The Air Force Research Lab has given $12.5 million to General Electric to provide a near-term solution making aircraft immune to electromagnetic environmental effects. GE must demonstrate that aircraft flight control, electric actuation, and power management and distribution subsystems are resilient against high power microwaves and electromagnetic pulses—by November 2011.
U.S. Southern Command recently announced its first lethal strike on a suspected narco-trafficking vessel in two months, and the first under a newly formed permanent counter-cartel task force. The U.S. is also reportedly planning to transfer MQ-9 drones to Colombia to bolster its counter-cartel efforts.