Time Is Really Running Out: The 2006 defense appropriations spending bill moved another notch, while the authorization bill is where?. The Senate appropriations committee on Wednesday advanced the 2006 defense spending measure to the Senate floor. (DR, 09/28/05) Meanwhile, Sen. John Warner (R-Va.) and Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) said Wednesday that one option under consideration was to push the authorization measure through as an amendment to the appropriations bill. Appropriators appear receptive, but they want some of the fat trimmed off first. The 2006 authorization bill has about 200 amendments-in-waiting.
A combined Navy and Air Force program is seeking to build a smaller version of a ubiquitous air-to-air missile that could give advanced aircraft, such as the Collaborative Combat Aircraft, greater magazine depth in a high-end fight.