UPDATED Washington: A new problem — described in a Pentagon email as “not a serious issue” — has been found with the wings of the Air Force and Marine versions of the F-35. The problem is with the wing’s forward root rib and was discovered in standard durability tests. The ribs — which provide the… Keep reading →

Mt. Airy, N.C. – Behind the cornfields and gravel pits in the hills of this small North Carolina town sits an off-road test track. The two-mile trail, owned by defense firm Granite Tactical Systems, is where I put the company’s upgraded Humvee through its paces this week. A Granite-Textron team is pitching their advanced version… Keep reading →

Washington: The old saying, ‘if it doesn’t make dollars, it doesn’t make sense’ has become more or less the mantra among attendees at this year’s Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International trade show. Affordability and cost savings have been the buzz words among the companies at this year’s show, for everyone from the top-tier defense… Keep reading →

UPDATED Washington: The Raytheon-Boeing team building took another significant step ahead of Lockheed Martin in the $5 billion Joint Air To Ground Missile competition, successfully testing its rocket motor for helicopter flight. Raytheon officials said the fifth and sixth rocket engines were subjected to temperatures as low as -65 Fahrenheit and successfully fired after being… Keep reading →

Patuxent River NAS: With all the cost overruns, schedule delays and political wrangling over the F-35 program, Boeing has been trying to pitch the F-18 Super Hornet to countries that be growing weary of all this turmoil. For more news and information on the swiftly-changing defense industry, please sign up for the Breaking Defense newsletter.… Keep reading →

A screwed-up control valve caused the grounding of the F-35 fleet and the program office has cleared the plane for ground operations while it tests the errant valve. Meanwhile, the F-22 fleet remains grounded until early fall when the results of an investigation into possible problems with the plane’s oxygen system are completed. For more… Keep reading →

Patuxent River NAS: Breaking Defense interviewed Bob Stevens, chairman and CEO of Lockheed Martin, after the first flight of the Marines’ F-35B open to the press. The aircraft is on probation — having been put there by former Defense Secretary Robert Gates. The F-35 program, largely because of unexpected problems discovered during testing, recently wracked… Keep reading →

Washington: Sometimes events are, in and of themselves, news. So it was today when the Joint Strike Fighter program working with the Marines, flew the F-35B for the first time in front of a carefully selected portion of the defense press corps. For more news and information on the swiftly-changing defense industry, please sign up… Keep reading →

The first production version of Boeing’s first P-8A Poseidon took off and completed its first successful flight. The plane flew June 21 from Renton Field, where it is assembled, to Boeing Field in Seattle, where mission systems will be installed. It is the first of six low-rate initial production aircraft for the Navy, part of… Keep reading →

A long-standing reliance on proprietary technology solutions and antiquated acquisition rules have left the Defense Department “pretty much in the stone age as far as IT is concerned,” the nation’s second highest ranking military officer said today. Marine Gen. James Cartwright, outgoing vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said speeding up acquisition cycles is essential… Keep reading →