NATIONAL HARBOR, MD: Degraded Visual Environment, or DVE, is jargon for the problem helicopter pilots face when their rotors kick up blinding clouds of dust or other debris. DVE also describes the problem the entire rotorcraft industry is facing as it tries to anticipate what new aircraft the Army can actually afford in this blindingly… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Army aviation leaders thought they had a plan to start developing a new Armed Aerial Scout all teed up for the vice chief of staff’s approval last month. But Gen. Lloyd Austin III said, “no.” It was the latest twist in a 21-year (and counting) saga to replace the Army’s aging OH-58D Kiowa Warriors,… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Reports that the Army has finally figured out whether the Hamlet of aircraft programs, Armed Aerial Scout, should be or not be are greatly exaggerated. Army aviation acquisition officials have looked at what birds in hand industry can offer to replace the service’s aging OH-58D Kiowa Warrior scout helicopters and have decided they’d prefer… Keep reading →

AUSA: Visitors to Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.’s display at this year’s Association of the United States Army meetings in Washington can hardly miss an eye-popping marketing video the company is showing. Running on a huge flat screen hung at the entrance to the company’s spot on the show floor, the video uses simulation imagery of XBox… Keep reading →

Sen. Grassley presses Panetta on ‘egregious waste and misconduct’ at DoD dug up in Inspector General reports. bit.ly/xZsHKR colinclarkaol

ORLANDO: The nation doesn’t need to rush out and buy the Common Vertical Lift Support Platform, designed to rush troops to nuclear sites or to evacuate senior lawmakers in event of a strike against the capital, because security at missile and other facilities has improved. And there’s not much money around to buy it with.… Keep reading →

CORRECTED WASHINGTON: The Navy’s venerable Scan Eagle unmanned drone could go global if service leaders can lock in agreements with a number of key European and Mideast allies. Navy leaders are considering foreign military sales of the Scan Eagle to Kuwait, Pakistan and the Netherlands, according to a presentation by Marine Corps Col. James Rector,… Keep reading →