Similar Posts

The Solomons Campaign: Cactus Air Force and the Bismarck Sea

BySteeljawscribe

Thus far, and not surprisingly so, the conversation has focused on the naval forces – afloat and ashore, at work in the Solomons. Today we go a wee bit joint and talk about land-based air and its contribution. We are all (or should be) pretty familiar with the inter-service rivalry that sprung up pre-war between…

This Date in Naval Aviation History: Operation Vittles – Navy-style

BySteeljawscribe

27 October 1948.  Four months earlier, the Soviets began their blockade of Berlin in earnest.  All surface transportation into the part of the city occupied by the Western Allies (US, UK and France) was cut off and all supplies, food, fuel and the like was prevented from entering the city.  But the air approaches into…

| |

Russia to Proceed with Supersonic Cruise Missile Sale to Syria

BySteeljawscribe

Russia has evidently opted to proceed with sales of the SS-NX-26/Yakhont ASCM to the Syrians. The intent was voiced by Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov over the weekend. “The contract,” he told journalists in Vladivostok, “is in progress.” The minister added his country was also bent on carrying through on promises to deliver several Bastion…

4 Comments

  1. I am so ready for the Navy to bail on the F-35B/C, and develop a long range multirole strike aircraft. The air wing needs to get back some serious legs. The Navy can replace its legacy Hornets with the Rhino, and he Marines can make do with them as well – the whole V/STOL thing is just not really worth the money for the capability it brings.

  2. I’m really not qualified to make a well informed
    statement here, but here goes-

    What allowed things to get this far?
    Not just the F-35, but all these whiz bang
    programs. The system that produced
    these things is at fault. The government
    and contractors share in the responsibility
    (or lack thereof as the case may be….).

    In the case of the F-35, SOMEONE should have
    seen this coming long ago, after the F-111 deal.

    Very frustrating. What to do if you scrap
    the F-35? Again, no easy answers and the clock
    keeps ticking….

  3. I saw that there is a topic about “Future of Air War”. Maybe I agree with all the theories, but do we even have to talk about war? Because with the technology of today and with all the secrets that we don’t know, since “we are not prepared yet for the truth”, a war may endure only fraction of seconds, the world can be destroyed in no time…

  4. “with the technology of today and with all the secrets that we don’t know”
    “a war may endure only fraction of seconds, the world can be destroyed in no time…”

    Which is exactly what was said by atomic bomb (then hydrogen bomb) advocates – right up until the Soviets, then the Chinese, then the Indians, etc. got the bomb. In the meantime there have been any number of wars of and by proxy and such. Prudence, and history, demand preparedness across a range of conflict and capability/capacity. It need not necessarily be a 1:1 match versus (a) potential foe(s) – there is merit in asymetric response.
    Sitting on one’s hands, however much it might be a choice, is nonetheless a historically proven poor one.
    w/r, SJS

Comments are closed.