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PAF News Archive

  • A PLAAF B-6K strategic bomber at the China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, October 25, 2016.

    China's PLAAF Pilot Training Program Undergoes Major Overhaul

    Oct 27, 2016

    China's People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) has made great strides in recent years to transform its pilot training program. PLAAF leaders understand many of the institutional and cultural weaknesses that impede effectiveness and are taking measures to address them.

  • Pilots of China's J-10 fighter jet from a PLAAF Aerobatics Team prepare before a media demonstration at the Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand, November 24, 2015

    China's Air Force Is Fixing Its Shortcomings

    Oct 14, 2016

    The prevailing view among Western observers is that Chinese fighter pilots lack the tactical mindset to engage and prevail in a dynamic, unscripted combat environment. But the PLAAF appears to have undertaken major reform in how it trains its pilots.

  • An MQ-9 Reaper on the flightline at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan

    Do 'Guardian Forces' Belong in the Military?

    Mar 10, 2016

    More and more national security workers in and out of uniform never get close to combat. They address cyber threats, operate satellite constellations, and control drones. It's time to rethink their place in the system.

  • U.S. Army soldiers cheer as U.S. President Barack Obama signs H.R. 3230, the Veteran's Access to Care through Choice, Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014

    Research Drives Ongoing Support for Veterans

    Nov 10, 2014

    On November 11, we honor the service and sacrifices of America's veterans. But as they return home and adjust to civilian life, veterans and their families face new challenges and communities struggle to meet their unique needs. Rigorous research is essential to addressing these challenges and finding long-term solutions. RAND explores key issues concerning veterans such as employment, health and well-being, family support, and education.

  • U.S Marine with many medals

    Mending the Marriage Between Colleges and the Military

    Aug 18, 2014

    Without a concerted effort to change military executive education, military services will continue a misguided effort to buy academic credibility, and some elite universities will continue selling their names. Most importantly, the United States will miss an opportunity to hone the critical thinking of its next generation of military leaders.

  • A pro-Russian separatist at the crash site of a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 in Ukraine's Donetsk region, July 17, 2014

    3 Weapons That Threaten Commercial Planes

    Jul 18, 2014

    It's relatively rare that commercial aircraft are targeted with weapons built primarily to attack military aircraft, but there are a range of potential threats from such weapons. Given that Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was reportedly at 33,000 feet when contact was lost, it seems impossible that the attack could have occurred using a shoulder-fired missile.

  • Virginia Senators George Allen and John Warner, Virginia Governor Mark R. Warner, and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Mullen testifying to the Defense Base Realignment and Closure Commission in 2005

    Why the Pentagon Can't Bypass BRAC

    Apr 1, 2014

    By trying to cut Congress out of the loop and bypass the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC), the Pentagon is more likely to antagonize Capitol Hill and undermine its efforts to make sensible cuts in defense spending.

  • F/A-18C Hornets fly from Andersen Air Base, Guam, during exercise Forger Fury II, 5 December, 2013

    Do Joint Fighter Programs Save Money?

    Dec 24, 2013

    Joint aircraft programs have not historically saved overall life cycle cost. On average, such programs experienced substantially higher cost growth in acquisition (research, development, test, evaluation, and procurement) than single-service programs.

  • Willis Ware, Computer Pioneer, Helped Build Early Machines and Warned About Security Privacy

    Nov 27, 2013

    Willis Ware, a RAND Corporation engineer who in the 1960s predicted the ubiquity of the personal computer, the ways it would propel people into lives of perpetual change, and the perils it would pose for personal privacy, has died. He was 93.

  • Multimedia

    Events @ RAND Podcast: Drones

    Sep 25, 2013

    In September 2013, Ted Harshberger, director of RAND Project AIR FORCE, moderated a panel discussion on current military and nonmilitary use of drones and other potential applications.

  • A United Launch Alliance Delta IV-Medium rocket carrying the fourth Wideband Global SATCOM satellite

    Intelsat Crash a Setback for Space Lift Competition

    Feb 12, 2013

    Sea Launch's recent failure means more than just a lost payload and revenue for Intelsat: It means the status quo for launch services will continue for a while longer, write Dave Baiocchi and William Welser.

  • Running a test in a U.S. Air Force cyber lab

    A Cybercrisis Is Inevitable — and Manageable

    Jan 9, 2013

    The United States can manage a cybercrisis by taking steps to reduce the incentives for other states to step into crisis, by controlling the narrative, understanding the stability parameters of the crises, and trying to manage escalation if conflicts arise.

  • U.S. Air Force Academy's unmanned Viking 300 aircraft

    Expect More Drone Use Like Recent Israeli Episode

    Oct 11, 2012

    Practically any country that aspires to an indigenous aviation industry (as most countries do, even if only for national pride) has a reasonably capable, medium-altitude unmanned drone system in development or flying already, writes Ted Harshberger. Many of these are far less careful and restrictive in their export policies than are the United States and its key allies.

  • News Release

    Policy Choices for United States to Dissuade Iran from Developing Nuclear Weapons

    Jun 7, 2011

    Dissuading Iran from developing nuclear weapons faces major obstacles, but it's too soon to give up trying as it may still be possible to influence the outcome of Iran's internal political debate.