Defense

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force should consider additional uses for its planned fleet of drone wingmen beyond just flying them alongside fighter jets, a top officer said Wednesday. Lt. Gen. Jim Slife, the service’s deputy chief of staff for operations, made his pitch Wednesday at the Defense News Conference in Arlington, Virginia, suggesting the proposed collaborative combat aircraft could fly…

WASHINGTON — Naval Sea Systems Command has joined a growing list of U.S. Navy commands without Senate-confirmed leadership. Vice Adm. William Galinis retired in a ceremony at the Washington Navy Yard on Friday, having led NAVSEA since June 2020 and serving in the force since graduating in 1983 from the Naval Academy. His retirement leaves the command — which oversees ship design, construction…

WASHINGTON — Lockheed Martin delivered a 5G test bed to the U.S. Marine Corps in California, with plans to soon begin experimenting with mobile networks in austere environments. The delivery to Camp Pendleton, the Corps’ largest western expeditionary training ground, marks a step forward for the Open Systems Interoperable and Reconfigurable Infrastructure Solution, or OSIRIS. Lockheed in…

DAYTON, Ohio — The futuristic Next Generation Air Dominance fighter platform now in the works is likely to be one of the most complex, highest-stakes weapon acquisitions in the U.S. Air Force’s history. The sixth-generation fighter jet is expected to include new technologies ranging from cutting-edge adaptive engines to an autonomous drone flying alongside its wings. If NGAD works as the…