Roxana Tiron

2 weeks ago | news.bgov.com | Roxana Tiron

House lawmakers have signaled their desire for the Pentagon to retain a national security accord with Australia and the UK as the Trump administration announced this week it’s reviewing the Biden-era deal to develop nuclear-powered submarines. The House Appropriations Committee approved by voice vote a provision that requires the Pentagon to report on the progress of the pact, referred to as AUKUS. It also requires the Defense Department to provide Congress with quarterly updates on the agreement.

2 weeks ago | news.bgov.com | Roxana Tiron

Lockheed Martin Corp. F-35 fighter aircraft have a decreased availability and use as they have aged, the Congressional Budget Office reports. The F-35 program —the Pentagon’s largest and costliest aircraft program—is producing three variants of a fifth-generation fighter aircraft for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. The Air Force has planned to procure a total of 1,763 F-35As, the most among the services.

2 weeks ago | news.bgov.com | Roxana Tiron |Tony Capaccio

The Air Force has cut in half its request to Congress for its signature F-35s, dealing a blow to Lockheed Martin Corp., the top US defense contractor. A Defense Department procurement request document sent to Capitol Hill this week asked for 24 of the planes, down from 48 that was forecast last year. The proposed cut is significant because the Air Force is the largest customer for the world’s biggest weapons program.

2 weeks ago | news.bgov.com | Roxana Tiron |Ryan Chua |Julie Johnsson

The US and Qatar have yet to sign a memorandum of understanding for a luxury jumbo jet gifted by the Gulf country that President Donald Trump wants for Air Force One, his top defense chief told senators on Wednesday. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also said he’s unaware of any contract being executed with a US firm to retrofit the Boeing Co. 747-8, which would need sophisticated defense and communications systems to protect the president.

2 weeks ago | news.bloomberglaw.com | Tony Capaccio |Roxana Tiron

GAO releases its Weapons Systems Annual AssessmentColumbia-class sub thought critical in possible China conflictThe price tag for the first two new Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines “significantly” exceeds their projected cost, Congress’s audit agency said, complicating the Trump administration’s goals for its Navy fleet. The Government Accountability Office made the assessment Wednesday in its annual report that updates Congress and the public on the Pentagon’s weapons portfolio.