Pentagon

Ukraine getting battalion’s worth of artillery in new $100 million aid package

The U.S. is sending Ukraine another $100 million in military assistance, including heavy artillery and counter-artillery radars, the Biden administration announced Thursday.

Senate confirms defense official tasked with overseeing Ukraine aid logistics

The Senate has confirmed a Defense Department official who will be tasked with overseeing the logistics of the sprawling, multifaceted effort to deliver military equipment to Ukraine in the war against Russia.

Pentagon CIO stands ground on December timeline for JEDI follow-up

“It’s just going to take us a little bit longer than we thought,” John Sherman, the Pentagon's chief information officer, said in a March briefing.

SOFIC

Spec ops optics: US forces seek new sights and ways to defeat fog

Having eyes on the battlefield can mean the difference between hitting the right or wrong target, or even hitting the target at all, which is why U.S. special operators are looking to upgrade a host of optics items.

Defense Innovation Unit picks designs for space nuclear propulsion demo

DIU plans to launch a demonstration mission in 2027, showcasing the advantages of nuclear-powered spacecraft for maneuver operations in cislunar space.

Pentagon’s high-level group to aid Ukraine is rooted in Iraq and Afghanistan fight

The Pentagon has modeled a new high-level team to rush military aid to Ukraine after the group it used to rush supplies to troops in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, according to a memo obtained by Defense News and sources familiar with the matter.

McMaster says AI can help beat adversaries, overcome ‘critical challenges’

His remarks were made at the Nexus 22 symposium, a daylong event focused on autonomy, AI and the defense policy that underpins it.

UFOs pose real danger, says Pentagon, but aliens aren’t to blame — probably

Congress this week held its first public hearing on unidentified aerial phenomena in more than 50 years.

Most projects on Pentagon’s $5.7B lab ‘wish list’ likely to stay unfunded

The Pentagon's chief technology officer says addressing the lab and testing infrastructure gap is a top priority, but most of this year's unfunded facilities projects are too early in the design process for Congress to consider.

SOFIC

US troops heading back into Somalia, reversing Trump order

Fewer than 500 troops will be stationed inside the African country to train local forces and fight emerging threats.

This week in Congress: UFO debate flies into Capitol Hill

Defense and veterans hearings on Capitol Hill for the week of May 16, 2022.

Biden nominates defense industrial policy chief

U.S. President Joe Biden plans to nominate Laura Taylor-Kale, an Obama administration trade official, as the Pentagon’s industrial policy chief, the White House announced Friday.

Pentagon technology chief pledges support for DIU following director’s departure

Heidi Shyu, undersecretary of defense for research and engineering, said this week the Defense Innovation Unit has "very strong support" within the Department of Defense.

Pentagon may rethink how it determines which space programs are classified

Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy John Plumb said this week the guide, which is used to determine which programs should be classified, may need to be rewritten.

Pentagon tests high-power microwave systems against drones

The Joint Counter-Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Office has completed its third demonstration to look at capability that could fill identified gaps to defeat the growing drone threat around the world.

Stinger shortcut: US Army seeks special funding for missile supply chain

U.S. Army officials hitting supply chain snags on their way to restocking Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and Javelin anti-tank weapons sent to Ukraine may get a reprieve.

Xtend to supply hundreds of Wolverine Gen2 drones to US military

The Israeli company previously delivered several dozen Skylord counter-drone systems to the U.S. as part of a pilot program in 2020.

DARPA seeks funding for next phase of hypersonic weapon

Initial funding for MoHAWC would fund long-lead components for four flight-test systems, technology risk-reduction efforts and early ground tests.

From howitzers to suicide drones: Pentagon seeks right ‘balance’ on training Ukrainians on new arms

As the war in Ukraine drags into its third month, the United States is trying to figure out the best way – and the best pace – to train Ukrainian troops on how to use the Western arms flooding into the besieged nation.

US sending Ukraine electronic jamming gear in $150M package

The equipment will be siphoned from American defense stocks, marking the ninth drawdown for Ukraine since August 2021.

Lockheed, aiming to double Javelin production, seeks supply chain ‘crank up’

Lockheed Martin aims to nearly double production for Javelin anti-tank missiles from 2,100 to 4,000 per year, but it needs the supply chain to “crank up,” said its chief executive, Jim Taiclet.

Defense Innovation Unit chief to resign in September

Brown has served as DIU director since 2018 and will leave his post at the end of his term in September.

Pentagon reviewing hundreds of industry proposals in effort to rapidly arm Ukraine

Pentagon acquisition chief Bill LaPlante said Friday the influx of proposals will help mitigate supply chain issues, speed up production lines and address strategic objectives in the region.

After Ukraine invasion, is U.S. deterrence strategy already outdated?

Economic sanctions “clearly were not convincing to Russia in advance,” Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks said. “It’s not clear anything would have been convincing to Russia in advance; I’m not going to try to get into the head of Vladimir Putin."

DARPA’s nuclear space propulsion project advances to next phase

The agency wants to demonstrate the utility of more efficient, high-thrust propulsion systems for cislunar space operations and aims to fly a nuclear-powered space vehicle in fiscal 2026.