PENTAGON: Of the four armed services’ budget plans for 2017, the one most likely to make Congress apoplectic is the Navy’s. On top of reintroducing a cruiser modernization plan repeatedly rejected by the Hill, the Navy proposes deactivating a carrier air wing — which tangles with the touchy issue of how many carriers the US… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The day before the Defense Department unveils a budget that cuts the Littoral Combat Ship program, news broke that two top senators had slammed the controversial vessel in a letter to the Chief of Naval Operations. That letter and our analysis follow: https://www.scribd.com/doc/298556678/160205-McCain-Reed-LCS-Letter-to-SecNav-and-CNO Senate Armed Services Committee chairman — and decorated Navy pilot — John McCain is… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The US Army must play a larger role in the Pacific to deter China, one of DC’s leading defense experts is telling Congress today. That larger role requires politically and fiscally difficult decisions to build new kinds of units and base them in new places, Andrew Krepinevich told me in advance of his Capitol… Keep reading →

[UPDATED with experts’ analysis; “innocent passage” confirmed] WASHINGTON: Just two days after the head of US Pacific Command, Adm. Harry Harris, pledged to push harder on Chinese territorial claims in the South China Sea, the destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur sailed within the 12 nautical mile limit around Triton Island. Situated in the Paracels, which are claimed… Keep reading →

UPDATED: Adds CSA Milley & Gen. Sullivan remarks WASHINGTON: The administration’s nominee for Army Secretary wants better defenses against cyber attack, a warmer relationship with the National Guard, and a fast-track for acquisition inspired by the Air Force’s Rapid Capabilities Office. Despite having held senior positions in both the Air Force and the Navy, Eric Fanning’s path… Keep reading →

UPDATED: SecDef Says Crew Got Lost WASHINGTON: Iran violated international law by seizing two disabled US Navy vessels adrift in Iranian waters, according to the powerful chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the Iranians provided assurances that the sailors were being afforded “the care [and] the proper courtesy that you’d… Keep reading →

[UPDATED with Army comment] WASHINGTON: Under pressure from Sen. John McCain, Acting Army Secretary Eric Fanning will step aside until the Senate confirms his nomination as secretary. The official reason is a 1998 statute about nominees not being allowed to do the job de facto before they’re legally confirmed for it. The real reasons, however, may be Guantanamo… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, top military advisor to the president, today proposed creation of a staff to help the Defense Secretary better plan and execute America’s war plans that involve huge swaths of the globe and outer space. “This is not the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs saying, ‘I need a… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The budget deal setting spending levels for 2016 and 2017 is less than a month old, but pro-defense legislators already want to revisit. A top aide to Sen. John McCain said the Senate Armed Services Committee chairman and his allies will “absolutely” try to revise the 2017 Pentagon topline upward. But our sources —… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Sen. Kelly Ayotte, take note. The head of Air Combat Command told reporters this morning that the A-10 Warthog’s retirement will probably slide two to three years thanks to the increased threats faced by the Air Force. Gen. Hawk Carlisle, speaking at a Defense Writers Group breakfast, made it clear the decision hasn’t been… Keep reading →