News
Plan calls for U.S. troop pullout from Syria to take months, bringing hundreds more troops in to assist –
The U.S. military said Jan. 11 it has started taking steps to meet President Donald Trump’s demand for a complete military withdrawal from Syria. The announcement fueled concern about how quickly the U.S. will abandon its Kurdish allies, amid contradictory statements recently made by administration officials on an exit timetable.
U.S. withdrawal from Syria so far is only equipment, American official says –
A U.S. defense official says no American troops have withdrawn yet from Syria, but some military cargo has been pulled out.
Business
Here’s when Army will pick three companies to build M16/M4, SAW replacements for soldiers and Marines –
By the end of this summer, the Army plans to pick three vendors to build prototypes of the weapons that will replace the M16/M4 and the Squad Automatic Weapon for both soldiers and Marines, both in a new, common cartridge.
France, Germany aim to unify their clashing weapons-export rules –
The German Cabinet has approved a new, high-level pact with France that calls for a common approach to weapons exports in all joint programs.
Here are four prizes Textron Systems is watching in 2019 –
Textron Systems is focusing on the U.S. Army this year, with its chief executive naming four unmanned and small arms programs with the service as the company’s “need to win” items in 2019.
Air Force wants startups to answer the call for $40 million –
The Air Force will hold its first Air Force Pitch Day on March 6 in New York City, offering startups the chance to win small awards for their innovative ideas that same day.
U.S. Army seeks high-altitude ISR aircraft –
The U.S. Army has extended the deadline for responses to a request for information for a high-altitude airborne intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance capability that was issued in late 2018.
China’s Sky Hawk stealth drone has the capability to ‘talk’ to fighter pilots, itsdeveloper says –
One of China’s newest stealth drones, the Sky Hawk, features state-of-the-art technology that allows it to communicate and collaborate with manned aircraft during surveillance and combat operations, its developer said.
Russia upgrades the stealth on Su-57 fighter that’s meant as an F-35, F-22 killer –
Russian media announced on Jan. 11 that it had significantly improved the stealth on its Su-57 fighter jet by applying a coating to the glass canopy on the cockpit, as well as similar upgrades to its Tu-160 nuclear bomber.
Defense
Pentagon recruits rejected scientist for massive pollution fight –
The Defense Department has sought to hire a controversial scientist who was blocked from joining the Trump administration as the Pentagon fights state and federal chemical regulations that could lead to billions of dollars in cleanup costs and legal settlements, according to documents obtained by POLITICO.
White House asked Pentagon for military options against Iran, report says –
The request, which a U.S. official said ‘definitely rattled people,’ was made after mortars launched by Iran-affiliated militants fell near the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, The Wall Street Journal reports.
What to look for in the upcoming Missile Defense Review –
The Pentagon’s Missile Defense Review is in the final stages of pre-release, sources tell Defense News, after more than a year of release delays.
Hundreds more active-duty troops may be sent to U.S.-Mexico border –
U.S. officials say the Pentagon is finalizing plans that would send hundreds of additional active-duty troops to the U.S.-Mexico border for several more months to support the Department of Homeland Security.
Ship owners to pay U.S. government for Fitzgerald collision –
The owners of a massive merchant vessel that collided with the warship Fitzgerald in 2017, drowning seven sailors, have agreed to pay the U.S. government nearly $27 million as part of a settlement agreement.
U.S. sends stealth B-2s to the Pacific, warning regional rivals that America’s bombers are ‘on watch’ 24/7 –
The United States has deployed three B-2 Spirit bombers and 200 airmen to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii for training in the Pacific, Pacific Air Forces Public Affairs revealed Jan. 11.
Veterans
Sailor killed in WWII identified –
The remains of a sailor from Nebraska killed in the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor have been identified.
His degree delayed by seven decades, World War II vet who finally graduated dies –
A World War II veteran who flew planes for the Navy and received his college degree last spring nearly 70 years after he last sat in a classroom has died, his family said.
VA shuns medical marijuana, leaving veterans to improvise –
Some of the local growers along the coast in California see it as an act of medical compassion: donating part of their crop of high-potency medical marijuana to ailing veterans, who line up by the dozens each month in the echoing auditorium of the city’s old veterans’ hall to get a ticket they can exchange for a free bag.
Women, minority veterans are thriving in the civilian workforce –
Women veterans were employed at higher rates than their male counterparts in 2018, federal data show.
Vet unemployment hit an all-time low in 2018. Mission accomplished? –
Eight years ago, in the wake of the Great Recession, unemployment rates for the latest generation of veterans had spiked to crisis levels.