Use The Force
The development of small, cheap lasers means that the era of real-life ray guns may be finally at hand.
Bill Sweetman is an aerospace and defense journalist specializing in the development and use of high-tech weapons, He is senior international defense editor of Aviation Week & Space Technology.
Flight of Fancy
USMC generals say they absolutely have to have their mega-expensive F-35B. But their idea on how to use it is problematic—at best.
BREAKING THE BANK
The U.S. military is planning on spending megabucks on a slew of new weapons systems—with no obvious way to pay for them.
Full Stop
The ship was supposed to zoom over the ocean top, 50 percent faster than its competitors. Then things changed.
Now You See ’Em
A gang of advanced missiles and a bleeding-edge radar unveiled at a Chinese air show could mean big trouble for the Pentagon’s best fighters.
Target Acquired
After years of strategic drift, the U.S. military may finally have a path to maintain its edge over countries like China. Will the defense-industrial bureaucrats stand in the way?
Half Life
For decades, the Pentagon has been toying with the idea of upgrading the B-52 bomber, first built in the mid-1950s. Will they finally get around to it, this time?
Stuck
The U.S. wants to keep its $55 billion bomber program under tight wraps. But that’s hardly ever worked before. And it is almost certain to fail this time.
Winter Is Coming
The U.S. and Russia are sinking billions into nuclear-capable bombers, missiles, and submarines. Another round of “Mutually Assured Destruction,” anyone?
In the Dark
The secrecy surrounding the new ‘Long Range Strike Bomber’ is more expansive than any aircraft program of its size since the 1980s. What are the generals and contractors hiding?