A string of recent test failures with the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile has caused Air Force officials some heartburn. Speaking at a Capitol Hill seminar Thursday, USAF acquisition leader, Sue Payton, said that the service would be analyzing test data over the next 30 days, hoping to find a solution to problems that they do not believe are design related. However, she could not rule out program termination as an option despite JASSM being “a huge need of the warfighter.”
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
