* Raytheon pays hefty fee of $490 million to acquire military cybersecurity firm Applied Signal after intense bidding war.
* Germany’s Wegmann Group acquires Siemens AG’s 49% stake in land vehicle leader Krauss-Maffei Wegmann GmbH & Co. KG (KMW). They will become the sole shareholder, pending regulatory and anti-trust approvals.
* Israel is reportedly deploying Merkava tanks equipped with “Windbreaker”/Trophy active defense systems to the Gaza border, in view of recent ATGM attacks and intelligence reports that Hamas has upgraded its anti-tank capabilities. The lessons from the 2006 war are at work.
* On the other hand, the Iron Dome rocket protection system for Israeli towns remains in storage, even though rocket attacks are increasing again.
* Australian media say Sikorsky’s MH-60R may have an edge over the NH90-NFH in Australia’s naval helicopter competition. Time will tell.
* Colombia sought aerial defense system from US to counter Venezuela, US documents from WikiLeaks show. Given Venezuela’s recent buys, that can’t be surprising.
* Patria’s deal with Sweden for at least 113 AMV 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carriers has survived legal challenges, and become a binding contract.
* US cautious about North Korean pledge to allow IAEA nuclear inspectors.
* BAE Systems snags $14 million US Navy contract to supply 4 AN/SQQ-32(V)4 minehunting sonar systems that are replacing the Raytheon-supplied AN/SQQ-32(V)3 sonar [PDF] currently employed aboard the MCM-1 Avenger Class minesweepers.
* DARPA launches programs intended to prevent cybersecurity Pearl Harbor.
* Harris gets $5.5 million USMC order for additional vehicular amplifier adapters for the Falcon III AN/PRC-117G wideband tactical radios.