If Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) gets his way the Pentagon will set up a Cold War-style hotline to provide direct communication with its Chinese counterpart agency. Kirk, who recently returned from a China trip, told the Washington Times that the idea was one of several that were discussed with Chinese officials during the visit. Kirk’s delegation also visited the Jiuquan Space Launch Center in Inner Mongolia—becoming the first foreign delegation to visit the Chinese site where the country launched its first two manned spaceflights.
Anduril and General Atomics will develop their Collaborative Combat Aircraft for the Air Force, beating out Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman, the service announced on April 24. But any of the non-selected companies can compete to actually manufacture the eventual design, the Air Force said.