Missile Defense Agency Moves Out Quickly on ‘Iron Dome’
The Missile Defense Agency is moving quickly to gather ideas for President Donald Trump’s proposed “Iron Dome for America” and hopes to make progress on some within the next two years.
KC-46 Mission Capable Rates Slipped Further from Goal in 2024
The KC-46A Pegasus aerial tanker still isn’t meeting required mission capable rates, mostly due to parts shortages, and other significant problems are still being remedied, the Pentagon’s test director said in a new report.
DARPA Eyes Protections for Common but Critical Computing System
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is looking for “revolutionary” ways to protect from hackers that workhorse of modern computing, the data bus, a standardized component that allows different pieces of IT equipment—including those in aircraft and weapons systems—to communicate.
‘Blind Spot’ in F-16 Engine Led to Its Failure and Fiery Crash Last Year
A known “blind spot” in F-16 engines meant maintainers couldn’t see one turned vane inside an aircraft at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M.—damage that resulted in engine failure and a crash that destroyed the $21 million fighter in April 2024, according to a new Air Force report.
Radar Sweep
US Officials Are Bound for Europe for Top-Level Talks on Ukraine
The Associated Press
President Donald Trump’s national security adviser said Feb. 9 that top administration officials will meet with European officials this week about how to end the war in Ukraine, nearly three years after Russia launched an all-out invasion.
Trump Directs Elon Musk and DOGE to Review Pentagon Spending
DefenseScoop
Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency team will be taking a close look at Pentagon spending to search for potential waste and fraud, President Donald Trump said Feb. 7. ... “Pentagon, [the Department of] Education, just everything. We’re going to go through everything,” Trump told reporters during a press conference at the White House alongside Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who is in Washington for bilateral talks.
Deterring China, Slashing Waste Top Pentagon Priorities, Hegseth Says
Defense New
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Feb. 7 pledged to demonstrate to China that the United States will continue supporting its allies in the Indo-Pacific region. The U.S., however, is not going to create unnecessary conflict with Beijing, Hegseth said in a question-and-answer session during a town hall with Defense Department personnel. ... Hegseth’s comments about China came after an Air Force official asked him whether the Defense Department would be more assertive in the “gray zone” area—short of war—to deter China and Russia.
DOD Memo Seeks Review of Space Development Agency’s Independent Status, Plans
Breaking Defense
The Defense Department’s acquisition office is calling for a review of whether the Space Development Agency’s (SDA) “organizational performance and acquisition approach” is meeting the needs of warfighters—and whether the agency should keep its independent status within the Space Force, Breaking Defense has learned.
Senators Detail Desired Missile Defense Elements for Trump’s Iron Dome
Defense News
Two Republican senators introduced legislation this week that would establish more detailed plans for President Donald Trump’s new missile defense shield for the homeland—to include resurrecting several previously proposed plans and capabilities that were either canceled or placed on the back burner over the last decade.
Lockheed Martin, Boeing Compete for Military Satellite Contract amid Commercial Disruption
SpaceNews
Lockheed Martin and Boeing are advancing competing designs for next-generation military communications satellites, even as some experts question whether the Pentagon should instead pivot to commercial alternatives. The defense contractors recently cleared early design reviews for the Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) Service Life Extension program, an estimated $2.5 billion initiative by the U.S. Space Force to modernize its ultra-high frequency narrowband satellite network.
Senate Republicans Release Budget Plan with $150B More for Defense
Breaking Defense
The Senate Budget Committee has released a budget blueprint that, if ultimately passed by Congress, could add $150 billion in new funds for defense. Details of exactly what that funding could pay for will be determined by the House and Senate Armed Services Committees if the budget resolution is passed. However, a summary of the bill lays out four main focus areas: maintaining military readiness; growing the Navy and strengthening the shipbuilding industrial base; building an integrated air and missile defense for the United States—a Trump administration priority it has termed the “Iron Dome for America”—and investments in the nuclear enterprise.
State Department Announces $7B Arms Sale to Israel After Congress Blocked Initial Deal
The Hill
The Trump administration announced a $7 billion arms sale to Israel, including munitions and missiles, just days after Congress blocked an initial deal. The State Department said Feb. 7 that it approved $6.75 billion in munitions, guidance kits, fuzes and munitions support, including 2,166 GBU-39/B small-diameter bombs, for sale to Israel. In the other part of the package, the U.S. is sending 3,000 Hellfire missiles and other equipment at the estimated cost of $660 million.
PODCAST: Countering China and Russia in the High North: The Arctic Challenge
The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies
In this episode of the Aerospace Advantage, Heather “Lucky” Penney discusses the rising strategic importance of the Arctic with Air Force Maj. Gen. Mark Piper, NORAD Deputy Director of Operations; Royal Canadian Air Force Brig. Gen. James Hawthorne, NORAD Deputy Director of Strategy, Policy, and Plans; and retired Brig. Gen. Houston Cantwell of the Mitchell Institute.
Air Force Has Troops Remove Names, Unit Patches from Uniforms During Deportation Flights
Military.com
Air Force crew members and security forces on deportation flights are not wearing their name tape or unit patches, contributing to a lack of transparency as the service obscures details of its involvement in the border mission from the public.
Majority of Troops and Military Families Believe Large-Scale War Is on the Horizon, Survey Finds
Task & Purpose
Many service members, veterans and their families think a large-scale war is likely to break out in the next three to five years, a recent survey found. ... With stress high amid the ongoing global tensions, the survey shows 83 percent of Active-Duty military families believe a major conflict is around the corner.