Over this past summer, Fighter Sweep assumed a holding pattern over its small corner of the internet. Today, I’m proud to announce that it has finally landed — right in my lap.

Having the keys to a website like this handed over to you comes with a whole range of emotions. First comes excitement, then pride, maybe a bit of hubris as you prepare for the transition and start planning your approach… Then the night before your first day, you panic and start to wonder if your employer’s faith has been misplaced. Unlike previous Fighter Sweep editors, I was not a military aviator. I may have ridden as a passenger in a few types of aircraft during my days in the Marine Corps, but my awareness of their technical function at the time was born out of the same websites and documentaries as the rest of us passionate amateurs.

Like so many of us, my appreciation for the incredible feats of engineering that can hoist men into the sky has always been from the outside looking in. My passion, interest, and knowledge of military aircraft wasn’t born out of my years in a flight suit, but rather out of something else entirely: analyzing foreign policy. 

I’ve spent years analyzing geopolitics as it pertains to conflict — and let there be no mistake — just about all foreign policy does. Carl von Clausewitz was right when he said, “War is the continuation of politics by other means,” and in that regard, few things can match the political power of a supersonic B-1B Lancer carrying 75,000 pounds of ordnance. In order to discuss potential conflicts, I needed a strong understanding of the different ways the American defense apparatus dips its toes into fights all around the world.

As a result, my areas of professional interest and expertise began to grow as a natural by-product of my work. Soon, I was writing as much about defense technology as I was writing about the policies it informed. Eventually, my analysis work regarding military aircraft and naval assets for SOFREP and then NEWSREP took on a life of its own. My work on arctic defense has been read and discussed by lawmakers like Senator Dan Sullivan and military leaders at places like the U.S. military’s European Command. You can find my analysis of foreign military aircraft and equipment in publications like Popular Mechanics, and, true to my Marine Corps roots, I make an appearance on All Marine Radio every other Monday just so I can take a break from writing about defense long enough to do a bit of shouting instead. I really do have a passion for this stuff.

In the coming months, you’ll see a few changes in the content we deliver here at Fighter Sweep. You’ll still get great information from real military aviators, but you’ll also find more pieces that dive into the aircraft themselves, the conflicts they’re in, and of course, breaking news about all things that take to the sky.

You’ll still be able to find my foreign policy-related work on TheNEWSREP.com, but as of today, I’m moving into Fighter Sweep full time… And it’s good to be home.

Alex Hollings

Fighter Sweep Editor