Defense Systems
Obama's 'kill list' dictates who the drones will strike
U.S. President Barack Obama personally oversees a "kill list" of individuals selected to be the target of unmanned aerial vehicle strikes in Yemen, Pakistan and Somalia in a highly secret manner that has given rise to calls for greater transparency in the shadow war against al Qaeda.
Defense Systems
Phantom Eye holds promise, but has long way to go
Boeing's massive hydrogen-powered Phantom Eye UAV performed its first test flight at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center June 1 reaching an altitude of 4,080 feet and a cruising speed of 62 knots, which is short of the performance attributes the military wants it eventually to achieve.
Defense Systems
Will commercial space imagery policy get a makeover?
The White House will reexamine its current policy toward how the Defense Department and intelligence community use commercial imagery, which if it downplays the importance of using such imagery in a revised policy would likely further dampen the commercial imagery market.
Defense Systems
Navy wants help boosting coastal surveillance
The Navy wants industry and other interested parties to submit ideas for new systems and technologies for use in shore surveillance and amphibious operations.
Defense Systems
Boeing completes satcom-on-the-move demo for US, Australia
Boeing recently demonstrated a satcom-on-the-move technology product on a live Ka-band satellite network for Australia and the United States that enabled simultaneous secure videoconferencing with military radios and telephones.
Defense Systems
Air Force takes corrective action, reopens bidding on NetCents 2
The Air Force has reopened the bidding for its $6.9 billion NetCents 2 products contract, according to an announcement on the FedBizOps website.
Defense Systems
Army places new order for nimble ground bots
The Army has placed a second order for a nimble ground robot that can explore dangerous objects and places.
Defense Systems
Canada should let Polar Hawk recon Arctic, Northrop says
Canada has received an unsolicited proposal from Northrop Grumman to furnish three modified RQ-4B Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicles to provide surveillance of the country's vast Arctic territories.
Defense Systems
Navy picks provider for COTS network and tech work
The Navy has awarded a five-year indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract with an estimated value of $500 million to Iron Bow Technologies for communications and IT equipment support.
Defense Systems
US needs technologies tailored for Asia-Pacific, Panetta says
The Defense Department needs to develop and acquire new equipment and technologies that are tailored to the Asia-Pacific region as the United States increases its military presence in the region, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said June 1.
Defense Systems
Obama expanded cyber offensive against Iran
As soon as he took office, U.S. President Obama authorized increasingly sophisticated attacks against Iran's nuclear enrichment facilities, expanding on efforts begun in the Bush administration to check that country's nuclear efforts.
Defense Systems
Are the US military services in sync for net-enabled warfare?
It might seem as if the Army's strategy for tackling hybrid threats and the Air Force and Navy doctrine for AirSea Battle go off in different directions at a time when strategic synthesis is sorely needed in light of shrinking defense funding, but do they really?
Defense Systems
Iran says Flame virus threatens its national security
The data-mining virus Flame appears to have dug its way into the computers of top Iranian officials in what is likely the most formidable cyber intrusion into Iranian computer systems since the crippling Stuxnet virus attack two years ago.
Defense Systems
Army struggles with key financial data system
Army financial and system managers did not reengineer the Logistics Modernization Program system to perform Procure-to-Pay functions correctly, leaving the program open to fraud and poor bookkeeping.
Defense Systems
What's the buzz about DARPA's Plan X?
The Pentagon's research arm is reaching out to the private sector, universities and computer game makers for assistance developing technologies to boost its offensive cyber capabilities.
Defense Systems
How will the US manage a large-scale robot army?
A software provider has developed a system that it believes might one day address the Defense Department's need for a unified command and control system to coordinate the efforts of the U.S. military's rapidly expanding army of ground, sea and air robotic systems.
Defense Systems
Pacific center to serve as prototype of future military health IT
The Defense Department is establishing a new approach to health IT systems in Maui, Hawaii, as a proof-of-concept demonstration for information management and IT products and services to support the Defense Department's medical readiness requirements and modernization needs.
Defense Systems
US moves to arm Italy's Reaper UAVs
The Obama administration intends to arm about a half dozen Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles owned by Italy with Hellfire missiles and precision-guided munitions.
Defense Systems
Ground sensors that fit in the palm of your hand
As U.S. conventional forces prepare to withdraw completely from Afghanistan by 2014, the U.S. military plans to rely heavily on air and ground sensors to boost intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance for Special Operations Forces.
Defense Systems