Military Times
• Michael Scanlon
Boeing has unveiled a radar seeker for guided weapons that uses off-the-shelf parts to reduce one of the most expensive elements of a missile. The company says lowering seeker costs could allow the military to procure larger quantities of guided weapons.
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Missile Systems & Strategic Weapons
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Boeing has unveiled a radar seeker for guided weapons that uses off-the-shelf parts to reduce one of the most expensive elements of a missile. The company says lowering seeker costs could allow the military to procure larger quantities of guided weapons.
Initial funding for Golden Dome is beginning to flow into contracts covering satellite sensors, interceptor weapons and other missile-defense programs, according to defense executives. But uncertainty over the initiative’s long-term funding continues to complicate planning for the Pentagon and the contractors assembling its capabilities.
SpaceX is expanding its role in missile defense, according to a summary from Huntsville, Alabama. The development points to a broader position for the company in national-security space and defense activity, though the available reporting does not specify the program, contract value, systems involved or timeline.
Golden Dome could strengthen U.S. defenses against global missile threats, but delivering the system will depend on whether the defense industrial base can modernize, expand capacity and overcome existing production constraints. The initiative therefore presents an industrial-base challenge alongside its strategic and technological ambitions.
Vertical Aerospace has secured about €86.6 million ($100 million) in financing commitments from existing and new investors to advance its piloted, four-passenger Valo electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft through certification and toward commercial production. The funding comes as the program approaches a critical design review.
DARPA is developing a hypersonic cruise missile designed to evade enemy air defenses, responding to Pentagon concerns that existing U.S. missiles may be vulnerable. The effort signals a focus on increasing the survivability and effectiveness of U.S. strike capabilities against increasingly capable defensive systems.
High activity
The U.S. Air Force is pursuing an AI tool to reduce the labor required to manage Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile sustainment. The system would help personnel sift through data from roughly 60 sources, targeting a more efficient approach to maintaining the strategic weapons system.
DARPA has opened a search for next-generation hypersonic cruise missiles launched from fighter aircraft and bombers, signaling a focus on new weapon concepts and broader participation from emerging defense suppliers. The effort targets advances in missile technology and could reshape competition in the strategic weapons sector.
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