Rapid Fire: 2010-11-24

• Volley for serve: US sits tight after North Korea launches artillery volley against South’s Yeonpyeong island.

• This comes hard on the heels of revelations that North Korea has a large, modern uranium enrichment facility, using P-2 centrifuges. This is less an intelligence failure, than an example of intelligence warnings not acted on.

• Chinese drones raising eyebrows. The UAVs’ actual effectiveness is in question, but Chinese determination to produce a wide variety of them is not.

• As part of its defense budget cuts, German Defense Minister Guttenberg says military conscription will end July 1/11.

• Weapons bazaar: Afghanistan could look to buy military equipment from non-NATO countries if NATO supplies prove insufficient, President Karzai said. Of course, they’re already doing that in several areas, like helicopters. Wonder what China would offer for more mineral concessions?

• Northrop Grumman to provide data management support for the DoD’s Defense Manpower Data Center under the $20 billion CIO-SP2i contract vehicle.

• Taxi tests begin testing for Boeing’s X-45C Phantom Ray stealth UCAV.

• 10th USN C-40A Clipper aircraft delivered by Boeing.

• US NAVAIR receives an initial 11 JSOW-C1 glide bombs with moving target capability, per the JSOW Block III contract.

• ITT delivers the first sponsons for Sikorsky’s new CH-53K heavy-lift naval helicopter.

• Hurt Locker: Face shields on helmets could reduce brain injuries from explosives.

• Yes, flying snakes: DARPA funds research into the aerodynamics of flying snakes. Which, we must admit, are pretty neat little beasties (q.v. video) that can even turn in the air.