X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) demonstrator is towed into the hangar bay of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) on May, 13 1980. US Navy Photo
The Fiscal Year 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) will not force the U.S. Navy to restructure its Unmanned Carrier Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) aircraft program, service officials said. Read More
An X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) demonstrator conducts a touch and go landing on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77). US Navy Photo
The U.S. Navy plans to take the Northrop Grumman X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System-Demonstrator (UCAS-D) aircraft out to sea onboard an aircraft carrier this summer to test how well it operates together with manned aircraft around the ship and on the flight deck. Read More
The Defense Department has released its annual Department of Office of the Director, Operational Test & Evaluation (DOT&E) on Jan. 29. The report catalogues major U.S. weapons systems and presents an assessment of the all the service’s acquisitions that can tend to be highly critical.
The service’s often contest the findings of DOT&E as dated criticisms or a reiteration of known ongoing problems with weapon’s programs. Read More
USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) in 2013. US Navy Photo
The following is a letter from members of the House Armed Services Committee to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel in support of an 11 carrier U.S. Navy. The U.S. is obligated to maintain an 11 carrier fleet under law. Read More
Navy F-35C test plane CF-3 successfully catches a wire during testing at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. Lockheed Martin Photo
The U.S. Navy’s carrier-based version of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter is nearing October sea trials after completing shore-based testing at Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst, New Jersey, to ensure compatibility with shipboard arresting gear. Read More
U.S. Pacific Command commander Adm. Samuel Locklear. US Navy Photo
American allies and potential adversaries in the Pacific are busily amassing formidable stockpiles of advanced military hardware, just as American commanders are doubling down on U.S. presence in the region. Read More
EA-18G Growler assigned to the Zappers of Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 130 lands on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) on Aug. 15, 2013. US Navy Photo
The Navy has already made some powerful assumptions about its next fight in the air.
It’ll be away from home. It will be against a sophisticated and well-armed enemy. It’ll depend as much on information technology as it will on bombs or missiles. And it’s a fight for which the service isn’t ready. Read More
The Northrop Grumman X-47B preparing to launch off of USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) on May, 2013. US Naval Institute Photo
The U.S. Navy has pushed back the release date again for a draft request for proposals (RfP) for its Unmanned Carrier Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) aircraft program, service officials told USNI News. Read More
An illustration of China’s contested Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) from state run media. Xinhua Photo
On November 23, 2013, China established an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) over a significant portion of the East China Sea (ECS). The ADIZ includes the airspace over disputed areas, including the Senkaku Islands contested by China and Japan. Read More
Artist’s concept of a DDG-51 Flight III with AMDR. Raytheon Photo
The U.S. Navy’s Air and Missile Defense radar — which is being developed by Raytheon for the service’s Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer (DDG-51) — might one day be capable of performing electronic attacks with its active electronically scanned array (AESA) antenna, according to Naval Sea Systems Command. Read More
