Defense & Aerospace Report

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the implications of President Trump’s steady efforts to normalize relations with Russia including the recent deal with Vladimir Putin to acquire 4 million tons of diesel fuel to reduce costs increased by the Iran war; the ongoing Iran war; major Pentagon deals including the US Navy’s contract with RTX for Standard Missile-6 weapons and the subcontractor to Boeing to triple production of seeks for Lockheed Martin’s PAC-3 missile; the US Air Force and Defense Innovation Unit’s decision to award contracts to several competitors in the service’s Massed Modular Aiorcraft competition for a lower cost replacement for the Reaper aircraft; the Navy’s contract with Anduril for submarine parts; expectations as companies prepare to release third quarter earnings; and a look at the week ahead and in Washington and beyond.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. “Rocket” Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities, Sash Tusa of the independent equity research firm Agency Partners and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss a new all time high for Wall Street; weeks after signing tougher sanctions on Moscow, President Trump partners with Vladimir Putin to reduce oil prices before the November election by buying 4 million tons of Russian diesel; whether the effort will succeed to cut oil prices as it bolster’s Russia’s war coffers against Ukraine; the administration’s warning to Kyiv against striking Russia even as Moscow escalates attacks on Ukrainian civilians; British Prime Minister Andy Burnham and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s agreement to enhance military and economic cooperation between the countries that could extend to the Global Combat Air Program; the US Air Force’s abrupt withdrawal of US bombers from Britain over concerns of Iranian attack; analysis of US Navy’s $24.4 billion award to Raytheon for Standard Missile-6 production, the $14.7 billion award to Boeing to triple production of seekers for Lockheed Martin’s PAC-3 MSE or Missile Segment Enhancement, and the US Navy’s $6.6 billion contract to Anduril for nuclear submarine parts; the Air Force and Defense Innovation Unit tap seven competitors for the service’s Massed Modular Aircraft effort to succeed the Reaper, including Anduril, Chaos Industries, General Atomics, Grid Aero, Otto Aerospace, Shield AI and Swarm Aero; and Northrop Grumman’s YFQ-48A Talon Blue’s maiden autonomous flight.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, Dr. Patrick Cronin of the Hudson Institute think tank, Michael Herson of American Defense International, former DoD Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, and former Pentagon Comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim of the Center for Strategic and International Studies join Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss Russia’s expanding strikes on Ukraine and Black Sea shipping, sinking a Togo-flagged cargo ship off the Bulgarian coast with all hands missing; how NATO should respond to Moscow’s escalating hybrid operations as well as kinetic actions to deter further aggression; questions about the alliance’s cohesion as Washington continues to warm relations with Moscow, inviting Vladimir Putin to attend the upcoming G20 meeting; Britain and Germany agree to bolster military and economic cooperation; the US Air Force withdraws bombers from Britain over security concerns as Israel says Iran was targeting American bases in Europe; Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s address in Athens; the backlash in the wake of the arrest of a US Marine on Okinawa accused of killing a local woman; the FBI arrest of a Chinese national accused of spying on the Taiwanese leader’s son; the growing US-China AI competition; Pakistan, Syria, and Turkey help Saudi Arabia in its fight against Houthis attacking the kingdom’s energy infrastructure as Washington quietly supports Riyadh despite having inked a deal with the Tehran-backed Yemeni group for safe passage of US and Israel ships through the Bab al-Mandab; Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu tries to exploit the heroism of Israeli passengers that thwarted an attempt by the pilot to crash a recent FlyDubai flight, but faces criticism for failing to investigate the background of the pilot to who surveilled Ben Gurion airport before the flight; and Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., a long-time Israel supporter who now opposes aid.

On this month’s Technology Report, sponsored by Clarion Defence, Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian is joined by retired British Army Lt. Gen. Stuart Skeats, the Apex Europe chairman, to  discuss takeaways from this year’s inaugural event; Dr. Ben Tallis, Helsing’s head of policy and analysis, discusses the right model to ensure the growth of new defense entrants and more; and Robert Field, Greensight Defense’ director of strategic accounts, discusses how the commercial drone maker that got its start supporting golf courses is expanding its military business. To learn more about attendance and sponsorship opportunities visit http://APEXdefense.org

The air and missile defense world is changing fast, with new concepts being developed and tried in operations around the world. We cover all the latest with Dr. Tom Karako, Director of the Air and Missile Defense program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Plus, did Boeing win F/A-XX… by a nose? Powered by GE Aerospace!

On today’s Land Warfare Series program, sponsored American Rheinmetall, Dan Roper, a retired US Army colonel who is now the director of national security studies at the Association of the United States Army’s Land Warfare Institute, joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the theme of the upcoming AUSA conference and tradeshow; and Matt Warnick, the CEO of American Rheinmetall, discusses the Pentagon’s drive to accelerate production; the land systems supply chain; working with the Pentagon and the Army to strip programs of unnecessary requirements and red tape; developing a new generation workforce; continuing Ukraine war lessons; implications of Secretary Hegseth’s new drone command; an update on the XM30 program; and lessons from the recent loss in the US Army’s competition for a new wheeled self-propelled howitzer. Our coverage of AUSA is sponsored by Lockheed Martin.

On today’s program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the latest headlines and looks at the week ahead.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. “Rocket” Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss a winning week on Wall Street; the Trump administration’s move to obligate $142 billion of $152 billion in spending approved by last year, funding President Trump’s priority Golden Dome missile defense system, ships and other programs; G7 nations release 100 million barrels of oil and diesel from their strategic reserves to tamp down energy prices that soared after the United States and Israel attacked Iran in February; Russia targets Ukraine’s power, heating and water systems as European nations lobby to life sanctions on oligarchs to free their nationals being held hostage by Russian allies; the US Navy’s decision to pick Boeing over Northrop Grumman for the FA-XX sixth-generation carrier-capable combat-aircraft; the Air Force’s $2.4 billion award to Boeing for 22 F-15EX Eagle II fighters and $20.7 billion for Raytheon to increase production of AIM-120 air-to-air missiles to 1,900 a year; Canada’s decision to buy six GlobalEye airborne early warning aircraft from Saab; Germany considers buying 16 new A400M transports from Airbus; and analysis of the capabilities of a 737 in the wake of the FlyDubai flight from the UAE to Israel that landed safely after one of the plane’s pilots tried to crash the plane.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, sponsored by L3Harris, Dr. Patrick Cronin of the Hudson Institute think tank, former DoD Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, and former Pentagon Comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim of the Center for Strategic and International Studies join Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the Trump administration’s obligation of $142 billion in spending before the funding expired, US bond yields hit nearly 5.3 percent, the highest since 2002; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth laid out his vision for the force to junior leaders, including a panel to study of the future of war, a new drone combatant command and a giant new base to house American troops returning to the United States; Russia threatens NATO with nuclear weapons as the alliance grapples with how to respond to Moscow’s increasing hybrid provocations; President Trump turns down a deal with Iran; Abu Dhabi and Riyadh work to reconcile differences as Syria and Hezbollah meet in Turkey; Israel’s prime minister visits the UAE; Xi Jinping marks China’s national day after returning from his summit with President Trump; Beijing’s second military base in the Indo-Pacific; and Seoul approves the first major investment in the United States since President Lee Jae Myung made his pledge last year to spend $350 billion in America.

Missiles and drones (slow missiles) put the bang in airpower. But given how many we used in Iran, what would U.S. magazines have to look like to, say, defend Taiwan from the Chinese? Dr. Stacie Pettyjohn and Phil Sheers of the Center for a New American Security answered that question, and we get into the details. Plus: The Navy gets a new FAXX machine. Powered by GE Aerospace!