ASYMMETRIC DIALOGUE

A top uniformed NATO official warned Friday the European Union army concept endorsed by French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel would be “duplicative” and “unwise.” Polish Army Major General Andrzej Reudowicz (left), commander of NATO's Joint Warfare Centre in Stavanger, Norway, accompanies UK Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, the chairman of the NATO Military Committee, on a visit to the JWC on May 4, 2018. Peach warned against a European Union army concept to compliment NATO on Friday. (NATO photo) In an interview at the Halifax International Security Forum, UK Air Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, chairman of the NATO Military Committee, pointed to NATO’s strength as a single set of forces, with a unique command and control network and planning process. “It’s not rhetoric based. It’s real planning based on real data,” Peach said. “And therefore, why would you wish to duplicate or replicate the strengths of an existing strong al

DARPA, Army Test Optionally Manned Helicopter

DARPA and Lockheed have modified an off-the-shelf commercial helicopter to fly itself in typical military missions, including supply runs, medevac, and recon. The next step: Port the MATRIX software over to an actual Army UH-60 Black Hawk, which will fly next year. The long run: Design next-generation scout and assault aircraft to be optionally piloted from the start. The tablet interface used to control DARPA’s ALIAS autonomous flight controls. For safety reasons, there were highly trained test pilots aboard the Sikorsky Autonomy Research Aircraft, a modified S-76B , during this month’s flight tests at Fort Eustis , Va. — but for much of the time, they might as well have stayed on the ground. In one case, Sikorsky autonomy director Igor Cherepinsky told reporters this afternoon, “we also had a non-pilot with all of 45 minutes of training take the aircraft up and operate for almost an hour.” How? The humans just tapped on a tablet screen to issue some basic instructio

How could a burgeoning satellite servicing industry help government?

Orbital ATK unveiled two new vehicles in early March that would help extend the life of satellites at the 2018 Satellite conference held in Washington D.C. The aerospace manufacturing company touted their rendezvous vehicles as the latest step in the ongoing revolution within the field of on-orbit servicing technology. As industry leaders at the conference boasted technological advancements, policy experts gathered on the other side of the convention center to discuss their role in this new rapidly developing market. Commercial satellite operators are particularly interested in this field of technology because it may allow them to keep one satellite on orbit longer than expected. It would also allow operators to shuffle their fleet and provide more flexible services, which could benefit the Department of Defense. Dawkins said five American companies have received licenses for on-orbit servicing. Under current law, operators need approval from multiple gov