Budget, Policy & Operations

The UK government-sponsored Future Flight Challenge officially came to an end in 2024, but on Sept. 29 the follow-on Future Flight Program announced a £4.4 million slate of awards.

Taiwan is doubling down on efforts to build a multifaceted uncrewed systems ecosystem, the defense ministry says in a new report.

Dark, a French startup developing a vehicle for the capture of low-Earth-orbit objects, has ceased operations, the company announced Oct. 8.

Washington is determined to reduce its dependency on China for critical minerals essential for defense systems, even if it means sourcing from conflict zones.

The U.S. Space Force has seen its foreign military sales cases grow exponentially in the past four years.

German lawmakers have approved spending on an additional top-up order for Eurofighter combat aircraft and a crucial upgrade path for the fighter.

The U.S. Department of Defense has invested a total of $79 million in two companies mining critical minerals in Alaska.

As Beijing races to match U.S. capabilities in orbit, the Pentagon warns of rising threats across all orbital layers.

The UK wants to demonstrate operations of a turbine-powered, fixed-wing, short takeoff and landing autonomous collaborative platform from a Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier.

The U.S. Army recently completed initial operational test and evaluation of its Lockheed Martin-made Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) Increment 1.

The Polish government says it is moving ahead with the purchase of RTX AIM-120D radar-guided air-to-air missiles to equip its F-35 combat aircraft.

Canada, long a poster child for ploddy defense procurement processes, is looking to shed that reputation while also bolstering its local supply base.

Lockheed Martin and Spark Capital-backed Inversion reaffirmed its plan for a first flight of its Arc space-based, on-demand cargo delivery vehicle next year.

The European Union says that loitering munitions are emerging as a new field of cooperation under the Permanent Structured Cooperation initiative (Pesco).

The U.S. Space Force’s next neighborhood watchdog spacecraft could be the first operational system capable of on-orbit refueling.

Carrier operations are proceeding, but the UK’s Lockheed Martin F-35 program still faces major capability gaps.

Madrid’s funding package positions Airbus at the center of Spain’s contribution to European defense autonomy.

U.S. Space Force Maj. Gen. Stephen Purdy made waves when he disclosed that he wants refuelable space situational awareness satellites.

The U.S. Army will further realign its attack helicopter fleet by shifting a large amount of its advanced AH-64E fleet to the National Guard.

The head of U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command announced late Sept. 30 he would step down from the role, in the latest change to Air Force leadership.

The French government says it has ordered five additional Dassault Aviation Falcon 2000LXS Albatros aircraft for maritime surveillance.

The Australian Defense Force is set to double its Lockheed Martin M142 Himars fleet after Washington approved the sale of 48 additional launchers.

AeroVironment is looking to parlay its work on counter-uncrewed air system (C-UAS) laser weapons to go after anticipated business to combat higher-end threats.

Light helicopter manufacturers are battling it out to win the U.S. Army’s next-generation training fleet contract.

New analysis focuses on the cost of developing clean-sheet, low-signature refuelers.