The drones will provide an "affordable mass" to augment the lethality of fighters. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall says they need to be a “fraction” of the cost of the F-35.
The two companies signed a memorandum of understanding this week “to explore strategic collaboration in the areas of autonomous capabilities and artificial intelligence on current and future defense programs."
China's growing number of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance satellites are "designed to find, fix, track and target US forces and allied forces. They're designed to help kill sailors, airmen, soldiers, and Marines," said Brig. Gen. Anthony Mastalir, head of the Space Force's Indo-Pacific component command.
In a "Commander's Note" dated March 3, obtained by Breaking Defense, Saltzman argues that the need for space superiority in the face of adversary threats is a key reason the Space Force was created.
Service acquisition chief Andrew Hunter said the initial tranche of collaborative combat aircraft wingmen are “very much within grasp,” with capability expected to be delivered by the end of the decade.
Highly adept Ukrainian and Russian air defenses have mutually denied air superiority, a problem particularly acute for close air support missions. “Both of their integrated air and missile defense, especially when you're talking about going against aircraft, have been very effective,” Gen. James Hecker said.
Air Force acquisition chief Andrew Hunter indicated he was leaning toward buying 75 more KC-46A tankers as a bridge to an accelerated next-gen program.
The agreement started as an undefinitized contract action in June 2022. The total value could reach as high as $8 billion.
Through its open systems architecture and agile software development, the E-7 provides rapid, affordable capability growth to remain a critical asset as threats evolve.
DARPA envisions a plane launching a drone, which in turn can launch its own weapons.
Stockholm had previously planned on carrying out a mid-life upgrade to extend the life of the C-130H fleet out to 2030, before deciding on the Italian second hand aircraft plan.
The Pentagon grounded what officials say is a small number of F35s following the crash of a Joint Strike Fighter in December. The new hardware addresses the "harmonic resonance" issue officials identified during the investigation into the crash.