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A Navy carrier is about to deploy with a robot ship. Could it change the service forever?

Experts said that this deployment could lay the foundation for how the Navy develops its concept of operations for unmanned systems.

EXCLUSIVE: US poised to accept new F-35s without radars, sources say

Rep. Rob Wittman told Breaking Defense that while he expected issues with the new APG-85 radar to eventually be resolved, in the interim the US military will be left with “lots of aircraft out there, but not ones that are ready to go to the fight.”

With the boom for solid rocket motors for missiles, a perilous crunch in the supply chain

To increase munitions stockpiles, the US military needs more solid rocket motors. Deep into the supply chain, there are still problems, executives told Breaking Defense.

Mining for DOGE: Defense budget docs show $11B in ‘efficiencies,’ but what are they?

An analysis by AEI conducted in partnership with Breaking Defense scoured thousands of pages of fiscal 2026 Pentagon budget documents, some of the most definitive accounting yet for DOGE’s impact at the Department of Defense.

Europe is pouring money into defense. Can US firms reap the reward amid trans-Atlantic tension?

At Paris Air Show, US executives said they see multiple paths for enlarging their share of the European defense market, including coproduction deals, mergers and acquisitions, and the creation of European-based subsidiaries.

‘Oversaturated’: Can the Navy make good on unmanned vessel demand after industry surge?

Company after company has introduced unmanned platforms, but as one analyst said, the Navy "just has not given the indication that they are buying these at scale."

EXCLUSIVE: US loosens some rules for offensive counterspace ops, wargaming

Some decision-making authorities, previously closely held by the president or secretary of defense, have been delegated to US SPACECOM, according to sources, but military space leaders want more freedom to act.

Aboard the Ford: What it’s like on a US Navy aircraft carrier preparing for deployment

“We have everybody on board getting to know each other and working on that synchronicity that’s required, and that’s really kind of the heart of COMPTUEX. This is a rehearsal, and we’re going to get it right,” says Capt. Rick Burgess, the Ford's commanding officer.

DEI, DOA: How the defense industry is racing to bury its diversity efforts

Defense primes have rushed to wipe web pages and remove previous claims of "unwavering" commitment to DEI efforts since President Donald Trump has taken office.

How Trump’s ‘Iron Dome for America’ upends four decades of nuclear doctrine

The inclusion of space-based interceptors is a particularly hard nut for Moscow to swallow, given long-standing Russian belief that such weapons are aimed at undercutting the country’s nuclear retaliatory capability following a US first strike.

Nets, jamming and ‘cyber scalpels’: Pentagon weighs homeland counter-drone tech in mountain tests

“By all indications, sUAS will present a safety and security risk to military installations and other critical infrastructure for the foreseeable future,” said NORTHCOM chief Gen. Gregory Guillot.

EXCLUSIVE: How the Pentagon (quietly) spent $1 billion of inflation relief money

To help fight inflation, the Pentagon was given $1.05 billion to disperse to industry. Now, documents reviewed by Breaking Defense and interviews with key officials reveal how and why certain programs won out.

From Kabul to keel laying: Afghan immigrants find new careers at US shipyards

Three years after the fall of Kabul, the US Navy is helping to fund several training programs recruiting Afghan immigrants to work for the nation's ailing shipbuilding industry.

ICE Pact: Why the US had to recruit help in race with Russia, China for Arctic icebreakers

Russia has the world's largest icebreaker fleet, and China is investing. Here's how many icebreakers the US and its allies have - and how they intend to compete going forward.