Latest updates[?]: Italy may drop out of its F-35 deal with Lockheed Martin. Italy’s defense minister Elisabetta Trenta has said that the government will not buy more fighter jets and is considering whether to stick to the order to which it is already committed. Trenta comes from the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement which has always been critical of the multi-billion purchase, saying that the money would be better spent to strengthen welfare and invest in European defense projects. However, she also acknowledged the fact that cancelling the placed order may result in strong financial penalties. Italy is a Tier 2 partner in the F-35 JSF program and has made significant investments in its development. The country intends to host a European Final Assembly and Check-Out (FACO) production line in Cameri, near Milan.

Latest updates[?]: Jane’s reports that the Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace Joint Strike Missile (JSM) has entered its final phase of development. The air-launched Joint Strike Missile (JSM) variant is designed to be carried and launched internally from the F-35 Lightning II fighter’s 2 internal bays or carried on external hardpoints by any aircraft type that has integrated the weapon with its systems. Kongsberg changed the wings, moved the intake to the missile’s sides, and added other modifications as the missile progresses through the development phase. Size shrinks slightly to 12’2?, and weight drops to 677lb. Because it’s air launched at speed, range expands to over 175 miles/ 150 nautical miles, with greater range enhancements if launched from higher altitudes. Pending a Final Design Review in June, development of the missile is scheduled for completion by the end of 2018, following which it will be prepared for integration, carriage, and release trials with the Royal Norwegian Air Force’s F-35A Lightning II multirole stealth fighter.

Latest updates[?]: The Navy is contracting Advanced Acoustic Concepts LLC in support of the Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) platform. The cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost-reimbursement modification is valued at $12.2 million and provides for software engineering services to support the LCS Mission Modules program. The Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship has been designed to counter a number of “asymmetric” threats like coastal mines, quiet diesel submarines, global piracy, and terrorists on small fast attack boats. Instead of designing a single platform that is able to take over those tasks the Navy opted for developing a ship that can be adapted to specific mission requirements by integrating swappable mission modules. Therefore, the LCS program includes packages for Mine Warfare, Anti-submarine Warfare and Surface Warfare. The LCS Mission Modules Program Office packages a variety of technologies to these ends, many of which are produced by other program offices and delivered as elements of a particular mission module. Work will be performed in Hauppauge, New York; Columbia, Maryland and Lemont Furnace, Pennsylvania, and is expected to be completed by June 2019.

Latest updates[?]: Lockheed Martin is being tapped for work in support of the Air Force’s Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) system. The $9.2 million cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order provides for the continued conversion of the JASSM Extended Range (ER) missile operational flight program (MOFP) software baseline. The 2,000-pound AGM-158 JASSM is intended to be a stealthy, inexpensive GPS/IIR guided cruise missile. It’s designed to attack well-defended targets without putting its carrier aircraft in the crosshairs of new long-range surface to air missile systems. The JASSM-ER shares about 70% of hardware and 95% of the software with the normal JASSM. The Extended Range version however comes with an increased range of over 500 nautical miles and is certified for use in environments where GPS is heavily jammed, or not available. A preliminary software design review includes both the MOFP and an integrated flight simulation. Under this contract Lockheed will provide support, source data and analysis so that the government can obtain an authority to operate the C++ version of the JASSM-ER weapon system. Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be complete by August 2019.

Latest updates[?]: The Navy is tapping Orbital ATK Inc. to upgrade its inventory of guided missiles. The awarded contract modification is valued at $171 million and provides for the procurement of full-rate production for the Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) in support of the Navy and the government of Australia. Under the contract Orbital ATK will convert 271 provided AGM-88B High Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles into 253 Navy AGM-88E AARGM all-up-rounds (AURs). The AGM-88E AARGM is a medium range, supersonic, air-launched tactical missile compatible with U.S. and allied strike aircraft, including all variants of the F/A-18, Tornado, EA-18G, F-16, EA-6B, and F-35. Its primary job is to attack and kill enemy radars. AARGM’s production phase may total up to $1.4 billion for 2,121 missiles, to equip the US Navy, US Marine Corps and partnering nations. The contract also includes an option to exercise related services necessary for AARGM manufacture and deployment. Work will be performed in Northridge and Ridgecrest, California and is expected to be completed in March 2020.

Latest updates[?]: Raytheon is being tapped for further production of two sets of kits in support of the Tomahawk cruise missile. The $19.2 million contract modification provides for the procurement of nine mid-body range safety subsystem (MRSS) kits and flight test (FT) kits for the Navy and three MRSS and FT kits for the United Kingdom. The MRSS is installed into flight test configured missiles, one of its key components is the PCM Encoder, which Encoder samples the flight test missile guidance and avionics telemetry data stream, encodes and formats the data, and provides the telemetry information to the ground monitoring station. Block IV Tomahawk is the current generation of the Tomahawk family of cruise missiles. It adds innovative technologies that improve combat flexibility, while dramatically reducing the costs to buy, operate, and support these missiles. The Block IV missile is designed to engage targets 1,000 miles away from maritime platforms, a characteristic the manufacturer says can help keep deployed sailors out of harms way on the battlefield. Work will be performed at multiple locations, including Tucson, Arizona; Boulder, Colorado and Lancaster, Pennsylvania, among others. This effort combines purchases for the Navy ($15,6 million); and the government of the United Kingdom ($3,5 million).

Latest updates[?]: Lockheed Martin has successfully tested its newly developed Long Range Anti-Ship Missiles (LRASM). The test was conducted over the Sea Range of Naval Air Station Point Mugu, California. Two missiles were launched from a B-1B bomber, after making their way through several waypoints the missiles successfully hit a moving vessel. The LRSAM is the Navy’s answer to a growing problem that threatens its freedom of the seas. The missiles are a new generation of anti-ship weapons, offering longer ranges and better odds against improving air defense systems. The LRASM is designed to detect and destroy specific targets within groups of ships using its sensors, encrypted communications and a digital anti-jamming GPS. The missile can be launched from the F/A-18 Super Hornet, the B1-B Lancer, the F-35 Lightning II and from a vertical launch system on a Navy destroyer. It is designed to be used in battle against the surface ships of advanced foes, such as China or Russia.

Latest updates[?]: Raytheon has wrapped up development testing as part of efforts to integrate its Joint Standoff Weapon C (JSOW C) onto the F-35C Joint Strike Fighter. Speaking in a company press release, Raytheon said the the low-cost, air-to-ground missile is on track for full deployment in 2019. The latest test took place at the US Navy's China Lake ranges in California with participation from Raytheon, the F-35 Joint Program Office, and the F-35's manufacturer Lockheed Martin. "With JSOW C in its internal weapons bay, the Navy's F-35C can now eliminate the toughest ground targets from significant standoff ranges," said Mike Jarrett, vice president of Raytheon Air Warfare Systems.

Latest updates[?]: Speaking at a hearing of the US Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging threats, Air Force Lt. Gen. Marshall Webb told lawmakers that the service still lacks adequate funds for a program to add a laser to the AC-130J gunship. The Head of Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), Webb was answering a question from Sen. Martin Heinrich on why the service is moving slowly from testing a four-kilowatt laser to a 30-kilowatt version and now directly to a 60-kilowatt laser. "We're $58 million short of having a full program that would get us a 60-kilowatt laser flying on an AC-130 by 2022," Webb stated. In February, Webb told a roundtable discussion with reporters at the Air Force Association's Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Florida, that the "challenge on having the laser is funding."

Latest updates[?]: Finland has been cleared for the foreign military sale of Mk 41 Baseline VII Strike-Length Vertical Launching Systems by the US State Department. Valued at an estimated $70 million, the sale includes four vertical launching systems, spares, handling equipment, test equipment, operator manuals and technical documentation, US Government and contractor engineering, training, technical, and logistical support services, and other related elements of logistical support. Lockheed Martin will act as lead contractor. The systems will be integrated on Finland's upcoming fleet of four new corvettes, and follows a series of FMS clearances earlier this month for naval weapons as part of an ambitious naval modernization program.