Bell Textron will build the U.S. Army’s Future Long Range Assault Aircraft, or FLRAA, fuselages in Wichita, Kansas, the company announced this week.
The company won the Army’s bid to build FLRAA in late 2022 following a competition in which it and a Sikorsky-Boeing team flew technology demonstrators for several years to evaluate aircraft capabilities and drive out risk to a future program of…
Navy extending service lives of three cruisers
November 8, 2024
The Navy is keeping three cruisers in service for three additional years each – just after extending the service life for 12 destroyers.
The service announced Monday that the Gettysburg, Chosin, and Cape St. George will now remain in service up until fiscal year 2029…
Air Force Global Strike Command carried out a test of an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile late Tuesday night. The ICBM, which was equipped with multiple targeted reentry vehicles, launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at about 11…
‘Fat Leonard,’ Navy scandal mastermind, sentenced to 15 years
November 7, 2024
SAN DIEGO — Former military defense contractor Leonard “Fat Leonard” Francis was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years in prison for masterminding a decade-long bribery scheme that swept up dozens of U.S. Navy officers, federal prosecutors said.
U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino also ordered Francis to pay $20 million in restitution to the Navy and a $150,000 fine, according to a statement…
Boeing factory strike ends as machinists vote to accept contract
November 7, 2024
SEATTLE — Factory workers at Boeing voted to accept a contract offer and end their strike after more than seven weeks, clearing the way for the aerospace giant to resume production of its bestselling airliner and generate much-needed cash.
Leaders of the International…
Why the Defense Department needs a chief economist
November 5, 2024
The Department of Defense budget is growing, and the DOD is spending more money in novel industries and nontraditional areas than ever before. To ensure the DOD spends smartly in this new environment, Congress should authorize a chief economist to keep the DOD thinking about…
Air Force to send bomber task force to Europe
November 5, 2024
The Air Force plans to soon send its latest task force of strategic bombers to Europe to train with NATO allies.
U.S. Air Forces Europe-Air Forces Africa said on Friday that the bomber task force deployment will begin “in the coming days,” and would last several weeks. But details about the deployment are scant, and USAFE declined to say what type of and how many bombers would make up the task…
The Army’s 1st Multi-Domain Task Force has used a small number of Kraus Hamdani Aerospace K1000 Ultra Long-Endurance, solar-powered unmanned aircraft system across the Pacific theater in places like the Philippines and Guam in recent years. Now the Pentagon has ordered $20…
Italian Navy tasks Fincantieri to design drone-laden warships
November 4, 2024
ROME — The Italian Navy’s is planning for a future in which swarms of airborne, surface and undersea drones will deploy from its ships and has challenged shipyard Fincantieri to build and adapt vessels which are ready for the task.
“We expect new navy vessels in…
The upcoming B-21 Raider stealth bomber could end up having a larger role in the Air Force’s plans for future air dominance, as the service rethinks its plans for an advanced sixth-generation fighter.
“We have not taken that off the table,” Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin said at the Military Reporters and Editors conference Friday when asked if the service’s review of its…
