DefenseNews

Cost of US Navy’s Ship-to-Shore Connector breaches Nunn-McCurdy law

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy’s Ship to Shore Connector program has become expensive enough to breach Nunn-McCurdy cost thresholds laid out in the decades-old acquisition law, but the service said in a June 11 statement the program has stabilized and will continue in production. The Navy’s SSC program is the replacement for the Landing Craft Air Cushion, or LCAC, that was designed and built…
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DefenseNews

US Army sets timeline to design new long-range weapon

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army is launching a new effort in fiscal 2022 to design and develop a long-range precision munition for its future aircraft and will choose industry-born designs to move forward into a roughly five-year development program in fiscal 2023, according to…
DefenseNews

Lockheed says global demand for F-35 remains strong despite uncertainty over US Air Force plans

FORT WORTH, Texas — Despite lingering questions about the U.S. Air Force’s commitment to buying 1,783 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, Lockheed Martin’s new head of the aircraft program expects growing international demand for the stealth jet, she told reporters Thursday. “We really haven’t seen any sort of diminishing interest,” Bridget Lauderdale told reporters during a June 10 visit…
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US Soldier in Kuwait Dies After Non-Combat Incident

Convoys drive to Camp Beuhring, Kuwait, as U.S. forces depart Iraq in 2011. (Kathryn Whittenberger/U.S. Navy) A U.S. soldier deployed in Kuwait died Thursday, the Defense Department announced. The soldier’s name is being withheld until the next of kin is notified. The incident happened at Camp Buehring and is under investigation, according to the announcement. It is unclear what led to the…
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DefenseNews

SASC advances Air Force secretary pick, six other nominees

WASHINGTON ― President Joe Biden’s nominee for Air Force secretary and six other top Pentagon picks advanced out of the Senate Armed Services Committee by a voice vote June 10. The Senate must consider them before they can be confirmed. The nominations are as follows: …
DefenseNews

Delivery of new Air Force One planes could be delayed until 2025

WASHINGTON — Boeing could deliver the first VC-25B Air Force One replacement in 2025, a year later than originally anticipated, a top Air Force acquisition official said Tuesday. The Air Force is currently assessing a revised plan proposed by Boeing after the company fell behind schedule building two new presidential transport aircraft, said Darlene Costello, principal deputy assistant…
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