Northrop Grumman said in a release July 3 it successfully demonstrated electronic protection capabilities of the AN/APG-81 advanced electronically scanned array radar system during the recent Northern Edge joint military exercise. The radar, which the company is building for the F-35 stealth fighter, was on board a company testbed aircraft during a complex airborne electronic warfare drill and countered advanced electronic attacks intended to degrade, neutralize, or destroy its capability, according to the company. “This event represents a major milestone in electronic protection testing for the AN/APG-81 in an operationally representative environment.” said Teri Marconi, Northrop’s vice president of Combat Avionics. The APG-81 is currently undergoing flight testing aboard Lockheed Martin’s F-35 avionics testbed aircraft, the CATBird, and is being installed in production F-35s on Lockheed’s aircraft assembly line in Fort Worth, Tex.
Advancements in commercial space technology could make President Donald Trump’s proposed “Golden Dome” missile defense network far more likely to succeed than the failed “Star Wars” strategic umbrella initiative of the 1980s, U.S. Space Command’s top general said May 22....