Boeing officials say the C-130 Avionics Modernization Program that suffered a Nunn-McCurdy breach earlier this year is meeting test milestones, some of them “significantly ahead of schedule,” according to a company release. It flew the first AMP aircraft earlier this month with engineering upgrades that enhanced the aircraft’s heads-up display. That aircraft has since gone back to Edwards AFB, Calif., for further testing. A second Hercules in the program has received a software upgrade that provides a fully functional Flight Management System, essentially “eliminating the need for the navigator position in the cockpit.” Boeing expects to get a third aircraft this month. After the breach, the Air Force decided to reduce by around 80 the number of aircraft getting the AMP upgrade.
The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to buy laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons. BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance kits annually for the U.S. military.