Defense

Factbox: What happens in a U.S. government shutdown?

By Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker and Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker, Reuters

In shutdowns, nonessential government employees are furloughed, or placed on temporary unpaid leave. Workers deemed essential, including those dealing with public safety and national security, keep...
The Mysterious Threat to Pilots That the Pentagon Can’t Solve

By Ciro Scotti

Episodes of oxygen deprivation affecting the pilots of F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet — and other military aircraft including the F-35 — are on the rise and remain an unsolved mystery.
What Game Theory Tells Us About Trump’s ‘Madman’ Approach to North Korea

By Rob Garver

Is Donald Trump out of his mind? Maybe he wants North Korea to think so.
Does the Army’s $580 Million Handgun Have a Fatal Flaw?

By Ciro Scotti

Last January, the Army made a $580 million decision: It would replace its longstanding sidearm, the M9 Beretta, with a new modular handgun made by the U.S. arm of the German-controlled gunsmith Sig...
Why the Escalating Threats Between Trump and Kim Won’t End in War

By Patrick Smith

The supercharged threats volleyed between President Trump and Kim Jong Un this week bring us closer to war with the North Korea than at any time since Pyongyang tested its first nuclear device in...

Here’s the Real State of the $1 Trillion U.S. Nuclear Upgrade

By David Francis

The American nuclear arsenal is just about the same as it was when Trump took office.
Here’s Why North Korea Put Guam in Its Crosshairs

By David Francis

Hours after President Donald Trump threatened North Korea with fire and fury like the world has never known, Pyongyang announced it is "examining the operational plan" to attack Guam, a tiny U.S...
Why the Price of the F-35 Keeps Soaring

By Ciro Scotti

The most costly fighter ever built is getting even more expensive. A new General Accounting Office report says the Pentagon will spend an additional $3.9 billion over the next five years on “...
The Media Has to Stop Provoking Trump’s Worst Instincts

By Rob Garver

For a man constantly boasting about his extraordinary negotiating prowess, President Trump made a pretty obvious rookie mistake on Tuesday, with his apocalyptic-sounding promise to deliver “fire and...
Five Things You Need to Know About Plans to Privatize the Afghan War

By David Francis

The White House is actively considering a plan to turn a big chunk of the war in Afghanistan over to private contractors. That’s according to Erik Prince, founder of the Blackwater security firm, who...

GOP Bets On Austerity to Lead Them to Victory

By Eric Pianin

A year ago, Republicans ran away from Rep. Paul Ryan’s draconian budget plan after Democrat Kathy Hochul won a special House election in a heavily Republican upstate New York district by attacking...
$100b and Counting: Missiles that Work…Sometimes

By Merrill Goozner, The Fiscal Times

Republicans in the House want to expand the troubled missile defense system. Analysts are divided as to who is behind this new push to pour more money into a system that as often as not misses its...
Analysis: Golden age or bubble? Plane-makers walk the line

By Kyle Peterson, Reuters

CHICAGO (Reuters) - From a chilly perch in Burnsville, Minnesota, Tim Zemanovic has an unusual perspective on the global aircraft market, which is booming - some say overheating - as the world's...
US Air jet diverts after passenger claims to have "device"

By Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A passenger who claimed to have a surgically implanted device prompted a US Airways jetliner to divert to Maine on Tuesday in a security scare that followed a recently foiled...
Afghans back Chicago deal, warn West to keep promises

By Mirwais Harooni and Rob Taylor, Reuters

KABUL (Reuters) - People in Afghanistan were surprisingly optimistic on Tuesday about NATO's plan to pull combat troops out of their war-ravaged nation by the end of 2014, but warned Western leaders...

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