Defense & Aerospace Report

On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Dr. Tom Mahnken, the president and CEO of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the report he co-wrote his son Thomas Mahnken who is an analyst with the think tank — “Rising Stars Over the Pacific: Cultivating Indo-Pacific Expertise in the US Armed Forces” — that focuses on the importance of promoting senior officers with Indo-Pacific experience to better prepare prepare America’s military for potential conflict in the region.

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 Senate passage of a continuing resolution and implications for this year’s defense budget; why debt and deficit will be a 2027-2028 issues; Deputy Secretary Feinberg’s memo to industry giving companies 21 says to submit detailed plans to accelerate production of key platforms and systems, including munitions; whether it would make better sense to focus on munitions to better prioritize resources rather than accelerate everything all at once; why the initiative might be fleeting; analysis of the Defiant-class battleship that President Trump wants as the centerpiece of his “Golden Fleet;” BWXT, CACI, Honeywell Aerospace, Howmet, Palantir, Redwire, Rheinmetall and SpaceX 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 Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss a slightly up Wall Street despite continuing Middle East tensions, rising energy prices and a dismal jobs report as Tehran demands Washington make more concessions before the Strait of Hormuz is reopened; the Senate passes a continuing resolution to keep the government open until Dec. 11; Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg gives US defense contractors 21 days to draw up plans to accelerate production of key sensors, platforms and electronic warfare, munitions and space systems; Northrop Grumman’s B-21 bomber has been accelerated by 25 percent thanks to $4.5 billion invested in the program in last year’s reconciliation measure and Boeing’s F-47 fighter is on track for a 2028 fight flight, according to Gen. Dale White who’s overseeing B-21, the Sentinel ballistic missile effort, the F-47 and Air Force One; the joint Boeing-Lockheed Martin United Launch Alliance raised $500 million through a bond sale to refinance its debt; BETA Technologies struck a $1 billion deal with the Export-Import Bank of the United States to expand manufacturing and partnered with Lockheed Martin to bring the giant’s Matrix autonomy capabilities to BETA’s MV250 autonomous aircraft that debuted at the Farnborough International Airshow last month; and BWXT, Honeywell Aerospace, Howmet, Palantir, Redwire, Rheinmetall and SpaceX report earnings.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, sponsored by L3Harris, 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 the future of reconciliation, a continuing resolution and appropriations as well as the confirmation of Todd Blanche as attorney general; President Trump reportedly blasted Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the acute shortage of weapons that are said to have curtailed US options against Iran; US intelligence warns Russia might test NATO through a limited incursion into alliance territory as Washington frays relations with its European allies and faces depleted magazines; Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg’s Aug 5 memo to defense executives giving them 21 days to develop concrete plans to accelerate production of sensors, platforms and electronic warfare, munitions, and space systems; Democratic senators accuse Feinberg of steering contracts to firms involving the president’s sons; Iran and Oman continue to negotiate an agreement to jointly manage the strait of Hormuz including a transit corridor for traffic; Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan’s mutual security pact; Trump’s deal between Israel and Hamas, Jerusalem struck Hamas in Gaza as Hamas said it won’t give up its weapons, just lock them up; Russia is suspected of using explosive drones on Leipzig’s airport in the vicinity of Ukrainian cargo planes; China tightens its grip on the Scarborough Shoal as Beijing acknowledges two Chinese sailors were killed last year when one of its destroyers collided with one of its coast guard cutters while chasing a Philippine Coast Guard vessel; Japan’s new defense white paper — “Preparing for a New Era of Warfare;” Taiwan’s“Han Kuang” exercise to test wartime readiness; and why Pentagon policy chief Bridge Colby wants to go to China.

Last week, we talked air and missile defenses with Dr. Tom Karako of CSIS. This week, we opened the aperture to include all missile systems, as the various US services proceed on different paths to replenish and modernize their stocks. Steve Trimble, the defense editor of Aviation Week and Space Technology magazine and a certified missile head is with us for that tour of the horizon. And, of course, we have the week’s top headlines in airpower. Powered by GE!

Is ship count the right metric for measuring naval power? Carriers, missiles, people, the industrial base, where should the Navy invest or divest to ensure the fleet of the near future is sized at the appropriate capability and cost. These issues and more are addressed in depth in the Hudson Institute’s upcoming Fleet Design report. The CavasShips team of Christopher P. Cavas and Chris Servello cover for Vago today and share their recent conversation with Hudson's Bryan Clark, where he previews the study and discusses current naval operations.

Joe Kochan, the chief executive officer of the National Spectrum Consortium, joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the importance of better management and sharing of limited spectrum for national security needs, provides an update on new technologies members are offering the Department of War and the value of other transactional authority when it come to prototyping and moving faster.

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, Sash Tusa of Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss an up week on Wall Street and rising energy prices in the wake of wider conflict in the Middle East; higher Treasury yields in the wake of Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh’s communication stumble on explaining Fed’s decision to keep interest rates steady; President Trump call to suspend further Iran strikes pending a quick deal to end the war; despite an uncertain budget future, the Pentagon awarded Lockheed Martin a $58 billion contract for PAC 3 missiles that will also flow to companies like RTX and General Dynamics and HII $76.6 billion in contracts for nine Virginia-class attack subs and four Columbia-class ballistic missile subs; Washington and Tokyo worked together to prop up the yen, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent asking the New York Federal Reserve Bank to sell euros to buy yen; Britain’s Burnham government will release its budget on Oct. 28 that will include a $32 billion buffer as British bond yields near their post-2008 high after Washington and Jerusalem started their war on Iran; EasyJet says it’s got a 5.7 billion pound or $7.7 billion offer from Apollo Global Management; and Airbus, AerCap, Boeing, Bombardier, General Dynamics, Hexcel, HII, Leonardo and Leonardo DRS, Melrose, Safran, and Textron report earnings.

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 the national security headlines of the week.