Author Archives: Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D
-
Putting Interceptors On Trucks Is The Fastest Way Trump Can Bolster Missile Defense Of America (From Forbes)
July 16, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D The Trump administration wants to bolster defenses of the U.S. homeland against ballistic missile attack. The only program the Pentagon has capable of intercepting intercontinental ballistic missile warheads headed for America is the Ground-based Midcourse Defense system, or GMD. GMD [Read More...] -
Raytheon’s Pathfinder Program For Next-Gen GPS Has Become A Breakthrough Success (From Forbes)
July 13, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D The Global Positioning System is one of the signature technological successes of this generation. Google Maps, Uber and your smart phone couldn’t work without it. But GPS satellites don’t operate on autopilot. They must be monitored and managed continuously by [Read More...] -
A Quick Fix For U.S. Navy Surveillance Gaps In Asia (From Forbes)
July 10, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D The U.S. Navy has difficulty identifying remote threats in the Indo-Pacific region, whether they be distant warships or military units operating under jungle canopies. It appears the Air Force has a solution: a multi-spectral infrared sensor designated MS-177A that flies [Read More...] -
Why China Wants A Super Rocket Like NASA’s Space Launch System (From Forbes)
July 9, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D NASA is developing a new Space Launch System that one day may carry humans to Mars. It eventually will be the biggest rocket ever built, able to lift 130 metric tons to Low Earth Orbit. China says it wants to [Read More...] -
The Big Threat To GE Aviation Isn’t Corporate Breakup — It’s A Resurgent Pratt & Whitney (From Forbes)
July 2, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D When General Electric disclosed what amounts to a corporate breakup on June 26, one of the few businesses it said it wanted to retain was GE Aviation, its aircraft engine unit. The business certainly seems to be performing well. Going [Read More...] -
The Big Opportunities For Boeing Hidden In The Air Force’s KC-46 Tanker Program (from Forbes)
June 28, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D When Boeing won the contract to build the Air Force’s next-generation KC-46 tanker in 2011, its focus was almost entirely on developing a game-changing aerial refueler. With the Air Force’s announcement last week that it will begin taking deliveries of [Read More...] -
Five Reasons The Marine Corps Is The Future Of U.S. Ground Combat (From Forbes)
June 21, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D After many years of fighting the global war on terror, the Marine Corps is returning to its roots as a naval expeditionary force focused on maneuver warfare and amphibious operations. Its timing is exquisite, because Marine competencies look well suited [Read More...] -
Trump’s ‘Space Force’ Motivated By Russian, Chinese Threats To Critical U.S. Orbital Systems (From Forbes)
June 18, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D President Trump announced today that he has directed the military to establish a sixth branch for conducting operations in space. The plan is a surprise, but it is arguably timely because Russian and Chinese threats to critical U.S. orbital assets [Read More...] -
Invisible Scourge: The Danger of Chemical or Biological Attack on America is Growing Fast
June 18, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Click here to read the full report as a PDF. The danger of a chemical or biological attack against the U.S. homeland is growing. In the case of chemical threats, thousands of sites around the world manufacture precursors [Read More...] -
Lockheed, Pratt Disclose F-35 Cost-Cutting Moves As Air Force Secretary Presses For Economies (From Forbes)
June 15, 2018- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D The Air Force will be absorbing 72% of the F-35 fighter domestic production run, so Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson is pressing contractors to reduce costs — not just for building the plane, but for operating it once it is [Read More...]