Policies and politics affecting military programs

Defense Reforms Cost $90M A Pop

By Colin Clark on Friday, November 6th, 2009

Defense Reforms Cost $90M A Pop

The Pentagon performed a study or two that found each of its acquisition programs will have to spend about $90 million to comply with the recently passed defense acquisition reform bill, sponsored by Senators Carl Levin and John McCain. I understand several people at the meeting laughed when told this figure, guessing that if this is the official estimate at this early stage then the actual costs will be a heck of lot higher.

Afghan Push May Threaten Pakistan

By Greg Grant on Friday, November 6th, 2009

Afghan Push May Threaten Pakistan

Supporters of an escalation in Afghanistan argue that only a troop intensive counterinsurgency there can prevent a spillover of the fighting into neighboring Pakistan, a much more strategically vital country. CSIS’s Rick Nelson warns that an expanded offensive in Afghanistan risks pushing more militants into Pakistan, worsening stability there and ultimately hindering efforts to eliminate Al Qaeda.

Surge Hawks’ Frustration Mounts

By Greg Grant on Thursday, November 5th, 2009

Surge Hawks’ Frustration Mounts

Frustration over the Obama administration’s delay in sending more troops to Afghanistan is mounting among the hawkish set inside Washington. At an AEI conference yesterday, some of the same folks who had a hand in promoting the Iraq surge back in 2006 called for an even bigger troop surge in Afghanistan, warning that any delays risks certain defeat.

US Lacks Political Will For Af-Pak

By Colin Clark on Thursday, November 5th, 2009

US Lacks Political Will For Af-Pak

“I believe that the US at the moment does not have the political will, nor the public understanding and commitment to do what is necessary in Afghanistan.” Those are the words of Muqtedar Khan, director of the University of Delaware’s Islamic studies program, testifying Monday morning before the House Armed Services subcommittee on oversight and investigations.

China Declares Space War Inevitable

By Colin Clark on Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

China Declares Space War Inevitable

In what appears to mark a major shift in Chinese military and arms control strategy, the head of the PRC’s air force has said in an official interview that military operations in space are an “historical inevitability.” General Xu Qiliang said that, “As far as the revolution in military affairs is concerned, the competition between military forces is moving towards outer space… this is a historical inevitability and a development that cannot be turned back.”

Distributed Maneuver Beats Hybrid Enemies

By Greg Grant on Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

Distributed Maneuver Beats Hybrid Enemies

Two Australian military thinkers take a crack at the tough nut that is Hezbollah like hybrid enemies and come up with a manuever concept that seeks to restore striking power to the offensive. They envision swarms of small teams to probe and infiltrate a defender coupled to precision strike and superfast kill chains.

F136 Needs New Lug Nut; Testing Again By Xmas

By Colin Clark on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009

F136 Needs New Lug Nut; Testing Again By Xmas

The second engine for the Joint Strike Fighter needs a fancy lug nut redesigned and should be back up on the test stand by the end of the year, a GE spokesman says. The program has been dogged by rumors that it faced a potentially significant redesign of its combustor but the real problem lies with a lug that attaches the diffuser to the cumbustor, GE spokesman Rick Kennedy said Tuesday morning.“The actual combustor will not have to be redesigned,” he said.

Hybrid Strategy Risky in Afghanistan

By Greg Grant on Monday, November 2nd, 2009

Hybrid Strategy Risky in Afghanistan

Reports indicate that the Obama administration will adopt a “hybrid” strategy in Afghanistan, with the vast majority of troops providing security in urban centers while drone strikes and raids would be used to check the Taliban in remote areas. The danger of such an approach is that once rural villages are ceded to insurgent control, they may never be recaptured as the Taliban expands its shadow government.

Rumors Fly About JSF Second Engine

By Colin Clark on Monday, November 2nd, 2009

Rumors Fly About JSF Second Engine

Rumors flew last week that GE faced the prospect of having to redesign its cumbustor and that the engine is in such deep doo doo that it would be off the test stand for at least six months. Then Loren Thompson, uber-source for many defense reporters, put out an item this morning summarizing the rumors and now Congress wants answers — right away.

Arm Afghan Tribes, Experts Say

By Greg Grant on Friday, October 30th, 2009

Arm Afghan Tribes, Experts Say

A number of experts now say the U.S. should abandon its “top down” strategy of building an Afghan national army. Better is a “bottom up” approach that arms and pays local tribes to fight the Taliban alongside U.S. special forces.

Dems Warn Against Afghan Combat Surge

By Greg Grant on Thursday, October 29th, 2009

Dems Warn Against Afghan Combat Surge

As President Obama stood on the verge of deciding how many troops to send to Afghanistan and what broad strategy to pursue, three top Democrats declared themselves opposed to sending large numbers of combat troops. Sen. Carl Levin took the middle road and proposed following the “British model” in Afghanistan, which includes intensified training, mentoring and partnering with Afghan security forces, with a modest commitment of additional troops, more helicopters, drones and mine resistant vehicles.

DHS To Announce Cyber Merger

By Colin Clark on Thursday, October 29th, 2009

DHS To Announce Cyber Merger

In what could mark a major improvement to the nation’s ability to defend itself against cyber threats, the Department of Homeland Security will announce Friday that the US Computer Emergency Readiness Team will merge with the National Coordinating Center for Telecommunications. The two groups — now separated by two floors — will now be co-located and will operate jointly.

US Must Plan for Nuke Wars

By Greg Grant on Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

US Must Plan for Nuke Wars

In a world where the barriers to nuclear weapons proliferation are breaking down, military planners must prepare to fight on the battlefield one day after a nuclear explosion in a radioactive environment facing the prospect of second nuclear strike. This scenario is so complex and so costly that it renders obsolete many basic tenets of U.S. military power projection, says CSBA in a new report.

Take DoD Dough, Give To USAID

By Colin Clark on Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Take DoD Dough, Give To USAID

A senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Jack Reed, wants to take money from the Defense Department and use it to bulk up the anemic US Agency for International Development.
Reed, chairman of the Senate Armed Services seapower subcommittee and a member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, told reporters Tuesday morning that […]

Lawmakers Slam Tanker RFP

By Colin Clark on Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

Lawmakers Slam Tanker RFP

Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama notes “with alarm” in a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates that the draft tanker RFP “omits an assessment of risk associated with either schedule, past performance, or price…” Shelby supports the Northrop Grumman tanker. Rep. Norm Dicks of Washington, a Boeing tanker supporter, cites four “serious concerns” about the RFP which he believes “demonstrate a clear bias for the EADS/NG tanker proposal” in his letter to Shay Assad, director of defense procurement at the Pentagon.

Southern Guvs Start Tanker Group

By Colin Clark on Monday, October 26th, 2009

Southern Guvs Start Tanker Group

The governors of Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi completed a move we first reported several months ago, setting up a non-profit group to bolster their chances of getting jobs from award of the KC-45 tanker contract. Governors Bob Riley (R-Ala), Haley Barbour (R-Miss.), and Bobby Jindal (R– La.) launched The Aerospace Alliance, intended to “establish the Gulf Coast and surrounding region as a world class aerospace, space and aviation corridor.” But job one is winning the tanker contract.

Sen. Kerry Rejects McChrystal Strategy

By Greg Grant on Monday, October 26th, 2009

Sen. Kerry Rejects McChrystal Strategy

Sen. John Kerry told a Washington audience today that Afghan commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s call for an expanded counterinsurgency campaign reaches “too far, too fast.” Instead, Kerry called for a more “narrowly focused” counterinsurgency strategy that would dial down U.S. war aims, put US troops into fewer areas and pour money into Taliban fighters who might switch sides.

PLA Seeks ‘Accommodation, Not Confrontation’

By Colin Clark on Monday, October 26th, 2009

PLA Seeks ‘Accommodation, Not Confrontation’

In a rare public appearance, Gen. Xu Caihou, vice chairman of China’s Communist Party’s Central Military Commission, came to Washington and told an audience that his country remains a “developing country and would not, could not threaten developed countries.” In fact, the PRC seeks “accommodation, not confrontation.”

Pace of Afghan Debate Appropriate

By Greg Grant on Sunday, October 25th, 2009

Pace of Afghan Debate Appropriate

Two prominent retired generals, David Barno and Barry McCaffrey, told lawmakers that the Obama administration was smart to take its time debating the decision on whether or not to escalate in Afghanistan given the importance of the issues being debated. If the administration decides to escalate, both former commanders said the U.S. faces a 10– to 20-year project to shore up Afghanistan.

Hill Aides Call For JSF Restructure

By Colin Clark on Friday, October 23rd, 2009

Hill Aides Call For JSF Restructure

A preliminary Pentagon cost estimate that the F-35 could cost as much as $17.1 billion more than currently planned is prompting calls from congressional sources for the program to be reassessed and restructured. The congressional sources also wryly noted this new estimate seemed to raise questions about the wisdom of Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ recent trip to the F-35 plant in Fort Worth to show his support for the program. One aide scoffed that the new cost estimates were “no surprise to anyone who hasn’t drunk the JSF Kool-Aid.”