“THE F-35 JOINT STRIKE FIGHTER IS SLATED TO BE ARMED WITH THE B61 NUCLEAR BOMB AS EARLY AS 2020, BUT COULD CARRY THE WEAPON SOONER.” -Lt General Jack Weinstein, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration
On January 27, 2017, President Donald Trump directed Secretary of Defense James Mattis to initiate a new Nuclear Posture Review (NPR). The President made clear that his first priority is to protect the United States, allies, and partners. He also emphasized both the long-term goal of eliminating nuclear weapons and the requirement that the United […]
By: Renee Wunderlich for NBC5, Mar. 12, 2019 MONTPELIER, Vt. — Members of Citizens Against Nuclear Bombers in Vermont shared their concerns at the Statehouse Tuesday: that F-35 fighter jets are designed to carry nuclear weapons. Group leaders include Ben Cohen, of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, former gubernatorial candidate James Ehlers and retired Air […]
By: Mike Dougherty for VTDigger, Mar. 12, 2019 A new citizens group is raising alarms about the nuclear capacity of the F-35 fighter jet. Representatives from Citizens Against Nuclear Bombers in Vermont want officials to reverse the decision to base F-35s at the Burlington Air Guard base, saying the fleet’s nuclear capacity poses safety risks […]
By: Torrance Gaucher for MyChamplainValley, Mar. 12, 2019 MONTPELIER, Vt. – A group of local citizens says they don’t want nuclear weapon systems based in the Green Mountain State. On Tuesday, ‘Citizens Against Nuclear Bombers in Vermont‘ met underneath the Golden Dome in the Vermont State House. This conversation stems from the basing of the […]
By: Neal Goswami for WCAX, Mar. 12, 2019 VIDEO AVAILABLE HERE MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) A group of anti-F-35 activists say the military may send nuclear weapons to Vermont if the new jet is based here. Many in the group have opposed the pending arrival of the new Air Force jets. Now they’ve launched a new group […]
Editor’s note: This commentary is by retired Air Force Col. Rosanne Greco, who is a candidate for adjutant general of the Vermont National Guard. She spent 30 years on active duty in the Air Force, and is a former chair of the South Burlington City Council and a member of Save Our Skies VT. Mutually […]
By: Debora MacKenzie for New Scientist, Feb. 5, 2019 A key nuclear arms treaty is facing oblivion, as the US and Russia accuse each other of violating it. Last week, US president Donald Trump announced his attention to leave the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty(INF) if Russia does not give up a missile which the US says […]
By FRANKLIN C. “CHUCK” SPINNEY for The American Conservative• January 18, 2019 President Donald Trump’s plan to escalate efforts in Ballistic Missile Defense (BDM), including the introduction of space-based weapons, should not be viewed in isolation. It comes on top of the Defense Department’s plan to execute an across-the-board modernization of all our nuclear strike forces. It comes on top of […]
By Stephen Carlson for UPI, November 16, 2018 Nov. 16 (UPI) — The Department of Defense is awarding Lockheed Martin $349 million to provide infrastructure for laboratories and flight testing in support of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter. The contract will run through March 2020 under fiscal 2018 research, development, test and evaluation funding from the […]
By: Stephen Carlson for Space Daily, Nov. 16, 2019 The Department of Defense is awarding Lockheed Martin $349 million to provide infrastructure for laboratories and flight testing in support of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter. The contract will run through March 2020 under fiscal 2018 research, development, test and evaluation funding from the […]