US clears $3.2 billion in missiles for Germany
The missiles may be carried by Germany's new F127 class frigates as part of a maritime air defense capability, a US government notice said.
The missiles may be carried by Germany's new F127 class frigates as part of a maritime air defense capability, a US government notice said.
Japan plans to commission its two Aegis System Equipped Vessels in 2027 and 2028.
The MDA request includes $105 million for the Long Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR), slightly more than the $103.5 requested in FY24. LRDR, deemed a critical capability by US Northern Command (NORTHCOM)/NORAD leaders, will transfer to the Space Force to begin operations in FY25.
One of MDA's biggest investments in FY24 is for the Next Generation Interceptor, with $2.1 billion requested.
The laser is scheduled for at-sea tests on the destroyer Preble in fiscal 2023.
"My number one priority within the command is: how do I increase my battlespace awareness, in particular, how do I look at the space domain?" SPACECOM head Gen. Jim Dickinson said.
"We're gonna down-select ... later in the year. Then I have to worry about future budgets, and so that's what's really going to throttle" the number of contractors, says MDA Director Vice Adm. Jon Hill.
“The President’s Defense Budget Request is an outline and a starting point,” emphasizes Sen. Jack Reed, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
By using proven technology, the frigate program is trying to prevent the kind of high-tech teething troubles that bedeviled the Ford-class carrier and Littoral Combat Ships.
“There’s a need in the near-term to defend against all of those [Chinese missile] threats from a 360-degree standpoint, and if the answer is Aegis, I’m ready to support it,” the presumptive head of Indo-PACOM told the Senate Armed Services Committee.