General Dynamics Electric Boat's PCU North Dakota

General Dynamics Electric Boat's PCU North Dakota U.S. Navy

Defense Business Brief: Shipyard execs speak; Kendall’s USAF priority; Wedgetail purchase?; And more...

We’ll get to the news out of the Air Force Association’s Air, Space & Cyber conference in a bit—but first, some highlights from my Thursday discussion with U.S. shipyard execs at Defense One’s State of the Navy event.

Kevin Graney, president of General Dynamics Electric Boat, said he’s excited about the Biden administration-brokered AUKUS defense pact that will pave the way for Australia to receive nuclear-powered submarines. FYI: it is not yet determined what type of submarine Canberra will get:  A version of the U.S. Virginia class? The U.K.’s Astute class? Something else?

“It is a pretty exciting time and, personally, I think it feels right that we're partnering in this way with the Aussies to further our defensive posture,” Graney said. “But my message to my team is absolutely clear, and that is we stay focused on the mission at hand. The mission at hand is two Virginia submarines a year and [the] Columbia [class].”

He added, “We stand ready to support when tasked, and in the meantime, we've got plenty of work to do.”

Graney may be waiting for a while; in a Defense One interview earlier on Thursday, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday said it might take “decades” to prepare Australia’s military and industry to support the arrival of the country’s first nuclear-powered ships.

Graney and Mark Vandroff, CEO of Fincantieri Marinette Marine also discussed the challenges getting their employees vaccinated against COVID-19 and ways they are looking to recruit skilled workers to build the Navy’s next generation of ships and submarines.

You can watch the entire discussion, here (free registration required).

Now to AFA, where we got to hear a bit of Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall’s priorities. Or, as it happens, priority: “China, China, and China,” Kendall said in a speech to AFA attendees. Brings back memories of former acting SecDef Patrick Shanahan, doesn’t it! Here are some highlights of what Kendall had to say:

  • China’s nuclear projects are putting them on a path to have “a de facto first-strike capability” a statement challenged by independent nuke-policy experts.
  • Kendall criticized Congress for not allowing the Air Force to retire old, unneeded warplanes and said the Air Force would continue pushing for retirements.
  • Northrop Grumman is building five B-21 stealth bomber test aircraft right now
  • Kednall also questioned the role of hypersonic weapons, which is officially one of his service’s top modernization priorities. 

You can read the full recap here.

The Air Force is considering buying the Boeing E-7 Wedgetail radar plane, Kendall said, furthering a theme we heard from some Air Force leaders at the Air Force Association’s last conference in February. “There is some interest in the E-7,” he said. “It has some really good capabilities and it could be useful to the Air Force, so we are taking a look at that.” That plane would likely replace the E-3 AWACS.

Kendall declined to weigh in on Lockheed Martin’s planned acquisition of Aerojet Rocketdyne due to an ongoing government review of the sale. In the past, he’s criticized some defense-related mergers and acquisitions, and particularly Lockheed’s purchase of Sikorsky. Darlene Costello, acting Air Force acquisition executive, said the service has been “providing input” to the Office of the Secretary of Defense on the sale. “There has been a little bit of back and forth,” Costello said.

Meanwhile, the House passed the fiscal 2022 National Defense Authorization Act, which totals $740 billion, roughly $24 billion more than the Biden administration requested.


From Defense One

Just Half of Workers at Two Critical Shipyards Are Vaccinated // Marcus Weisgerber

The sobering numbers offer a snapshot of defense contractors' struggle to get workers vaccinated.

Trump's Red, White & Blue Air Force One Paint Job is Not Final, General Says // Marcus Weisgerber

The concept image is "just something that's on a paper," according to Air Force acquisition official.

Air Force Secretary Warns of China's Burgeoning Nuclear Arsenal, Reveals B-21 Detail // Marcus Weisgerber

Frank Kendall also criticized Congress for not allowing the Air Force to retire old, unneeded warplanes and questioned the need for hypersonic weapons.

US Air Force Developing Combat Tanker-Airlifter that Can Land on Water // Tara Copp

In a conflict with China, aircraft will need flexibility in basing, and that means water takeoffs, landings.

Learn to Use Data or Risk Dying in Battle, New Army Project Teaches // Patrick Tucker

Project Ridgway pushes soldiers to use—and even create—the artificial-intelligence tools that will confer military advantage.

Users Can't Be Afterthoughts in the Pentagon's AI Efforts // Devaki Raj and Jake Harrington

The troops, commanders, and civilians who will use artificial-intelligence tools have vital roles to play in creating, training, and improving them.

Trade Versus Subs: The Risky U.S. Tradeoff in the Asia-Pacific // Ian Johnson

Which will matter more, a dozen more nuclear subs on the U.S. side of the ledger or a trade pact that could draw many of the world's largest economies ever-closer toward China?

Biden Just Gave France Something More Valuable than a Submarine Contract // Kevin Baron

The White House endorsement of European defense apart from NATO is worth more than a $66 billion deal with Australia.

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.