US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said categorically that "we expect that Japan will join AUKUS Pillar Two at some point in the not-too-distant future to work on specific projects that have yet to be named."
Congressional Research Service report could shape lawmaker questions on hypersonics at next hearing, from funding to command and control issues.
Six companies have already signed up for a new flight-test program to mature their autonomy software.
“I think long-range strike is about trying to keep stability in a crisis situation. And if you're going to use it as a deterrence," former Air Marshal Geoff Brown says. "It's got to be responsive, it's got to be potent, but you've also got to be able to signal that you can use it."
"It’s ultimately a political decision, and ... this demands a strong and fully staffed OSD," said Mackenzie Eaglen, of the American Enterprise Institute. "That doesn’t seem likely until much later this year."
Former CSAF Gen. David Goldfein, who like many fighter pilots isn't a big guy, was passed over as CJCS because he didn't "look macho enough for Trump," said one former Pentagon insider.
The Pentagon needs to look at "seams, gaps and overlaps" as they implement the new strategy for All Domain Ops, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown says.
As aircraft shrink, threats expand, and technology accelerates, aircraft engines must iterate along with the threats.
"All of the services are pursuing new long-range strike capabilities today, kind of like little kids chasing a soccer ball, and someone needs to ask which investments will maximize our nation’s long-range strike warfighting potential," said Mitchell Institute's Mark Gunzinger.
JADC2 is foundational to future hypersonic weapons, says Gen. Ray: "If you don't have that, you just miss fast."
If an aircraft like the B-1 was taxed so hard due to high demand, the appropriate lesson is that the nation needs more bombers, not less.
"I think Russia and China are in a better position than we are at the moment on Artificial Intelligence," Sen. Sen. James Inhofe said. I asked if he would press hard for more money. Answer: "To me, there are other things that need to be done first."
Explore how networked warfare, AI, and 3D-printed drones are reshaping US Indo-Pacific strategy.
Todd Harrison is one of the best defense budget folks around. Like many budget weenies (that’s the technical term) he really cares about how people come up with cost estimates because the underlying assumptions for them can lead in radically different directions. One example is the recent estimate on how much the next generation of […]
AFA: In what may be a hint of things to come, the head of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office says his office is keeping a close eye on the B-21 bomber’s stealth costs. While he didn’t indicate there were any cost overruns or scheduler problems, the fact that RCO Director Randall Walden mentioned this […]
UPDATED: We Run Op-Ed; Pentagon Announces LRSO Contract The Pentagon just awarded the third major contract in the modernization of the nuclear triad. First came the B-21 bomber. Then the Columbia-class submarine, to replace the Ohio class boomers. Two days ago they awarded Boeing and Northrop Grumman contracts to begin work on the new version […]
CORRECTED: What Gen. Harris Meant To Say Was A Total Bomber Fleet of 165; Still “At Least” 100 B-21s WASHINGTON: How many B-21 bombers will the US need? 80? 100? 165? Bound by the president’s budget on one side and congressional appropriations on the other, the head of Air Force acquisition was very careful in […]