How the U.S. can counter China’s size and other advantages. Decades of force cuts and deferred modernization have left the U.S. Air Force unable to simultaneously deter nuclear attacks, defend the U.S. homeland, and defeat Chinese aggression at acceptable levels...
JASSM-ER
Lockheed Martin is offering a low-cost air vehicle it calls a flying "truck" that could be a cruise missile or sensor platform, intended to be the "low end" complement to the high-end JASSM/LRASM stealth cruise missiles, and help the Air Force achieve "affordable mass" in ...
Lockheed Martin received two Air Force contracts on Sept. 27, together worth $3.56 billion, for production of the AGM-58B Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile and the AGM-158C Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile, the Pentagon announced. The contracts include missiles for the Air Force, Navy, and partner nations under ...
Australia says it won’t buy the B-21 bomber, but Northrop Grumman CEO Kathy Warden said it may still be “on the table” when the program is more mature. Warden also reiterated that the new bomber will fly this year.
Lockheed Martin has opened a second production line to make two of the Pentagon’s most in-demand weapons: the LRASM anti-ship cruise missile and the JASSM-ER air-to-surface variant. Wargames have shown the utility of the missiles in countering a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. The problem is that ...
A new generation of precision weapons is needed to enhance modern strike capability and deter potential aggressors. “We need fifth-generation weapons to go with our fifth-generation Air Force,” said Gen. Mark D. Kelly, head of Air Combat Command, in October 2021, counting such munitions among ...
The Air Force is looking for a new, generic weapon, produced by multiple vendors, to affordably attack targets at standoff ranges, with a capability as soon as 2030, according to a service solicitation to the defense industry. The Air Force wants to assess the industrial ...
A B-2 bomber successfully released a long-range cruise missile during a weapons test in December 2021, contractor Northrop Grumman revealed, potentially giving the stealth bomber the ability to strike even deeper into contested areas. The baseline version of the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile has a ...
The Need for a Cost-Effective PGM Mix for Great Power Conflict
Even as it ramps up production of the Lockheed Martin AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile, the Air Force is doing preliminary work on a successor, Air Force armament directorate boss Brig. Gen. Heath A. Collins told reporters this week. Collins also provided an update on ...
Funding for munitions may have taken a hit in the Air Force's 2022 budget request, but Air Force Materiel Command boss Gen. Arnold W. Bunch Jr insists munitions are not serving as the billpayer for other parts of the budget. Bunch said the “pipeline” will ...
The success of the B-21 program so far is due to its modular approach and incremental changes to its technology, not its requirements, Air Force Global Strike Command head Gen. Timothy M. Ray said. “We’ve codified the approach … of open mission systems [and] modularity ...
