On today’s program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the latest headlines and looks at the week ahead.
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 a Wall Street ended a short trading week up on expectations of another interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve and strong Black Friday growth; Trump administration’s push to pressure Ukraine to accept a peace deal that would be good for US and Russian companies; Europe seeks ways to defend itself and its interest without Washington’s help; the race to return the flight control software on 6,000 or half the global Airbus A320 jetliner fleet to an earlier version that’s less susceptible interference from solar flares; Poland’s decision to pick Saab’s A26 submarine over five competing European and Korean designs as its next submarine under a 2.5 billion euro program for three boats that fall under the EU’s 50 billion euro SAFE loan program for new weapons; whether Canada will pick ThyssenKrupp or Hanwha for its patrol submarine project for up to 12 conventional attack boats; the British Army’s decision to again halt use of its Ajax family of vehicles by General Dynamics after crews complained about being sickened by severe noise and vibration; and whether the Trump administration’s operations in the Caribbean will be a boon for defense startups as both the Wall Street Journal and Reuters detail the challenges faces by Silicon Valley startup Anduril.
Welcome to the CavasShips Podcast with Christopher P. Cavas and Chris Servello…a weekly podcast looking at naval and maritime events and issues of the day – in the US, across the seas and around the world. We said last week that we’d be taking the Thanksgiving holiday off, but the Navy’s announcement about the cancellation of the bulk of the Constellation-class frigate program is too big to put off. We’ll have some thoughts on the course of this troubled program and what could come next.
Please send us feedback by DM’ing @CavasShips or @CSSProvision or you can email chriscavas@gmail.com or cservello@defaeroreport.com.
Secretary Hegseth has proposed a new way for the Air Force to buy its most complicated systems. Former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall joins us to break it down, and examines defense reform generally. And what’s the latest with the Golden Dome missile defense project? We’ll get answers from Dr. Tom Karako, Director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Plus a few headlines in airpower. Powered by GE!
On today’s Strategy Series program, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Dr. Darrell Bricker, the CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs who advises on the agenda of the annual Halifax International Security Forum, joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss takeaways from this year’s gathering in Nova Scotia that puts democracy at the center of security; the 30-nation survey of global security trends that’s a key feature of the annual gathering; top threats; international perceptions of the United States, Canada, China, Russia and Israel; sentiments on compulsory military service; and themes in the his third book — co-authored with John Ibbitson — “Breaking Point: The New Big Shifts Putting Canada at Risk.”
On today’s Look Ahead program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the Trump administration’s effort to pressure Ukraine to accept Russia’s terms to end the ongoing war or risk losing US support; how the pressure campaign on Kyiv is driving allies and partners to accelerate efforts to reduce their dependence on Washington and US systems; whether Ukraine can satisfy its needs especially if US support ends abruptly; Rheinmetall and Renk capital market’s days; a banner year for initial public offerings, spin offs and a changing defense market; takeaways from the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ report “Deep Precision Strikes: Europe’s Quest for Long-Range Missile Capabilities;” and a look at the week ahead.
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 a dismal week on Wall Street over worries about the economy, AI and whether the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates; the implications of the Trump administration’s pressure on Ukraine to accept a peace deal that would mean Kyiv accept all of Russia’s demands or risk losing all US support; France’s pledge to sell Ukraine up to 100 Rafale fighters by Dassault as Washington sells 48 of Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II to Saudi Arabia; Rheinmetall’s capital markets day; takeaways from a busy Dubai Air Show; and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy call that travelers to be more civil to usher in “a golden age of travel.”
Welcome to the CavasShips Podcast with Christopher P. Cavas and Chris Servello…a weekly podcast looking at naval and maritime events and issues of the day – in the US, across the seas and around the world. This week…former top Navy acquisition official Nick Guertin joins us to discuss the Pentagon’s proposed acquisition changes, Navy shipbuilding, and anti-submarine warfare.
Please send us feedback by DM’ing @CavasShips or @CSSProvision or you can email chriscavas@gmail.com or cservello@defaeroreport.com.
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 DoD Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, and Pentagon comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim of the Center for Strategic and International Studies join Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss congressional dynamic as lawmakers vote to release Epstein files as they advance NDAA and appropriations and debate the future of Affordable Care Act subsidies; redistricting starts to turn against the Republicans and the House descends into disarray; the 28-peace plan Washington appears to have crafted with Moscow to end the Ukraine war without consulting with Kyiv that satisfies Russia’s demands and comes as Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy faces his worst corruption scandal and the US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Chief of Staff Gen Randy George visit to Ukraine this week as Russian forces advance on Pokrovsk; Poland’s accusation that Russian agents tried to sabotage Warsaw-Lublin rail line and western security services try to convince Azerbaijan to hand over Yaroslav Mikhailov, a Russian who is accused of engineering the bombs that made their way onto DHL logistics aircraft; Chinese pressure on Taiwan and Japan as Washington announces arms sales to Taiwan and India; Japan’s first sale of a weapon system to the United States; China’s attempt to fill the void left by the US skipping COP 30 in Brazil and and the G-20 in South Africa this weekend; President Trump’s praise for Saudi Arabia’s Mohamed bin Salmaan at the White House as the nations sign trade deals and the sale of nearly 50 of Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lighting II fighters that have prompted concern in Israel as its forces launched a new round of air strikes in Gaza.
Uncertain budgets. Acquisition reforms. Government shutdowns. What’s an industrial base to do? Aerospace Industries Association CEO Eric Fanning, one of Washington’s most astute observers of government, is right in the middle of that storm. He tells us about it all. And we have headlines from a wowza week in airpower. Powered by GE!