WASHINGTON: The US military successfully targeted and destroyed a moving truck from a drone using the missile designed to replace the venerable Hellfire. The Joint Air To Ground Missile (JAGM) was fired May 25 at a truck traveling at 20 mph from a Grey Eagle drone at Dugway Proving Ground, Utah. The truck was hit and destroyed. Col. James…
By Colin ClarkWASHINGTON: Lockheed Martin’s planned purchase of Sikorsky Aircraft, the biggest U.S. helicopter manufacturer, is a natural fit that will mean a lot more to buyer Lockheed and seller United Technologies Corp. than it will for the military rotorcraft industry, present or future. Here’s why. First, the two companies have worked together on military helicopter programs for decades.…
By Richard WhittlePENTAGON: The Navy 2016 budget yields to Congress’s strong opposition to the service’s previous efforts to cut the active fleet to save money. It funds nuclear refueling and overhaul of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington –that it had tried to retire — and modifies its plan to put 11 cruisers and an amphibious ship…
By Otto KreisherWASHINGTON: Iran’s threat to strangle oil tanker traffic through the Straits of Hormuz has the Navy scrambling to redress its decades-old neglect of mine warfare. Admirals from the Chief of Naval Operations on down have publicly admitted the service is not where it needs to be. “What I find amazing is the amount of interest…
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.WASHINGTON: Defense lawmakers blessed the Navy’s plans to begin a new multiyear plan to bolster its fleet of MH-60 combat helicopters, according to legislation passed this week. Earlier this week, lawmakers approved two new multiyear procurement plans pitched by the Navy as part of the final version of the fiscal 2012 defense authorization bill. The…
By Carlo MunozWashington: Iran has ambitious plans for its future naval fleet, which could pose serious trouble for the United States and its region allies if Tehran can pull it off. Last week, a senior Iranian naval officer announced his country was moving forward with plans to build a new aircraft carrier, along with a number of…
By Carlo Munoz