“We’re very, very fixated on being competitive with the pacing challenge [of China],” said Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall. “I think the budget that we’ve submitted moves us forward — not quite as fast as we would like to, but it moves us forward in the right direction while maintaining current capabilities that are essential to the nation.”
By Michael MarrowDespite disagreements with Boeing on pricing for the E-7A Wedgetail, Air Force acquisition chief Andrew Hunter said officials still see the radar plane “as a capability that makes sense and that we need to field in the near term.”
By Michael Marrow“So there’s a sweet spot for where we can prime it and there’s a stretch area. … What I hope is you see the sweet spot increases and the stretch area is moving to higher” program sizes and complexities, Kratos’s Steve Fendley told Breaking Defense.
By Michael MarrowInternational partners could join in on drone development for a next round of CCA work planned for the FY25 budget, according to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall.
By Michael MarrowBut a different acquisition strategy can help lower risks when fixed-price approaches are involved, the acquisition czar said.
By Michael MarrowDetails of the AFRL’s Off-Board Sensing Station program remain highly classified, though the effort is expected to field an unmanned aircraft that can fly ahead of fighters and relay targeting information and other threat data back.
By Michael MarrowAs Breaking Defense toured Boeing’s Seattle area facilities where the E-7 radar plane will take shape, company officials talked about getting the bird in the air — and their vision for what it can do.
By Michael MarrowFrom more sophisticated systems like the Air Force’s collaborative combat aircraft to cheap kamikaze weapons, the drone had its heyday in 2023 — and promises, coupled with AI, to be a much bigger part of future warfighting.
By Michael MarrowBreaking Defense’s Michael Marrow interviews Rep. Rob Wittman on a host of key defense issues.
By Lee FerranProgress on CCA, the AI-piloted “loyal wingman,” and JADC2 command networks will stall if Congress cannot pass funding for fiscal 2024, the Air Force Secretary warned – while China races ahead.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.The new Viper Shield electronic warfare suite, meant to help foreign F-16 customers fend off modern EW threats, will be ready for production in late 2025, L3Harris told Breaking Defense in Dubai.
By Michael MarrowDavid Alexander, president of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, told Breaking Defense several options could power the company’s Gambit drone offering, and that the Air Force has been more forthcoming with cost expectations behind closed doors.
By Michael Marrow
In this op-ed, Timothy Walton and Mark Gunzinger discuss solutions to extend the reach of the US Air Force for a China scenario.
By Timothy A. Walton and Mark Gunzinger