Defense & Aerospace Business Report

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, Dr. Patrick Cronin of the Hudson Institute think tank, Michael Herson of American Defense International, and former Pentagon Comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim join host Vago Muradian to discuss the House Armed Services Committee’s $895 billion National Defense Authorization Act that includes “poison pills for Democrats,” the House’s defense appropriations measure as the Senate Armed Services Committee finishes marking its version of the NDAA, speculation that pressures in the 2026 budget that’s now under construction is forcing the US Air Force to reconsider its flagship Next-Generation Air Dominance program, former President Trump’s meeting with GOP lawmakers on Capitol Hill as they vow revenge against the justice system and hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt, a consequential G7 meeting that provides $50 billion in assistance to Ukraine backed by seized Russian assets, new sanctions on Russia, the new 10-year security pact signed by Pr

Hot wars mean a very hot air power market. Fortunately, the number one aerospace market analyst in the world just happens to be our friend Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic Advisory consultancy. We focus his global strategic expertise on airpower, with illuminating results.  Powered by GE!

Amb. Jim Cunningham, former ambassador to Afghanistan, Israel, the United Nations, and consul general to Hong Kong and Macau, discusses the flaws with Israel’s strategy against Hamas in Gaza that’s undermined global support for the Jewish state, whether the damage is lasting, the importance of a two-state solution to lasting peace and implications of a one-state solution, whether Israeli strategy would change under new leadership in Jerusalem and why American efforts to pressure Israel are so difficult, and countering Iran’s malign efforts in the region and beyond as Tehran grows steadily more emboldened as it inches closer to a nuclear capability with Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian.

On this episode of the Defense & Aerospace Report Strategy Series, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Amb. Bob Blackwill, a retired American diplomat and former ambassador to India who is now the Henry A. Kissinger senior fellow for foreign policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, and Richard Fontaine, the president and CEO of the Center for a New American Security discuss their new book — Lost Decade: The US Pivot to Asia and the Rise of Chinese Power — that dissects the Obama administration’s Asia Pivot that wasn’t and the gains that China has made over the past decade as a case for a more holistic US grand strategy toward Beijing and the world with Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian.

On today’s program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners discusses Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Se. Roger Wicker’s plan to quickly bolster US military capabilities to better deter China and Russia, whether the plan stands a change of success and outlook for defense authorizations and appropriations through the end of the year, the role of allies and partners in bolstering American and allied capabilities, look ahead to the G7 summit in Bari, Italy, defense and aerospace implications of far right gains in EU parliamentary elections that prompted French President Emmanuel Macron to call snap election, and a look at the week ahead with Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. Rocket Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities, Sash Tusa of the independent equity research firm Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy, join host Vago Muradian discuss aerospace and defense stock performance on Wall Street on stronger than expected US jobs growth dampens prospect of rapid interest rate cuts as the European Central Bank cuts borrowing rates; Airbus, Boeing and Embraer report May deliveries; Boeing’s CEO Dave Calhoun to testify before Congress on June 18 as the company’s Starliner spacecraft makes its maiden launch to orbit; SpaceX’s giant Starship makes its fourth and most successful flight; Chemring issues results and Kongsberg holds its capital markets day; more Eurofighters for Germany, more F-35s for Israel and France pledges Mirage jets to Ukraine; our team’s takeaways from visits to Poland and Washington; and the legacy of Apollo 8 astronaut and former General

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, Dr. Patrick Cronin of the Hudson Institute think tank, Michael Herson of the American Defense International lobbying firm, former Pentagon Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, and former Pentagon Comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim join host Vago Muradian to discuss the House and Senate’s defense budget moves and whether House amendments will stymie progress, prospects for SASC Ranking Member Sen. Roger Wicker’s proposal to dramatically increase defense spending, appropriations update, controversial new members for the House Intelligence and Armed Services Committees, President Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron make a powerful case why the democracies must continue to battle autocracies on the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings as a week after his felony conviction Donald Trump and the GOP leadership vow retaliation against the legal system and the former president’s opponents, Biden issues an executive order

This week, we look at today’s airpower and yesterday’s. Dr. Tom Karako of CSIS brings us current on air and missile defense in the Middle East, Ukraine, and elsewhere. And a new monument to an American airman you may not have heard of; Kevin Billings joins us with the story of London’s new Billy Fiske memorial. Plus airpower headlines. Powered by GE!

On this month’s innovation conversation to highlight key topics in the countdown to the Apex technology and innovation conference next January in Washington, sponsored by Clarion Defence, Bryan Clark, the director of the Center for Defense Concepts and Technology at the Hudson Institute think tank, discusses his June 12 Apex event — The New Iron Triangle: Achieving Adaptability and Scale in Defense Acquisition — highlighting a new report on how to better deliver needed capabilities at scale, challenges with the venture capital approach to funding a new crop of innovative defense companies and the government’s role in shepherding the worthiest ones to success, role of profit policies and prospect that government contractors can make commercial returns, lessons from the US Air Force’s recent Collaborative Combat Aircraft awards, role of  modularity, open architectures and rejecting nationality requirements in crafting a truly allied industry capability to address equipment needs and more with Defense & Aerospac

On this episode of the Defense & Aerospace Report Strategy Series, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Andy Hoehn, the former deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy during the Bush administration who is now the senior vice president for research and analysis at the Rand think tank, and Thom Shanker, a former New York Times deputy Washington editor who is now the director of the Project for Media & National Security at George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs, discuss their book — Age of Danger: Keeping America Safe in an Era of New Superpowers, New Weapons, and New Threats — with Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian.

On today’s program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners discusses defense industry stock valuations and factors that would change investor sentiment, the prospect that Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Sen. Roger Wicker’s proposed defense spending increase will become reality, the need for a broader national strategy to deter China and Russia, the role of more targeted economic warfare in the wake of the White House’s Daleep Singh’s comments last week at the Brookings Institution, more analysis if what former President Trump’s reelection might mean in 2025-2028 as well as impact his conviction on felony charges will mean for the election, what to expect from the upcoming Eurosatory land warfare exhibition in Paris and Berlin Air Show, and a look at the week ahead with Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. Rocket Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities, Sash Tusa of the independent equity research firm Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy, join host Vago Muradian discuss a down week on Wall Street after weeks of strong gains, Boeing submits a safety plan to Federal Aviation Administration that declines to clear higher 737 production rates as top executives says certification of its Max 7 and 10 jets remains delayed, US and European weapons production is trending up but many worry it’s not fast enough whether for artillery shells or air defense weapons, Washington allows Ukraine to use American weapons to strike units in Russia that are attacking Kharkiv as French President Emmanuel Macron and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg argue member nations should let Kyiv use Western weapons strike legitimate targets, Pentagon Acquisition and Sustainment Under Secretary Dr Bill LaPlante

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, Dr. Patrick Cronin of the Hudson Institute think tank, former Pentagon Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, and former Pentagon Comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim join host Vago Muradian to discuss the US and international implications of Donald Trump becoming the first former American president to be convicted on 34 felony charges, President Biden allows Ukraine to fire US weapons into Russia against forces attacking Kharkiv as French President Emmanuel Macron and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg call of members to allow Kyiv to use Western weapons against targets in Russia, as NATO prepares to celebrate 75 years of unity the alliance is fracturing over Ukraine, takeaways from the China-Japan-South Korea meeting and Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell’s gathering this weekend with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts, what to expect from the IISS’s annual Shangrila Dialogue this weekend in Singapore inc

Futurist Clint Hinote, formerly head of Air Force planning, on where the service is going, whether to take nuclear threats seriously, the defense of Taiwan, and much more. Plus some of the week’s headlines in airpower. Powered by GE!

On this episode of the Defense & Aerospace Report Strategy Series, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Dr. Todor Tagarev, Bulgaria’s former defense minister who is now a professor at the Institute of Information and Communication Technologies of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and Head of its IT for Security Department and Centre for Security and Defence Management, discusses the interdisciplinary nature of the threat Russia poses to European security, whether efforts to counter Moscow are being successful, lessons from the Ukraine war that are shaping the alliance’s actions, the stakes of the war and whether Vladimir Putin’s calls for ceasefire signify a change in his imperial ambitions, the Russian threat in the Black Sea and how Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey have deepened their partnership, Putin’s nuclear rhetoric and whether nations should heed any of his “red lines,” why more nations should follow France in allowing its weapons to be used by Kyiv against legitimate military targets in Ru

On today’s program, sponsored by HII, Sam Bendett of the Center for Naval Analyses discusses the latest in Russia’s new offensive against Ukraine as Moscow deploys glide bombs to strike military and civilian targets alike, whether Russia broke through the lines or Ukraine left a gap that was exploited, prospect of peace as Vladimir Putin suggests freezing lines where they are and Volodymyr Zelenskyy calls on President Biden and Xi Jinping to join a peace conference, Ukraine’s ever deeper strikes into Russia, and Putin’s crackdown on “corruption” after replacing his defense minister; and Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners discusses former President Trump’s defense plans should he return to the office, America’s role on the naval export market, and a look at the week ahead with Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. Rocket Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities, Sash Tusa of the independent equity research firm Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy, join host Vago Muradian discuss investor worries that after dropping inflation and soaring markets the Federal Reserve won’t cut rates as quickly as hoped, Boeing releases third annual safety report as CFO Brian West says the company will post negative cash flow this year, how the new financial outlook will impact the company plans to acquire Spirit AeroSystems and continue costly efforts to restore commercial and defense confidence, Sierra Nevada plan to use former Korean Air 747s as the Pentagon’s next generation Doomsday planes, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak schedules snap elections for July 4, and British intelligence finding that China is sending lethal aid to Russia and the merits of allowing Kyiv to use US weapons to strike targets in R

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, Dr. Patrick Cronin of the Hudson Institute think tank, Michael Herson of American Defense International, former Pentagon Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, and former Pentagon Comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim join host Vago Muradian to discuss the House Armed Services Committee markup of the National Defense Authorization Act as the 2025 spending debate continues, what’s next for Iran after president and foreign minister are killed in a helicopter crash, China launches military exercises to intimidate Taiwan as Lai Ching-te is inaugurated, Britain accuses Beijing of sending lethal aid to Russia as the White House balks as it debates letting Kyiv use US weapons to strike targets in Russia, Victor Orban wants all the benefits of NATO membership but opt out of helping Ukraine, President Biden hosts Kenyan President William Ruto, Emmanuel Macron’s surprise visit to New Caledonia as the territory has plunged into strife a

General Mike Minihan is the new boss at Air Mobility Command, managing the Department of Defense’s global reach at a time of global turmoil. We ask him about AMC’s warfighting culture, keeping up with demand, the future of its platforms, and more. And the week’s headlines in airpower. Powered by GE!

On this episode of the Defense & Aerospace Report Strategy Series, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Dr. Seth Jones, the Harold Brown Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies who leads the think tank’s International Security Program, discusses the status of the Ukraine war as Russia exerts its manpower and weapons advantage to gain ground from weary defenders show on weapons, what’s next in the war, Russia’s shortcomings despite two years of war, lessons China is learning from the war and the West’s sanctions on Russia, a more coordinated strategy to cope with a China, Russia, Iran and North Korea that are working ever more closely together, and more with Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian.