News
How much longer will U.S., partner forces ‘own the night’ in combat? –
The proliferation of night vision capability across the battlefield may be unstoppable in the long-run, and could change the way U.S. and partner forces fight.
Trump pardons sailor convicted of taking illegal photos aboard submarine –
President Donald Trump on March 9 pardoned a former sailor jailed for taking pictures of his workstation on a personal cell phone, a case that became entangled with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s own controversies involving mishandling classified information.
Business
Missile sale from France to Egypt depends on U.S. permission, Dassault head says –
The French government must seek U.S. authorization before selling French Scalp cruise missiles with American components to Egypt, said Eric Trappier, chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation.
Indonesian ministry plans to acquire two Airbus A400M airlifters –
Indonesia’s Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises looks set to purchase two Airbus A400M airlifters under a unique agreement that will see the aircraft flown and maintained by crews from the Indonesian Air Force.
Likely a surprise for bidders, Lockheed to award sonar contract this year –
French electronics company Thales expects Lockheed Martin to pick a supplier of an acoustic suite of sonar equipment for an Australian program early next year, while the U.S. firm has told Defense News the contract will be awarded this year.
Saudi Arabia, BAE one step closer to finalizing Typhoon deal –
Saudi Arabia has moved a step closer to purchasing a second batch of Typhoon fighters with the signing of a memorandum of intent with the British government to acquire 48 jets from BAE Systems.
Brexit to barely impact Thales, chief financial officer says –
Thales expects to see little direct harm from Britain’s planned exit from the European Union, as there is scarcely any trade flow between its British subsidiary and the rest of Europe, according to the company’s chief financial officer.
Russia test-fires Kinzhal hypersonic missile –
A Russian jet successfully test-lauched a hypersonic missile March 11, the Russian Defense Ministry said. The Kinzhal hypersonic missile was launched from an MiG-31 interceptor jet, which departed from an airfield in the Southern Military District, Russia’s TASS News Agency reported.
Orbital ATK to provide ISR aircraft to Afghan Air Force –
Orbital ATK has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force for services in support of aircraft for the Afghanistan Air Force. The deal, announced March 8 by the Department of Defense, is valued at more than $86.4 million under the terms of a firm-fixed-price, undefinitized contract.
Japan mulls over requests for defense equipment from Southeast Asia –
The Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force has said it is aware of several requests from countries in the Southeast Asian region for donations of excess defense equipment.
Georgia, Ukraine still knocking on NATO’s door –
Georgia and Ukraine are continuing their efforts to become NATO and EU members, senior officials from the two former Soviet republics have said.
Defense
What service members should know about military pay proposals –
It seems like every year, debates rage on in Congress, and between Congress and the president, about how much of a pay increase to give to members of the military for the next fiscal year.
Read Pentagon’s military parade guidance memo –
For those hoping to see tanks as a part of a Veterans Day military parade, you might be out of luck, according to the memo below, which was released by the Pentagon Friday evening. What else is planned, or not planned?
U.S. Army turns to a former legal opponent to fix its intel analysis system –
The U.S. Army has made good on a new push to buy commercially available products by issuing a contract to both Raytheon and Palantir Technologies to provide solutions for its struggling intelligence analysis system, the Distributed Common Ground System-Army (DCGS-A), according to a March 8 contract announcement posted to the Pentagon’s website.
Network will underpin Army’s multi-domain battle concept –
As the U.S. Army works to develop its multi-domain battle concept, one key Army leader said this week that the network will be the critical component.
Army missile defense soldiers revive ‘Roving Sands’ exercise, return to maneuver roots –
For more than a decade, the Army’s air and missile defense soldiers have lacked a regular, large-scale opportunity to train their missile systems, moving them like they would in a real-world fight.
Lawmakers express concerns over Navy’s aging surge sealift fleet –
Any future war against a conventional military would require rapid transportation of massive amounts of troops and gear via the Navy’s surge sealift forces, a capability that has not been in great demand during America’s asymmetric Iraq and Afghanistan wars of the 21st century.
U.S. Air Force chief open to input from Congress on way forward after JSTARS recap cancellation –
The Air Force is open to conversation with Congress about incorporating elements of the JSTARS recap in its future battlefield management family of systems, its top general said March 8 in an exclusive interview.
Veterans
U.S. military IDs airman lost in dogfight over Germany in 1943 –
The U.S. military has found the remains of a World War II pilot who was last seen in a dogfight over Germany almost 75 years ago, the Department of Defense said March 8.
Bill would allow military tuition assistance to be used for training outside colleges, universities –
Service members could use their military tuition assistance for training programs outside of traditional colleges and universities under legislation being introduced Monday in the House and Senate.
California gunman in veteran center killings was ex-patient –
Three women who devoted their lives to helping traumatized veterans were killed by a patient who had been kicked out of their Northern California treatment program, authorities and a relative of a victim said.
Employment for post-9/11 vets at record levels … AGAIN! –
The percentage of post-9/11 veterans who are unemployed is the lowest it’s been in the last decade, according to federal data released March 9.