The Marine Corps is examining six options to serve as the future Amphibious Combat Vehicle in its analysis of alternatives, including resurrecting the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle program, an official told Inside the Navy last week.629 words

Recent budget decisions have delayed the planned initial operational capability target for the latest iteration of the AIM-9X Sidewinder air-to-air missile, and the Navy expects to achieve that milestone sometime in 2014 when it procures enough missiles to meet the threshold, the program manager told Inside the Navy last week.491 words

The Navy may release a broad agency announcement this summer for drop-in biofuels as the service steps up its efforts in alternative energy with major green energy milestones upcoming for the fleet, according to an official.581 words

The Marine Corps is continuing its quest to define how it wants to conduct amphibious operations now and into the future, and 10 full-time members of the service's new Ellis Group will report for duty this summer to devote their full attention to this task. 856 words

The Navy placed a $12.4 million order for new M61 Vulcan weapons in response to Congress' decision to increase the buy of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets in the fiscal year 2012 budget, according to a May 21 notice on Federal Business Opportunities. The notice calls for the purchase of 33 Vulcan Gatling-style rotary cannons, which are mounted on the Super Hornet, because "additional F/A-18E/F quantities authorized and appropriated by Congress have led to an increase in [the M61] requirement." General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products manufactures the weapon, and the estimated contract award date is Nov. 26.101 words

The Marine Corps is facing numerous challenges in the future when faced with conducting amphibious operations, particularly in the areas of naval surface fires support, command and control and connectors, according to service officials.489 words

The Senate Armed Services Committee followed House's lead in moving to prevent the Defense Department from using alternative fuels that cost more than conventional fossil fuels, narrowly passing the language just a month before the Navy begins its biggest biofuel demonstration in the Pacific.276 words

The Senate Appropriations Committee last week cut the $93.4 million targeted for Guam construction in the administration's fiscal year 2013 military construction-spending request, and the Senate Armed Services Committee also opted to withhold funding for construction on the island until the Defense Department completes a revised strategy for the move.517 words

The Senate Armed Services Committee's mark of the fiscal year 2013 defense authorization bill includes two amendments demanding reports from the Navy, one to justify the elimination of a maritime prepositioning squadron and the other to determine the Navy's new ship requirement.260 words

The Navy will station eight Littoral Combat Ships in Bahrain with a focus on small-boat threats and mine countermeasures, and the four LCSs that will go to Singapore will emphasize anti-submarine warfare, Navy Under Secretary Robert Work said last week.839 words

The Navy has placed a $30.4-million order with manufacturer Bell-Boeing for a new V-22 Osprey instrumental aircraft for testing to replace an old and outdated version, according to Naval Air Systems Command.282 words

Navy leadership has sifted through the outcomes of its Bold Alligator 2012 exercise earlier this year and identified several key areas that need improving, largely revolving around communication, an official said last week.647 words

Despite criticism that having two drastically different variants of Littoral Combat Ships will result in higher costs, the Navy is committed to building out classes of 27 or 28 of each unless "the bottom falls out of the budget" or one variant fails when it is introduced to the fleet, Navy Under Secretary Robert Work said last week.668 words

An additional $1 billion for equipment reset authorized by the House Appropriations Committee in its 2013 defense bill is a good start for coming out of Afghanistan, but the service needs more, according to Marine Corps officials.361 words

The Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory is focusing on amphibious operations in its upcoming limited objective experiment exercises, according to an official.511 words

The Navy must revamp a multibillion-dollar investment plan to focus more on acquiring new technologies for future needs and less on meeting current needs with today's know-how, according to a draft briefing from a naval advisory panel.836 words

The two military services responsible for the Defense Department's nuclear arsenal plan to jointly develop life-extension programs for their intercontinental and submarine-launched ballistic missile warheads, according to a senior Air Force official.507 words

The United Kingdom's recent decision to buy the F-35B short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing variant of the Joint Strike Fighter rather than the aircraft-carrier variant could affect a deal signed earlier this year between the Navy and the sole builder of U.S. aircraft carriers.422 words

House appropriators have joined House authorizers in approving an additional $35 million for special operations forces' undersea mobility platforms, boosting the the $26 million requested by U.S. Special Operations Command to $64 million.380 words

The Senate Armed Services Committee last week unanimously approved a $631.4 billion fiscal year 2013 defense authorization bill, rejecting proposed Air National Guard cuts.391 words

The services have agreed on a common set of requirements for ground-based, sense-and-avoid systems for unmanned aircraft and will conduct related tests next month, according to military officials.1048 words