Aircraft Carrier   North America   Geopolitical Developments & Conflict Impact  
Associated Press • Associated Press

USS Gerald R. Ford returns to Naval Station Norfolk after record 326-day deployment across North Sea, Mediterranean, Caribbean a

The US Navy’s nuclear-powered supercarrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) returned to Virginia on Saturday, ending a 326-day deployment—the longest since Vietnam. The cruise included operations tied to the Iran war and support for the mission that led to the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and earned the ship and escorts a Presidential Unit Citation.

Also: The Independent
2026-05-16T07:54:56.501768-07:00
Supply Chain   Europe   Military Aircraft Procurement   Missile Systems & Strategic Weapons   Defense Industry & Major Contractors   Policy & Regulation   Export Controls & Trade Compliance   Defense Deals   Boeing  
FlightGlobal • Craig Hoyle

UK F-35s to gain SDB-II weapons, as MoD details corrosion challenge after maritime deployment

By FlightGlobal: Precision-guided bomb order remains subject to final approval. The UK’s Lockheed Martin F-35B combat aircraft will be equipped with Boeing Small Diameter Bomb II (SDB-II) weapons as an interim step, due to ongoing delays with integrating a European-produced alternative.

Also: Janes, Aviation Week, UK Defence Journal and 3 more
2026-05-15T04:12:16.071143-07:00
UAV Development & Drone Programs   AI   Helicopter   Europe   Military Aircraft Procurement   Aviation Safety & Regulation   Defense Industry & Major Contractors   Geopolitical Developments & Conflict Impact   Defense Policy  
FlightGlobal • Dominic Perry

Nyx picks: UK MoD selects four contenders for Apache ‘loyal wingman’ project

By FlightGlobal: Anduril, BAE Systems, Tekever and Thales will share £10 million for work on autonomous aircraft platforms.

Also: Aviation Week, Urban Air Mobility News, UK Defence Journal, defence-blog.com and defence-industry.eu
2026-05-15T04:38:12.321145-07:00
Military Aircraft Procurement   Missile Systems & Strategic Weapons   Defense Industry & Major Contractors   Defense Policy  
The War Zone • Joseph Trevithick

Secretive AIM-260 Air-To-Air Missile Finally Breaks Cover

By The War Zone: The AIM-260 has been in development for years as a much-needed longer-range successor to the venerable AIM-120 AMRAAM. Add TWZ (opens in a new tab) More information Adding us as a Preferred Source in Google by using this link indicates that you would like to see more of our content in Google News results.

Also: The Aviationist, Aviation Week and Times of India
2026-05-15T11:01:11.571863-07:00
Hypersonic   Supply Chain   Military Aircraft Procurement   Missile Systems & Strategic Weapons   Defense Industry & Major Contractors  
DefenseNews.com • Cristina Stassis

US Army to receive thousands of Barracuda-500M cruise missiles in Anduril deal

By DefenseNews.com: The Pentagon’s Low-Cost Containerized Missiles program aims to obtain over 10,000 low-cost cruise missiles over a three-year span.

Also: Army Times, Military Times and defensemirror.com
2026-05-15T12:38:49.643415-07:00