✈️ Air Force turns to 737 MAX for VIP airlift

Nammo is starting development of a new dual-pulse rocket motor to power Diehl's IRIS-T SLX, the long-range variant of the IRIS-T air defense system.

The SLX targets 80 km intercepts, double the SLM's range, with a first firing test planned for 2027 and serial production reportedly slated for 2029.

The SLX shares launchers, radar, and software with the SLM, and Diehl says it could lessen reliance on scarce US Patriot interceptors.

Global Military Products unveiled the Scorpion Medium, an all-electric 120mm mobile mortar built to give Army Infantry Squad Vehicles (ISVs) heavier firepower.

The 1,400-pound system carries 16 rounds, emplaces and displaces in about 10 seconds with a single button, and claims roughly 25% more standoff range.

Its architecture is shared with the Scorpion Light, already under a $12.9M Army contract, which could make fire-control integration faster and cheaper for light infantry units.

German firm Wingcopter launched the Wingcopter 262, an all-electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) reconnaissance drone with up to six hours of endurance.

It covers up to 150 km per deployment, carries AI-enabled electro-optical/infrared sensors, and keeps navigating when satellite positioning is denied.

Wingcopter is partnering with Ukraine's TAF Industries to supply the drone, and its open architecture could let it shift from reconnaissance to strike.

The Pentagon and Lockheed Martin signed a framework agreement to ramp production of the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile (JATM), the classified AMRAAM successor.

No dollar value, production rate, or timeline was disclosed, though Lockheed pledged to fund the capacity investments needed to raise output.

The deal sets up a future multiyear procurement and expanded foreign sales, with Australia already slated as the first international customer.

The Air Force plans to buy a Boeing 737 MAX to expand its C-40 executive airlift fleet, apparently the jetliner's first purchase for US military missions.

Funding comes from $250M authorized in the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA); cost, variant, and delivery timeline were not disclosed.

Demand for both the C-40 and the C-32, which flies Top Five officials like the vice president, has run high, and the C-40 can backfill C-32 missions.

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