Byron Callan, an analyst from Capital Alpha Partners, joins Chris Servello, co-host of Cavas Ships, to dissect defense budgets and industry trends. They delve into the Senate Armed Services Committee's proposed mark and the Trump administration's savvy messaging strategies. The duo explores potential impacts of new steel and aluminum tariffs on defense sectors and scrutinizes defense contractors’ financial health amid rising tensions. Additionally, they preview upcoming defense events, blending politics and military strategy with humor and insight.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. “Rocket” Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities, Sash Tusa of the independent equity research firm Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss Wall Street’s down week as investors worried about tariffs and inflation; Babcock, Bombardier, HII, Kongsberg, Palantir, Saab and Transdigm either report or prereport earnings; Boeing increased delivery of 737 Max series jetliners to 40 a month from 35 a month last year as Airbus delayed proposal on hydrogen powered aircraft; under pressure from investors Honeywell will break up into three parts as did GE, but investors punished the conglomerate’s stock; Triumph Group will be acquired by Warburg Pincus and Berkshire Partners in a $3 billion deal; commercial passenger and cargo traffic are both up 10 and 11 percent respectively year over year; the US Marine Corps issued its long-range aviation plan that includes increasing orders of carrier-capable C-model F-35 Lighting II stealth fighters.

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 Pentagon Europe chief Jim Townsend now with the Center for a New American Security, former Pentagon comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Cavas Ships co-host Chris Servello join Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the latest on appropriations, appropriations, reconciliation and debt ceiling discussions on Capitol Hill as the prospect of a year-long continuing resolution and a government shutdown loom; the Senate moves to clear more of President Trump’s nominees including Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as secretary of Health and Human Services; Elon Musk and his small team move at lightning speed to siphon unprecedented amounts of personal and financial data from agencies under the guise of improving government efficiency and move to gut the US Agency for International Development, offer retirement packages across government including to the CIA’s entire staff and fire some 40 percent of FBI agents; the implications of USAID’s demise as China, Russia and autocrats rejoice; whether distracted intelligence, law enforcement, allies or senior leaders will result in a future terror attack at home or incident abroad; analysis of Trump’s statement that the United States will take over Gaza and relocate more than 2 million Palestinians to Egypt and Jordan and redevelop it; and what to expect at the upcoming Munich Security Conference as America’s closest allies increasingly question their relationship with Washington.

Air Force Global Strike Commander General Thomas Bussiere brings us up to date on B-21, Sentinel, and maintaining deterrence in an increasingly multipolar world. Plus airpower headlines. All powered by GE!

Dr. Jim Lewis, the director of the Strategic Technologies Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Mark Montgomery, a retired US Navy rear admiral who is the senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and Cyber Solarium 2.0 executive director, joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the implications of the R1 Model by Chinese AI firm DeepSeek that sparked a market sell off on Wall Street; what makes it different from other AI models; how China used talent, technology and savvy thinking to compensate for technology restriction imposed on Beijing by Washington and its allies; why Chinese technology or military developments continue to surprise Western experts and what it says about US overconfidence; how better to control the flow of technology to China and whether there are lessons in the Cold War mechanisms like the Wassenaar Arrangement; whether President Trump’s $500 billion “Stargate” public private AI partnership is the right approach to better compete against China and advance American capabilities; the impact of Elon Musk’s drive to reorganize the US government at home and whether Trump’s muscular international rhetoric; and how the “grand bargain” Trump seeks with China could include handing Taiwan to Beijing.

On this episode of the Defense & Aerospace Report Strategy Series, sponsored by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Jim Jones, a retired US Marine Corps general who is now the president of Jones Group International after having served as the nation’s 22nd National Security Advisor, 14th Supreme Allied Commander Europe and 32nd commandant of the Marine Corps, joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss the stability of Iran’s leadership after Israel — backed by the United States — targeted Tehran’s Shia proxies Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis; why the international community must exert concerted pressure on the regime and assistance to democracy minded Iranian groups; the argument for change given the current regime is committed to fostering regional instability; the role of military force in the change equation; lessons from Syria; whether President Trump’s acerbic rhetoric will alienate allies and partners; and the key role a new generation of small nuclear reactors could play in improving US deterrence and warfighting capabilities in the Indo-Pacific (https://defaeroreport.com/2025/02/03/why-micro-nuclear-power-plants-could-be-americas-secret-weapon-in-the-indo-pacific-and-beyond/).

On today’s program, sponsored by HII, Byron Callan of the independent Washington research firm Capital Alpha Partners and Chris Servello, the co-host of our Cavas Ships podcast joins Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss President Trump’s 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico — that have been suspended for a month — as well as 10 percent on China, with threats to impose new ones on the EU and UK; the near-term implications on inflation and costs on US consumers as well as long-term impact on reordering of global trade patterns; how efforts to aggressively cut US government could backfire; whether Wall Street is as susceptible to disinformation as other aspects of American society; the messaging and disinformation surrounding the collision between a US Army helicopter and an American Airlines jetliner that left 67 dead; a look at least week’s earnings reports by leading companies including Boeing, General Dynamicsk, L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and RTX; 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, Sash Tusa of the independent equity research firm Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss a brutal week on Wall Street as the market loses $1 trillion as shocked investors react to China’s DeepSeek AI and the Federal Reserve for the first time said it won’t continue interest rate cuts; implications of the worst US air disaster in 16 years as an US Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter collides with an American Airlines jetliner killing 67; President Trump imposes 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico, and a 10 percent tariff on goods from China; analysis of 2024 earnings reported by Boeing, General Dynamics, L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, RTX; Lockheed’s aeronautics charge and Northrop’s second low-rate production contract for the B-21 Raider bomber; and King Charles changes the name of the Royal Navy’s last Astute-class submarine.

Join experts Patrick Cronin, Michael Herson, Jim Townsend, and Dov Zakheim as they dissect recent geopolitical upheavals. They explore President Trump’s contentious reaction to a tragic air disaster and the implications of his policies on defense budgets and safety. The group discusses Europe’s strategies regarding a potential second Trump term and Asia’s concerns about U.S. foreign policy, particularly relating to borders and the Ukraine conflict. Finally, they examine Syria’s turbulent leadership and the regional ramifications.

Force fields aren’t just the stuff of sci-fi; a company called Epirus is making them real. CEO Andy Lowery shows us a new kind of air defense. CSIS’s Dr. Tom Karako on America’s Iron Dome. And we have headlines in airpower. All powered by GE!