New Emphasis on Asia Shifts DoD Development Priorities
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Hikes in Asian defense spending can be attributed to large troop numbers and maintenance, not massive investment in research or equipment, says a report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The report analyzed defense budget documents from 2000-2011 for China, India, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea. China led the group with an increase of 13.4 percent.
Image by worldatlas.com
Defending the Pacific theater may prove difficult, according to a DEW Line blog analysis suggesting the U.S. may have over-invested in short-range tactical aircraft ill-suited to that area. The Navy has recently begun work on three new contracts to build systems that will counter the threat posed by “water-IEDs” and other underwater perils in the Pacific and elsewhere, says Foreign Policy’s Situation Report.
Iran on Monday denied involvement in cyber attacks on the U.S. oil industry. U.S. officials say they believe “a state actor,” likely Iran, is behind recent attacks on Saudi Arabia’s ARAMCO and Qatar’s Ras Gas, reports CNN. They also suspect that Iran may be behind cyber attacks on U.S. banks.
The Office of Naval Research has selected Lockheed Martin and Aurora Flight Sciences to build prototype cargo unmanned aerial systems, which the Navy will push to develop into systems much more sophisticated than the K-MAX UAS, the program manager told Inside the Navy last week. (paywall)
U.S. strategic options may soon be defined more by what Washington can afford than by what it believes it needs, says a Reuters analysis of looming budget cuts. To economize, some experts suggest buying more flexible systems and using special forces, drones and new technology to replace more expensive traditional equipment.
Low-price contracting is going to come back to bite contractors and agencies alike, says Washington Technology blogger Nick Wakeman.
A Georgia Tech professor is using a $900,000 grant from the Office of Naval Research to develop a robot smart enough to not only avoid obstacles but use them as tools, according to AOL Defense.
Compensation for S&P 500 corporate directors rose significantly in 2011, according to a new benefits analysis by Mercer LLC. Defense giants in the S&P’s top 100 (by market cap) include United Technologies (35), Boeing (51) and Honeywell International (57).
