American strikes on Yemen’s Houthis have destroyed military infrastructure and killed commanders and officials, an effort President Trump called “unbelievably successful.” But they haven’t achieved the campaign’s goal: deterring the U.S.-designated terrorist group.
The technology and consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton unveiled a concept for a mega-constellation of satellites designed to fulfill the Trump administration’s “Golden Dome” vision for a comprehensive missile-defense shield to protect the United States. The concept, dubbed “Brilliant Swarms,” would consist of up to 2,000 small satellites operating as an interconnected network powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning technology, according to company executives.
“SignalGate” loomed over the confirmation hearing of four nominees for key Defense Department positions March 27, as Democrats pressed the nominees to answer whether they have ever disclosed sensitive information using unsecured or nonapproved apps or devices.
The Air Force may cancel the development of hundreds of Space Development Agency satellites and give the work to SpaceX, one senator said March 27—a move that would shut out other companies hoping to bid.
Michael Duffey, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, told lawmakers that he will review the Pentagon’s controversial Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification 2.0 (CMMC 2.0) initiative if he’s confirmed.
If the U.S. wants to win a war against its adversaries, namely China, the Pentagon must get serious about implementing software-defined warfare, experts from the Atlantic Council said March 26.
The Navy says it is working to reduce the growing costs of fighting Houthi drones launched from Yemen by placing two new experimental systems on destroyers that are slated to deploy later this summer. “We’re going to be deploying the Ford strike group with two additional missile systems on our destroyers—the Roadrunner system and the Coyote system—both specifically designed to go after UAVs,” or unmanned aerial vehicles, Adm. Daryl Caudle, the commander of U.S. Fleet Forces, told reporters last week.
The U.S. Army has formally given the designation ME-11B to its forthcoming High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System (HADES) intelligence-gathering aircraft. The modified Bombardier Global 6500 business jets will have extensive sensors suites that include the Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar System-2B (ASARS-2B) and could have the ability to launch drones.
Lockheed Martin is seeing signs that supply chain pressure on solid rocket motors is easing, but continues to look for ways to bolster production capacity globally. “The state of the solid rocket motor availability is getting better ... but the supply is not sufficient yet,” says Tim Cahill, president of the company’s Missiles and Fire Control business.
Two men who had been drinking kicked and yanked on a statue of Paddington, the fictional orphaned bear who came to England from Peru, until it broke in half. Then they took it. A judge on March 27 chastised the duo—both military personnel—for being the “antithesis” of everything Paddington’s character stands for.
