The Air Force isn’t buying any more Predator MQ-1 killer-scout unmanned aerial vehicles, but it will up its fleet of MQ-9 hunter-killer UAVs by 24 aircraft, per its Fiscal 2010 budget. The Defense Department overall wants to achieve 50 Predator-class surveillance orbits by 2011. Unexplained is what happens to the vaunted MC-12 “Liberty” intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance airplane; 24 were funded in Fiscal 2009, but USAF requested none in 2010.
The Space Force is preparing for significant growth to its procurement budget in fiscal 2027, and the head of the service’s largest acquisition organization said April 14 he is asking companies to invest now in facilities and production capacity so they’re ready to execute when called upon.