News
North Korea heralds ‘final step towards nuclear state able to strike anywhere’ –
North Korea on July 4 said it had successfully tested its first intercontinental ballistic missile, catching military experts off-guard and ratcheting up pressure on its Asian neighbours to take a harder line against the hermit nation.
Business
Blackbird set for hypersonic overhaul –
Martin has revealed its secretive Skunk Works unit is beginning to build the first flight demonstrator of a radical hypersonic update of the long-retired Mach 3 SR-71 Blackbird spy plane.
Turkey’s increasing reliance on drone systems –
Turkey’s military and procurement officials are increasingly relying on various drone systems, most notably to boost the country’s asymmetrical fight against Kurdish insurgents and hostile Islamic groups fighting in the Syrian civil war.
Joint Leonardo-BAE munition could triple U.S. Navy gun range –
A guided munition that BAE Systems and Italy’s Leonardo are offering the U.S. Navy will triple the range of the Mk 45 guns installed on about 100 Navy vessels, keeping ships out of harm’s way in littoral operations, a BAE official has said.
French arms procurement chief Laurent Collet-Billon ends his nine-year term –
Laurent Collet-Billon has ended his term as chief of the French weapons procurement office, the defense ministry said in a statement.
Navy awards networking deal to three companies –
Three companies have been awarded $492 million in Navy contracts for Automated Digital Network System, or ADNS, Increment III units.
Raytheon awarded missile defense software contract –
Raytheon has been awarded an Army contract to modernize missile defense and other strategic software.
South Korea delivers 12 FA-50PH light attack aircraft to Philippines –
Korea Aerospace Industries Co., the country’s sole aircraft manufacturer, said July 4 it has completed the delivery of light attack aircraft to the Philippines.
Defense
U.S. nuclear inspection results now concealed –
The Pentagon has thrown a cloak of secrecy over assessments of the safety and security of its nuclear weapons operations, a part of the military with a history of periodic inspection failures and lapses in morale.
Pentagon seeks increased P-8 ties with Norway, UK –
The United States, United Kingdom and Norway have agreed in principal to create a trilateral coalition built around the P-8 maritime aircraft — though exactly what that means remains unclear.
Layers of bureaucracy block Army from technological advancement, say experts –
Excess bureaucracy is holding the U.S. Army back from efficiency and technological development, experts and defense leaders said at an Association of the U.S. Army forum June 29.
Littoral Combat Ship Billings christening, launch –
On July 1, the Littoral Combat Ship Billings (LCS-15) was christened and launched at the Marinette Marine shipyard in Wisconsin.
One mind, any weapon: Marines learn to tap into intuition –
The U.S. Navy developed a program to train Marines to better tap into their intuition, reports The Daily Beast. The training manual, obtained by The Daily Beast through the Freedom of Information Act, is a how-to guide for training Marines to better utilize intuition and instincts.
Veterans
Two veterans first to receive new generation of prosthetic limb –
Two veterans living with arm amputations became the first to receive a new generation of prosthetic limb, according to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.