AeroTime
• Stephen Pope
The US Navy is asking defense companies to propose autonomous combat aircraft capable of operating from aircraft carriers, conducting strike missions and carrying as much as 10,000 pounds of externally mounted weapons. The request signals an emphasis on integrating high-payload uncrewed platforms into carrier aviation.
Military Aircraft Procurement
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The US Navy is asking defense companies to propose autonomous combat aircraft capable of operating from aircraft carriers, conducting strike missions and carrying as much as 10,000 pounds of externally mounted weapons. The request signals an emphasis on integrating high-payload uncrewed platforms into carrier aviation.
Boeing has delivered the first F-15EX Eagle II designated for permanent deployment at Kadena Air Base, Japan. The aircraft, EX-22, is the 22nd F-15EX delivered and will eventually join the 18th Wing as the program faces questions about long-term sustainment.
The UK government is committing to equip Royal Air Force tankers with boom-refueling capability, a function the service does not currently possess. The move is being driven by the next-generation Tempest fighter and signals a change in RAF tanker requirements as the program develops.
Congress is considering funding for Boeing’s E-7 Wedgetail, the airborne early warning and control aircraft slated to replace the aging E-3 Sentry. The effort places the program’s future in the legislative process as lawmakers weigh resources for a next-generation command-and-control capability.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is set to visit the Pentagon and meet Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during a rollout of F-35 warplanes. The meeting follows what was described as an earlier snub, putting the encounter in focus as Germany advances its F-35 involvement.
The Republic of Korea Navy has selected GE Aerospace’s LM2500+G4 marine gas turbines for six KDDX next-generation destroyers. The order extends GE’s longstanding relationship with the ROKN and adds a major propulsion award to the company’s defense portfolio in South Korea’s naval modernization program.
Sierra Nevada will design a kit that converts a production C-130J into an LC-130J ski-equipped aircraft under a $31.8 million U.S. Air Force contract. The work advances the service’s ability to operate the Hercules from snow and ice-covered runways in austere environments.
Alpha Unmanned Systems will supply its lightweight A900 Class I remotely piloted helicopter to the Spanish Armada’s CEVENTA experimentation center for maritime-surveillance assessment. Separately, aviation authorities AESA and ENAIRE issued guidance for authorizing high-altitude unmanned platform operations, formalizing pathways for emerging systems in Spain.
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