DefenseNews

Can the Army protect essential but ‘unloved’ programs in future budgets?

WASHINGTON — Army leaders are growing concerned the service won’t be able to continue to protect its priority programs and key enabling capabilities in the upcoming budget, especially as military officials and national security observers expect the Army’s overall budget could shrink in fiscal 2022. Some programs considered critical to the future are already “on the edge of…
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DefenseNews

US Army’s Precision Strike Missile breaks range record

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army’s Precision Strike Missile ranged 400 kilometers — roughly 250 miles — in a test shot at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, on May 12, Lockheed Martin announced. The test marks the farthest the PrSM has flown so far, which is roughly the distance between New York City and Rochester, New York. “We had impressive performance flying more than 400…
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DefenseNews

Air Force once again asks Congress to let it mothball oldest RQ-4 Global Hawk drones

WASHINGTON — The Air Force will continue pushing for the retirement of its oldest Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawks, the service’s top officials said Friday, potentially setting up another fight with Congress about the future of the embattled surveillance drone. “The Air Force will continue to pursue the [fiscal 2021 National Defense Authorization Act] RQ-4 Block 30 divestment waiver in…
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DefenseNews

More than 130 House lawmakers push to ramp up F-35 buy

WASHINGTON — More than 130 members of the House of Representatives have signed a letter urging continued financial support for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, signaling a potential roadblock for lawmakers hoping to cut F-35 procurement in fiscal 2022. The April…
DefenseNews

The Air Force’s first Skyborg autonomous drone prototype made its first flight

WASHINGTON — The Air Force carried out the first flight test of a “Skyborg” drone last month with an Kratos UTAP-22 Mako equipped with a bespoke autonomy system, moving the service one step closer to fielding an uncrewed “loyal wingman” for human pilots. During a two-hour and ten minute flight test held April 29 at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, a UTAP-22 equipped with the Skyborg…
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