From Dave Majumdar, The National Interest: “Naval aviation is an inherently dangerous business, but over the course of more than 75 years, through robust procedures, rigorous training and continuous practice, the U.S. Navy has honed its carrier flight deck operations into a well-oiled machine."
From Lance A. Wilkins, RealClearDefense: “Members of the fighter pilot community often sarcastically remark that “we have air superiority because we’re American.” While tongue-in-cheek, a large percentage of CONUS and JCA exercises are often flown “unopposed,” just like so many of our operations downrange, not to be construed, however, as criticism. Seven decades of air superiority/supremacy in any domain is likely to yield a similar outcome. So where to go from here?”
From Oriana Pawlyk, Military.com: “When the F-22 Raptor production line ceased in 2011, Air Force Lt. Col. Daniel thought the Pentagon had made a huge mistake.”
Why Aircraft Carriers Still Dominate the Oceans
From Robert Farley, The National Interest: “Fundamentally, the strength of a carrier depends most on the capabilities of its air wing. In the next decade, the aircraft launched from U.S. carriers will undergo considerable change. Most notably, the arrival of the F-35C (whatever the larger problems with the program) will increase the stealth, sensor capacity, and communications capabilities of the air wing. In combination with the EA-18 Growler, this will increase the lethality of the entire air wing.”
From Daniel Gouré, RealClearDefense: “The F-135 engine is a remarkable engineering feat. It is derived from the F119-PW-100 engine, also by P&W, that powers the F-22 fighter. In reality, the F-135 is not one engine but a family ranging from a conventional, forward thrust variant for the F-35A to a multi-cycle variant that includes a forward lift fan for the short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) variant that powers the Marine Corps’ F-35B. It is able to achieve supercruise without the use of an afterburner and has advanced stealth coatings.”