Recap: Highlights from the US Army’s 2025 conference in Washington
The Army continues to transform, with efforts focused on next-gen weaponry, long-range artillery, unmanned systems and much more.
Unmanned
Pentagon stages first ‘Top Drone’ school for operators to hone skills
Industry and military drone operators flew tethered and untethered first-person drones through a course designed to test endurance and maneuverability.
Boeing expands drone exams to Lockheed C-5 with eye on broader fleet
"You just can't do this stuff in a simulated environment," Boeing's Scott Belanger said of the Autonomous Aircraft Inspection initiative.
US approves sale of F-16 jets to Turkey, F-35s to Greece
The Biden administration approved the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey following the Turkish government’s ratification of Sweden’s membership in NATO.
Space Force picks Boeing, Lockheed for narrowband SATCOM program
Each company received a $66 million contract for early design and risk-reduction, according to a Jan. 25 Defense Department announcement.
Pentagon to brief industry on Replicator status at tech summit
The Feb. 13 event will focus broadly on scaling autonomous systems and deepening connections among DIU, the commercial sector and other Pentagon offices.
Defense technology firms watch new strategy for ‘generational’ change
Many firms say they were glad to see their priorities in the National Defense Industrial Strategy. What matters more is how the department implements it.
Northrop harnesses machine learning to aid Space Force missile parsing
The False Track Reduction Using Machine Learning system is trained on real-world data and can be amended as foreign militaries advance their arsenals.
Directed-energy weapons need full Pentagon commitment, industry says
At least 31 directed-energy initiatives are underway across the U.S. military, according to the National Defense Industrial Association.
Pentagon rewrites space classification policy to improve info-sharing
The policy, approved in late December, is itself classified, according to the Pentagon's assistant secretary of defense for space policy.
Rheinmetall Canada, Elistair pair robots and drones in test for Europe
Khronos deploys from a box and can stay aloft for 24 hours, while the Mission Master SP is capable of following troops and shuttling smaller payloads.
