* BAE Systems returns to profitability in 2010, but expects decline in 2011 sales due to reduced volume at its Land and Armaments unit and UK defense cutbacks.
* Arrest made in 2010 theft of 3,000 US special ops laptops – worth $7.2 million – from an iGov Technologies facility in Tampa, FL.
* Pentagon chief Robert Gates and JCS Chairman Michael Mullen face Senate grilling over FY 2012 budget request, after similar treatment by the House.
* US Army awards IT services contracts worth up to $400 million to 15 small businesses.
* Reports continue to suggest that the Spike anti-armor missiles South Korea deployed to Yeonpyeong Island after North Korea’s attack, may in fact be RAFAEL’s Spike NLOS variant, with a 25 km range, beyond line of sight capability, and GPS guidance options.
* RAF looks to dismiss about 25% of its trainee pilots as budget cuts – some just 30-40 hours short of qualification, after several years of effort.
* Lockheed Martin gets $34.5 million USAF contract to supply Paveway II Plus Laser Guided Bomb (LGB) GBU-12 kits.
* US Marines are preparing for a more frugal future, and SecDef Gates has accepted their post-Afghanistan plan. As part of that, they’re looking at alternative energy to power expeditionary equipment, instead of spending on equipment and fuel to bring fuel and materials in. The 2011 Cobra Gold exercise with Thailand features 3 experimental solar-power sources and a water purification pump.
* Georgia’s defense spending is expected to grow 7% per year, reaching $485.3 million by 2015, according to iCD Research.
* What out! That humming bird in your garden might be a US military spy bird.
* When it comes to protecting oneself from governments, encryption is a 2-edged sword.