usually defined as hard-kill (
weaponry) capabilities. He said the Navy
needs to look at options such as
adjusting tactics, using jamming and
other soft-kill methods, as well as
improving intelligence, surveillance
and reconnaissance capabilities to
reduce the risk inherent in developing capabilities.
Marion Blakey, president and
CEO of the Aerospace Industries
Association, said “the lure of the
art of the possible” brings in
“requirements creep” that drives
up costs and ultimately impacts
availability of systems and platforms.
She stressed the importance of
modernizing acquisition processes,
increased research and development, and stability of the work
force as key to affordability.
Ron O’Rourke, specialist in national defense for the
Congressional Research Service, encouraged the Navy
to look at emulating the Air Force’s frank assessment of
its budget needs, and its call for a $20 billion increase
in its top line to meet requirements. The Navy avoids
asking for more funding, he said, and its modesty
reduces the credibility — and eventually executability
— of its shipbuilding budget submissions. The Navy
needs to talk more openly about its need for funding to
avoid a distortion of U.S. defense planning, he said.
Mike Petters, corporate vice president and president
of Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, said the shipbuilding industry needs clear and stable requirements, realistic and stable funding, and solid program execution for
the industry to control costs and deliver the desired
capability to the fleet. He also has a responsibility to
company shareholders to bring predictability to financing, which he termed as critical to the industry.
LISA NIPP
Marion Blakey, president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association, addresses the “Affordability vs. Capability” seminar March 18. Behind her is Adm. Jonathan
W. Greenert, commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command.
added that his biggest concerns are semi-submersible
vessels, long-range Russian aviation and a rogue nation
firing a ballistic missile.
Vice Adm. Evan Chanik, commander, U.S. Second
Fleet, said a key element in regional security is having
partnerships with other countries, noting that with the
ever-expanding global economy, partners are important to establishing regional security. He said Second
Fleet has been working more frequently with the Coast
Guard and Canada to assist with maritime security.
Looking outside the maritime domain, Jay M.
Cohen, the Department of Homeland Security’s undersecretary for science and technology, said the No. 1
threat facing Americans in the future is a cyber attack.
Interoperability is Cohen’s top challenge, but border,
maritime and cargo security are high on his list as well.
‘Home Front’ Risks Detailed
The Coast Guard cannot eliminate all the maritime
domain risks, said Vice Adm. D. Brian Peterman, commander, Atlantic Area and Defense Force East.
“That kind of thinking is a Utopian idea,” he said during the “Defending the Home Front” panel March 19.
He said his main concerns are the potential for the
introduction of weapons of mass destruction in the
United States, attacks on the maritime system and its surrounding support systems, as well as the use of coastal
areas as a means of delivering weapons for terrorists.
Rear Adm. Christopher Colvin, the Coast Guard’s
deputy director of operations, U.S. Northern Command,
International Cooperation Underscored
Sea service leaders from the United States and Canada
painted a picture of how sea services can use “soft”
power to foster better relationships among countries.
Leading off the “Strategic Engagement and Maritime
Diplomacy” seminar March 19, Rear Adm. Michael A.
LeFever, director, Military Personnel Plans and Policy
Division, shared his experiences commanding Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 1, which embarked the
13th Marine Expeditionary Unit in 2005.
During the deployment, the ESG and its Marines
were used in “hard” ways — in combat operations in
Iraq — and “soft” ways during disaster relief after the
earthquake in Pakistan. The ESG also participated in
Exercise Bright Star 2005, a 47-country exercise that
