Jane's Defense News

Key Points USN and industry officials have acknowledged that alternatives to LRLAP are being considered as projectiles for the Zumwalt destroyers' main guns The navy says no official decision has been made on whether to cancel the LRLAP buy for Zumwalt The US Navy (USN) and industry are

Key Points NAVAIR plans a contract award to Raytheon in early 2017 for JSOW ER all-up-round test support Scope of work includes adding a production-representative engine/fuel/inlet system, and software modifications to optimise mid-course/endgame performance The US Navy (USN) is finalising plans

The People's Liberation Army Navy's (PLAN's) first aircraft carrier, Liaoning, is ready for combat operations, according to Chinese media reports. Senior Captain Li Dongyou, the political commissar of the Soviet-era Admiral Kuznetsov-class carrier, was quoted by the state-owned Global Times

THE Galacia Spirit, a LNG Spanish-flagged tanker vessel operated by Teekay Shipping Glasgow Ltd, was damaged when a small craft attacked it with a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) and small-arms near Yemen's Perim Island, which overlooks Bab al-Mandeb Strait, on 25 October, Reuters reported. Reports

A major boost in the size of the US military flagged by the incoming administration of Donald Trump could bring with it "remarkable" opportunities for Australia's defence industry, Australian minister for defence industry Christopher Pyne said on 16 November. He was referring to comments

EIGHT people were killed and 25 others were wounded in a double suicide vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (SVBIED) attack in the city of Fallujah in Iraq's Anbar province on 14 November, Reuters reported. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.

EU defence policy chief Federica Mogherini and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg presented their package of 40 proposals to EU defence ministers in Brussels on 15 November. The proposals focus on boosting EU-NATO defence co-operation, as called for by the two organisations' joint declaration

Aligning national defence planning among European Union countries and extending multinational command arrangements beyond air transport to medical, land, and naval logistics will be explored in early 2017, EU foreign and defence ministers announced after a joint meeting on 14 November. Calling on

European defence ministers agreed on 15 November to raise the European Defence Agency's (EDA's) budget after a six-year freeze. The breakthrough came after London, for the first time, declined to veto the rise. All European Union countries except Denmark belong to the EDA. The decision raises the

The French Parliament has approved an EUR600 million increase to the country's defence budget above current-year levels. In total the 2017 budget will sit at EUR32.44 billion, a 1.8% increase over 2016. This is the latest in upward revisions of the French defence budget, with the new 2017 figures

Auditors have recommended US Army Pacific Command (USARPAC) more closely analyse the costs and benefits of its 'Pacific Pathways' exercise construct, better synchronise planning, and integrate objectives for support units. 'Pacific Pathways', launched in 2014, deploys a battalion-sized task force

EVENT On 14 November, the conservative Christian Democratic Union (Christlich Demokratische Union: CDU) and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (Christlich-Soziale Union: CSU), announced their support for foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier for presidential candidate in the

South Korean naval shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) has announced a major restructure of its businesses as part of efforts to boost its financial standing. The company said on 15 November that it will reorganise its businesses into several separate companies, with the restructure

THREE soldiers were wounded in an improvised explosive device (IED) attack that targeted their patrol in the village of Sabong in the Lamitan area of the Philippines' Basilan province on 14 November, GMA News reported. Although no immediate claim of responsibility was made, Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG)

Deliveries of the four additional Boeing P-8I Neptune long-range maritime multi-mission aircraft ordered for the Indian Navy (IN) in July for USD1 billion are expected to begin in 2020. "We are looking forward to delivering the options by July 2020," Boeing's P-8I chief engineer Mark

Key Points Trump has called for end to mandated defence budget limits to 'rebuild' the military He wants more soldiers and marines, more navy vessels and fighter aircraft, and better missile defence assets Donald Trump's stunning victory in the US presidential election on 8 November caused many

Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding (DSNS) has rejected suggestions that it may pull out of the race for the German Navy's MKS 180 programme as a result of the acquisition of teammate Blohm + Voss GmbH by the rival Lürssen group. The MKS 180 programme, which covers the build of four multirole

The electoral victory of Donald Trump as US president-elect will mean new and uncomfortable pressure on the European allies to step up to the plate on defence spending, according to European Union (EU) and NATO diplomats. It could also spur support in Europe for more strategic autonomy from the

What was expected to be a modest transition of defence policy following a projected Hillary Clinton election victory was rocked in the early hours of 9 November when Donald Trump was declared the winner and defence companies and experts scrambled to guess what will happen next. After-hours trading

A Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II combat aircraft with a US Marine Corps (USMC) training squadron experienced a fire in its weapons bay during a training mission on 27 October, the service acknowledged in a 9 November statement. The aircraft from Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron (VMFAT)