News
Is Pentagon’s budget about to be nuked? –
As time passed, the technologies that comprised the U.S. nuclear enterprise began to near their expiration dates. Now, with a rising China and a resurgent Russia, as well as six other nations armed with nuclear weapons, the Pentagon is sounding an alarm that the tab for nuclear recapitalization is due. And what a tab it is.
Business
French shipbuilder DCNS leaves civil nuclear program –
French shipbuilder DCNS is leaving a program to build the nuclear civil research reactor and will focus on its capabilities in atomic propulsion, a spokesman said Feb. 4.
Lockheed looks to build Polish Black Hawks –
The possibility of Poland purchasing Black Hawk helicopters from Lockheed Martin and AW149 helicopters from AgustaWestland has reemerged as the new defense minister there plans to decrease the amount of Caracal EC725 helicopters the country had planned to buy from Airbus Helicopters and look to other options.
Kuwait Audit Bureau must approve Eurofighter deal –
Italian defense firm Finmeccanica and Eurofighter have to present cost breakdowns to the Kuwaiti State Audit Bureau before they see a signature on a deal for 28 fighter jets secured.
Lockheed site in Colorado lands Japanese satellite contract –
Lockheed Martin Space Systems’ Commercial Space division in Littleton, Colo., has been tapped to build the latest satellite for a Japanese satellite and broadcasting company.
Beechcraft supplying trainer planes for British program –
Ten Beechcraft T-6C Texan II military training aircraft are being supplied to Britain’s Ministry of Defense under a contract from Affinity Flying Training Services.
Kongsburg supplies CCTV systems for Royal Canadian Navy –
The Canadian subsidiary of Kongsberg Maritime of Norway is to provide CCTV systems for the Royal Canadian Navy’s new class of Arctic Offshore Patrol Ships.
Boeing supplying Australia with P-8 maintenance trainers –
Maintenance training systems for P-8 Poseidon aircraft are to be supplied by Boeing to the Royal Australian Air Force.
Northrop Grumman to provide aircraft countermeasure system to India –
Northrop Grumman has been awarded an $11,734,223 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures on India head-of-state aircraft.
Raytheon unmanned aerial vehicle to chase hurricanes –
An unmanned aerial vehicle developed in Tucson will help the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration track hurricanes this year.
Boeing to establish production plant in India –
Boeing is in talks with the Indian government to set up a production plant for the Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet, as part of their larger plan to invest billions of dollars in the country. If the agreement goes through, Boeing will have the ability to tap into India’s highly technical and cheap labor force.
Raytheon tests enhanced Patriot radar –
Raytheon has tested several upgrades to the Patriot missile system that will enable it to better detect UAVs, manned aircraft and missiles.
Coast Guard selects AeroVironment UAS to support Antarctic convoys –
The Coast Guard has contracted with unmanned aircraft systems maker AeroVironment to supply a UAV to support an Antarctic resupply convoy.
Business
DOD plans to invest $600 million in unmanned underwater vehicles –
Aerial drones get most of the attention, but the Defense Department also has its eyes on the sea, seeking to invest a great deal in unmanned underwater capabilities.
Counter-fire radar struggles against volley-fired mortars –
A rapidly fielded counter-fire radar was not able to detect and differentiate volley-fired mortars in tests, the Pentagon’s chief weapons tester found, but the Army said it has a plan to fix the problem.
U.S. Navy boosts F-35C, F/A-18 buy in new budget plan –
The U.S. Navy says maintaining Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet production in St Louis is “vital” for overcoming a strike-fighter shortfall caused by delays in fielding the Lockheed Martin F-35C.
U.S. Navy requests 4,000 Tomahawk cruise missiles in budget –
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter revealed the U.S. Navy made a $2 billion budget request to buy 4,000 Raytheon Tomahawk cruise missiles for fiscal 2017.
Navy gives maritime V-22s official designation –
The maritime variant of the V-22 Osprey has received an official U.S. Navy designation and will serve as a Carrier Onboard Delivery aircraft.
U.S. Air Force says plans test F-35 deployment this month –
The U.S. Air Force will deploy four Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jets to a different U.S. air base this month as it assesses whether the new warplane can be declared combat-ready by August as planned, a senior officer told Reuters Feb. 4.
Veterans
Veterans suicide must be a top priority –
The Veterans Affairs Department is ratcheting up efforts to address the high rate of suicide among veterans, bringing in mental health experts, advocates and affected families to formulate an “action plan” in the coming months to reduce these preventable deaths.
Alarming rate of female veteran suicides addressed in Brown bill –
A bill aimed at stemming a disproportionate rate of suicides among female veterans has been introduced by Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, a senior member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs.