I'm on the Teevee
Laicie Olson | Oct 29, 2010 |
0 The latest episode of Al Jazeera English's program, Empire, focuses on increases in military spending and highlights some controversial U.S. programs, such as the F-35 extra engine and C-17. You can check it out on Al Jazeera all this week or online here. My portion begins around the 26 minute mark, but it's definitely worth watching the whole thing.
Security Matters, Shameless Self Promotion, Al Jazeera, f136, C-17 (all tags)
Throwdown at Farnborough
Laicie Olson | Jul 22, 2010 | 0 
As the tension builds, with a few even speculating that neither the C-17 nor the F-35 extra engine will make it in to final fiscal 2011 defense appropriations, things have heated up at the Farnborough International Airshow, taking place from July 19-25 in the UK.
Dave Hess, president of Pratt & Whitney, the manufacturer of the current F-35 engine, acknowledged at the show that his company was actively lobbying lawmakers on the issue. He insisted, though, that the rival team of General Electric and Rolls Royce are spending “orders of magnitude” more.
While he acknowledged that the issue is an “enormous priority” for both GE and Rolls, Jean Lydon-Rodgers, president of GE Aviation's military business and former head of the GE-Rolls engine team, rejected Pratt’s criticism as “unfair”.
Boeing and EADS also took their show on the road, each touting the size of their orders. Bids for the $35 billion KC-X tanker contract have closed and a decision is due in November.
As the Pentagon’s belt gets tighter and tighter, the fierce competition for contracts is reaching a fever pitch. PACs associated with both Lockheed and Boeing are on track to make record-level campaign contributions this election cycle, with each already well over the $2 million mark. Both have already maxed out contributions to several lawmakers, as well as to party committees.
Gates Calls for Real Spending Priorities
Laicie Olson | May 11, 2010 | 1 
By Lt. Gen. Robert Gard and Laicie Olson
Invoking the memory of President Eisenhower’s farewell address last weekend, Defense Secretary Robert Gates delivered a fiery speech aimed at overhauling the Pentagon’s budget and restructuring its bureaucracy.
This rhetoric is anything but new, and builds on previous initiatives set out by the Secretary.
Just last Monday at a Navy League conference, Gates urged the Navy and Marine Corps to think more deeply about the challenges facing their costliest platforms – including aircraft carriers that run $11 billion each, future ballistic missile submarines costing $7 billion apiece and a Marine Corps amphibious assault vehicle “suited only to Eisenhower’s D-Day planning.”
While he later joked that he is “not crazy” and wouldn’t just cut out a carrier, the speech ruffled more than a few feathers.
Security Matters, Defense Spending, FY11, FY12, Gates, Congress, C-17, JSF, Extra Engine (all tags)
