Goo goo g'joob!By John MacNeill The Walrus heavy-transport blimp ("heavy" as in "1-2 million pounds") was among a range of projects on the drawing board in the mid '00s. It offered the potential for a faster and more versatile sealift substitute. The Defense Advanced...
* The Pentagon's Inspector General released a report [PDF] on the US Navy's commercial access control (NCACS / Rapidgate). This system will come under heavy scrutiny in the wake of the killing of a dozen people last Monday at the Washington Navy Yard. Aaron Alexis,...
SAMP/T Aster-30(click to view full) Singapore's Minister for Defence Dr. Ng Eng Hen has confirmed that they've picked MBDA's SAMP/T Aster-30 missile system as their upper-tier air defense system on land. Singapore already uses the missiles at sea, aboard its...
* Acting US Air Force Secretary Eric Fanning restated that his department's three big acquisition priorities are the F-35, the KC-46 and a future bomber. Meanwhile, "single mission fleets", such as A-10s or KC-10s, will be the likely targets of cuts. * A joint venture...
* US Navy Chief of Information Rear Adm. John Kirby writes about the FY14 budget outlook: "Sequestration could cost us a littoral combat ship, an afloat forward staging base/mobile landing platform, and up to 25 aircraft (Prowler, JSF, Osprey and others) needed for...
The Alaska Radar System's 15 remote radar sites (primarily AN/FPS-117 SEEK IGLOO and AN/FPS-124 SEEK FROST radars), serve aviation needs, and also act as the North Warning System for the USA. Upgrades are underway to keep FPS-117s running until 2025. Keeping them...
* During a hearing at the US House Armed Services Committee, Rear Admiral Richard Breckenridge outlined significant shortfalls in the future submarine fleet - which today counts 55 boats - but while the Navy says they need to maintain a fleet of at least 48 SSNs:...
* A fourth quarter surge in US federal spending? Not exactly: "Yes, September of the federal fiscal year is the get-well month for sales, or at least that's what many in the federal market like to believe. But the reality this year is quite different: while agencies...
This syrial box comes with a free policy! President Obama's speech on Syria last night opened with continued threats of strikes yet remained open to a diplomatic solution. The President then mixed concerns of regional spillover with reassurances that Assad is not a...