Author Archives: Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D
-
B-3: The Inside Story Of America’s Next Bomber (From Forbes)
September 2, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D Sometime in the next several weeks the U.S. Air Force will award a contract for the first heavy bomber America has developed since the Cold War ended a quarter-century ago. The Long Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B) will enable the president [Read More...] -
JSTARS: Air Force Taking Way Too Long To Replace Aging Radar Planes (From Forbes)
August 31, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D The Air Force needs to replace its aging fleet of radar planes, starting with the Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System that is used to track and image moving ground targets. It has a plan for replacing all the planes [Read More...] -
As China Bubble Bursts, Push To Kill U.S. Export-Import Bank Looks Crazy (From Forbes)
August 26, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D With China’s export-driven economic miracle cooling fast, the trade environment is becoming increasingly harsh for U.S. exporters. Key trading partners are driving their currencies down and increasing export subsidies to minimize the damage of a global slowdown. The U.S. dollar [Read More...] -
Global Market Selloff Could Bolster Case For U.S. Defense Shares (From Forbes)
August 24, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D With the six-year bull market succumbing to a rising tide of negative offshore economic news, there aren’t many commercial equities in which investors can hide to avoid the carnage. But what about defense shares, the only equities whose underlying revenues [Read More...] -
Will The Army Be A Bill-Payer For Air Force And Navy Modernization? (From Army Magazine)
August 24, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D For six straight years, the Obama Administration has kept Pentagon spending under control by slashing outlays for military technology. Army modernization has been hit especially hard. In fact, the conclusion to the Army’s fiscal 2016 budget briefing states flatly that, [Read More...] -
Five Reasons The U.S. Power Grid Is Overdue For A Cyber Catastrophe (From Forbes)
August 19, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D Compared with other major industries, the electrical-power generation and distribution sector seems to be remarkably insulated from cyber threats. There has never been a major power outage in the U.S. that is traceable to a cyber attack. However, that day [Read More...] -
Military Cybersecurity: Evolution Is The Only Business Model That Makes Sense (From Forbes)
August 17, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D The Host Based Security System is the defense department’s most widely deployed tool for combating cyber attacks against military networks. It has undergone multiple upgrades since its use was first mandated for use on both classified and unclassified networks in [Read More...] -
Protecting The Homeland: A New Kind Of Warship Is Needed To Close The Gaps In Missile Defense Coverage (From Forbes)
August 14, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D It is the current policy of the federal government not to deploy active defenses of the American homeland against a major nuclear attack. Eventually the policy will change as politicians and policymakers come to appreciate the fragility of offensively-based deterrence. [Read More...] -
Pentagon Technology Plans And The Illusion Of A Free Ride (From Forbes)
August 12, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D President Obama’s Pentagon team has rolled out a Defense Innovation Initiative that proposes to preserve the joint force’s edge in military technology by, among other things, relying more on commercial breakthroughs. The logic of turning to “non-traditional” suppliers is remarkably [Read More...] -
Exodus: Big Defense Companies Are Exiting Federal Services (From Forbes)
August 4, 2015- Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D The word among investors is that the federal services sector, particularly the defense segment, is consolidating. That’s one way of looking at it. Another way is to observe that several of the biggest military contractors are exiting the space, and [Read More...]