The recent completion of the Technology Horizons review and subsequent formulation of well-defined science and technology priorities come at an important juncture for the Air Force, says Werner Dahm, the service’s chief scientist. Prior to Technology Horizons, the service had not conducted a thorough scrub of its science and technology activities in more than 15 years, he told reporters Wednesday in the Pentagon. Yet the Air Force—and Defense Department overall—now faces three leading trends that make having a technology vision all the more critical, he said. First, the global strategic picture is shifting, with the US still as the sole superpower, but facing several rising powers. Second, more countries are gaining access to advanced technology—or developing it themselves. Third, budget pressures are likely to increase in coming years, impacting resources available for research, he said. (See Air Force Technology Plan Unveiled above)
There is a new entrant in the highly competitive field of collaborative combat aircraft—semi-autonomous drones meant to fly alongside manned combat aircraft. Northrop Grumman unveiled its new Project Talon aircraft to a small group of reporters at the facilities of its subsidiary Scaled Composites.
