⚡ Lockheed says laser air defenses arrive this decade

Stephanie Hill, president of Lockheed Martin's rotary and mission systems division, said high-energy lasers will be ready for operations before the end of the decade.
Lockheed's spectral beam combining lasers have downed small and mid-size drones plus surrogate cruise missiles in tests at sea and on land.
Lockheed and nLIGHT are building 150-kilowatt prototypes under the Joint Laser Weapon System, a design scalable toward 500 kW for cruise missile defense.

Rocket Lab received a $266 million multi-launch contract from the US Space Force, the largest launch award in company history.
The Rocket Systems Launch Program deal covers 12 suborbital launches with up to six more, flying primarily from a new site at Kodiak, Alaska.
First launch is expected no earlier than late 2026, adding suborbital test cadence for missile defense programs and a fourth Rocket Lab launch location.

AFWERX selected NANO Nuclear Energy for a Small Business Innovation Research Phase I contract covering its KRONOS MMR stationary microreactor.
Work began July 21 and adds to several active NANO Nuclear engagements with the Department of the Air Force.
KRONOS is a high-temperature gas-cooled design in pre-application review with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, aimed at energy resilience on military installations.

US firm Althimis demonstrated Guardian, a counter-drone readiness platform, with Bundeswehr operators at the Storkow military training area this month.
Operators set a defensive posture, then faced simulated attacks generated by the Althimis AI Chaos Engine, which scored each threat as intercepted, delayed, or undetected.
The event marked Guardian's first real-world evaluation and market debut, with further operator trials planned over the coming months.

The Army awarded other transaction agreements to GM Defense, Ford, and BC Customs to each build three Infantry Squad Vehicle Heavy prototypes.
All nine vehicles are due by March 30, 2027, then face operational assessment and limited developmental testing with Army Test and Evaluation Command.
Ford is fielding an F-Series Super Duty variant against GM's Silverado HD design, with a production program of roughly 600 vehicles at stake.

The Coast Guard issued a request for information seeking commercially available systems that can defeat unmanned underwater vehicles threatening ports and waterways.
The notice cites UUVs used for intelligence gathering, smuggling, sabotage of critical infrastructure, and kinetic strikes, with few tested and fielded defeat systems available.
Only systems with an effector or direct mitigating capability will be considered, and responses are due August 7.

UK firm MGI Engineering launched the T-022 Vortex, an autonomous collaborative combat aircraft built to operate alongside crewed fighters.
Powered by a Rolls-Royce Orpheus engine, it carries 1,000 kilograms across four stations, ranges beyond 4,000 kilometers, and tops 1,050 kilometers per hour.
Designed for manned-unmanned teaming with Typhoon and F-35, the aircraft is built to keep operating in signal-denied airspace.

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