Here are the programs that made the biggest news over the past week:
From EuroHawk to Triton — The EuroHawk is not dead yet, and may be renewed in the form of the MQ-4C Triton,
we reported. The German Defense Ministry plans to resume testing of the EuroHawk a year after announcing the program had been halted, and although the EuroHawk itself probably won’t be the end capability procured, its cousin — the Triton — might be the solution. Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen said Germany will “use another airplane, another drone that is called Triton,” and that the nation “want[s] the technology.” The U.S. Triton program confirmed last month that the Germans had been asking questions about its flight certification, as the Navy had recently completed the first cross-country trip for the aircraft. Read more MQ-4C analysis >>>
Not so fast on P-8, says Malaysia — The Malaysian government has denied reports that it is permitting the U.S. Navy to deploy P-8 Poseidon maritime surveillance aircraft from its airbase in Sabah, saying Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert’s comments were misinterpreted, according to a Malaysian news source. In reality, although Malaysia would likely permit deployments of P-8 aircraft, they would have to be a approved on a case-by-case basis. The P-8 has become a key asset as the Navy has shifted its focus to the Asia-Pacific region, and the platform was involved in a significant confrontation with China earlier this year that could foreshadow growing military posturing between the two competing world powers in the region. Read more P-8 analysis >>>
Qatar ready to pull trigger on Patriot — The MIM-104 Patriot missile system continues to flex its muscles on the international market, with news coming out last week that manufacturer Raytheon expects Qatar and the U.S. government to complete a multi-billion-dollar agreement on a “significant” number of Patriot systems before the end of the year, Reuters reported. The $2 billion order would be part of a $23 billion weapons package announced by Qatar in March as the small nation seeks to solidify its standing in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia could be the next buyer of Patriot batteries in a separate commercial sale. Read more Patriot analysis >>>
Meanwhile, Germany mulls MEADS future — Patriot’s less-successful Lockheed Martin-built rival MEADS, meanwhile, is facing a major litmus test of its relevance on the international market next year, according to Reuters. Germany, one of the original three co-developers of MEADS along with Italy and the United States, will make a decision sometime in 2015 on whether to continue with the development of the MEADS system — which the United States has already abandoned — or modernize the existing Patriot system. The three nations have spent $3.4 billion to develop MEADS over the past decade as a successor to Patriot. Read more MEADS analysis >>>