Defense & Aerospace Report

Steve Parker, the chief executive officer of Boeing Defense, Space the company’s new approach to managing supply chains to improve performance; how the Pentagon is making it easier for contractors to move faster; how moving is moving faster on programs delivery; efforts to attract, retain and nurture a more experienced workforce to improve program execution as veteran workers retire or move to other companies; Boeing’s new culture of performance; Ukraine lessons shaping the company’s strategy, investment and products; thoughts on “right to repair” and capital allocation as lawmakers consider legislation; and whether the administration’s rhetoric that’s propelling allies to develop “sovereign” capabilities will negatively impact the company’s future prospects.

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense US defense budget deliberations that include a reconciliation measure that’s $60 billion rather than $350 billion as expected with the prospect for a new Reconciliation 4.0 measure to bridge the difference; factors that could explain low defense stock valuations; Pentagon policy chief Bridge Colby’s dismissal of “middle powers” strategy as Canada prepares to join Britain’s Global Combat Air Program with Italy and Japan, and buys a $1.8 billion radar from BAE Systems Australia; GE Aerospace earnings and AV’s Investor Day; and a look at the week ahead and in Washington and beyond, including the Farnborough International Airshow 20-24 July 2026.

On this week’s Defense the implications of renewed US-Iran military operations; United Airline’s record second quarter 2026 results despite an 84 percent increase fuel costs over the same 2025 period; AV and GE Aerospace earnings results; authorization and appropriations stalled in the Senate as the House Budget Committee considers a revised Reconciliation 3.0 package that includes Iran war funding and totals $60 billion rather than $350 billion as expected with a Reconciliation 4.0 needed to bridge the differences; analysis of Ukraine’s decision to order 16 Rafale fighter jets; Pentagon policy chief Bridge Colby dismisses notion of a “middle power strategy” of smaller nations banding together to keep from being bullied by great powers as well as nations opting against US arms purchases as Canada moves to gain observer status on the Global Combat Air Program led by Britain with Italy and Japan as Ottawa reconsiders its plan to acquire 88 F-35 Lightning fighters from Lockheed Martin, and taps BAE Systems Australia for a nearly $1.8 billion contract for the Arctic Over-The-Horizon Radar to plug air defense gaps for the US-Canada North American Aerospace Defense Command; and the themes that will shape the Farnborough International Airshow 20-24 July 2026.

On this week’s Defense a bewildering bewildering week in Congress as the NDAA and appropriations stalled in the Senate, the Iran supplemental and reconciliation; how Sen. Mitch McConnell’s illness and Sen. Lindsey Graham’s sudden death impact legislation; Pentagon policy chief Bridge Colby’s dismissal of “middle power” strategies; Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s latest cabinet reshuffle that ousted Yulia Svyrydenko and his popular defense minister Mykylo Federov; after dismissing the Knesset and calling October elections, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to visit Washington for Graham’s funeral; Israel and Lebanon advance peace talks and Hamas asks Iran for help; more than 100 Democratic lawmakersand one Republican vote against military support for Israel; Iraq’s new Prime Minister Ali al Zaidi met with Trump at the White House; Xi Jinping continues to purge the part of top leaders accused of corruption, expelling Politburo member Ma Xingrui, the former governor of Xinjiang province who once headed the country’s space program; North Korea accuses Pak Hui-chol, deputy director of the Organization Department of the Korean People's Army General Political Bureau, of abuse of power and corruption; and the US Coast Guard will base a squadron of its cutters to the Western Pacific.

In this expanded edition, Vago Muradian reports from the Global Air & Space Chiefs Conference, with former Air Marshal Greg Bagwell of the Air and Space Power Association and USAF Reserve chief Lieutenant General John Healy (and his AI twin.) And we even squeeze in some airpower headlines. Powered by GE Aerospace!

On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Dr. Jerry McGinn, a former deputy industrial base chief who is now with the director of the Center for the Industrial Base at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss his latest report — “Is the Industrial Base on a Wartime Footing? A Progress Report” — he cowrote with his colleague AJ Dilts.

On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Dr. Michael Shurkin, a veteran of the CIA as well as the RAND Corporation think tank who’s now the director of Global Programs at 14 North Strategies, a Senegal-based risk advisory consultancy, joins Defense ” how military defeats and resource limitations have taught France to be more strategic; the essence of strategy; lessons from the Mali operation; and more.

On today’s program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the latest headlines and looks at the week ahead.

On this week’s Defense air travel impact of renewed hostilities as Delta maintains the carrier will maintain pricing and profit power; the US defense budget outlook as the appropriations process as well as the administration’s $88 billion Iran war supplemental stall; efforts by the House budget committee to accelerate the $350 billion reconciliation 3.0 budget increase for the Pentagon; analysis of NATO’s Ankara summit that included a pledge of unity as well as $50 billion in deals, including the alliance’s acquisition of new Saab GlobalEye radar planes and Northrop Grumman Triton reconnaissance aircraft; whether the summit was enough to assuage allied concerns about America’s commitment to NATO despite rhetoric from Washington and President Trump’s continued interest in acquiring Greenland; implications of Trump’s pledge to allow Ukraine to join Japan and Germany in license producing Patriot missiles; what it will take to allow Turkey back into the F-35 Lightning II fighter project; the decision — after Washington resumed strikes on Iran — to fly the president out of the Turkish capital to Britain on the purpose-built VC-25A presidential transport, where he boarded the former Qatari jet to return to Washington; Lockheed Martin’s proposed $3.5 billion acquisition of Ultra’s Martime business; engine failure aboard a Ryanair 737 heading from Greece to Germany that shattered a window, injuring a passenger before who was sucked partly out of the aircraft; and Bank of America’s initiation of SpaceX coverage.

On this week’s Defense under President Trump’s pressure, the House Budget Committee moves to advance the $350 billion Reconciliation 3.0 measure for the Pentagon; US attorney Jay Clayton’s hearing to become the next director of national intelligence is back on; after Iran attacked three ships in the Strait of Hormuz Trump says the ceasefire with Tehran is over and resumed strikes, again sending energy prices soaring as Iran continues efforts to exert control over the critical waterway; takeaways from the NATO’s Ankara Summit where Trump berated allies for not backing his Iran war and still seeking to acquire Greenland, but also endorsed alliance priorities including defense projects and allowed Ukraine to license produce Patriot missiles; as Russia ramps up attacks on Ukraine, Moscow uses AI to wage a disinformation campaign against American data centers and technology; Russia’s partnership with China; Beijing’s test of a new submarine-launched ballistic missile; Taiwan’s opposition pro-China Kuomintang party stalls President Lai Ching Te’s asymmetric defense strategy; analysis of former US ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel’s peace plan for the Middle East; Israel’s declining popularity; Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s plan to visit New York City in September for the United Nations General Assembly meeting as New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani vows to make good on his plan to enforce an International Criminal Court arrest warrant on the Israeli leader; and a look at US political drama from Graham Platner’s collapsing campaign against Sen. Susan Collins in Maine to the impact of Sen. Mitch McConnell’s declining health.

The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies recently completed a new war game looking at the Air Force we need against China and Russia. Mark “Gonzo” Gunzinger and Heather “Lucky” Penney peel back the covers on their results. And we have the week’s airpower headlines. Powered by GE Aerospace!

Defense & Aerospace Daily Podcast [Jul 08, ’26] Sam Bendett & Eugene Rumer on Russia, Ukraine by Defense & Aerospace Report, sponsored by Bell

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense what’s next for US defense spending including prospects for Reconciliation 3.0; surprises in the Trump administration’s $88 billion Iran war supplemental request; whether the assertion that the “American way of war” is dead; Saab’s big week including the sale of 16 new Gripen E fighters to Ukraine and Canada’s decision to pick HDW over Hanwha to supply 12 new non-nuclear attack submarines; Britain’s plan to increase defense spending by $20 billion; expectations from NATO’s Ankara summit; and a look at the week ahead and in Washington and beyond.

On this week’s Defense outlook for air travel as analysts adjust war’s impact on energy and air travel; Castlelake’s $7.3 billion offer to acquire the European discount carrier; expectations as NATO leaders convene in Ankara for the alliance’s annual summit; Saab’s massive week as Ukraine ordered 16 of the company’s most advanced Gripen E fighter aircraft, on top of the 16 C-D versions of the jets donated by the Swedish government, and signature of a nearly $5 billion contract for three of the Swedish firm’s A26 submarines; how the Gripen order could boost Saab’s prospects as Canada’s next fighter and whether HDW’s loss will boost Hanwha’s offer over the German company’s proposal in Ottawa’s competition for a dozen new attack submarines; Thales buys drone and robotics maker Exail after Safran scrapped it’s $2.3 billion offer to buy the French firm; continuing consequences for Rheinmetall and Thales of Germany’s decision to cancel the six-ship F126 frigate program; KNDS’ decision to pull its initial public offering; the Federal Aviation Administration’s move to create new rules for supersonic civil transports; and RocketLab’s $8 billion acquisition of Iridium to compete against SpaceX and its StarLink product.

On this week’s Defense what’s for the Iran war as Washington and Tehran trade fire; Trump administration’s expected request for $88 billion to cover Iran war costs as the president hosted US defense executives at the White House accelerate production to refill depleted US weapons stocks; Lockheed Martin’s seven-year $35 billion to quadruple THAAD interceptor production; budget deliberations continue in Washington as White House proposes taking $1.7 billion from the Navy to pay for the E-7 radar planes Congress forced the administration to buy for the US Air Force; British Prime Minister Kier Starmer’s decision to step down, clearing the way for former Manchester Mayor and new Member of Parliament Andy Burnham to challenge his leadership of the Labour Party; NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s Washington visit to woo Trump to ensure an Ankara Summit July 7 and 8 that mirrors the recent G7 meeting; whether the US move to withdraw capabilities from Europe is part of a strategy to drive European nations into turning to Washington to buy stop gap capabilities; France orders 5,000 more quadcopters from Harmattan AI after the two-year-old startup delivered 1,000 quadcopters in six months; Air Force acceptance of the T-7 Red Hawk trainers, but with an airworthiness risk classified as “serious” because a Boeing supplier hasn’t released data on some unspecified safety-critical elements needed to sustain the aircraft; questions about Rheinmetall’s strategy of purchasing Lurssen’s naval business and take over construction of six large frigates for the Deutsche Marine after Berlin cancelled the F116 project; China Eastern’s order of 25 A330neo for more than $9 billion and China Southern’s purchase of $3.6 billion worth of 777s from Boeing; and Babcock’s full-year results.

On this week’s Defense prospects for Reconciliation 3.0 as lawmakers move to tie it to portions of the SAVE measure; House and Senate authorization and appropriations processes move ahead as the administration is expected to request $88 billion to cover Iran war costs; analysis of ongoing US-Iran negotiations — as well as direct contact between American military officials and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — as Tehran fired on a Singaporean tanker for using an unauthorized transit corridor through the Strait of Hormuz, shutting traffic as Iranian officials continue efforts to assert ownership of the key waterway; Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s efforts at the Gulf Cooperation Council to sell the deal to nervous allies as Saudi Arabia opened direct talks with Iran; Israel’s continuing operations fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon; NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s visit to Washington to pave the way for a smooth alliance summit 7-8 July in Ankara as the administration considers deep cuts in US capabilities available to NATO and fires Gen. Chris Donahue, the top US Army commander in Europe; Ukraine turns the tables on Russia and Crimea; China sails its newest aircraft carrier — the Fujian — through the Taiwan Strait and pressures US states and private American firms to cut ties with Taipei; US efforts to modernize alliances across Asia whether through new operational concepts or economic ties; South Korea’s investment in the United States and whether US lawmakers will allow the US Navy to buy foreign-made ships; Japan’s $2.3 trillion industrial plan; Kim Jong Un commission’s North Korea’s largest ever new destroyer on the 76th anniversary of north’s invasion of the south; and reflections as America celebrates its 250th birthday.

On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall joins Defense how warfare across air, land, sea, space and cyber are changing; the culture change needed within the military services as change makes existing platforms obsolete; focusing more on the “survivability” problem, rather than “lethality”; role of humans on an increasingly autonomous battlefield; getting on the right side of the cost imposition curve; and how US forces would fare against China if they drained their precision strike and air defense weapons stocks against Iran.

The National Air and Space Museum is celebrating its 50th birthday by revealing a massive makeover, with all but two of its renovated galleries open to the public starting next week. We had a sneak peek at the newest exhibits, and get a look at the Museum’s past present and future with its director, Christopher Browne. And we have the week’s airpower headlines. Powered by GE Aerospace!

On today’s Technology Report program, Dr. Jim Lewis of the Center for European Policy Analysis and retired US Navy Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a Cyberspace Solarium Commission senior adviser join Defense how the administration should prepare a new era of cyber and data vulnerability in the wake of the debut of ever more powerful AI models; how soon before another model debuts that’s more powerful than Anthropic’s; gauging America’s lead over China’s AI capabilities; whether spending more is the only way to develop breakthrough AI products; and why AI isn’t just a financial bubble waiting to burst.

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense a look at the US defense budget outlook as House and Senate Armed Services Committees finish their version of the National Defense Authorization Act, House defense appropriators finish their mark, and lawmakers await an Iran war supplemental and ponder the fate of the $350 billion Reconciliation 3.0 for the Pentagon; defense stock valuation drivers; takeaways from the Eurosatory ground warfare exhibition and conference last week in Paris; role of increasingly sophisticated Ukrainian, Turkish, and South Korean firms in Europe’s rearmament; whether Washington’s export control reforms and calls for deeper cooperation will entice European nations alienated by the administration’s rhetoric; and a look at the week ahead in Washington and behind.

On this week’s Defense takeaways from the G7 meeting that endorsed Ukraine’s sovereignty and imposed new sanctions on Russia and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s announcement of a six-month review of US forces detailed to NATO; Britain’s decision to develop ITAR-free strike missiles and what’s next now that Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham was elected to Parliament; analysis of the Eurosatory land systems show in Paris where Ukraine seized the spotlight as an innovative and capable supplier; L3Harris delivery to the US Air Force of a former Qatari royal aircraft modified to serve Air Force One — as the VC-25B “Bridge” aircraft — until Boeing delivers two new purpose-built presidential aircraft; the Air Force’s award of six-year contracts to both Anduril and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems to develop and delivery their Increment One versions of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft; Boeing’s withdrawal from the US Navy’s competition for a new training aircraft to replace the T-45 Goshawk, leaving Leonardo and Beechcraft to compete against Sierra Nevada with Northrop Grumman and General Atomics; Dassault’s Falcon 10X business jet makes its first flight; and after 10 years of research, Qantas took delivery of new Airbus 350-1000 jetliners that allow the carrier to launch more than 20-hour nonstop flights from Sydney to New York and London includes lighting and wellness features to attract passengers.

On this week’s Defense prospects for the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act after President Trump directed his nominee to become the next Director of National Intelligence, US attorney Jay Clayton, to skip his confirmation hearing clearing the way for housing chief Bill Pulte to serve in an acting capacity; Washington and Tehran’s 14-point ceasefire memorandum of understanding giving the two sides 60-days to negotiate a lasting deal that reopens the Strait of Hormuz that lawmakers and Israel blast as too generous toward Iran; Vice President Vance’s warning to Jerusalem; G7’s support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and impose more sanctions on Russia as Britain and France organize nations for a military mission to restore traffic through the strait; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth launches another broadside at the alliance as Washington considers withdrawing key withdrawing air and naval capabilities; South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s invitation for Trump to lead a peace talks with North Korea; Beijing’s ability to strike Australia; and the Pentagon’s decision to change the US Indo-Pacific Command back to the US Pacific Command.

The French Air and Space Force is helping celebrate the United States’ 250th anniversary, but they are busy elsewhere around the world. French fighter aviation chief General Pierre Gaudilliere joins us from Washington to discuss today’s challenges and his force of tomorrow, while celebrating the red, white, and blue. And the week’s airpower headlines. Powered by GE Aerospace!

On this Land Warfare episode, sponsored by American Rheinmetall, Franz-Stefan Gady, a defense analyst and consultant in Vienna who is also an adjunct fellow with Center for a New American Security think tank and author of several books including his newest, “Surprise Attack: When War Comes to Us” available in German and “How the United States Would Fight China,” joins Defense why it’s hard to judge progress or advantage in the conflict; lessons European powers should be learning from the conflict as they seek to bolster their land forces; how the war will change the design land vehicles and how they are employed in concert with unmanned air capabilities; why Russia remains a threat to Europe despite the bloodying it’s taken in Ukraine; and the applicability of Ukraine lessons to the Indo-Pacific;

On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Eric Fanning, the president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association, joins Defense how $1.5 trillion in planned defense spending can be compacted into $1.15 trillion if the $350 billion reconciliation package fails; the Iran war supplemental outlook as Washington and Tehran strike a ceasefire; how the Pentagon can spend so much more money when it doesn’t have enough contracting officers to spend last year’s Big Beautiful Bill funding; President Trump’s latest call to meet with defense industry executives to accelerate defense production; update on Pentagon efforts to reform the defense acquisition system; congressional efforts to translate the president’s executive order on share buybacks into legislation, “right to repair,” and attract new defense competitors.

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense the need for investment in drones as well as manned platforms; the House Armed Services Committee’s $1.15 trillion 2027 National Defense Authorization Act as House appropriators mark to $1.07 trillion; dim outlook for the $350 billion Reconciliation 3.0 for the Pentagon; President Trump’s planned meeting with top US defense executives to accelerate weapons production to restock depleted stocks; and the SpaceX initial public offering and defense capital market.

On this week’s Defense President Trump’s claim to a ceasefire deal to immediately open the Strait of Hormuz as Iran says more time is needed and Israel says it’s not party to any agreement; president’s planned meeting next week at the White House to meet with top US defense executives accelerate weapons production refill stocks depleted by continuous military operations and support for Ukraine and Israel; the House Armed Services Committee moves to back the Trump administration’s 2027 budget request at $1.15 trillion, but House appropriators mark the measure at $1.07 trillion as consensus grows that reconciliation measure to add $350 billion to the Pentagon budget is unlikely, setting up the prospect of jamming $1.15 trillion of spending into $1.15 trillion in available funding; implications of planned US cuts to forces available to NATO including fighter, reconnaissance and tanker aircraft, bombers, a ballistic missile submarine and warships including an aircraft carrier as alliance members remain unable to unite to compensate for Washington’s pull back; the unraveling of the Franco-German SCAF next generation combat air systems effort with Spain and Belgium at the Berlin Air Show; Germany is now said to be eying participation in the Global Combat Air Program led by Britain and including Italy and Japan as reports suggest London’s funding for marquee effort is shaky; the resignations of British Defence Secretary John Healey and Armed Forces Minister Al Carns to protest Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s inability to bolster defense spending as Japanese officials reportedly expressed frustration at Britain’s funding levels for the program; and more tensions between France and Germany at the Eurosatory ground warfare exhibition in Paris next week.

On this week’s Defense as lawmakers pass Reconciliation 2.0 that funds President Trump’s immigration efforts, Sens. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Susan Collins, R-Maine, see dim prospects for the $350 billion Reconciliation 3.0 plus up for the Pentagon; how the administration and lawmakers can pack $1.5 trillion in planned spending into a smaller funding package; the future of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act; the president’s decision to tap US attorney Jay Clayton as the next Director of National Intelligence; what’s next for the Iran war as Trump declares a deal involving Tehran and Jerusalem is imminent, a stance Iran and Israel deny; as Russia escalates its provocations against Europe, Washington prepares deep cuts to US capabilities for NATO, including cuts to fighter, bomber, reconnaissance, and refueling aircraft as well as a missile sub and warships including an aircraft carrier as NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Gen. Alex “Grinch” Grynkewich tells a European audience that “Russia is not looking for a conflict;” British Defence Secretary John Healey and Armed Forces Minister Al Carns resigned to protest Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s unwillingness to increase defense spending to bolster the country’s flagging military capabilities; Starmer visits Tokyo where officials express frustration that Britain is underfunding the Global Combat Air Program that includes Japan and Italy; Japan and South Korea work increasingly closely with Europe with the Takaichi to expand her tour of Europe during the upcoming G7 meeting; China continues to salami slice in South China Sea and arrests US citizen Min Zin, testing its detente with Washington; and Xi Jinping’s visit to Pyongyang bolstered Kim Jong Un’s nuclear hand.

After 51 years in US service, the Marine Corps said farewell last week to the AV-8 Harrier. We have reminiscences of that jet and how it grew to success from someone with tremendous time at its controls, former Lieutenant General and Deputy Commandant for Aviation Jon “Dog” Davis. He shares his thoughts about the F-35 and the future of Marine aviation as well. And the week’s airpower headlines. Powered by GE Aerospace!

On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Mark Montgomery of the Defense of Democracies and a Cyberspace Solarium Commission senior adviser joins Defense the impact of AI on how military members think and work; the right balance for the government in encouraging and enabling AI adopting while protecting against vulnerabilities it could cause; how the government needs to structure vetting of AI models; ensuring US access to the chips that are vital to the burgeoning AI ecosystem; the Trump administration’s approach to Taiwan and how to improve interoperability with the island democracy; and the changing dynamics of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Mesh Feigenbaum, a managing partner at Engineered Metal Tech who is one of the world’s leading experts on the gigantic forging presses that are critical for the worldwide aerospace and defense supply chain and author of two recent commentaries — “Aerospace’s Hidden Bottleneck” in Aviation Week and “Rate Readiness at Risk: The Global Shortage of Large Hydraulic Forging Presses” in the Forging Industry Association magazine’s May issue — joins Defense whether Airbus and Boeing will be able to sustain ambitious production including the US giant’s goal of boosting the 737 rate to 70 jets a month; whether capacity is sufficient to sustain a surge in defense production; and what it will take to encourage US investment to as Europe and Asia step up.

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense Washington’s decision to cancel the deployment of US Tomahawk cruise missiles to Germany to avoid antagonizing Russia, prompting Berlin to consider buying the US weapons; the House Armed Services Committee approves its version of the Trump administration’s proposed $1.15 trillion 2027 defense spending request; Reconciliation 3.0 for the Pentagon in the wake of Senate passage of Reconciliation 2.0 for border and immigration funding; Honeywell’s Investor Day as the firm prepares to split into three companies; startup valuations and portfolio shaping; and a look at the week ahead in Washington and beyond.

On this week’s Defense airline CEOs meet at IATA’s 82nd General Meeting in Rio de Janeiro as energy prices remain high and Washington and Tehran continue to discuss a ceasefire; Airbus order and delivery figures as Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg eyes a further increase in 737 production to 70 jets a month; Southwest sticks with all 737 fleet despite frustration over Max 7 delay; Airbus won’t be ready to unveil stretch version of A220 by Farnborough; the House Armed Services Committee’s chairman’s markup of the Trump administration’s $1.15 trillion spending request for 2027 and its version of the National Defense Authorization Act; outlook for the $350 billion Reconciliation 3.0 plus up to the Pentagon budget; Washington’s decision to block delivery of Tomahawk cruise missiles ordered by Germany to avoid provoking Russia; and what to expect from next week’s ILA air show in Berlin.

On this week’s Defense the House Armed Services Committee’s National Defense Authorization Act and chairman’s markup of the administration’s $1.15 trillion 2027 defense spending request; House passage of war powers resolution; outlook for US-Iran talks as two sides trade fire; Trump orders Israel to not strike Beirut to prevent collapse of talks with Iran, prompting Israel and Lebanon to strike new ceasefire; House approval of $8 billion in new Ukraine aid; Kyiv struck St. Petersburg oil facilities as Vladimir Putin convened his annual economic forum where Saudi Arabia was a special guest; Moscow’s $25 billion Iran nuclear deal; Washington’s decision to block Tomahawk cruise missiles for Germany to avoid provoking Moscow as Norway joined France’s European nuclear deterrent initiative; Chinese coercive maritime behavior; Japan’s quasi-alliances with Australia, the Philippines and — perhaps — SouthKorea; undersea warfare and uncrewed technologies become the first AUKUS Pillar II elements; the 17-nation Guiding Principles for Underwater Infrastructure Defence Exchanges; impact of Trump’s proposal to elevate Federal Housing Finance Agency as well as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac boss Bill Pulte as acting Director of National Intelligence on renewal of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act; and US politics.

Hermeus just became the first company to fly a privately-developed supersonic UAV. But that’s just a milepost on the way to a much bigger goal. Founder and executive chairman A.J. Piplica joins us to illuminate their future. With the week’s airpower headlines. Powered by GE Aerospace!

On today’s Technology Report, Vince Crisler, who was the chief information security officer at the White House during the George W Bush administration who is now the CISO at cyber security firm Celerium and serves as a member of the Pentagon’s Defense Industrial Base Cybersecurity Information Sharing Environment, joins Defense how the government should assess the security implications of new models as President Trump prepares to sign an executive order that would give the government a month to review models before their release; how to improve cybersecurity across the defense industrial base and flaws with the CMMC approach; and his company’s “DIB CyberDome.”

On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, joining Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian are Abigail Hunter, the executive director of the Center for Critical Minerals Strategy, and Joe Quinn, the executive director of the Center for Strategic Industrial Materials, both with the Ambassador Alfred Hoffman, Jr. Center for Critical Minerals Strategy at the industry advocacy group SAFE — Securing America’s Energy Future — to discuss strategies that will secure US access to both critical minerals as well as steel, copper and aluminum for commercial and defense needs.

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense energy price impact given disruption to global energy flows and facilities; prospect US industry will get contracts to help rebuild Iran; analysis of the House Armed Services Committee chairman’s markup for the Trump administration’s proposed $1.15 trillion 2027 defense spending request; outlook for passage of the budget, Reconciliation 3.0 and an Iran war supplemental; SpaceX’s initial public offering that’s expected to hit a record valuation of $1.8 trillion; and a look at the week ahead in Washington and beyond.

On this week’s Defense airlines grapple with higher fuel costs and declining traffic as the Department of Homeland Security threatens to pull immigration and customs enforcement officers from major US international airports to punish cities the Trump administration deems insufficiently supportive of its immigration crackdown as analysts warn the move would have a catastrophic impact on business and leisure travel to the United States; a banner week for Saab as Ukraine commits to acquiring up to 150 Gripen jets, Canada opts for four of the company’s GlobalEye radar planes, and the Swedish firm strikes a partnership to mount its LoyalEye radar on General Atomics Aeronautical Systems’ MQ-9; analysis of the Pentagon’s plan to spend tens of billions of dollars on buying drones and investing in companies that make them; major Space Force contracts for SpaceX as the company launches history’s largest ever initial public offering valued at $1.8 trillion, including a $4 billion award to develop a space-based air moving target indicator capability by 2028 that would make airborne early warning aircraft obsolete and $4 billion for missile tracking radars for Golden Dome missile defense system; and Elbit and Heico earnings.

On this week’s Defense Israel ramps up strikes on Hezbollah in South Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza; Russia pounds Ukraine, warning foreigners to leave Kyiv lest they be targeted as a Russian drone overshoots Ukraine to hit an apartment building in Romania; Moscow ramping up of threats and intimidation against the Baltics as America shifts its force posture in Europe and reduce capabilities devoted to NATO; Ukraine’s decision to buy Saab’s Gripen fighter as Stockholm opts for French frigates and Canada buys Swedish radar planes; what to expect from the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ 24th annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore; South Korea’s decision to pursue nuclear attack submarines; the Quad — America, Australia, India and Japan — launches its first security organization, the Indo-Pacific Maritime Surveillance Cooperation Initiative; and the latest rift between the Israel and the UN.

Dr. Brendan Mulvaney directs the China Aerospace Studies Institute at National Defense University, which had their big biennial conference last week, and he joins us to discuss the latest in Chinese airpower. Plus the week’s other airpower headlines. Powered by GE Aerospace!

On this Land Warfare episode, sponsored by American Rheinmetall, Dr. Gian Gentile, a retired US Army colonel who is now a senior historian at the Rand Corporation think tank’s Arroyo Center, joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the latest on the Ukraine war including on the role of unmanned ground vehicles, lessons from the conflict, how armies learn lessons and whether the US Army is inculcating those lessons in its $252 billion 2027 spending request, how the need for more powerful electromagnetic and air defense capabilities as well as drones for surveillance will shape future vehicles, his new Korea Regional Review article “Ukraine War Ground Combat and its Implications for a Possible Future War Along the Korean DMZ,” the threat posed by Russia as Moscow continues to fight in Ukraine and increasingly provoke NATO’s Baltic nations, priorities for Europe as nations rebuild their ground combat capabilities, and the role of land forces in the IndoPacific.

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense the prospect of a US credibility gap and what it means; Washington’s plans for Cuba and why they’re immaterial; GOP senators rebel against President Trump’s compensation fund for allies and White House ballroom plans, jeopardizing reconciliation funding for the Department of Homeland Security and the Pentagon; themes from last week’s congressional hearings; and a look at the week ahead in Washington and beyond.

On this week’s Defense energy prices drop as Washington and Tehran again are on the verge of a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as nations led by Britain and France prepare to participation in an international mission to help reopen the critical waterway; the prospect of ongoing operations prompts the US Air Force to cancel the RAF Benevolent Fund’s annual Royal International Air Tattoo, the weekend before the Farnborough International Airshow in July; after President Trump’s visit to Beijing, China said it would order 200 Boeing jetliners and GE Aerospace engines; GOP senators rebel over Trump’s $1.8 billion fund to compensate allies and $1 billion White House ballroom, blocking a reconciliation package to bolster Pentagon spending; after cutting 5,000 US troops from Germany and canceling the rotational deployment of 4,000 soldiers to Poland, Trump says 5,000 American troops will be permanently based in Poland to reward right-wing President Karol Nawrocki as Washington reconsiders capabilities it will make available to NATO; Sweden picks Naval Group’s Amiral Rona’ch-class FDI frigate over Babcock’s Type 31 for four-ship, $4 billion contract; mounting pressure for British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to resign; Airbus production delays as a French court holds the company and Air France accountable for a 2009 crash that killed 228; and a Seattle jury found Boeing not guilty of wrongdoing in a suit brought by Poland’s LOT airlines after the company’s 737 Max jetliners were grounded in the wake of two deadly crashes that killed 346.

On this week’s Defense prospect of a deal between Washington and Tehran as Iran continues efforts to formalize its control over the Strait of Hormuz; Vladimir Putin’s escalating provocations against the Baltics as Washington reconsiders its obligations to NATO and shifts troops in Europe; reverberations of Trump’s summit with Xi Jinping as the Chinese leader hosted Putin; Washington’s move to shift more operational control to South Korea as South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Taikichi hold a landmark meeting; Seoul and New Delhi strike a security agreement as Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Rome to ink another security deal; and Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said he would evict Palestinian Bedouins from a West Bank village in retaliation for an ICC warrant seeking his arrest.

The US Air Force has ambitious plans, which even the proposed budget increases for fiscal 27 might not cover. Former Air Force acquisition chief Andrew Hunter joins us with the analysis, including looks ahead at how CCAs, a new heavy bomber, and a future airlifter might not be what we think. Plus the week’s headlines in airpower. Powered by GE Aerospace!

Dr. Sampriti Bhattacharyya, the founder and CEO of Navier — an innovative company that’s developed scalable, hybrid-electric hydrofoil technologies to for faster and more efficient commercial or military vessels — joins Defense the importance of hybrid-electric propulsion especially to stealthy applications; learning lessons from past programs to craft better future solutions; access to capital in a competitive innovation market; doing business with the Pentagon as it seeks to change what it buys and how; and how best to create an innovative national technological ecosystem.

On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Nigel Inkster, a former director of operations and intelligence at Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service who is now a senior adviser for Cyber Security and China at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, joins Defense the implications of Trump executing his “grand bargain” that trades Taiwan for stability in the Indo-Pacific; whether Washington’s mixed messages and depleted arsenal increases the prospect of conflict; the lessons Beijing has taken from US actions in Venezuela and Iran; how Beijing is capitalizing on the Washington’s focused efforts to shatter the rules-based order created in the wake of World War II to prevent another global conflict; the dissolution of that rules-based order and whether Beijing has the will use its vast resources to enact a new order that supplants the United States; and the impact of AI on cybersecurity.

On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense US defense budget outlook as Senate and House conduct hearings as lawmakers plot a third reconciliation package to bolster spending; bipartisan skepticism about the cost of the Iran war and future impact on operations and maintenance in the wake of the conflict; a look at the Defense Autonomous Working Group fund; President Trump shifts on Taiwan in the wake of summit with Xi Jinping in Beijing during which the Chinese leader made clear his focus on absorbing the island democracy and the US leader sees an opportunity to realize his “grand bargain” between the world’s leading economies and military powers; and a look at the week ahead in Washington and beyond.

On this week’s Defense Washington-Tehran talks continue as Strait of Hormuz traffic remains stalled; President Trump’s summit in Beijing with Xi Jinping that yielded few deals and Taiwan as the central bargaining chip in the relationship; the US defense budget outlook as lawmakers float the prospect a “3.0” version of reconciliation; Vladimir Putin suggests that the Ukraine war is coming to an end as he continues to pound Ukrainian cities; the Pentagon’s abrupt cancellation of the deployment of 4,000 troops after the first elements of the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team had already arrived in Poland to help deter Russian aggression; UK political update as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer faces a leadership challenge; Babcock’s warning of higher costs on its Type 31 frigate for the Royal Navy and export customers; and Lorenzo Mariani replaces Dr Roberto Cingolani at Leonardo’s helm.