A Spookier Spooky, 30mm at a Time? Nope.

AC-130U & flares

In 2006 GD was contracted to repackage A-10 ammo for AC-130 Gunships. As is so often the case, there’s a story behind the story. The USA’s fearsome AC-130U “Spooky” Hercules gunships were having their old 40mm Bofors cannons and 25mm GAU-12 gatling guns removed, and replaced with ATK’s 30mm MK44 autocannons.

It didn’t go very well. In the end, accuracy and operational needs trumped standardization, and the 40mm and 25mm guns had to go back in…

Rapid Fire March 1st, 2012: Supplier Relationship Management

• US SecDef Panetta told the House Budget Committee in a hearing yesterday that he would start planning for sequestration this summer if Congress has not reached a deal by then. It is likely he will have to, and that is not even factoring in new debates over the debt ceiling.

• From the Center for European Reform: What US retrenchment means for Europe and NATO [PDF].

• Mark Collins is rounding up videos of the recent 2012 Ottawa Conference on Defence and Security. One thing that was not provided there or elsewhere: a definitive price tag for the F-35. It’s hard to get there when ordered quantities are in a state of flux.