After 15 years of hovering in place, upgrading old helicopters without buying new designs, Army aviation is now hurtling forward — but will their ambitious new programs soar or crash? The Army’s track record on big weapons programs is not encouraging, with three cancelled helicopters projects alone since 2004. But it has now united its feudalized bureaucracy into a new Army Futures Command and devoted $57 billion to modernization over the next five years. About $4.7 billion of that money goes for new drones and manned aircraft, with funding for what’s called Future Vertical Lift quadrupling from 2019 to 2020. The Army plan calls for two new “optionally manned” aircraft capable of flying pilotless if necessary — an assault/utility transport and a small, nimble scout — and a family of drones in different sizes. All are meant to work together with each other, with Army long-range missiles, and with the other services’ jets to crack open the high-tech layered defenses being built by Russia, China, and lesser powers. We’ve broken down all the latest developments in a new eBrief, available to all as a free download now. This eBrief is an editorial product sponsored by Elbit Systems of America.
Napoleon’s Army may have marched on its stomach, but the U.S. Army today depends on electrons. Now, as the service struggles with the fallout from cutting short with what was its flagship network program, WIN-T, Breaking Defense collects our best coverage of how we got here. From the foot soldier navigating the front lines with GPS, to the drone taking pictures overhead, to the officer making plans at the command post, to the supply clerk ordering spare parts back at base, a modern army depends on a complex network of computers sharing data over land lines and radio waves. But land lines can be cut, radio waves can be jammed, and computers can be hacked. All these tactics and technologies must be updated for the modern age. We tackle these issues and more in The Army Overhauls Its Networks For Future War. Fill out the form below to receive your free copy.