News
Pentagon asks Congress to move $416 million for missile defense –
The Pentagon is asking Congress to move $416 million to missile defense programs that was originally allocated to other defense accounts as the Trump administrations mulls military responses to North Korea’s recent belligerence.
Business
British prime minister slams Boeing for undermining partnership –
British Prime Minister Theresa May has lambasted the behavior of Boeing after it complained that Canadian rival Bombardier used unfair government subsidies to sell planes at artificially low prices.
France, Italy reach deal on Fincantieri’s acquisition of STX –
France and Italy reached an agreement on Wednesday on the acquisition of STX by Fincantieri, with the Italian company acquiring 51 percent of the French shipyard, thanks to the loan of 1 percentage point from the French government, France Info radio reported.
Slovak defense minister discards MiG as contender in fighter procurement –
Slovak Defense Minister Peter Gajdos said that while the ministry has received offers from the U.S. to supply the F-16 and Sweden to deliver the JAS-39 Gripen for its planned purchase of 14 fighter jets, MiGs aren’t under consideration.
Russian defense company shows off ‘flying car’ –
Russian defense manufacturer Kalashnikov has unveiled a one-manned “flying car.”
Leonardo eyes work on NATO cyber command –
Italy’s Leonardo is eyeing work on a possible NATO cyber command after six years in which the company says it has successfully defended NATO sites from hackers, a company official said.
Navy buys more Raytheon satellite terminals –
Raytheon has been awarded a $14.9 million contract modification to provide additional Navy satellite terminals.
Air Force selects Lockheed Martin infrared search, track system –
The Air Force has selected Lockheed Martin’s Legion Pod as the infrared search and track system for the F-15C.
Pentagon targets lower-tier suppliers on new $60M F-35 affordability effort –
The F-35 program office and Lockheed Martin are kicking off a second round of cost-cutting initiatives in the hopes of driving unit costs of an A-model to $80 million by 2020, and this time, more focus will be on Lockheed’s expansive supply chain.
Stay in your lane? DOD could bank more on virtues of commercial manufacturing –
Differences in pace and production requirements have caused many manufacturers to struggle to straddle defense and commercial markets, opting to instead “stay in their lane,” so to speak. But that’s changing, as the Pentagon embraces some of the commercial market’s sensibilities.
South Dakota ammo company gets $50 million Navy contract –
A Rapid City, S.D., company has landed a $50 million federal contract to provide ammunition to the U.S. military.
Air Force awards cloud contract –
The Air Force has awarded a $1 billion contract for cloud services.
Jacobs wins DISA IT contract –
Jacobs Technology has been awarded a Defense Information Systems Agency contract for IT services.
Industrial base too ‘brittle’ for big war: Dunford –
America’s “increasingly brittle industrial base” may not be able to sustain our forces in a protracted war, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Gen. Joseph Dunford, warned the Senate in a written statement.
Northrop Grumman unveils leadership changes in wake of Orbital acquisition –
Northrop Grumman has appointed a new president who will oversee the defense contracting giant’s three business sectors as well as the integration of Orbital ATK, the Dulles company it’s acquiring for $7.8 billion.
Defense
Army to halt WIN-T, its battlefield network backbone –
Delivery of the Army’s controversial Warfighter Information Network-Tactical system will come to a halt in order to reboot the service’s entire tactical network so that it can operate against threats emerging on the battlefield.
Senate approves Dunford for second term as top U.S. officer –
The Senate has confirmed Gen. Joseph Dunford’s nomination for a second term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Navy returns to compasses, pencils to help avoid collisions at sea –
Urgent new orders went out earlier this month for United States Navy warships that have been plagued by deadly mishaps this year.
Three questions: America’s next nuclear-missile submarine –
Built to deter America’s enemies for the next 60 years, the Navy’s new missile sub is slated to be the U.S. military’s third most-expensive program — ever.
Inside U.S. Air Force’s plan to buy dogfight training of tomorrow –
The U.S. Air Force’s years-long pipe dream of outsourcing a significant amount of its “red air,” or adversary air, training for its combat forces may soon become reality as defense companies are lining up to offer up their pilots and newly-modified aircraft.
Veterans
VA running out of money for private health care program –
Weeks after a veterans’ health initiative received $2.1 billion in emergency funding, the Trump administration says the private-sector Veterans Choice health care program may need additional money as early as December to avoid a disruption of care for hundreds of thousands of veterans.
VA Secretary Shulkin expects Choice funds will last until end of 2017 –
Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin on Wednesday pushed back against news reports that his department’s embattled Choice program may again run out of funds ahead of schedule, saying he is confident the money will last until the end of the year.
Hiring new staff remains a problem for VA’s suicide prevention efforts –
Ending veterans suicide will require more mental health professionals, more research into prevention options, and more public awareness from all of America, the secretary of Veterans Affairs warned lawmakers Sept. 27.
World War II veteran, Bataan Death March survivor gets his medals –
Walking into the Visitor Center of the New Mexico Veterans’ Memorial the afternoon of Sept. 23, you’d have thought a rock star had stopped in.