Industry News

General Electric‘s aviation segment has received a one-year, $80.5 million “undefinitized” contract from the U.S. Navy to repair and replace 32 head-of-family items and other components utilized on the T64 engine. The contractor will also provide configuration management support as well as help the service branch meet delivery metrics and operate a T64 logistics management system […] More

The U.S. Navy has awarded a $42.3 million contract to Boeing and a $43.2 million contract to Lockheed Martin to design an extra large unmanned undersea vehicle platform as well as deliver a technical data package. The contracts represent the first phase of the competitive Orca XLUUV acquisition program and include priced options for the project’s second phase, the Defense […] More

AM General has received orders worth more than $550 million to supply High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles to nine countries through the U.S. foreign military sales program. The Humvee delivery orders come from Afghanistan, Bahrain, Bosnia, Colombia, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Slovenia and Ukraine, AM General said Thursday. The orders were issued through a five-year, $2.2 billion […] More

General Electric‘s Marine Solutions subsidiary has selected RJE Global to assemble gas turbine modules and produce engine components in support of the Australian navy’s frigate program. Marine Solutions said Wednesday that the memorandum of understanding requires RJE to produce LM2500 modules for the nine-ship SEA 5000 Future Frigate program which aims to replace legacy Australian Anzac-class […] More

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has posted a request for information on companies, universities or inventors that can help NGA develop artificial intelligence algorithms trained on geospatial data. NGA said Tuesday in a FedBizOpps notice it aims to produce computer vision algorithms on geospatial training data, such as overhead video and still photography, through a public-private partnership. The agency […] More

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has said he wants to send at least two cargo ships to Mars by 2022 in an effort to determine hazards, establish life-support infrastructure and identify potential water resources, CNBC reported Friday. Musk plans to carry out that plan through the development of a 42-engine rocket system called BFR designed to […] More

Lockheed Martin has unveiled at the International Astronautical Congress in Australia a new concept that seeks to bring astronauts to Mars in about 10 years. The Mars Base Camp concept involves a mission architecture that focuses on an orbital outpost designed to help astronauts carry out scientific studies and explore the red planet, Lockheed said […] More

Cummins has teamed up with Achates Power to build and demonstrate an engine for the U.S. Army’s next-generation tactical and combat vehicles under a $47.4 million contract. Cummins said Thursday it secured the contract from the National Advanced Mobility Consortium as part of the Advanced Combat Engine project that supports the Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and […] More

Leidos has won a potential $47.6 million contract from the U.S. Air Force to research and develop integrated electro-optical imaging technology prototypes. The Defense Department said Thursday the project aims to evolve and increase the capacity of emerging high-resolution and hyperspectral imaging; infrared search and track; and sense and avoid technologies. The Air Force Research […] More

The Defense Department wants industry to voluntary share information on potential weaknesses in its supply chain as part of a review led by DoD, Defense News reported Thursday. President Donald Trump signed in July an executive order that calls for a cross-government evaluation of U.S. manufacturers’ capacity to support the defense industrial base. John McGinn, […] More

Nigel Whitehead, BAE Systems chief technologist, has said he believes that directed energy weapons can be deployed aboard fighter aircraft in the not-too distant future, FlightGlobal reported Wednesday. Whitehead told reporters during his visit to Singapore that directed energy weapons should be able to beam energy precisely on one spot to disrupt targets such as aircraft, munitions […] More