CSBA in the News

Even in the best of times, Pakistan’s nuclear-weapons program warrants alarm. But these are perilous days. At a moment of unprecedented misgiving between Washington and Islamabad, new evidence suggests that Pakistan’s nuclear program is barreling ahead at a furious clip/…/ Eric Edelman, undersecretary of defense in the George W. Bush administration, puts it bluntly: “You’re talking about Pakistan even potentially passing France at some point. That’s extraordinary.”

A US military expert said China may be trying to take over Taiwan by using a strategy of “economic entanglement.”

An abundance of caution likely motivated the U.S. Air Force to launch investigations into the oxygen-generation systems found on board a number of fighter and trainer aircraft, analysts said. “When you get to life-support systems, that is something the Air Force and any service tends to take a very hard line with,” said Mark Gunzinger, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments in Washington and a former Air Force pilot.“They are very, very cautious and risk-averse because we’re not just dealing with the loss of a major weapon system, but the loss of a human life,” he said/…/“They want to be doubly sure that the problems that they are experiencing with the F-22 OBOGS is not something that could be common to other systems and other aircraft,” Gunzinger said. “It’s something that’s very, very prudent, and a very smart thing to do.”If the Air Force had specific information on a particular problem, the aircraft in question would be grounded, Gunzinger said.

Federal law includes two bodies of code applicable to warfare. Title 10 contains laws exclusive to the U.S. armed forces – notably the Uniform Code of Military Justice Title. Title 50 relates to definitions of war and espionage, and the government’s responsibilities in the event of armed conflict. “Traditionally, operations in countries with which the U.S. is not at war are conducted under Title 50, not Title 10,” said Jim Thomas, an expert in political-military relations who is vice president for studies at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. “What you’ve seen since 9/11,” Thomas said, “is a blurring of Title 50 and Title 10.”

A look at the salaries Navy Seals get from the government, with Todd Harrison, CSBA.

A House panel has proposed legislation that would require a competitive engine acquisition strategy for the Air Force’s next-generation, long-range strike program, which could open up a new battle between lawmakers and the Pentagon over dueling jet engines/…/ Mark Gunzinger, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and a former senior Pentagon official, believes the proposed legislation could complicate, and even delay, DOD  plans for a new bomber.  “The next bomber undoubtedly will be a very sophisticated, low-observable platform,” Gunzinger told InsideDefense.com. “ As such, its design will be inextricably intertwined with the engines that it uses.”  Gunzinger is a retired Air Force colonel who authored a study last fall that examined options for rapidly developing a new bomber.  He said a competitive engine program could lead the Pentagon to define the propulsion system for aircraft designers in the bomber competition, something he says might complicate the effort.  “This could limit options offered by the contractors, who may be in the best position to develop the most effective designs, and who in fact conduct their own competitions to determine the best integrated options for their designs,” Gunzinger said. “Moreover, a directed government engine development and competition effort could add significant unwanted time and cost to development, and the prime contractors would probably have to wait until the competition was completed before they completed their final designs, adding even more growth to the program.”