Taking aim: Army leaders ponder mix of precision munitions vs conventional

Taking aim: Army leaders ponder mix of precision munitions vs conventional
Taking aim: Army leaders ponder mix of precision munitions vs conventional

Three four-star US Army generals this week weighed in with their opinions about finding the right balance between conventional and high-tech munitions – but the answers aren’t easy.

Senate Committee Aims To Boost Pentagon’s Budget By $24B With Eyes On China

Senate Committee Aims To Boost Pentagon’s Budget By $24B With Eyes On China
Senate Committee Aims To Boost Pentagon’s Budget By $24B With Eyes On China

The Senate Appropriations Committee’s new defense spending bill adds $2.5 billion focused on capabilities in the INDO-PACOM region.

Navy Unveils $3.2B Unfunded List: 2 F-35s, New Laser & More Precision Strike

Navy Unveils $3.2B Unfunded List: 2 F-35s, New Laser & More Precision Strike
Navy Unveils $3.2B Unfunded List: 2 F-35s, New Laser & More Precision Strike

The Navy tells Congress it wants to get more deadly and sail longer. Quickly. Can you say unfunded requirements?

Air Force Drops First GPS Bomb From Reaper: GBU-38 JDAM

Air Force Drops First GPS Bomb From Reaper: GBU-38 JDAM
Air Force Drops First GPS Bomb From Reaper: GBU-38 JDAM

  CORRECTS: Attribution to Col. Joe  UPDATED: 432 Wing Commander Wants GBU-54 Next CREECH AIR FORCE BASE: The Air Force has added the Joint Direct Attack Munition (GBU-38)  a GPS-guided bomb, to the Reaper drone force, dropping the first one in a combat strike in Operation Inherent Resolve on Thursday. Lt. Col. David, director of…

F-35 Racks Up Weapons Tests

F-35 Racks Up Weapons Tests
F-35 Racks Up Weapons Tests

The F-35 program completed 25 weapons tests in a month, a marked surge from the previous high of three in November 2014. The weapons tests used the aircraft’s latest software, the 3F version. During the tests, some 30 weapons were dropped or fired, including the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), AIM-120 Missile, the Small Diameter Bomb…

China’s J-20 Vs. F-35? Meh, Says CSAF Goldfein; Pilot Crisis Noted

China’s J-20 Vs. F-35? Meh, Says CSAF Goldfein; Pilot Crisis Noted
China’s J-20 Vs. F-35? Meh, Says CSAF Goldfein; Pilot Crisis Noted

PENTAGON: I thought I could hear Air Force and allied F-35 pilots around the world smiling when the new Air Force Chief of Staff said today that comparing the F-35 to the Chinese J-20 “is almost an irrelevant comparison.” The F-35, said Gen. David Goldfein, is “about a family of systems and it’s about a network — that’s what…

Air Combat Commander Bullish On F-35 IOC

Air Combat Commander Bullish On F-35 IOC
Air Combat Commander Bullish On F-35 IOC

RIAT: No roadblocks stand in the way of approving Initial Operating Capability (IOC) for the Air Force’s F-35A, Gen. Hawk Carlisle said here today. The head of Air Combat Command — who is the man charged with ensuring Lockheed Martin meets all the benchmarks for IOC — made clear nothing would happen until Air Force…

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Pentagon Fails To Act On Crucial Rare Earth Minerals

Pentagon Fails To Act On Crucial Rare Earth Minerals
Pentagon Fails To Act On Crucial Rare Earth Minerals

A new Government Accountability Office report scolds the Department of Defense for failing to figure out which rare earth elements are critical to national security — China controls the world market — and for not developing plans to make sure the United States has enough even though Congress passed a law telling them to five years…