The Air Force has been using its new MQ-9A Reaper armed unmanned aircraft in missions over Afghanistan since late September, the service said recently. The General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI)-built Reaper is the larger cousin to the MQ-1 Predator unmanned aircraft system (UAS) that has flown extensively in support of combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Unlike the Predator, which was conceived as a camera-carrying platform to gathering intelligence and conduct surveillance and reconnaissance--so-called ISR missions, the Reaper was…
Congress Updates
Navy Looks To Eventually Assemble Battleship At HII Newport News; Faces More Dem Opposition
The Navy told lawmakers this week it found a dry dock at HII’s [HII] Newport News Shipbuilding shipyard it thinks can use for final assembly of the new Trump-class battleship […]
Navy Leaders Downplay Looking At Foreign Navy Shipbuilding Amid Lawmaker Objections
The Navy’s top leaders this week seemed to downplay and back down on the service potentially using foreign shipyards to build U.S. Navy ships or buying foreign designed warships overseas […]
Senate Defense Appropriators See ‘Risk’ With Army’s Reconciliation Plan To Fund Munitions Increase
The Senate’s top defense appropriators cited concern this week with the Army’s request to fund the majority of its large increase to munitions procurement in fiscal year 2027 through the […]
Army Relooking At Its ‘Whole Aviation Transformation’ Plan, Acting Chief Tells Lawmakers
The Army is relooking at its “whole aviation transformation initiative,” the service’s acting chief of staff told lawmakers on Tuesday, to include its approach for future procurement of “enduring” platforms. […]