Defense

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The U.S. Air Force has clearly expressed its desire for a futuristic fleet of drone “wingmen” considered vital to countering Russia and China, defense company executives said. The exchange of info between buyer and builder for the collaborative combat aircraft endeavor, or CCA, has so far been “crystal clear,” according to David Alexander, the president of General…

The Navy decommissioned the littoral combat ship Milwaukee on Friday in Mayport, Florida, after less than 10 years in service. The ship, designed to serve for a quarter century, is one of the Freedom-class variants that the Navy is mothballing before they reach the end of their service life so it can fund other priorities. The LCS Sioux City, another in the Freedom class, was decommissioned Aug.

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The U.S. Air Force is prioritizing the delivery of cloud-based command-and-control networks to forces across the globe, and is preparing to follow through even under federal spending that falls short of a full budget. The so-called CBC2 effort is closely tied to the service’s Advanced Battle Management System, or ABMS, itself a portion of the Pentagon’s larger…

LONDON — Russia’s use of drones to target both civilian and military targets in Ukraine is boosting European interest in an intelligence analysis system made by Israel Aerospace Industries that could help predict such attacks, according to company officials. Gideon Fostick, the director for marketing and business development for the intelligence, communications and electronic-warfare division…