On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. “Rocket” Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss an up week on Wall Street as the Iran war continues and Tehran-backed Houthi rebels move on Yemen’s oil-rich Marib province and strike Saudi energy facilities; President Trump declines a request from Riyadh for help, but approves the sale of F-35 Lighting II fighters despite concerns from US intelligence that the stealth jet’s technology could leak to China; implications of the EU’s offer of associate membership for Canada that Trump has said could be a “hostile act,” threatening to block trade with Europe; the Swedish government awarded Saab a $400 million contract to develop next-generation combat aircraft technologies; US Air Force leaders seek 500 Collaborative Combat Aircraft and another 500 Massed Modular Aircraft — envisioned as cheaper version of the MQ-9 Reaper — as well as new F-16 Fighting Falcon jets to fill out the service’s aging force structure; startup hypersonic aircraft maker Hermeus’ deal with Pratt & Whitney to build the jet maker’s F100 engines under license; Lockheed said that 22 days after signing a contract with General Motors for PAC-3 missile parts, the car maker started delivering the “mission critical” components; Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg’s statement that the ramp up 737 and 787 jet production would take longer than expected even as he expected certification of the Max 10 airliner to be secured soon; GE Aerospace’s confidence that mid-engine seal issues with its GE9X — the most powerful commercial aviation powerplant ever built — won’t delay Boeing’s 777X from entering service; and IndiGo’s Willie Walsh plan to build bigger fleet and turn New Delhi into an Asia gateway.
