DefenseNews

Australian F-35 crews end their Asian exercise spree in Indonesia

September 27, 2023
MELBOURNE, Australia — Australian F-35 fifth-generation stealth fighters are taking part in an exercise in Indonesia, on the last leg of a deployment that has seen the jets visit the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia for the first time. The six Lockheed-Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters from 75 Squadron of the Royal Australian Air Force, or RAAF, are currently taking part in…
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DefenseNews

Griffon, Textron advance in Army’s Future Tactical UAS competition

September 26, 2023
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army picked two companies out of a group of four to move on in the Army’s competition to procure a Future Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System, or FTUAS. Griffon Aerospace and Textron Systems were awarded a second agreement to provide prototypes to the Army following the first development phase which began in February, the service confirmed to Defense News. At the start of…
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DefenseNews

GAO blasts contractor-led F-35 maintenance as costly, slow

September 22, 2023
WASHINGTON — A lack of spare parts and technical data, poor training of maintainers, and a lagging effort to expand repair depots are dragging down the U.S. military’s ability to keep the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter in the air, a government watchdog said in a report released Thursday. And the problems hindering the military from taking over more sustainment activities from the prime F-35…
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DefenseNews

Army picks four to build robotic combat vehicle prototypes

September 21, 2023
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army selected McQ, Textron Systems, General Dynamics Land Systems and Oshkosh Defense to build light robotic combat vehicle prototypes for a total of nearly $25 million, the service said Sept. 20. The companies have until August 2024 to build the…
DefenseNews

Navy launches board to help services leverage new science and tech

September 21, 2023
WASHINGTON — The newly formed Department of the Navy Science and Technology Board will meet for the first time this week, with members slated to discuss how they can help Navy and Marine Corps leaders leverage scientific advances. Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro last week announced the creation of the board, which is meant to “ensure the identification of new technologies and new applications…
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