News
Trump lifts Turkey sanctions, declares victory for American troops after new cease-fire agreement in Syria-
President Donald Trump on Oct. 23 announced a permanent cease-fire along the Turkey-Syria border and hailed his recent, controversial military moves in the region as an unequivocal victory for America.
U.S. does not know where ISIS escapees are, says Syria envoy-
U.S. special envoy for Syria and the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, Jim Jeffrey, said Oct. 22 that more than 100 Islamic State prisoners have escaped to parts unknown.
Russian forces deploy at Syrian border under new accord with Turkey-
Russian military police began patrols on part of the Syrian border Oct. 23, quickly moving to implement an accord with Turkey that divvies up control of northeastern Syria. The Kremlin told Kurdish fighters to pull back from the entire frontier or else face being “steamrolled” by Turkish forces.
U.S. troops relocating from Syria have four weeks to stay in Iraq-
U.S. forces relocating from Syria to Iraq need to exit Iraq within four weeks, according to Iraq’s defense minister.
Business
Pentagon backs contractors to limit disclosing foreign discounts-
The Pentagon and major defense contractors are opposing a congressional effort to force more complete disclosure of discounts that are given to foreign governments for weapons purchases at the expense of U.S. taxpayers.
Pentagon space reforms leading to better relations with industry-
While U.S. Space Command was officially launched in August, the process of firmly establishing the Pentagon’s newest combatant command will take years to complete. But according to a key industry official, the command’s creation is already impacting how the Defense Department communicates with industrial partners.
Tilting wings, tilting tailprop, but not a tiltrotor: Karem’s FARA design-
Abe Karem, father of the Predator drone, has come up with another novel design for the U.S. military.
Navy secretary rips Hill, says shipbuilder HI has ‘no idea’-
Navy Secretary Richard Spencer today slammed Congress for spreading “disinformation” about Navy shipbuilding plans, while accusing the country’s largest shipbuilder of having “no idea what we’re doing.”
Leidos builds, will lease SIGINT/EW special mission aircraft-
One of the most important lessons the U.S. Army learned when Russia invade Ukraine was that signals intelligence can be very effectively used to target an enemy.
As secret Pentagon spending rises, defense firms cash in-
The share of Pentagon spending hidden from public view is rising, as are defense contractors’ revenues from it.
USNS Burlington returns to shipyard for bow modifications-
Shipbuilder Austral USA received a $8.1 million contract to implement a bow modification to the recently-built USNS Burlington, the Pentagon said.
Bahrain approved for $150M refurbishment of U.S. Navy frigate-
The U.S. State Department has approved the refurbishment of the former Robert G. Bradley, an Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate, which Bahrain previously bought for $80 million.
Collins nabs $9.9M for DB-110 reconnaissance pod spare parts for Saudi Arabia-
Collins Aerospace was awarded a $9.9 million contract modification to provide spare parts of DB-110 airborne reconnaissance pods to Saudi Arabia, the Pentagon announced.
Defense
White House will have final say over the Pentagon documents given to House impeachment inquiry-
The Defense Department has begun reviewing thousands of documents related to military aid to Ukraine and whether it was withheld pending an investigation by that country into Hunter Biden, former Vice President Joe Biden’s son.
Half U.S. Navy’s aircraft carrier fleet can’t deploy, but the service says it has what it needs to maintain the fleet-
While the U.S. maintains an unmatched aircraft carrier force, about half of the fleet is presently in a non-deployable state.
SECNAV Spencer rebuts congressional criticism of Ford carrier program-
Congress needs to consider its own culpability before criticizing the Navy for the slow pace of prepping USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) for deployment, Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer said Oct. 23.
B-52s train in tense Black Sea region, in signal to Russia-
Airmen flew two B-52H Stratofortresses on a 12-hour mission Oct. 21 from RAF Fairford in England to train with allies bordering the Black Sea.
U.S. Air Force begins investing billions in adversary air training-
The U.S. Air Force has officially kicked off its adversary air contract initiative by awarding seven companies a total of $6.4 billion to outsource its assault and combat training.
Marines test ‘Lightning Carrier’ concept, control 13 F-35Bs from multiple amphibs-
The Navy and Marine Corps recently tested out the “Lightning Carrier” concept of packing an amphibious assault ship with F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter jets, and they will likely continue to expand and exercise this capability.
Veterans
Bill requiring POW/MIA flag be flown with U.S. flag heads to Trump’s desk-
The bipartisan bill introduced in the U.S. Senate requires the POW/MIA flag to be flown with the American flag at certain memorials and federal buildings, including the White House and the U.S. Capitol.