The Air Force is buying new helmets for fixed-wing aviators that are said to be lighter, better ventilated, and more adaptable to new technology than the current helmet—the HGU-55/P—that’s been in use for more than 40 years.
SpaceX launched a classified mission for the U.S. Space Force from California on Nov. 11, the second such flight for the company in a six-day span.
U.S. Space Command has reached its first major staffing goal at Redstone Arsenal six weeks ahead of schedule, with more than 200 personnel now permanently working in Huntsville and plans to expand significantly over the next several years.
The Space Development Agency has awarded SpaceX a contract worth almost $10 million to study how the company’s laser communications terminals can best integrate with the agency’s missile defense-related satellites.
President Donald Trump called on Senate Republicans Nov. 12 to use their final weeks in power to pass $350 billion in defense spending—moving to jump-start legislative action “IMMEDIATELY” on a party-line funding request that has gone unanswered for months.
Army Brig. Gen. Matt Ross urged U.S. defense, federal, and law enforcement officials to determine and describe their organizations’ unique threats and protection requirements before they move to field or buy commercial counter-drone assets from the government’s online marketplace.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is seeking to upgrade the powers of the department’s top special operations civilian role to the equivalent of a service secretary, a move that would radically shape the power of the special forces community inside the military.
Technological advances making ballistic missiles cheaper and more precise have allowed Iran and the Houthis of Yemen to strike foes across the Middle East. The development and spread of these weapons, once the preserve of nuclear superpowers, mean that military doctrines around the globe will need profound change—fast.
Aviation startup Hermeus and established prime contractor Northrop Grumman say they are now working together toward the aim of delivering operational uncrewed aircraft capable of high-supersonic, if not hypersonic, flight to the U.S. military. Through a newly announced partnership, Northrop Grumman is set to integrate electronic warfare systems, sensors, autonomy packages, and other capabilities onto “next-generation” Hermeus drones.
President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner landed in Moscow on the morning of Nov. 12 ahead of a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, following two days of trilateral U.S.-Russia-Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi that seemingly produced no major diplomatic breakthrough.
The tide of history cannot be stopped, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Nov. 12, while urging peaceful "reunification" with Taiwan and making no mention of using force, though he still drew a firm rebuff from Taipei.
Just as ChatGPT and other AI chatbots must be exposed to how humans write, military AI systems must be exposed to how humans fight. In Ukraine, this happens through a huge trove of battlefield videos, audio, and text data collected over nearly five years.
Nell “Mickey” Stevenson Bright, the last living member of the Women Airforce Service Pilots, will be inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame on Nov. 21 at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.
