Author Archives: Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D.
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Navy: Say Hello To Stealth And Unmanned Warplanes
August 14, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Loren is right to worry about the UCAS delay (posted August 13). But there’s a bigger issue. Remarkably, the Navy has so far failed to buy its fliers stealth fighter-attack aircraft (around since the early 1980s) or big unmanned planes [Read More...] -
A Low-Cost Solution to Missile Defense
July 28, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. N is for net-centric and the Air Force’s latest move to get ahead in the ballistic missile defense game depends on it. The Net Centric Airborne Defense Element (NCADE) is a modified AMRAAM air-to-air missile primed to chase and hit [Read More...] -
Vickers on the Future
July 27, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Pentagon guru Michael Vickers is Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict, but he’s much more than just a top counterinsurgency expert. For over a year his office’s portfolio has included advising on the full range [Read More...] -
Congress Should Move Forward On A New Bomber
June 19, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Issue Brief Picture this: a nuclear weapon in terrorist hands loose in the remote regions of Pakistan. How about a mobile missile deep in Iran with a nuclear warhead standing by? Or a space launch complex in some other nation, [Read More...] -
Will The Pentagon Remember To Defend American Skies?
May 22, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Issue Brief When the Pentagon “rebalanced” military aircraft programs on April 6, they forgot about buying new fighters to protect the United States. Remember the scare last month when the back-up Air Force One made low circles over New York [Read More...] -
E-2D and Maritime Security
May 22, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Research Study The greatest threats to Navy ships in the years ahead come from missile proliferation and submarines, but the best defense starts in the sky with the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye. “State actors and non-state actors who, in the past, [Read More...] -
F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Remains Good Value For America And Allies
May 1, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Issue Brief When Defense Secretary Robert Gates “rebalanced” the Pentagon budget recently he put the future of fighter aviation in America on the shoulders of the F-35. The US Navy will probably buy more F/A-18s and Congress may do right [Read More...] -
Air Force Prepared To End F-22 At 243 Aircraft, Not 187
April 9, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Issue Brief Secretary of Defense Robert Gates stated on April 6 that the Air Force advised him they wanted 187 F-22s, the reaction was shock. That’s because evidence indicates the Air Force was ready and willing to cap off production [Read More...] -
Cutting E-2D Navy Radar Plane Could Put Ships At Risk
February 26, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Issue Brief “Do you think those US Navy warships are out there on vacation?” one Saudi leader was said to have asked Iranian ruler Mahmoud Ahmadinejad during a recent crisis. Aircraft carriers and surface ships do a lot for US [Read More...] -
Global Deterrence: The Role of the F-22
February 6, 2009- Rebecca L. Grant, Ph.D. Research Study According to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen, “It’s way past time to re-examine our strategic thinking about deterrence. ”Conventional deterrence is all about how to posture America’s air and naval forces, in particular, [Read More...]