DefenseNews

Mideast waters challenge unmanned vessels, says US Navy leader

January 30, 2024
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Operational and environmental challenges in Middle Eastern waters are hindering the pace of innovation around unmanned surface vessels, according to the chief of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command. “You bring things out, they look good on a PowerPoint, they look good when they are tested back in the middle of America,” Vice Adm. Brad Cooper said during a…
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DefenseNews

US approves sale of F-16 jets to Turkey, F-35s to Greece

January 30, 2024
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration has approved the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey following the Turkish government’s ratification this week of Sweden’s membership in NATO. The move is a significant development in the expansion of the alliance, which has taken…
DefenseNews

Upgraded F-35 deliveries slipping to fall 2024, Lockheed says

January 24, 2024
WASHINGTON — Lockheed Martin’s production of the latest upgraded F-35 Joint Strike Fighters is slipping further behind schedule, and deliveries likely will not resume until the third quarter of 2024, the company said Tuesday. Lockheed CEO Jim Taiclet told investors in an earnings call that the business now expects to deliver between 75 and 110 F-35s this year — fewer than the roughly 150…
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What the Navy is learning from its fight in the Red Sea

January 19, 2024
Thirteen years ago, the current head of the Navy’s surface fleet was captaining the destroyer Carney. Even in 2010, airborne drones were a threat for which his ship had tactics and munitions at the ready, Vice Adm. Brendan McLane, now the head of Naval Surface Forces, told reporters earlier this month. “We had a specific tactic to go after it, with a specific munition that we could shoot out…
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DefenseNews

US Navy’s four unmanned ships return from Pacific deployment

January 17, 2024
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy completed its first deployment of four unmanned ships, which spent five months in the Pacific testing concepts for how to integrate their capabilities into crewed fleet operations. The unmanned surface vessels — Sea Hunter, Sea Hawk, Mariner…
DefenseNews

US Navy looks for cost-saving ideas in Running Fix efficiency effort

January 17, 2024
WASHINGTON — The Department of the Navy is accepting proposals for ways units and offices across the Navy and Marine Corps can spend money more wisely. Russell Rumbaugh, the U.S. Navy comptroller, said this Running Fix initiative, directed by the service’s secretary, asks everyone to think about processes that could be more efficient, resources that are no longer needed, and other ways to…
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