New CSO Confirmed. The Senate last Thursday confirmed Space Force Gen. Douglas Schiess as the new chief of space operations (CSO), replacing Gen. Chance Saltzman. Schiess has served as the deputy CSO for operations and has said his top priorities include building space-based moving target indication systems and those that can disrupt Chinese military space systems. Lisa Dyer, the executive director of the GPS Innovation Alliance, said in a statement on Friday that the alliance agreed with Schiess’ “focus on fielding next-generation GPS IIIF satellites, securing capabilities against electronic warfare threats, and integrating complementary PNT [positioning, navigation, and timing] technology.” Lockheed Martin builds the GPS IIIF satellites, the first of which is to launch next May.
…PAE for Infrastructure. Space Force Col. Richard R. Beckman has become the Space Force’s new portfolio acquisition executive (PAE) for infrastructure. He replaces Col. Corey Klopstein who, since taking over the service’s operational test and training infrastructure program in October 2023, built it from an office of fewer than 10 personnel to more than 300 who manage an annual budget of $500 million, the Space Force said. In March, Klopstein became the service’s first PAE for infrastructure. “During his tenure, Klopstein inked the Space Force’s first combat training program of record, which delivered on-site simulators to solve the service’s primary readiness gap and cut the training backlog,” the service said. “His team established the foundational orbital range, retooled the electromagnetic spectrum operations range, and delivered the Space Force’s first-ever cyber range.” Beckman has served as the director of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s space vehicles directorate at Kirtland AFB, N.M.
VPMs To SSGNs. The Navy on Aug. 3 announced it will reclassify 19 planned Virginia-class attack submarines equipped with the Virginia Payload Module (VPM) as guided missile submarines (SSGNs). The VPM-equipped submarines consist of Virginia Block V and VI boats, with the first submarine of this designation, the future USS Arizona (DDGN-803) estimated to be delivered in fiscal year 2029 and subsequent boats delivered through FY 2038. The Navy said this “pivotal shift clearly differentiates these advanced platforms from traditional Virginia Class fast attack submarines.” The VPM is a new midbody section on Virginia-class boats that adds four large-diameter launch tubes that allows each submarine to carry 28 more Tomahawk cruise missiles. The Navy previously said 20 VPM-equipped boats are needed to replace the capability of the four retiring Ohio-class former ballistic missile submarines converted to cruise missile platforms. Each Ohio-class SSGN fields up to 154 Tomahawk missiles.
Golden Dome Support. L3Harris has selected Intuitive Machines to design, build and deliver 18 spacecraft platforms in support of the Space Development Agency’s Accelerated Missile Defense Tranche 3 (AMDT3) program for missile warning and tracking. L3Harris and Sierra Space each received AMDT3 contracts, which support the Golden Dome homeland missile defense shield (Defense Daily, July 13). Intuitive Machines said it will supply its IM 300 satellite platform, that is also being for some of SDA’s Tranche 1, Tranche 2 and Tranche 3 Tracking Layer missile warning and tracking missions.
Missile Tracking Help. MapLarge last week said it has received a fixed-price Other Transaction Agreement award from the Space Development Agency (SDA) to develop the Tasking and Data Fusion Platform (TDFP) that will exploit commercial sensors for the agency’s operational missile tracking mission. SDA told Defense Daily the OTA is for about $37 million and the base period expires June 2028. “Under the TDFP, MapLarge tasks commercial sensors and fuses their data with government sensing into a single picture, turning time-sensitive feeds into decision-ready cues the mission can act on,” the Atlanta-based company said. “MapLarge fuses live commercial and government data and puts it on the operator’s screen fast enough to matter.”
DHS C-UAS Awards. The Department of Homeland Security last month selected 12 companis to compete for $1.5 billion in awards for counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) awards in two tracks, one for hardware, software and related services, and the other for comprehensive services such as counter-drone-as-a-service (Defense Daily, Nov. 6, 2025). BAE Systems and Leidos were selected for both tracks. Other Track 1 awardees were Dedrone, D-FEND Solutions, Fortem Technologies, CACI International and EMS Defense Technologies. The other awardees in Track 2 include Booz Allen Hamilton, General Dynamics, Parsons Corp., Anduril Industries and Astrion Group.
LUS Order. Ondas said on August 5 its Mistral business has received an order from the Army worth over $50 million for continued deliveries in support of the Lethal Unmanned Systems (LUS) program. The latest award was placed under a Mistral five-year, $982 million Army contract for the LUS initiative that Mistral announced last October to deliver UVision’s HERO 120 anti-tank loitering munition system. Mistral has now received $240 million total awards to date under the LUS contract, according to Ondas. “The order also demonstrates the strategic rationale behind Ondas’ acquisition of Mistral. Mistral provides Ondas with established access to major U.S. defense programs, long-standing customer relationships, prime-contractor capabilities and the infrastructure required to execute large, complex government programs,” Ondas said. Ondas acquired Mistral earlier this year.
…HERO 120 Tests. Mistral and Uvision on August 4 also announced the successful completion of the first Lot Acceptance Tests for the HERO 120 in support of the Army’s LUS program. “During the testing event, HERO 120 systems successfully completed all required acceptance test missions,” the vendors said. Mistral and Uvision said the HERO 120 is “designed to provide soldiers with organic precision strike, reconnaissance and lethal target engagement capabilities in complex operational environments.”
USV Ocean Floor Mapping. The Naval Oceanographic Office has selected six companies to compete for awards under a $40 million contract for high-resolution ocean floor mapping services using long-endurance unmanned surface vessels (USVs). The companies are AOR International, LLC, Blue Water Autonomy, Chance Technologies, Inc., Link Technologies, Inc., Ocean Power Technologies, Inc., and Saildrone. The ordering period runs from August through July 2028. Ocean mapping surveys “characterize the operating environment itself such as the terrain, the acoustics, and the shifting conditions that shape how naval forces move and operate far from shore,” Blue Water said in a statement.
A First for FPVs. U.S. Marines last week successfully completed their first live-fire use of first person view (FPV) attack drone flights in South Korea, which the service said “marks a significant milestone in force modernization, demonstrating the Marine Corps’ ability to rapidly field emerging technologies in the Western Pacific.” The FPVs were the Neros Technologies Archer drone for anti-armor and anti-personnel explosive strikes. The Archer as an effective range of 20 kilometers is remotely flown by an operator onto the target.
Downey Retiring. Vice Adm. James Downey on Aug. 6 was relieved of his dual-hatted role as Commander of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) by Rear Adm. Pete Small and as Portfolio Acquisition Executive Industrial Operations (PAE IO) by Rear Adm. Todd Weeks during a ceremony at the Washington Navy Yard. Downey has served as NAVSEA commander since January 2024 and is set to retire after 40 years of service in the Navy. Small will assume acting command of NAVSEA after previously serving in a dual-role assignment himself since June 2024 as NAVSEA’s Chief Engineer and NAVSEA Deputy Commander for Naval Systems Engineering. Small has also served as commander of Naval Surface and Undersea Warfare Centers since June 2025. Downey served in key acquisition roles while the Navy started its reform to push accountable executive portfolios into PAE positions.
…PAE IO. Weeks will be interim PAE IO after serving previously as director of in-service submarines and industrial base for the Director of Submarine Programs. He previously served as Program Executive Officer (PEO) for strategic submarines and PEO of Undersea Warfare Systems. The Navy said in the PAE IO role, Weeks will provide leadership over the four public naval shipyards and seven regional maintenance centers, focused on performing ship and submarine depot maintenance on schedule.
Leonardo DRS. Leonardo DRS on Aug. 4 announced it signed an agreement to build a new facility in Brookfield, Conn., to expand and consolidate operations for its Naval Power Systems businesses and ultimately help increase throughput. The new site will provide 141,087 square feet of space and combine operations currently spread across three locations in Danbury and Bethel, Conn. It expects to potentially start limited occupancy at the site later this year, with full initial occupancy expected in early 2027. “By bringing these operations together in Brookfield, we are strengthening collaboration, improving efficiency, and creating the foundation needed to support continued growth across naval nuclear propulsion and the broader nuclear energy market,” John Baylouny, CEO of Leonardo DRS, said in a statement.
Aegis. The Navy on Aug. 3 awarded RTX a $271 million contract for production of AEGIS Weapon System Fire Control System MK 99 equipment, AEGIS modernization equipment, and associated engineering support. While the Aegis uses a SPY-1 radar to scan for threats, once a threat is identified the system uses the MK 99 to illuminate a target with a radio frequency beam, helping guide standard missiles to their target by giving them a high-fidelity radio frequency signature to lock onto. This contract includes options that, if exercised, raises the total value to $302 million. The order is mostly focused on purchases for the U.S. Navy (97 percent) but two percent is for Australia and one percent for Japan under the Foreign Military Sales program.
Hammerhead Mines. The Navy on July 31 awarded General Dynamics Mission Systems a $230 million modification to procure an additional 188 Hammerhead mine units and several complementary support equipment sets. Hammerhead Encapsulated Effector mines are encapsulated torpedoes used as a moored influence mine in intermediate and deep-water zones. The Hammerhead is moored to the sea floor where it detects passing submarines, launching the torpedo to destroy passing threats.
Hydra-70 Deals. The Army on August 5 said it has awarded contracts to Firehawk Aerospace, iRocket, Nammo Perry and Albers to “diversify the Hydra-70 rocket supply chain and revitalize its defense industrial base.” “This initiative delivers immediate strategic dividends by establishing multiple viable production sources to drive competitive pricing on annual orders, while simultaneously updating the munition’s product definition for improved manufacturability,” the Army said in a statement. “This acquisition strategy secures vital industrial base surge capacity, ensuring the Army can swiftly meet emergent mission requirements and maintain uninterrupted readiness for Army lethality.” Under the awards, each vendor will deliver 24 prototype Hydra-70 M151 High Explosive rockets alongside a “modernized” technical data package within 18 months, according to the Army, which noted it owns the system’s current TDP. “Upon successful prototype demonstration, follow-on agreements are planned to expand this effort to other variants in the Hydra-70 family of rockets which typically procures 100,000-200,000 annually.”
Rare Earth Deal. Lockheed Martin and critical minerals developer NioCorp Developments Ltd., last week signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the annual purchase of up to 15 tons of scandium oxide in either oxide form or aluminum-scandium alloys to strengthen the U.S. supply chain for defense technology. Both companies agreed to negotiate in good faith to reach a definitive agreement. The MoU builds on a joint development program with Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works begun in October 2025 and funded by the Defense Department as part of a $10 million Defense Production Act Title III award to NioCorp to establish the first U.S. “scandium mine-to-master-alloy supply chain,” NioCorp said. Skunk Works will use the aluminum allow components for fighter aircraft.
Rangeview. California-based Rangeview, Inc. on Aug. 4 announced it won a Navy contract to operate foundry capacity to produce Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul replacement parts for Navy programs. This award is part of the Defense Department’s Industrial Base-Expansion, Development, and Growth Enterprise initiative, funded via the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment program. The company said it aims to support reshoring manufacturing by combining traditional investment casting with software-driven production. While tooling and its reliance on physical dies and molds is a challenge in traditional foundries when the Navy needs replacement parts, especially for older vessels without available original tooling, the company said it uses a toolless manufacturing process with digital files to generate castings directly. It said this process can improve timelines from design to first article in weeks rather than months.
Munition CRADA. Tiberius Aerospace said on August 5 it has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center to further development of its Sceptre precision-guided, ramjet-powered 155mm artillery munition. The CRADA follows a successful test launch demonstration in April 2026. “Unlike conventional rocket-assisted projectiles, Sceptre uses a liquid-fueled ramjet that provides sustained propulsion throughout flight, delivering a step change in the performance of tube artillery. Fired from a NATO-standard 155mm howitzer, Sceptre is designed to accelerate beyond Mach 3, reach altitudes exceeding 65,000 feet and deliver precision effects at ranges of up to 150 kilometers, with target accuracy within five meters, even in GPS-denied environments,” Tiberius Aerospace said in a statement.
Javelin Seeker. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions announced on August 6 it has been awarded a contract by the Army DEVCOM’s C5ISR Center to develop an “enhanced seeker” for the Javelin missile. The value of the deal has not yet been disclosed. Kratos said it will develop, build and test a next-generation infrared seeker that “addresses obsolescence in the current Javelin guidance section, improving the lethality of one of the U.S. Army’s most critical close combat weapons for the next decade.” “Kratos has made the investments, built the credentialed team, and delivered the capabilities to win, execute, and deliver a production-ready seeker that keeps Javelin lethal for the soldiers who depend on it,” Michael Johns, Kratos SRE’s senior vice president, said in a statement.
Norway FMS. The State Department said on August 5 it has approved a potential amended deal with Norway for 155mm High Explosive (HE) M795 projectiles and program support worth $270 million. Along with the artillery ammunition, the deal includes U.S. government and contractor engineering, technical and logistics support services. The new Foreign Military Sales case builds on a previously approved $99.99 million deal for the same capabilities and services that fell below the congressional notification threshold. “The proposed sale will improve Norway’s capability to meet current and future threats and increase its interoperability with the U.S. and other allied forces. This proposed sale will enhance Norway’s artillery and mid-range fire capability,” the State Department said in a statement. The principal contractors for the work will be American Ordinance and General Dynamics.
Rheinmetall Frigate. Germany’s Rheinmetall on August 3 unveiled its new GMF 140 459-foot guided missile frigate designed to meet NATO and allied navy requirements. The company noted it is “targeting international markets and intends to offer it initially as part of a procurement project in North America” and boasted it is a new benchmark in survivability, lethality and mission flexibility for the global frigate market. The company hinted the North America campaign might follow a selection by other allies’ navies as an interoperable combatant. The frigate includes advanced air and ballistic missile defense, anti-submarine warfare and long-range strike capabilities within a “highly survivable, digitally integrated and minimum manned platform,” the company said, adding the GMF 140 is designed to integrate American-sourced primary radar options, the Aegis Combat System, 64 Strike-length Vertical Launch System (VLS) cells, and various air defense, ballistic missile defense and land-attack missiles. Rheinmetall offers a version of the ship with other combat management systems like the Lockheed Martin CMS330 Combat Management System.
First Australian SRM. Australia’s Defence Ministry last week said the first solid rocket motor (SRM) designed and developed within the country completed a successful flight test at the Koonibba Test Range in Ceduna, South Australia. The Koonibba Risining 3.0 100 kilogram-class SRM was developed in partnership between the Defence Ministry’s Science and Technology Group and Thales Australia. “Post-flight analysis confirmed the rocket motor performed as designed throughout the test,” the ministry said.
Silentium in U.S. Australian passive radar company Silentium Defense has opened a U.S. headquarters in Apex, N.C. Silentium has received multiple U.S. contracts to supply the MAVERICK and OMNIGUARD passive radars for counter-drone, integrated air and missile defense, and space domain awareness missions (Defense Daily, June 2). Matthew Ratnesar is the CEO of Silentium’s North American operations.
HPM Test Support. Eprius is supplying a radio frequency test instrument for used in two new anechoic chambers at a defense and innovation hub near Fort Sill, Okla., to support research and development of RF and high-power microwave (HPM) technology, the company said last week. The Fires Innovation Science and Technology Accelerator’s two test chambers were built in collaboration with Epirus and include a 2,800 square-foot facility for oversized systems like vehicles and radar systems, and a 600 square-foot system for faster testing of subsystems, electronics and payloads. Epirus is developing HPM products to affordably defeat swarms of small drones. The anechoic chambers support government-funded research and defense innovation, Epirus said.
New Name. Quantum Sky, formerly Tyto Athene, is the new name for the rapid software prototyping and data analytics and visualization company as of August 4. “Quantum Sky reflects the mission environment our customers are already operating in,” Andrew Boyd, Quantum Sky’s CEO, said in a statement. “The work is moving faster, the data is more complex, and the threat surface is expanding. Agencies need advanced technology partners that can engineer secure, operational AI and quantum solutions into the fabric of the mission, not as a pilot, but as a capability they can field, trust and sustain.”
Army and TVA. The Army and the Tennessee Valley Authority signed a new memorandum of understanding (MoU) on August 6 to explore “energy resilience opportunities” at Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, and Fort Campbell in Tennessee and Kentucky. “Building on a longstanding partnership, this collaboration supports the Army’s evolving energy needs and strategies. The MoU replaces a prior 2024 green energy agreement that included offsite solar energy and renewable energy certificates to align with current priorities and broaden the range of potential energy solutions,” the Army said in a statement. “The primary goal is to bolster energy resilience and grid security, ensuring installations in the TVA region have reliable, continuous power to sustain critical missions during emergencies, while also supporting regional energy demands.”
