WASHINGTON — It’s been called an “entirely new breed of U.S. Navy warship” and a “lemon.” A “mothership” for unmanned systems and “the wrong ship at the wrong time.” A cornerstone of the Navy’s “transformation” and the “little crappy ship.”
This is the littoral combat ship, which in its 22-year history has never been easy to label. That is until recently; the LCS has…
WASHINGTON — The Army has accepted the first of its long-delayed next-generation engine, which is set to power the U.S. Army’s Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft as well as AH-64 Apache and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, the service announced Oct. 4.
The second T901…
Wittman lukewarm on Air Force plan to ‘quickstart’ programs
October 4, 2023
WASHINGTON — A leading House lawmaker is downplaying the value of an Air Force and Pentagon proposal that would allow services to start working on new programs before Congress officially passes a budget funding them.
Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va., told Defense News last week he…
Wittman says patience wearing thin on F-35 sustainment plan
October 3, 2023
WASHINGTON — A leading House lawmaker wants to see some hard details — and soon — from the F-35 Joint Program Office about how it plans to fix the jet fighter’s long-lagging availability rates.
And Rep. Rob Wittman’s patience with the JPO on the fighter’s low readiness is starting to wear thin, he said in an interview.
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WASHINGTON — As the Pentagon prepares to field thousands of autonomous systems in the coming years, its commercial innovation hub is seeking a modular test platform that it could use to validate payloads, sensors and other technology.
The Defense Innovation Unit wants a…
The stalwart E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System plane flew its last operational mission Sept. 21, capping a three-decade career as a military “eye in the sky” in conflicts from Operation Desert Storm to the war in Ukraine.
The sortie is a stepping stone…
Boeing to pay $8.1M to settle Osprey false claims allegations
September 29, 2023
WASHINGTON — Boeing agreed to an $8.1 million settlement with the federal government to resolve allegations that the company submitted false claims and made false statements regarding its contracts with the U.S. Navy to build the tiltrotor V-22 Osprey, the Justice Department said Thursday.
The government had alleged that from about 2007 to 2018, Boeing failed to conduct contractually required…
BAE Systems to supply US Army with jam-resistant navigation tech
September 29, 2023
WASHINGTON — BAE Systems will provide the U.S. Army high-tech, embeddable computer cards used for secure navigation on foot and aboard armored vehicles in a contract worth $318 million.
The five-year contract for M-code GPS modules and related engineering support…
F-35 program finishes years-late tests needed for full production
September 29, 2023
WASHINGTON — The F-35 program has completed a long-delayed series of crucial tests, which could pave the way for a decision next year to officially move the advanced fighter jet into full-rate production.
The Joint Simulation Environment tests, known as “runs for…
Lockheed wins $1.1B contract to design Navy’s Integrated Combat System
September 29, 2023
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy awarded Lockheed Martin $23 million to begin creating the Integrated Combat System that may one day connect the Navy’s and U.S. Coast Guard’s surface fleets.
The award could be worth up to $1.1 billion if all options are exercised through fiscal 2030.
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SECNAV aims to help programs…
