Today In Defense
Last Updated: Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, 1:07 PM PST
2025-12-03T13:07:09.913896-08:00 2025-12-03T13:07:09.913896-08:00 (2025-12-03T13:07:09.913896-08:00)
DefenseNews.com
• Stephen Losey
Pentagon Pre-Qualifies 1,000+ Firms — Including BAE, L3Harris and Elbit America — as Potential Vendors for 'Golden Dome' Missile-Defense Program
By DefenseNews.com: BAE Systems, L3Harris and Elbit America are some firms the Missile Defense Agency selected as potential vendors for a national missile defense shield.
F-16 Crash in California Near County Line; Pilot Hospitalized, Investigation Underway
By avweb.com: Emergency crews respond to likely F-16 accident near county line.
The Aviationist
Pilot Safe After USAF Thunderbirds F-16 Crashes in California
miragenews.com
Thunderbirds Aircraft Incident
The War Zone
• Thomas Newdick
F/A‑18 Super Hornet Employs Rare AGM‑84H/K SLAM‑ER on U.S. Strikes Against Houthi Targets
By The War Zone: The highly accurate AGM-84H/K was among the varied collection of precision-guided munitions used during U.S. operations against Houthi targets earlier this year.
The War Zone
• Tyler Rogoway
Images of Shahed-136 clone drones sent to the Middle East reveal satellite datalinks and swarming capabilities
By The War Zone: Images of the LUCAS drones sent to "flip the script" on Iran give insights into their advanced capabilities.
Air & Space Forces Mag
• Greg Hadley
USAF's 'Re-Optimization': Top Leaders Rule on What’s In, What’s Out
By Air & Space Forces Mag: After previous Air Force leaders announced a sweeping slate of re-optimization changes, the new top brass is discarding more than half.
Breaking Defense
Air Force (mostly) ditches Biden-era 'reoptimization'
U.S. Air Force Reoptimization: Senior Leaders Finalize What Stays — and What Goes
AeroTime
• Clement Charpentreau
Australia weighs transfer of Tiger helicopters to Ukraine
By AeroTime: Australia is considering sending its retiring Tiger helicopters to Ukraine as it announces a new A$95 million aid package and fresh sanctions on Russia.
Lockheed Martin
• News Release
Lockheed Martin Opens 17,000 sq ft Huntsville System Integration Lab to Accelerate Hypersonics Development
By Lockheed Martin: HUNTSVILLE, Ala., Dec. 3, 2025 – Lockheed Martin has opened a Hypersonics System Integration Lab (SIL) at its Huntsville campus...
