News
Erdogan says Turkey will ‘never declare a ceasefire’-
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has dismissed U.S. calls for a ceasefire in northern Syria and said that he’s not worried about American-imposed sanctions, or the advancement of Russian-backed Syrian forces toward the Turkish border.
Russian, Syrian troops fill void as U.S. pulls troops out of Syria-
U.S. forces have played the role of peacekeeper in the Syrian city of Manbij since its Kurdish-led partner force liberated the city from ISIS fighters in 2016.
Business
Boeing, Sikorsky’s Defiant is back up in the skies again-
The Boeing-Sikorsky SB>1 Defiant resumed flight testing in September after the companies made modifications to the demonstrator aircraft.
America sold over $55 billion in weapons in fiscal 2019-
The U.S. sold $55.4 billion worth of weapons to allies and partners around the globe in fiscal year 2019, essentially flat from the previous fiscal year.
Soldiers to get a say in light tank competition-
Two companies are competing to build the Army’s new light tank for Infantry Brigade Combat Teams and, in order to win, their prototypes will be judged by the users themselves.
Why Mercury is investing $15M in microelectronics production-
Mercury Systems, Inc. is investing $15 million in microelectronics to help fill a government need for trusted components.
This company thinks it can accelerate the Army’s tactical network fielding timeline-
Under the Army’s approach for modernizing its tactical network, the service is delivering incremental capabilities to particular types of units every two years beginning in 2021 and running through 2028.
Air Force awards a third Enterprise IT as-a-Service contract-
The Air Force awarded Accenture Federal Services a contract to provide Enterprise IT as-a-Service under a $66 million Other Transaction Authority announced Oct. 15.
South Korea’s future fighter program at risk, even as development moves along-
South Korea’s indigenous fighter jet development program has entered the phase of prototype development following critical design review, or CDR, according to developers.
Turkey’s low-altitude air defense system ready for production-
Turkey’s first indigenous, low-altitude air and anti-missile system, Hisar-A, has successfully passed field tests and is ready for production, top Turkish officials said.
BAE nears U.S. Army approval of $10 billion howitzer project after years of flaws-
BAE Systems Plc may win U.S. Army approval as soon as next month for full-rate production of self-propelled howitzers after the $10 billion program was hobbled by several years of delays over defects.
Defense
How ‘night court’ will impact the Pentagon’s acquisition office-
When U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper launched a review this summer of the department-wide offices known as the “fourth estate,” he made it clear that everything, including cuts to programs and personnel, were on the table.
U.S. Army’s brigade combat teams are ready for a big fight, but is that enough?-
The readiness of the brigade combat teams across the Army is in far better shape than it was just three years ago. But is that enough of a measure to know just how ready the Army is for a big fight?
U.S. Army solidifying plan for long-range precision munitions for future vertical lift-
The Army is pushing its document related to long-range precision munitions requirements for the future vertical lift modernization effort through the approval pipeline. And you can expect it to be finalized by the end of the year, according to Brig. Gen. Wally Rugen, who is in charge of Army aviation modernization.
Army-developed multimission launcher ‘off the table’-
The Army spent years internally developing its own multimission launcher for the Indirect Fires Protection Capability program — designed to counter threats like rockets, artillery and mortars as well as cruise missiles and unmanned aircraft systems. But that grand plan is now officially off the table.
U.S. Army nears competition that could lead to robots directly engaging the enemy-
The U.S. Army is close to triggering a competition for both a light and medium robotic combat vehicle by releasing a request for product proposals before the Thanksgiving holiday, according to Brig. Gen. Ross Coffman, the head of combat vehicle modernization for the service.
Army secretly fields lighter helmet that offers more ballistic protection-
In late September, the Army secretly fielded a small number of helmets that offer increased protection against high-performance sniper rounds.
Veterans
VA fails at workforce planning due to leadership turnover-
The Department of Veterans Affairs has failed to plan for the large number of retiring employees and to fill currently empty positions largely due to a lack of consistency in leadership, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Oct. 10.
The post Headlines – October 16, 2019 appeared first on Aerotech News & Review.