Defense

The Middle East continues to be a theater of innovation, improvisation and adaptation for both offensive and defensive small drone warfare.

German heavy helo logistics proposal; space-based sensor demonstration contracts; Japan’s hedge against fighter failure and a new contract for F-35s.

As the U.S. Air Force comes within weeks of the first operational laser weapons, the Defense Department is hatching new concepts to address the power and thermal management limits of the state-of-the-art in the directed energy field.

While field geology will remain a prominent part of future lunar astronauts' “to do” lists, much more may be expected of them.

The Senate Armed Services Committee has filed a slimmed-down version of its annual defense policy legislation.

L3Harris Technologies has begun advertising the sale of “several” business units deemed peripheral to the newly merged company’s strategy, the top L3Harris leader said Oct. 30, with proceeds earmarked to go to stock repurchases.

The European Commission (EC) has cleared the acquisition of British defense firm Cobham by U.S. private equity firm Advent International, but approvals from the British government are still pending.

Taiwan’s Parliament has approved funding to buy 66 Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 fighters, the country’s president says.

GKN Aerospace announced Oct. 30 that it appointed Krisstie Kondrotis as president of its defense division effective Nov. 1, marking a key executive transfer between rivals.

The Missile Defense Agency has selected four companies to demo a prototype for a new space-based sensor optimized to detect and track maneuvering, hypersonic targets gliding or cruising within the atmosphere.

Airbus says it has arrested much of the cash outflow associated with the development of the A400M airlifter.

Ten years after calling for a fifth-generation fighter, the UAE appears no closer to acquiring the F-35.

Aviation Week Pentagon Editor Lee Hudson was aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) for tours on Oct. 30.

The Japanese finance ministry is demanding private investment in the country’s Future Fighter program, in part to ensure contractors are fully incentivized to prevent failure.

A required congressional notification confirms that a planned Japanese purchase will upgrade 98 F-15Js and cost an estimated $4.5 billion.

The Joint Simulation Environment (JSE) for the F-35 program is delayed because of a disagreement between the U.S. government and Lockheed Martin.

The search for and processing of resources such as water ice and oxygen as well as scientific discovery are quickly emerging as key drivers in NASA’s accelerated human return to the Moon’s surface in 2024 and preparation for Mars.

Northrop Grumman has completed all hardware installation for the delayed B-2 defensive management system modernization upgrade on the initial test aircraft.

The Pentagon has signed a $34 billion contract with Lockheed Martin to purchase 478 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters over the next three production lots.

Offensive electronic warfare is back on the Defense Department’s high-priority shopping list.

The Japanese finance ministry is demanding private investment in the country’s Future Fighter program, in part to ensure contractors are fully incentivized to prevent failure.

Sikorsky and Rheinmetall will build a logistics and fleet management center at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany if the CH-53K King Stallion is selected for the country’s STH heavy lift helicopter requirement.

The U.S. Air Force’s plan for acquiring future fighter aircraft may crimp the service’s ability to grow in the future, a study of the USAF’s force structure plans indicates.

Italy is lobbying Poland in a bid to secure final assembly of Warsaw’s planned fleet of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters.

The study ultimately will help define future launch service procurement requirements for the U.S. national security community.