The Missile Defense Agency this week postponed an Airborne Laser Test Bed intercept attempt against a boosting ballistic missile target for the fourth time this month due to problems with the system's tracking laser, according to an Aug. 24 agency statement.
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Missile Defense Agency Director Lt. Gen. Patrick O'Reilly last week touted the capabilities of MQ-1 Predator remotely piloted vehicles as additional sensors for detecting ballistic missile launches.
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Lockheed
Martin has completed its critical design review of the Medium Extended Air
Defense System in preparation for a CDR "summary event" to be conducted this
week, according to program officials.512 words
As Northrop
Grumman progresses under its Integrated Battle Command System contract,
questions remain over how and when the system will be integrated with the
Medium Extended Air Defense System and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense
system in the future, according to a company official.667 words
The follow-on Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, awaiting Senate
ratification, "contains detailed definitions and counting rules that will help
the parties calculate the number of warheads that count under the treaty
limits," a recent Congressional Research Service report notes. "Moreover, the
delivery vehicles and their warheads will count under the treaty limits until
they are converted or eliminated according to the provisions described in the
treaty's Protocol. These provisions are far less demanding than those in the
original START Treaty and will provide the United States and Russia with far
more flexibility in determining how to reduce their forces to meet the treaty
limits."105 words
The Defense
Department has adjusted its $1.6 trillion portfolio of major weapon systems
being developed and acquired, formally ushering in 11 new programs and
completing paperwork on four major efforts whose procurement runs are complete
or nearly finished.410 words
Lockheed
Martin and Raytheon last week announced a slew of Huntsville, AL-based
companies that have joined them to compete for the Missile Defense Agency's
Ground-based Midcourse Defense development and sustainment contract.731 words
Pentagon
acquisition chief Ashton Carter has notified Capitol Hill of a significant
increase in the cost of a multibillion-dollar program established by lawmakers
to destroy chemical weapons stockpiles.650 words
The head of
Fleet Forces Command has issued staff guidance designed to combat the
shortfalls in manning and subsequent maintenance failures described in the
damning Balisle Report, a document leaked to some press outlets earlier this
year that criticized the Navy's attempts to reduce manning and change training
regimes.591 words
The Air Force
expects to launch its two new Wideband Global Satellite Communication
satellites toward the middle of the decade, according to an Air Force official.400 words
Air Force and
defense officials are bracing for a cascade of senior service leadership moves
that could open the door for Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz to
become the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, according to active and
retired Air Force general officers.1660 words
China is
expanding its nuclear attack submarine force in the coming years and may double
its fleet of quiet diesel submarines as the country seeks a long-term balance
of conventional and nuclear-powered attack subs, a senior Pentagon official
told reporters last week.787 words
The Pentagon
claims it would be "infeasible and not advisable" to establish baselines to
track and measure operating and support costs that could account for up to 70
percent of most weapon systems' life-cycle costs, according to a "for official
use only" report to Congress reviewed by sister publication Inside the
Pentagon.1545 words
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