Politics
Pakistan’s Chinese missile success pushes US to seek $1bn AIM-260
- Air Force, Navy jointly seek $1bn for AIM-260 production.
- Lockheed Martin eyes $30bn boost from missile program.
- AIM-260 designed for F-22, F-35, F-16, and F-15.
ISLAMABAD: Months after Pakistan downed Indian fighter jets with Chinese-made ultra-long-range missiles, new funding requests reveal that the United States may soon be ready to deploy its own next-generation weapon: the Lockheed Martin AIM-260, The News reported.
According to budget documents and a service statement cited by Bloomberg, the US Air Force and Navy have sought nearly $1 billion for the 2026 fiscal year, beginning October 1, to begin production of the classified missile system.
The Air Force, which is spearheading development of the AIM-260 — formally known as the Joint Advanced Tactical Missile — has requested $368 million for its initial production run, along with an additional $300 million listed in its annual “Unfunded Priorities List” submitted to congressional defence committees. The Navy, for its part, has asked for $301 million.
Analysts at Melius Research said last year the missile could become a $30 billion program depending on how many missiles are produced — a much-needed boon for Lockheed Martin on the heels of a second-quarter earnings report that flagged $1.6 billion in charges and a potential $4.6 billion tax accounting liability.
“Profitable growth at MFC is extremely important for Lockheed Martin,” Melius analyst Scott Mikus said of the company’s missiles and fire control division.
“The key will be can they limit or avoid future charges on the classified missile program, which is believed to be the AIM-260,” he added.
When it is eventually fielded — the Air Force won’t say when — the weapon will become the most advanced US air-to-air missile, a role long held by increasingly sophisticated versions of the RTX Inc, AIM-120 AMRAAM, which was introduced in 1993. The Air Force declined to say what developments gave the service confidence to move into production now.
Air-launched weapons that can shoot down planes at extreme ranges came into the spotlight in May, when Pakistani jets used Chinese-made PL-15 missiles to down Indian aircraft more than 100 miles away without risking return fire, experts say.
In last year’s annual report on Chinese military power, the Pentagon said the Chinese air force had likely declared the PL-17 air-to-air missile operational in 2023, saying the PL-15 follow-on “is believed to be able to strike targets from 400 kilometres (248 miles).”
The new US missile “will have increased range over existing air-to-air weapons and will be effective in a variety of threat scenarios,” the Air Force said. A Ukrainian Air Force spokesman said in 2023 that the AIM-120 model supplied to his country has a range of about 100 miles.
The AIM-260 is designed to fit the internal weapons bays of the F-22 and F-35 fighters, but the Air Force said it would also be integrated with F-16 and F-15 jets.
Indian police this week seized 414 cooking‑gas canisters hidden in a graveyard in Hyderabad city and arrested those involved in trying to sell them on the black market amid shortages due to the Iran war, a government official said on Thursday.
Authorities have stepped up raids to curb hoarding of liquefied petroleum gas canisters after the US-Israeli war against Iran disrupted shipping, causing supply shortages. India, the world’s No 2 LPG importer, meets about 60% of its demand through overseas purchases, mostly from the Middle East.
“Just yesterday, around 2,600 raids were carried out and about 700 cylinders were seized,” Sujata Sharma, a senior official in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, told a regular briefing on the Middle East crisis.
“In addition, around 400 cylinders were recently found at one location inside a graveyard in Hyderabad. Ten people have been detained there, and the distributor involved has been suspended,” she said.
Police said the accused had been selling both commercial and domestic canisters from the graveyard at nearly three times the current market price. A commercial canister that costs about 2,100 Indian rupees ($22) had been sold for as much as 6,000 rupees.
The total value of the seized canisters and some vehicles used by the accused was nearly 2.2 million rupees, police said. Reuters could not immediately contact the accused or their representatives.
“The supply of natural gas to domestic consumers is 100% assured,” Sharma said. “With regard to LPG supply, prices have remained stable despite international volatility, and there has been no increase in the price of domestic LPG cylinders.”
To ease the pressure on LPG supplies, India has been promoting the use of alternatives such as kerosene, coal and biogas, while accelerating the rollout of piped natural gas for households.
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump made fun of the French president and his wife during a private lunch Wednesday, as he lambasted Nato allies for not joining the war against Iran that has roiled the Middle East.
“We didn’t need them, but I asked anyway,” Trump told a private lunch in a video posted briefly on the White House YouTube channel before access was blocked.
“I call up France, Macron — whose wife treats him extremely badly. Still recovering from the right to the jaw,” Trump said.
He was referring to a May 2025 news video that appeared to show Brigitte Macron shoving the French president’s face on a trip to Vietnam, which Macron later rejected as part of a disinformation campaign.
“And I said, ‘Emmanuel, we’d love to have some help in the Gulf even though we’re setting records on knocking out bad people and knocking out ballistic missiles. We’d love to have some help. If you could, could you please send ships immediately,'” Trump continued.
He then mimics a French accent to give Macron’s alleged answer: “‘No no no, we cannot do that, Donald. We can do that after the war is won,'” he said.
“I said, ‘No no, I don’t need after the war is won Emmanuel,'” Trump said.
“So I learned about Nato — Nato won’t be there if we ever have the big one, you know what I mean by the big one,” Trump said, without elaborating.
He also branded Nato a “paper tiger,” the latest salvo by Trump and his top officials against the transatlantic alliance since he returned to the White House last year.
On Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States “is going to have to reexamine” its relationship with Nato once the war against Iran has concluded.
Former Iranian foreign minister Kamal Kharazi was seriously wounded in a strike that also claimed the life of his wife, Iranian media reported.
Still an adviser to the government, Kharazi had given an interview to CNN a few weeks ago.
According to the newspapers Shargh, Etemad and Ham Mihan, his home in Tehran was targeted on Wednesday in a US-Israeli strike.
He was badly injured and hospitalised following the attack, the outlets said.
Kharazi had served as foreign minister from 1997 to 2005 under reformist ex-president Mohammad Khatami.
The Google Pixel 10 Is $150 Off
Johnny Depp shares the best thing about his new ‘Three Hearts Rum’ brand
Michigan’s ‘Fab Five’ to reunite on Final Four alternate broadcast
-
Fashion1 week agoHo Chi Minh City bizs adjust production plans, seek new supply chains
-
Fashion1 week agoJapan’s apparel imports rise 22.9% to $2 bn in February 2026
-
Fashion1 week agoIndia’s Gen Z to drive half of fashion market by 2030: Reedseer
-
Entertainment1 week agoAndrew holds breath as King Charles plans bombshell move amid probe
-
Business6 days agoHow do you spot a fake online review?
-
Business1 week agoCo-op boss quits after ‘toxic culture’ claims reported by BBC
-
Entertainment6 days agoLee Sang-bo dies at 45: Funeral details revealed
-
Sports6 days agoIllinois defense gets tough, ousts Houston to reach Elite Eight