Defense

Aviation Week editors discuss what they expect in the year to come and what genuinely surprised them in 2014.

The company demonstrated three different electronic warfare sensors on the U-2, switching each out in significantly less time than required when not using the open systems architecture approach.

For the customer, the most important difference between new fighters is not whether they’re stealthy, but how long they’re expected to be around.

UAS needs are shifting, and it seems like Asia is picking up the slack; agricultural and industry needs are likely to drive civil growth in the U.S. and elsewhere.

The U.S. Army is planning to finally deploy by year’s end the first of its new airships designed to aid in air and missile threat detection for the Northeastern U.S.

Netherlands makes long-term plans for UAS deployment, both for military and civil uses.

Sipri report on global arms sales shows Russia and emerging-market suppliers continuing to gain ground on companies in the U.S. and Western Europe.

An ICBM kill, salvo trials and first flight of a new Redesigned Kill Vehicle are in the test plan for the Missile Defense Agency’s Ground-Based Midcourse Defense system during the next five years.

Maritime patrol aircraft and F-35 buy will be at the top of the list of concerns for the forthcoming U.K. Strategic Defense Review.

Boeing is planning for first flight of its 767-2C – upon which the U.S. Air Force’s new KC-46 tanker will be based – by year’s end, six months late.

Old-school Stovl: U.S. Marines’ plan for operating under fire looks a lot like the Royal Air Force’s Cold War doctrine.

Zhuhai airshow exhibits provide glimpse of China’s progress in UAVs, launchers and radar systems, but many details remain obscure.

Airbus DCIS will give NATO deployable headquarters communications capability

Security expert describes essential tactics to interdict terrorist attacks on U.S. soil from Islamic State and other radical groups and individuals

The integration of short targeting cycles—thanks to the introduction of streamlined networking solutions—allows the IDF to further improve its response time, bringing the time from detection to target kill to seconds and minutes rather than hours.

The U.S. Marine Corps seeks to update its V-22 Ospreys with sensors and weapons, much as it did for its KC-130s.

France is slowly replacing its aging Boeing KC-135Rs with Airbus A330 multirole tanker-transports, though defense budget constraints are hindering the transition.

NATO simulation exercize Arrcade Fusion seeks to improve coordination of joint operations

Bold Alligator exercise helps U.S. amphibious forces to hone skills for humanitarian operations.

Eight years of research and development have produced a riflescope with a patented “adaptive zoom.

Darpa wants to weigh in on a tactical debate that could have a far-reaching impact on air operations

Researchers develop a proof-of-concept lidar prototype that improves the speed and accuracy of ocean scans and allows the collection and transmission of data in real time for production of high-resolution 3-D images.

Recent submarine sightings near U.K. bases raise pressure on defense ministry to deploy new maritime patrol aircraft.

London Bureau Chief Tony Osborne and International Defense Editor Bill Sweetman discuss the U.K.'s recent trouble hunting for a possibly Russian submarine and what it says about their state of readiness.

The Tunisian Air Force's HH-3E Jolly Green Giant helicoptersare set to be replaced by 12 Sikorsky S70 Black Hawks – but it remains unclear whether these will be donated or sold to Tunisia by the USA.