomber with the Navy’s attempt after World War I to hold on to the battleship, only to see that increasingly costly platform surpassed by a new technology, swarms of aircraft. However, this essay will show that missile-only alternatives are more speculative, more risky, and much more expensive methods of delivering large volumes of firepower against heavily defended targets, an essential capability the United States will need if it is to maintain deterrence and stability in the face of increasingly sophisticated challengers around the world.
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Issue Tracker: Advice For Hawks
Members of both parties seem resigned that sequestration is here to stay. Pro-Pentagon members seem frustrated and increasingly at a loss about how to make their colleagues sympathize with their contention that the military needs more cash.
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USAF Downplays T-X ‘Red Air’ Option
The T-X trainer replacement program is one of the US Air Force's top recapitalization programs, viewed as vital by service leaders as they prepare to train the next generation of F-22 and F-35 pilots.
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Army Changing How It Does Requirements: McMaster
After two decades of procurement disasters, the Army is finally overhauling how it buys new weapons. The service is starting with a difficult test indeed: the new light armored vehicle to provide mobile protected firepower to the 82nd Airborne and other light infantry forces — a role unfilled since the temperamental M551 Sheridan retired in 1997.
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Air-to-Air Combat Training Enters the Virtual World
As enemy fighters get more lethal, the Air Force's air-to-air combat training is looking to take a giant leap into the virtual world.