* LockgropBoetheon? Brett Lambert, deputy assistant secretary for defense industrial base policy, says the Pentagon would have to reconsider its opposition to any further consolidation among primes if sequestration is implemented.
* DoD guidelines may allow UAV exports from the US to up to 66 countries, but they can’t help until ITAR reform is completed, reports Reuters. And that’s not a done deal.
* UAS manufacturer AeroVironment started its new fiscal year with a 5% drop in revenue, down to $58.7M for the quarter. Their funded backlog however rose by $5.2M to $98.4M.
* Navistar’s revenue is also decreasing, dragged down by lower military truck sales. In the past few weeks they lost the JTLV EMD competition and appointed Textron’s former CEO as their interim CEO.
* China is sustaining its military and infrastructural assistance to Sri Lanka: The Hindu | Washington Times. The CNAS think tank notes how China has used its foreign investments to gain influence [PDF] among its closer neighbors, in parallel with deliberate escalation [PDF].
* RAND reviewed the state of DoD supply chain integration and opportunies for efficiency gains.
* DARPA’s Cheetah 4-legged robot reached 28.3 mph (45.5 kph) on a treadmill, 10 mph over its previous record.
* French defense electronics manufacturer Safran was fined 500,000 euros (about $630K) for bribery in an ID card contract with Nigeria a decade ago. Reuters | Le Monde [in French].