The Pentagon expects to complete work on the next phase of international partnership agreements for the Joint Strike Fighter program next year. The JSF arrangement marks a departure from past programs, because the eight partners—Australia, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, and Turkey—are participating in development of the aircraft. The JSF program director, Rear Adm. Steve Enewold, told Reuters news service that reports of a rift among partner countries are not true. He said, the program is ahead of schedule on its critical design review.
The cost of the nuclear AGM-181 Long-Range Stand Off missile has come down slightly and the program is on track, but several technologies it relies on are still considered immature, the Government Accountability Office found in a report. Meanwhile, the GAO also assessed the LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile as…