“Looking ahead, defense acquisition is in uncharted territory,” says Air Force acquisition head Will Roper of the effects of the COVID-19 virus.
By Theresa HitchensThere’s been a great deal of dismissive skepticism among the cognoscenti gathered here.
By Colin ClarkRomania, a NATO ally, is nervously watching Russian moves in the Black Sea, is spending big on American military kit.
By Paul McLearyWill this result in more operations like the Kessel Run Experimentation Lab in Boston, where coders join airmen to build useful software? Perhaps it will mean the service will hire civilian coders or train airmen to write code.
By Colin ClarkUnder constant cyber attack, the Pentagon is struggling to find ways to incorporate cyber security as part of the contracting process.
By Paul McLearyFARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW: The US Army, witnessing the expanding use of commercial and light miltiary drones around the world, has bought Raytheon’s tube-launched Coyote drone to find, target and destroy them. The contract includes Raytheon’s KRFS radar. The Army is deploying the system. The company would not say how large the contract is, but…
By Colin ClarkRaytheon has developed cyber tools to warn pilots and maintainers if their systems have been compromised and to find vulnerabilities. The company announced a contract today here to provide Jordan with cybersecurity for the planes that fly the royal family,
By Colin ClarkFARNBOURGH AIR SHOW: When Lockheed Martin bumped North Grumman’s Disgtributed Aperture System from the F-35 program in favor one offered by Raytheon, analysts were shocked. it largely drove Northrop out of a significant segment of the electro-optical sensor market and was believed to significantly reduce the company’s revenue over the life of the F-35. Greg…
By Colin ClarkTrump’s America First policies are paying off for U.S. weapons manufacturers.
By Paul McLearyThe future of the RAF is on display at the Farnborough Air Show. With the F-35, the RAF is part of the multi-domain airpower transformation and will work closely with European allies, notably in reshaping Northern Tier Defense. With the Typhoon, the RAF is seeking a modernized aircraft reworked to compliment the F-35 but with a yet undetermined relationship with its European partners. And the A330MRTT and A400M aircraft, as well as MBDA missiles, are part of a broader context of resolving Brexit.
By Robbin LairdFARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW: Are the biggest air shows becoming no-fly zones for military aircraft? Dominated today by the seemingly unending competition between Airbus and Boeing to see who announces the most commercial aircraft orders, this year’s show offers a very thin gruel of military aircraft flights or military aircraft on display. A UK F-35B flew…
By Colin Clark
Double the buy rate on F-35A starting in 2020 and plan on a minimum of 200 B-21 bombers built in rapid fashion. That will begin to get to the Air Force that America needs to meets the challenges of the future.
By Doug Birkey and David Deptula