DefenseNews

US Army looks for nontraditional business to tackle robotic vehicle sustainment

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army is tapping nontraditional businesses to tackle the challenge of future robotic combat vehicle sustainment, according to a statement from the Army Applications Laboratory. The AAL is establishing a cohort of innovators “who can develop hardware and software components around sensors and sensor data to gather, fuse and interpret RCV sustainment requirements and…
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DefenseNews

More than 130 House lawmakers push to ramp up F-35 buy

WASHINGTON — More than 130 members of the House of Representatives have signed a letter urging continued financial support for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, signaling a potential roadblock for lawmakers hoping to cut F-35 procurement in fiscal 2022. The April…
DefenseNews

Egypt bumps up its Rafale fleet by 30 new planes

PARIS – Egypt has bought 30 more Rafale aircraft from France, according to statements issued on Tuesday by the Egyptian and French defense ministries and Dassault Aviation, the aircraft’s manufacturer. The new acquisition complements the first Egyptian purchase of 24 Rafales six years ago and will up the Rafale fleet in the Egyptian Air Force to 54, making it the second-largest in the world…
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DefenseNews

Army Eyes Autonomous Robotic Arm to Rapidly Resupply its Futuristic Long-Range Howitzer

Extended Range Cannon Artillery System, or ERCA, being tested in an M109A7 self-propelled howitzer at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona in 2019. (U.S. Army) An Austin, Texas, startup company will show off a new type of autonomous robotic arm for Army officials looking for a way to take the burden off soldiers to rapidly resupply the service’s futuristic Extended Range Cannon Artillery system with…
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DefenseNews

Boeing CEO points to defense and space biz as financial stabilizer

Boeing reported a wider-than-expected first-quarter loss on Wednesday, although revenue met Wall Street forecasts as the company generated cash by delivering more new airliners than it did a year ago. Boeing lost $561 million — or $537 million after accounting for a loss attributable to a noncontrolling interest — as the coronavirus pandemic continued to hurt demand for new planes. …
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