TODAY’S TOP 5
1. Interview with U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry (Video)
“Defense News” host Vago Muradian talks to U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, vice chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, on defense spending and related issues.
2. Is the F-35 worth it? (With Video)
(60 Minutes) The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is the Pentagon's newest warplane and its most expensive weapons system ever -- nearly $400 billion to buy 2,400 aircraft. To put that in perspective, that’s about twice as much as it cost to put a man on the moon -- this at a time when the White House and Congress are fighting over ways to reduce the federal deficit and cuts in defense spending are forcing the Pentagon to shrink the size of the military.
3. Take Two for the Taliban?
(Jason Campbell in US News & World Report) A recent BBC News interview with Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahed, reportedly the first with a senior Taliban official in 18 months, revealed that the group is confident that it will once again take over Afghanistan following the upcoming “fake” elections and eventual departure of international security forces. Such remarks are unsurprising and will likely ramp up in 2014 as the Taliban propaganda machine makes every attempt to derail what will be a critical year of transition for the Afghan government.
4. U.S. seeks new bases for drones targeting Al Qaeda in Pakistan
(Los Angeles Times) The Obama administration is making contingency plans to use air bases in Central Asia to conduct drone missile attacks in northwest Pakistan in case the White House is forced to withdraw all U.S. forces from Afghanistan at the end of this year, according to U.S. officials.
5. Pentagon, Congress Begin Rewriting DoD Acquisition Laws
(Defense News) The Pentagon and the US Congress have begun the tedious effort of reviewing decades of antiquated, cumbersome defense acquisition policies to speed up the defense procurement process and get more bang for the buck.
INDUSTRY
Pentagon Said to Seek 34 of Lockheed’s F-35 Jets Instead of 42
(Bloomberg) The U.S. Defense Department will request 34 Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT:US) F-35 jets in its budget for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1, eight fewer than previously planned, according to officials.
'Aegis Ashore' Prepares for Deployment
(Defense News) Aegis fans will see something familiar in this structure sitting in a field in New Jersey. While it has walls like any other building, there’s no mistaking the upward angles and familiar oyster cracker design on the front.
Execs: To Survive Downturn, Companies Must Focus on Commercial, Overseas Markets
(National Defense Magazine) Maintaining the health of the U.S. defense industrial base as the Pentagon slashes spending will require creative offerings of commercially available technologies and an expanded overseas customer base, according to company executives.
WEST: Defense Industry Wants Open and Honest Dialogue With Services
(USNI News) Open and honest dialogue between business and government is crucial if industry can effectively deliver during an era of fiscal austerity, executives from some of the nation’s top defense contractors said during a morning panel discussion on the final day of West 2014 in San Diego, Calif.
The push for official Army sneakers
(Army Times) The Defense Department has issued a formal notice asking American manufacturers who want to make an athletic shoe for service members to come forward and be counted.
BAE Targets Lockheed in Asia's F-16 Upgrade Wars
(Defense News) BAE Systems is preparing to leapfrog over Lockheed Martin and gobble up international F-16 upgrade contracts should the US Air Force drop funding for its fighter jet radar upgrade program.
Lockheed Martin Refines Hybrid Wing-Body Airlifter Concept
(Aviation Week) Traditionally, performance drives military-aircraft design decisions and the energy implications of those choices are secondary. But as fuel costs eat into reduced budgets, the balance is shifting. Energy is fast becoming a critical constraint on operations, and the results could reshape aircraft design.
Saudis Sign $10B Vehicle Deal With GDLS-Canada
(Defense News) Saudi Arabia has entered into a 14-year, $10 billion agreement with General Dynamics’ Canadian subsidiary for an undisclosed number of military and civilian armored vehicles, Canada’s Trade Minister Ed Fast announced Friday.
Airbus Buys Salzburg Bank to Aid Sales From Jets to Choppers
(Bloomberg) Airbus Group NV (AIR) plans to create an in-house bank by taking over a regional lender as the world’s second-largest planemaker follows companies from Daimler AG to Siemens AG in providing financial services for customers.
French Armored Vehicle Draws Interest in Britain
(Defense News) When France sent an infantry fighting vehicle to Britain for a Jan. 31 bilateral summit, Paris was signaling not only the close ties between the Army chiefs of the two countries, but also that London may choose to purchase the vehicle, a British official said.
Vehicle electronics market tops $3B
(C4ISR & Networks) The global vehicle electronics market is worth more than $3.3 billion, according to a new study by ASDReports.
CONGRESS
Congress focusing on significant changes to federal security-clearance process
(Washington Post) Democrats and Republicans on the committee are united by an urgency to fix a system that was not able to stop Aaron Alexis’s September rampage. He was a defense contractor with a security clearance who attacked his Washington Navy Yard workplace, killing 12 before being shot to death by police.
New bill would make it easier to fire senior VA employees
(Military Times) Two Florida Republicans want to make it easier to fire senior Veterans Affairs Department employees for serious mistakes, but VA officials say what the plan will really do is scare away top talent.
Business Leaders Called Key to Defense Sector-Friendly Immigration Bill
(Defense News) Immigration reform legislation could provide an unexpected boost for defense firms, and one senior senator says pro-Republican business leaders’ political heft is needed to persuade House leaders to move a bill.
Clay Aiken Running for Congress as Defense Hawk
(Real Clear Politics) Former "American Idol" contestant Clay Aiken -- the openly gay congressional candidate aiming to unseat Republican Rep. Renee Ellmers in November -- may be a political novice, but he's apparently astute in at least one regard: The North Carolina Democrat has staked out hawkish positions on defense spending.
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Military suicides decline, but data are incomplete
(Military Times) The number of military suicides declined significantly in 2013, a relief to the services after record and near-record levels in 2012.
A bad omen for Pentagon budget?
(The Hill) The swift work in Congress to repeal $6 billion in cuts to military pensions that passed just two months earlier is a bad omen for future efforts to curb military personnel costs, budget analysts say.
Group shines a light on victim backlash in military sex assaults
(Air Force Times) Three years ago, a friend and congresswoman shared a story Nancy Parrish could not forget: A former sailor was brutally raped by a colleague, denied medical care, encouraged to keep quiet and, ultimately, kicked out of the Navy with an incorrect medical diagnosis.
ARMY
AP Exclusive: Misconduct forces more soldiers out
(Associated Press) The number of U.S. soldiers forced out of the Army because of crimes or misconduct has soared in the past several years as the military emerges from a decade of war that put a greater focus on battle competence than on character.
Prosecutor quits Sinclair sex assault case
(Army Times) The lead prosecutor in the sexual assault trial of Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair — amid misgivings over the most serious charges — has abruptly left the case.
JBLM soldiers train in California for different kind of combat
(The News Tribune; Tacoma, Wash.) t took only about 30 minutes at the Army’s massive training center in the Mojave Desert for Sgt. 1st Class Jesse Reyes to see a different threat than he’d faced in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Pentagon IDs Special Forces soldiers killed in insider attack
(Army Times) The Defense Department has identified two soldiers killed earlier this week in an insider attack in Afghanistan as members of 3rd Special Forces Group.
Soldier hired by company she awarded lucrative contract
(USA Today) When then-Lt. Col. Kay Hensen awarded a National Guard recruiting contract worth at least $200 million to an Alabama marketing company in 2005, investigative records show, the Guard failed to get a legal review for the program, did not conduct any market research and neglected to negotiate the contractor's fee.
Army buys 7,000 Samsung devices
(C4ISR & Networks) The Army is rolling out thousands of Samsung smartphones as part of its Nett Warrior system.
NAVY
US Navy Would Receive Largest Piece of Fiscal '16 Budget Boost
(Defense News) The US Navy would get the largest chunk of the additional $36 billion the White House is considering giving to the Pentagon for fiscal 2016, according to defense sources.
Bush Carrier Strike Group underway after delay
(Navy Times) A tiny aquatic invertebrate delayed deployment of the aircraft carrier George H.W. Bush on Saturday by about four hours.
Alleged military sex assault victims seek to block use of counseling records
(Washington Post) The sexual assault case at the U.S. Naval Academy that began at an off-campus party nearly two years ago has turned a microscope on otherwise routine aspects of military legal procedure. Both the broad authority of commanders to charge and to punish and the cross-examination of alleged victims before trial has become fodder for critics of the military’s handling of sexual assault claims.
Navy helicopters rescue 10 fishermen near Guam
(Stars and Stripes) U.S. Navy sailors rescued 10 fisherman from a sinking Japanese commercial fishing vessel that ran aground in a harbor in Guam on Thursday.
Constellation's Final Journey
(San Diego Union-Tribune) A tugboat crew will soon attach a steel line to the bow of the aircraft carrier Constellation and tow it from the corner of the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard where decommissioned flattops are left to rust away. The Navy is trying to save money: It costs about $100,000 a year to maintain the carriers, so the ships are being turned over to scrap dealers.
Navy lawyer warns about debt advice
(Honolulu Star-Advertiser) A tactic to reduce credit card balances and other debt that's making its way around the Internet is being called fraud by a Navy lawyer at Pearl Harbor, who advised in an email that sailors steer clear.
AIR FORCE
Red Flag maintainers test skills in degraded environment
(Air Force Times) The return of the Air Force’s largest training exercise after being grounded in 2013 by sequestration introduced a new cyber challenge for maintenance crews on the ground.
What's up with the Holloman drones?
(Las Cruces Sun-News, N.M.) There is a touch of southern New Mexico in nearly every military operation that uses remotely piloted aircraft, colloquially referred to as drones.
Former police officer brings his law enforcement expertise to SAPRO
(Air Force Times) Dave Thomas stumbled into his calling. It was 1980 and Thomas, a junior business and history major at Towson University in Maryland, chose a course called women in perspective to fulfill an elective requirement.
Air Force adviser looks to tech for savings
(Colorado Springs Gazette) While pursuing breakthrough weapons and satellite technologies, Mica Endsley also wants brainpower dedicated to fuel efficiency, improving airman productivity and other cost-saving plans.
Photo of airman kissing POW-MIA symbol causes uproar
(Air Force Times) A picture showing an airman tongue-kissing a Prisoner of War-Missing in Action symbol has gone viral, infuriating bloggers and veterans.
MARINE CORPS
State of the Corps
During an exclusive, hour-and-a-half interview with U-T San Diego, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos discussed the state of the Corps in 2014, the way ahead, and life in the hot seat as head Marine. Edited excerpts follow.
Marine Corps explains why it abruptly relocated independent newspaper
(Marine Corps Times) Gen. Jim Amos himself, commandant of the Marine Corps, ordered the independent newspaper Marine Corps Times be returned to its prominent location in exchange stores amid growing media attention to its sudden move to an area where it was less visible, said a team of public affairs officers during a Feb. 14 interview.
My dusty valentine: Marine couple deployed together in Helmand
(Stars and Stripes) Frances Johnson and Drew Johnson are married and deployed together to Helmand province as part of Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan. Frances serves as the media chief for the unit, while Drew is the IED detector dogs program manager.
Marine families in Hawaii worry soil under base housing may be toxic
(Marine Corps Times) Marine families who live in base housing in Hawaii worry that they have been exposed to a toxic chemical in the soil. They are organizing and gathering data on health issues they fear might have been caused by exposure to chlordane, a probable carcinogen.
New River Marines and sailors learn about past
(The Daily News; Jacksonville, N.C.) “Words motivate but actions inspire.” That’s the message retired Marine Col. Grover C. Lewis III he wanted to make clear to today’s Marines. Lewis, speaking during a Montford Point Marine Association presentation aboard Marine Corps Air Station New River on Thursday, said for too long the history of the Montford Pointers has gone untold, but their story of honor, courage and commitment to their Corps must be told and must be built upon.
VETERANS
VA urged to form registry of roadside bomb victims
(Associated Press) Roadside bombs have killed nearly 3,600 military service members and wounded 34,000 more in Iraq and Afghanistan, but many of the long-term health effects are unknown for those who seemingly walked away without serious injury.
Arlington National Cemetery in winter (Photo Gallery)
As snow gently fell in the Washington, D.C. area Saturday morning, visitors to Arlington National Cemetery quietly strolled among the graves.
Sheriff Knezovich: Man in police shooting had gun, body armor
(The Spokesman-Review; Spokane, Wash.)A young man shot to death following a police chase Tuesday night was a combat veteran wounded in Afghanistan three years ago and denied disability benefits.
Investigation into Lodi police shooting of Gulf War veteran could take a year to complete
(The Sacramento Bee) An investigation into the fatal shooting of a Gulf War veteran by Lodi police last month could take as long as a year to complete, a department spokesman told The Sacramento Bee.
Willard veteran of Korean War battles for Purple Heart (With Video)
(Standard-Examiner; Ogden, Utah) It took more than 60 years for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to finally recognize the wounds Roy Torgeson sustained during the Korean War, but the 81-year-old Willard resident's battle isn't over yet -- he's still fighting for the Purple Heart he says he earned six decades ago.
AFGHANISTAN/PAKISTAN
In Afghanistan, snow in desert brings operations to halt
(Stars and Stripes) A few months ago, daily temperatures spiked at 130 Fahrenheit here. But recently, soldiers slogged through freezing mud and slipped over ice on the boardwalk, while dark, low-hanging clouds made all hours of the day look like dusk.
Afghan Army’s Test Begins With Fight for Vital Highway
(New York Times) In a deserted village off Highway 1, southwest of Kabul, an Afghan Army bomb disposal team was unearthing its 15th bomb of the day when sniper shots began to rain down.
I'm not against limited presence of Nato troops in Afghanistan, Karzai says
(The Times of India) President Hamid Karzai on Saturday allayed India's concerns over the uncertainty in Afghanistan ahead of the international troop pullout saying he is not against a "limited" presence of international forces in the country.
Pakistani Taliban says it executed 23 captured Pakistani soldiers
(Washington Post) A faction of the Pakistani Taliban said Sunday that it executed 23 paramilitary soldiers who have been held captive since 2010, even as other elements of the militant group continue preliminary peace talks with the country’s government.
IRAQ
Radical Iraqi cleric Moqtada Sadr 'to retire from politics'
(BBC) Iraq's radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr has announced he is retiring from political life, in a handwritten note posted on his website.
Iraq attacks kill 17, army fights to retake town from militants
(Reuters) At least 17 people were killed in attacks across Iraq on Sunday as troops fought to evict Islamist militants from the northern town of Sulaiman Pek, security sources and medics said.
Iraq's PM promises perks to Sunni allies
(Al Jazeera) Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has pledged to allocate money for construction in the mostly Sunni province of Anbar, in a rare overture to placate to a minority that accuses his Shia-led government of marginalising them.
Iraqi politicians split on third term for Maliki
(Al-Monitor) The State of Law Coalition, led by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, has not put forward a new candidate for the premiership. The coalition instead hopes to see Maliki in the post for a renewed third term, but this scenario is rejected by the majority of the political coalitions planning to participate in parliamentary elections scheduled for April 30.
MIDDLE EAST
Syrian rebel army fires commander many considered ineffective
(Los Angeles Times) The head of the Free Syrian Army, the U.S.-backed assemblage of ostensibly moderate Syrian opposition forces, has been removed from his post, according to a statement Sunday from the rebel command’s Supreme Military Council.
Kerry Says Obama Wants New Options for Syria Strife
(New York Times) Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday that President Obama had asked aides to develop new policy options to deal with the deteriorating situation in Syria.
New Israeli Unit Targets Syrian Border Threats
(Defense News) Israel is flexing its military muscle at the Golan Heights frontier with the latest intelligence collection technologies and a new frontline division dedicated to combating multiplying threats spawned by war raging in Syria.
Senior al-Qaeda figure leaves Iran amid a series of departures by terrorist suspects
(Washington Post) A senior al-Qaeda figure with close ties to the terrorist group’s current leader has left Iran, where he had lived for years after fleeing American forces in Afghanistan in 2001, according to former and current U.S. intelligence officials.
ASIA-PACIFIC
Report: China Military Port Gets Key Hong Kong Go-Ahead
(Defense News) Hong Kong has taken a key step towards approving the construction of a Chinese military port along its waterfront, China’s state media reported Saturday, despite fierce public opposition to the move.
Australia donates vessels to Malaysia to combat illegal migration
(IHS Jane's 360) The Australian Customs and Border Protection (CBP) service is to donate two Bay-class patrol vessels to the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA), at a cost of AUD1.2 million (USD1.07 million), as part of ongoing efforts to stem the flow of illegal migrants to Australia.
Cash-Strapped Malaysia Looks To Lease Fighters
(Defense News) Malaysia’s proposed purchase of fighter jets has switched from a procurement competition to a leasing competition due to affordability issues, according to industry executives.
Vietnam deploys dancers to foil protests
(Associated Press) Anti-China protesters hoping to lay wreaths at a famous statue in the Vietnamese capital on Sunday were obstructed by an unusual sight of ballroom dancers and an energetic aerobics class held to a thumping sound system.
COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS
Analysis: Congress chooses easy way out on military cuts
(Lisa Desjardins for CNN) Back in home districts for a week and eager to tout some accomplishments in Washington, many members of Congress are praising a newly passed bill they say protects the military.
U.S. military intervention, done right, could boost African stability
(Michael O'Hanlon in the Los Angeles Times) For decades, one golden rule has guided America's military involvement in Africa: Stay out.
Putin Is Playing a Game of His Own
(Walter Russell Mead in the Wall Street Journal) The most daring and acrobatic figure in Sochi this week isn't a snowboarder; it is Vladimir Putin, whose death-defying geopolitical gamble is the hottest game in town. With more twists and turns than a bobsled race, more fancy footwork than a figure-skating final and more dips and flips than a mogul run, Russian diplomacy is a dazzling spectacle these days—and despite his considerable handicaps, Mr. Putin is skating rings around his clumsy and clueless opponents in Washington and Brussels.
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