Integration, existing weapons and uncertainty: In Paris, industry makes its Golden Dome pitch
Executives from both Lockheed and Raytheon indicated interest in building a space-based interceptor, and hinted at their broad approaches to Golden Dome.
Lithuania warns Europe against making ‘big mistake’ of breaking off from US defense industry
“There is enough space for [the] US, South Korea, Turkey, these countries which are out from the European Union as well,” Estonia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna said.
10 Breaking Defense op-eds that defined 2025
It's been a whirlwind of a year — and the defense establishment has plenty of thoughts on how it's unfolded and what might come next.
Sentinel ICBM first flight date now in flux, Air Force says
The troubled ICBM program was supposed to fly for the first time in 2026, but now the Air Force says that the date is unknown.
EXCLUSIVE: Eyeing risk of radar ‘delays,’ Lockheed proposes new F-35 fuselage design
A letter from Lockheed Martin's CEO to the Air Force, obtained by Breaking Defense, warns of "risks" to radar delivery schedule, raising questions about future lots.
Northrop Grumman pumps $50M into Firefly for medium launch vehicle
"With a 16 metric ton to orbit capability, Eclipse is a sweet spot for programs like NSSL Lane 1 and a natural fit to launch proliferated constellations," said Firefly CEO Jason Kim.
Space Force FORGEing ahead with missile warning ground system
Space Systems Command (SSC) in recent weeks has issued a flurry of contracts for the key hardware and software "thrusts" that make up the FORGE program, following a restructuring in 2023 that broke the effort into more manageable pieces.
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Keeping sensitive information safe in a new AI era
Why edge and endpoint security can’t be an afterthought.
Pentagon to deliberate splitting E-6B mission set, handing back key nuclear C2 role to Air Force
The Joint Requirements Oversight Council will make the decision on which service is best able to carry out the Looking Glass responsibility, but the Pentagon “has not backed away from that mission at all," according to Air Force Lt. Gen. Andrew Gebara.
Air Force now expects Sentinel ICBMs will ‘predominantly’ need new silos
“Part of the requirements, initially — ten years ago when this program was started — was to reuse the holes, the missile holes at the launch facilities,” said Air Force Gen. Thomas Bussiere. “Shockingly enough, if we look at it, that may not be the answer.”
Top US defense primes record minimal tariff impact in Q1 earnings
The six largest US defense firms all reported quarterly results this week, and the potential impact of tariffs was front and center.
Northrop logs new $477M loss on B-21 bomber due to higher manufacturing costs
Losses for the B-21 Raider program now stand at more than $2 billion.
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Data overload threatens decisionmakers as autonomy expands
Reducing cognitive overload on warfighters while improving “time to trust” for autonomous systems is a matter of design.
Space Force picks up pace of on-orbit refueling experiments
Space Systems Command is moving out with a trio of projects — contracting with Northrop Grumman for two separate experiments, and with Astroscale US for the first on-orbit refueling operation involving a military satellite.
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Orbital power: Shaping national security from space
Northrop Grumman is one of the only companies with expertise and capability to design, build and operate systems across an array of orbits.
Raytheon awards Northrop, Nammo solid rocket motor development contracts
Under the contract, the companies will “verify design requirements and specifications” for the Mk 72, which is used on the Navy's Standard Missile.
With NGAD loss and hazy future for F-35, Lockheed Martin weathers scrutiny from Wall Street
“An open question for Lockheed Martin is why it has not been able to win major new military aerospace competitions,” Byron Callan of Capital Alpha Partners said in a note to investors.