Sequester Rollback Chances Improve
Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River economic community. The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the Leader’s owners or staff.
Sequester rollback chances are improving in response to the fight against ISIS and the possibility that Republicans will control the Senate, reports The Hill. Repealing the automatic spending cuts is unlikely, however opponents believe they have new, favorable arguments on their side. They include the falling budget deficit and the emerging threats of Ebola and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. A budget expert believes that, “The only really feasible solution is a small deal that raises the defense budget caps by $5 to $10 billion and also raises the non-defense budget caps by the same amount.”
New spot promotion rules took effect this month that expand eligibility and create an annual time window for all command advancements promotions not based on the Navy-wide test, according to Navy Times. The rules set a three-month window for spot advancements and require the CO to get an approval for each individual selected.
The VA has a long way to go in its handling of issues faced by women veterans, according to Defense One. Female veterans face different challenges than their male counterparts and are more likely to be uninsured, unemployed, divorced, and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, often the result of a sexual assault.
An unmanned aircraft almost collided with a passenger plane in the UK when it was “deliberately” flown close to the plane, according to the BBC. The object, believed to be a quadcopter, came within 82ft of a landing plane earlier this year. Police were contacted but the UAV’s operator could not be found.
The Asia-Pacific region is outspending all other nations, except the US, in the procurement of ships and submarines to protect sea trade that passes through vulnerable straits such as Malacca, Singapore and Taiwan, reports DefenseNews. Asian navies are also expected to purchase more fixed-wing planes, including UAVs and refurbished P-3 Orion maritime surveillance aircraft. More P-3s will become available as the US begins retiring its fleet and deploying the new P-8 Poseidon.
The Navy’s newest attack submarine was commissioned over the weekend in New London, where 2,400 guests welcomed the USS North Dakota to the fleet, reports Navy Times.
DefenseNews reviews the capabilities of the French Navy which is able to project blue water maritime power on and below the sea, and by striking from the air. Budget constraints have led the French Navy to “make choices,” but by 2025, the service will have all the capabilities needed to complete a full range of missions, from defense to security. After the US, France has the second-largest exclusive economic zone, with 11 million kilometers of seas to police in the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans.
Elop has unveiled what it claims is the smallest laser designator that can be carried by a mini-unmanned air vehicle, reports Flightglobal. A company spokesman said, “When a mini-UAS carries an electro-optical payload that includes this laser designator, a target simply cannot get away.” He added that a fighter aircraft flying above clouds can deploy its laser-guided weapons in collaboration with the hand-launched air vehicle.
Lockheed Martin and Rokestan signed a teaming agreement for collaboration on the SOM-J, a new generation air-to-surface standoff cruise missile for the F-35 Lightning II, reports Arabian Aerospace. The SOM System is as an autonomous, long range, low observable, all weather, high precision air-to-surface cruise missile. The SOM-J variant is designed specifically for internal carriage on F-35 aircraft.
