The F-35 Lightning II European debut in July will be welcome, but it remains the Punch and Judy program of the defense aerospace sector, with boosters and detractors taking turns to bash each other’s argument as to the project’s value — or lack thereof. The debate, though sometime not worthy of the word, has risked… Keep reading →

The Swedes who build the Gripen fighter are known for being practical, producing advanced fighters that are relatively cheap (at least compared to almost everyone else). At the Paris Air Show the Gripen folks, SaaB Group. very deliberately floated an interesting idea. Since the Gripen uses fly-by-wire technology and advanced avionics which virtually eliminate the need… Keep reading →

This year’s Paris Air Show promises to be one of the most lackluster for the defense sector in at least a decade. America is sending virtually no military aircraft to fly the all-important afternoon displays: no F-22s, no F-35s, no C-17s, no C-130s. American companies have scaled back their executives’ participation, not because it saves any… Keep reading →

UPDATED: Friday Sept. 14, 6:52 p.m.. WASHINGTON: Hungary’s defense minister, Csaba Hende, went to see Defense Secretary Leon Panetta at the Pentagon today and won praise for his tiny Central European nation’s contributions in Afghanistan and elsewhere in the world. A spokesman, though, said Hende didn’t raise another issue he discussed in an exclusive interview… Keep reading →