* Concerns are raised that the presence of Chinese telecommunications companies in US markets may provide the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) with ‘back door’ opportunities to listen to communications networks.
* Analysts outline the pros and cons of the respective bidders for Japan’s fighter contest. While Lockheed Martin’s F-35 is regarded the favorite, outsourcing opportunities still make the Eurofighter Typhoon and Boeing’s F-18 Super Hornets serious contenders.
* Meanwhile, reports emerge that Japan’s Ministry of Defense is preparing to allocate Y7.9 billion ($120 million) to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for research relating to the ATD-X experimental aircraft program.
* Boeing’s proposed KC-46A 767 aerial tanker completes its 1st major program milestone.
* Russia signs off all but one contract for its heavily criticized arms procurement program.
* The Indian Air Force (IAF) tables proposals for the indigenous defense sector to develop a replacement for its fleet of Avro transport aircraft.
* CACI completes its $61.5 million acquisition of cybersecurity and IT solutions provider Paradigm Holdings.
* France’s Direction Générale de l’Armement (DGA) awards a consortium led by Alcatel-Lucent a 16-year contract worth €350 million ($500 million) to update the Air Force’s Internet Protocol-based telecommunication networks.
* Reports emerge that China has delayed the launch of its Tiangong 1 Space Lab. The delay is the result of the unsuccessful launch of a Shijian 11 satellite in mid-August.
* To follow up on yesterday’s report from the Commission on Wartime Reporting, C-Span has an interview (embedded below) of commission members Christopher Shays and Charles Tiefer.