Americas
Georgia Tech Applied Research won a $7.7 million deal for sustainment support for the prototype Band 8 Reactivation hardware for the B-1B. Work will be performed in Atlanta, Georgia; Warner Robins, Georgia; and Owego, New York, and is expected to be completed May 31, 2026.
Vigor Marine won a $28 million for a 165-calendar day shipyard availability for the post shakedown availability of Military Sealift Command’s fleet replenishment oiler USNS John Lewis (T-AO 205). This contract includes a base period and 12 options which, if exercised would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $29,780,233. Work will be performed in Portland, Oregon, beginning September 1, 2023, and is expected to be completed by February 12, 2024.
Middle East & Africa
Twenty-two US soldiers were injured in a helicopter accident in northeastern Syria at the weekend that did not involve any reported enemy fire, US Central Command said. “A helicopter mishap in northeastern Syria resulted in injuries of various degrees to 22 US service members” on Sunday, CENTCOM said in a statement. The United States has about 1,000 troops deployed in Syria as part of international efforts to combat jihadists and periodically carries out strikes targeting militants in the country.
Europe
German lawmakers on Wednesday approved an advance payment for the purchase of the sophisticated Arrow 3 air defense system from Israel for nearly $4.3 billion. The budget committee in the lower house of parliament gave the green light for an initial payment of 560 million euros, a committee source told AFP. The long-range Arrow 3 system, designed to shoot down missiles above the Earth’s atmosphere, is powerful enough to offer protective cover for neighboring European Union states.
The Danish government is considering purchasing military submarines again after retiring its entire fleet in 2004. The move reportedly aims to bolster the country’s maritime capabilities and deter Russian expeditions in the Baltic Sea. According to Copenhagen foreign policy committee chairman Michael Aastrup Jensen, Danish lawmakers are assessing whether the Scandinavian nation needs to procure new submarines or rely on international allies to secure the sea.
Asia-Pacific
In an article from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists examining China’s hypersonic capabilities, attention is drawn to the country’s surprising development of a hypersonic glide vehicle combined with a fractional orbital bombardment system. The writer highlights the potential implications of this technology, particularly its ability to deliver payloads faster and more covertly than existing systems. The article delves into the details of China’s 2021 test, where a hypersonic glide vehicle traveled nearly 25,000 miles and reached hypersonic speeds. The combination of a hypersonic glide vehicle with a fractional orbital bombardment system raises concerns about the potential for rapid delivery of nuclear payloads from space, surpassing the limitations of traditional ballistic missiles.
Today’s Video
WATCH: The Arrow 3 BALLISTIC MISSILE INTERCEPTOR
