Northrop Grumman has delivered the first F-35 Lightning II integrated communications, navigation, and identification system ahead of schedule. The CNI system will provide more than 40 functions to F-35 pilots via the software-defined radios that enable “simultaneous support for dozens of critical capabilities while greatly minimizing size and weight,” say company officials.
The emphasis on speed in the Pentagon’s newly unveiled slate of acquisition reforms may come with increased near-term cost increases, analysts say. But according to U.S. defense officials, the new weapons-buying construct provides the military with enough flexibility to prevent runaway budget overruns in major programs.
