The Insider

The United States is planning to sell F-35 Joint Strike Fighters to Saudi Arabia, President Trump said today, marking a significant policy shift in the region.

“I am planning on doing that,” Trump said today in the Oval Office in response to questions from reporters about the potential sale.

“They want to buy them. They’ve been a great ally. . . . Yeah, I will say that we will be doing that. We’ll be selling F-35s,” Trump added.

His comments come in advance of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s visit to the White House on Tuesday. The pair are expected to discuss security considerations surrounding a possible F-35 deal, among other things.

If officially approved, the Kingdom would become the first country in the Middle East apart from Israel to fly the advanced, U.S.-made jets.

Saudi Arabia has expressed intent to procure F-35s since 2017, but those efforts were largely stalled during the Biden administration.

The Navy plans to conduct submarine training and testing activities in the Arctic as part of its biennial Ice Exercise 2026, or ICEX26, according to a recent notice.

These training activities will include the establishment of a tracking range and temporary ice camp for research in the Arctic Ocean for six weeks, between February and April 2026. The ice camp would be approximately 185 to 370 kilometers north of Prudhoe Bay, AK, a Federal Register notice focused on the environmental impact of the exercise states.

Testing for unmanned underwater vehicles, unmanned aerial systems and submarine-launched non-explosive torpedoes will occur as part of ICEX26, the posting adds.

The exercise comes as the head of U.S. Northern Command warns of the heightened possibility of conflict between the U.S., Russia, China and North Korea, particularly in the Arctic.

In February, Air Force Gen. Gregory Guillot told the Senate Armed Services Committee that Beijing’s expanded presence in the Arctic could be indicative of future intent -- testifying that if China has access to Russian bases and ports in the Arctic, time to launch strikes against North American targets could be significantly shortened.

Washington think tanks are scheduled to discuss the national security implications of artificial intelligence and space capabilities this week.

Wednesday

The Center for Strategic and International Studies holds an event on Golden Dome and Strategic Stability.

The Hudson Institute hosts a discussion on artificial intelligence and strategic imperatives.

Thursday

CSIS hosts a discussion on space capabilities for warfighting.

The Center for a New American Security hosts a discussion on artificial intelligence.

The Defense Logistics Agency said today it expects to re-issue and update a previously cancelled solicitation for cobalt metal worth up to $500 million in awards at the end of the month.

The initial call -- published in August with strict specifications on sourcing the cobalt metal -- went through 10 amendments before DLA cancelled the solicitation last month, according to a statement from the agency.

"The cancelled cobalt metal solicitation is for rotating aerospace applications, which requires specific qualified cobalt sources,” DLA said.

Those specific sources for the alloy-grade cobalt metal included three suppliers originating from Canada, Japan and Norway. If vendors sought other sources qualified or in the qualification process “with U.S.-based aerospace alloy manufacturers” for rotating parts, submissions would have to include at least two letters from such manufacturers confirming the source’s completed or near-completed qualification.

During the solicitation window, though, DLA said “it became unclear if there was another qualified source in addition to the three originally identified.”

That led to the agency cancelling the call so it could verify qualified sources and write a justification and approval for the limitations.

DLA intends to issue an updated call by the end of the month, and the agency expects to make an award in early February.

Cobalt is one of many critical mineral supply chains dominated by China. While the U.S. has increased efforts to ensure access to critical minerals for defense, commercial and energy applications via negotiation with allies and changes in domestic policy, a recent report from the International Energy Agency says concentration in the global minerals market has so far only increased.

“Diversification is central to energy security,” IEA says in its 2025 World Energy Outlook, “yet the production, refining and processing of critical minerals is becoming increasingly concentrated in a few countries, heightening vulnerabilities to shocks and disruptions.”

Aside from defense applications, cobalt is also considered a key energy mineral -- a market that has been especially susceptible to concentration in recent years.

“As a result, geographic concentration in refining increased for nearly all key energy minerals, and particularly for nickel and cobalt. The average market share of the top-three refining nations of key energy minerals rose from around 82 percent in 2020 to 86 percent in 2024,” according to the IEA report.

Boeing machinists in the St. Louis area voted today to accept a contract agreement with the defense contractor and return to work after striking for more than three months, according to an announcement from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

The roughly 3,200 union-represented employees will return to work on Nov. 17. Terms of the ratified agreement were not immediately available.

The striking workers repeatedly rejected previous contract offers from Boeing, saying it did not provide an adequate wage hike. Boeing, however, had publicly maintained it would not increase pay beyond what was already offered.

The company also hired non-IAM represented workers during the strike to continue to operate its production lines.

“IAM District 837 members stood strong and united for over three months. We thank our bargaining committee for their tireless efforts, and we appreciate the unwavering support of our members, their families, the St. Louis community, our labor allies and elected officials throughout this fight. We’re proud of what our members have fought for together and are ready to get back to building the world’s most advanced military aircraft,” the union said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing to fight for fairness and respect for the world’s best defense workers in the contracts to come.”

The strike, which began on Aug. 4, stretched across three factories in St. Louis, St. Charles, MO and Mascoutah, IL. Machinists in that region are responsible for the production of several advanced military aircraft and missiles, including the Navy’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and MQ-25 Stingray autonomous tanker and the Air Force’s F-15EX Eagle II and T-7A Red Hawk training jet.

The Air Force acknowledged in October that the strike would delay Lot 2 F-15EX deliveries, which were expected to be delivered within this calendar year. “We look forward to having our full team back at work,” Boeing said on its website.

Joby Aviation flew its autonomous hybrid electric vertical takeoff and landing demonstrator for the first time last week, the company announced today, completing the feat roughly three months after it initially revealed the aircraft’s concept.

The unmanned platform will be produced by Joby primarily for commercial applications, but a militarized version -- equipped for contested logistics, teaming operations with manned aircraft and low-altitude support -- will also be available through an agreement with L3Harris. The two firms are planning to begin government mission flight demonstrations using the hybrid VTOL aircraft in 2026, Joby said in a news release.

“It’s imperative that we find ways to deliver new technology into the hands of American troops more quickly and cost-efficiently than we have in the past,” JoeBen Bevirt, Joby founder and CEO, said in a statement. “Our vertical integration puts us in a unique position to deliver on this goal, moving from concept to demonstration -- and from demonstration to deployment -- at a pace that is unprecedented in today’s aerospace and defense industry.”

The demonstrator first flew on Nov. 7 at Joby’s Marina, CA facility using the company’s autonomy stack, dubbed SuperPilot. It also integrates a gas turbine powertrain into Joby’s all-electric air taxi platform. These add-on capabilities allow the demonstrator aircraft to fly with a greater range and payload capacity, Joby said in the news release.

Joby previously collaborated with the Air Force via the AFWERX Agility Prime program on its fully electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft for autonomous cargo missions. Most recently, Joby in July participated in the Air Force’s large-scale REFORPAC exercise in the Indo-Pacific, logging more than 7,000 miles of unmanned missions across over 40 flight hours, according to the news release.

The Marine Corps has selected AI company Virtualitics to improve predictive maintenance for its MV-22 Osprey squadron, according to a company announcement today.

Virtualitics will provide its Integrated Readiness Optimization AI application for the Marine Corps’ 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, which includes Ospreys. The IRO-Mx product can help maintain performance of critical assets and delivers asset risk assessments and operational planning resource analysis, according to the company. By using predictive technology to accelerate maintenance, aircraft availability could be further sustained.

“At Virtualitics, our mission is to empower commanders with AI insights they can trust,” CEO Michael Amori stated. “This partnership with 2D MAW shows how explainable AI solutions are transforming aviation sustainment, helping the Marine Corps maintain fleet readiness, reduce downtime, and strengthen mission success at speed and scale.”

This is not the first time Virtualitics has partnered with the Defense Department. In 2022, Air Force Global Strike Command worked with the company on predictive maintenance for bombers and missile weapon systems.

The integration of predictive maintenance technology for the MV-22 Osprey squadron comes as the aircraft has experienced a series of crashes in recent years and subsequent groundings. In April, V-22 joint program office manager Col. Robert Hurst said the fleet will have unrestricted flight operations by the end of next year.

“Supporting the Osprey community is an incredible honor,” Virtualitics Chief Revenue Officer Rob Bocek said. “The MV-22 is one of the most versatile and critical utility assets in modern warfare, and helping its crews sustain operational readiness with trusted AI is exactly what our mission is about. By delivering AI to the warfighter, at the edge, where decisions matter most, we’re advancing how the Department of War prepares, responds, and maintains superiority in every domain.”