SAIC-Engility Merger Doubles Intel & Space Revenue, Downplays Vehicles

SAIC-Engility Merger Doubles Intel & Space Revenue, Downplays Vehicles
SAIC-Engility Merger Doubles Intel & Space Revenue, Downplays Vehicles

Building physical things is not SAIC’s, well, thing. But physically building stuff has become less important and less profitable than integrating all the complex high-tech components and making sure they work together.

Robot Wolfpacks: The Faster, Cheaper 355-Ship Fleet

Robot Wolfpacks: The Faster, Cheaper 355-Ship Fleet
Robot Wolfpacks: The Faster, Cheaper 355-Ship Fleet

Smaller unmanned vessels will act as expendable scouts and decoys, larger ones — over 50 meters — will carry masses of missiles, while manned ships will carry both the largest systems and the human beings essential for rapid adaptation in combat.

No, The Pentagon Did NOT Waste $28 Billion

No, The Pentagon Did NOT Waste $28 Billion
No, The Pentagon Did NOT Waste $28 Billion

One of our primary goals here at Breaking Defense is to try and avoid the madness of the daily news cycle and tell our readers what is really happening, as best as any human can tell at any time. The following explanation by two experienced defense budget experts of what really happened to $28 billion discussed in a…

No Light Attack Planes Any Time Soon: Air Force Undersecretary

No Light Attack Planes Any Time Soon: Air Force Undersecretary
No Light Attack Planes Any Time Soon: Air Force Undersecretary

AFA: The Air Force won’t issue a Request For Information on possible Light Attack aircraft, originally scheduled to come out December, in favor of doing a lot more experiments, Air Force Undersecretary Matt Donovan told reporters this morning. The service has been dithering for over a decade about whether to buy propeller-driven aircraft for affordable close…

Marines, Navy Wrestle With How To Upgun Amphibs

Marines, Navy Wrestle With How To Upgun Amphibs
Marines, Navy Wrestle With How To Upgun Amphibs

The Marines want Vertical Launch System missile tubes on their new amphibious ships — but the Navy isn’t planning to leave room for them.

Missile Defense Review a Multi-Billion IOU to White House

Missile Defense Review a Multi-Billion IOU to White House
Missile Defense Review a Multi-Billion IOU to White House

PENTAGON: Military and civilian leaders at the Pentagon are portraying the new Missile Defense Review as a common-sense response to aggressive Chinese and Russian investments in new hypersonic weapons and faster, longer-range missiles. The review marks “a new era in missile defense” undersecretary for policy John Rood said at the Pentagon Thursday. But mostly what…

Talk To Us First, THEN Congress: Navy Acquisition Officials

Talk To Us First, THEN Congress: Navy Acquisition Officials
Talk To Us First, THEN Congress: Navy Acquisition Officials

“From an industry perspective, calling us, engaging us, talking to us, and synchronizing that alignment can be most helpful. It can also be, frankly, harmful if the appropriators or the authorizers get some stray voltage that doesn’t match up to the story.”

Marines Want Missiles To Sink Ships From Shores, And They Want Them Fast

Marines Want Missiles To Sink Ships From Shores, And They Want Them Fast
Marines Want Missiles To Sink Ships From Shores, And They Want Them Fast

“The Army is looking at this too but probably on a different timeline — the Marine Corps wants to get after this pretty quickly.”

Saudis Save Wisconsin Shipbuilder: Fills Gap Between LCS & Frigates At Marinette

Saudis Save Wisconsin Shipbuilder: Fills Gap Between LCS & Frigates At Marinette
Saudis Save Wisconsin Shipbuilder: Fills Gap Between LCS & Frigates At Marinette

WASHINGTON: Four years after Lockheed Martin inked a $11.2 billion deal to sell Saudi Arabia an upgunned variant of its Littoral Combat Ship, the company is starting work on the first vessel later this year, a company official confirmed Wednesday. The work on four Multi-Mission Surface Combatants will take place at Fincantieri-owned Marinette Marine in…

White House Missile Defense Review: Space Lasers, Weapons On Table

White House Missile Defense Review: Space Lasers, Weapons On Table
White House Missile Defense Review: Space Lasers, Weapons On Table

WASHINGTON: The Pentagon is studying options for putting lasers, directed energy weapons, and missile defense systems into space to protect against an array of increasingly advanced ballistic and cruise missiles being developed by China, Russia, and North Korea, a senior Trump administration official said Wednesday. President Trump is set to announce the results of a…

Trump’s Pick For Joint Chiefs Praises Allies, Kurds & Mattis Strategy

Trump’s Pick For Joint Chiefs Praises Allies, Kurds & Mattis Strategy
Trump’s Pick For Joint Chiefs Praises Allies, Kurds & Mattis Strategy

“The Army has aligned itself with Secretary Mattis’s National Defense Strategy, which we will not walk away from,” Gen. Milley told an Association of the US Army breakfast. “It’s a solid strategy, it’s written in history, it’s written in the blood of generations past, and we subscribe to it.” And allies are key to the strategy.

‘Be Ready To Fight Now’: Top Admiral On Russia & China

‘Be Ready To Fight Now’: Top Admiral On Russia & China
‘Be Ready To Fight Now’: Top Admiral On Russia & China

“The Battle of Guadalcanal was a brutal campaign, but shows us what the next fight could be like,” Vice Adm. Brown said. “Usually, the CO (skipper), XO (executive officer) and senior officers – even admirals – were killed immediately – but what happened?”

Navy Kicks Off New LCS Deployments; Training Questions Remain

Navy Kicks Off New LCS Deployments; Training Questions Remain
Navy Kicks Off New LCS Deployments; Training Questions Remain

WASHINGTON: After years of delays, budget fights, and searing debates over the role that the ship will play, three Littoral Combat Ships will head out on their first deployments this year. “We’re deploying LCS this year. It’s happening. Two ships are going on the West Coast, one ship is going on the East Coast,” said…

12 Moments Of Truth For Army Modernization In 2019

12 Moments Of Truth For Army Modernization In 2019
12 Moments Of Truth For Army Modernization In 2019

WASHINGTON: At least a dozen major Army weapons programs face big decisions in 2019. The service will launch a competition for new armored vehicles; award development contracts for scout aircraft and helicopter engines; conduct key tests of long-range missiles, anti-aircraft defenses, rifles, targeting goggles, and multiple battlefield networks; and field new electronics for command posts.