Defense
Military drones are only slightly cheaper than manned warplanes, and data indicates the remotely piloted aircraft also are more prone to mishaps, a new report says. – DOTMIL
That anguished sound you hear is the gnashing of teeth and grumbling among defense Republicans in reaction to comments [yesterday] about the defense budget by Grover Norquist, he of the unbreakable pledge signed by most Republicans to never raise taxes. – AOL Defense
Paul Ryan attacked 44 over looming cuts to the defense budget during a campaign stop at a helicopter museum in Pennsylvania on Tuesday afternoon, saying the president would be responsible for putting at risk “almost 44,000 jobs.” – The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room
Cats who spend their time analyzing aerospace and defense programs see the selection of Ryan as confirmation that GOP has already made a transition that does not bode well for the defense industry. – Aviation Week
GOP lawmakers on Tuesday charged that 44 has been AWOL while they are actually working to stop the $55 billion cut to defense spending in 2013 that would hit Jan. 2. – DEFCON Hill
The uncertainty over automatic cuts in U.S. defense spending to be triggered in January because of congressional inaction has spread to the engineers and project managers in South Florida’s aerospace industry. Employees at Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne here say that both personal and corporate planning is on hold, with any new ideas of spending being reined in. – Aviation Week
44 says he doesn’t believe Congress can reach a deal before the November elections that avoids deep cuts in military spending, but says he is optimistic that the reductions won’t occur. – Associated Press
Lawrence Korb, Max Hoffman, and Robert Ward write: Instead of criticizing 44′s defense cuts, Republicans should focus more on the difference between Romney and Ryan’s defense plans. After all, the difference between Romney and Ryan’s spending plans is ten times greater than the difference between Ryan and 44′s budget. But what’s $2 trillion among friends? – Foreign Policy
Nuclear Weapons
A State Department advisory board report made public Tuesday shows that the 44th administration is studying cuts in U.S. strategic arsenals to “very low” levels and ultimately eliminating nuclear arms. – Washington Free Beacon
The War
In lawless, inaccessible regions of the world, drone strikes are America’s least-worst option for pursuing terrorists, a panel of experts agreed [yesterday] — and many of the civilians whose deaths are blamed on US drones were actually killed by local factions on the ground or never existed at all. – AOL Defense
Missile Defense
Though money is scarce in the near-term, there may be hope yet for Lockheed Martin to sell at least a portion of the Medium Extended Air-Defense System (Meads) to the U.S. Army. – Aviation Week
