Photo caption: The world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), front, sails in formation with Royal Danish Navy Iver Huitfeldt-class frigate Niels Jeul (F363), second, the French Navy Aquitaine-class frigate FS Bretagne (D655), third, and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Mahan (DDG 72) and USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG 81), fourth and fifth respectively, Sept. 24, 2025. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Third Class Gladjimi Balisage)

Download the pdf

Sept. 26, 2025

HII’s Weekly News Digest is compiled every Friday by the Corporate Communications team to summarize and highlight news stories of significance to the company.

Few Off-Ramps To Approaching Government Shutdown: The Hill reported Thursday that congressional leaders believe a government shutdown is inevitable on Oct. 1. So far, Senate Democrats have said they cannot vote for any House-passed government funding bill if GOP leaders refuse to sit down and talk with them, but Republicans say there’s nothing to negotiate, framing next week’s vote on a “clean” continuing resolution to keep the government open through Nov. 21 as a take-it-or-leave-it proposition. The GOP proposal is a seven-week stopgap funding bill, the same type of straightforward resolution Democrats passed 13 times when they controlled the Senate during former President Biden’s time as president. A breakthrough is unlikely; the House isn’t expected to reconvene until after the shutdown has already begun. Meanwhile, Politico reported Wednesday that The White House budget office is instructing federal agencies to prepare reduction-in-force plans for mass firings during a possible government shutdown, specifically targeting employees who work for programs that are not legally required to continue. Inside Defense reported Thursday that it’s unclear how Department of Defense would be impacted by the shutdown or the “reduction in force” guidance laid out in a new OMB memo distributed across the federal government. However, Office of Management and Budget states agencies that received budget reconciliation funding, such as the DOD, could be shielded from the reduction in force process.

Military’s Shifting Caribbean Posture Sparks Talks Of Greater DOD-Coast Guard Cooperation: The New York Times reported on Saturday, Sept. 20, that the U.S. military strikes this month on three boats thought to be smuggling drugs in the Caribbean Sea have cast a spotlight on the growing military presence in the region. Navy Times reported Tuesday that eight Navy vessels are stationed in the U.S. Southern Command area of operations, including USS Stockdale (DDG 106), USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109), USS Gravely (DDG 107), USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7), USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28), USS San Antonio (LPD 17), USS Lake Erie (CG 70) and USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul (LCS 21). All told, roughly 4,500 warfighters are aboard the eight ships, according to The New York Times. Military officials, diplomats and analysts say a main purpose of the force is to ratchet up pressure on Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, as top figures in the Trump administration accuse him of catering to the country’s drug cartels. The buildup of ships and increased focus on drug smuggling comes as the administration emphasizes the need for a stronger Coast Guard as well. Fox News reported on Wednesday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem want to establish a secretary of the Coast Guard in a similar fashion to civilian posts that exist for the Air Force, Army and Navy. Creating the position would revamp Coast Guard standards to better align with the armed services and allow it to better conduct joint operations with other DOD branches.

Australia Qualifying Native Businesses For Submarine Supplier Program: Australia’s Defence Industry Vendor Qualification program has already attracted nearly 170 “expressions of interest” to supply dozens of parts to support the U.S. submarine industrial base, according to a Tuesday article from the Asia Pacific Defence Reporter. The U.S. government, Australian Submarine Agency, and Australia defense company ASC have collaborated to establish the DIVQ program that qualifies Australian businesses for the AUKUS supply chain. Australia Defence Magazine reported on Monday that ASC is working with General Dynamics Electric Boat and HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding division to fast-track qualification for Australian manufacturers seeking to supply parts for the Virginia-class submarine program. Qualifying companies could supply parts such as valves, castings, mechanical assemblies, pipefittings, forgings, and machined parts. Several businesses are in the final stages of qualification under DIVQ, and it’s expected they will be able to compete for contracts within months. The Australian Submarine Agency and ASC are working with the U.S. and United Kingdom to establish other DIVQ projects. These projects could open the door for Australian industry to provide parts, repairs and services for all three AUKUS partners.

 Marine Corps Launches Project Dynamis To Accelerate AI Modernization: Defense Scoop reported on Tuesday that the Marine Corps formally established Project Dynamis, an artificial intelligence and command-and-control modernization initiative to accelerate its contributions to combined joint all-domain command and control strategy, known as CJADC2. The effort was formalized in a Sept. 10 memorandum signed by Gen. Christopher Mahoney, who was confirmed last week as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. ExecutiveGov reported Wednesday that Col. Arlon Smith was appointed director of Project Dynamis and said Marines must be able to “aggregate, orchestrate, analyze, and share fused data at machine speeds,” calling the effort a warfighting imperative. A three-star council, led by the deputy commandants for combat development and for information, must deliver a governance charter within 30 days. The initiative will also partner with the Navy’s Project Overmatch, which enhances the sea service’s role in CJADC2.

RTX, Shield AI Selected To Provide Autonomy For Air Force Drone Wingmen: Breaking Defense reported Tuesday that the Air Force selected RTX and Shield AI to supply autonomy software for the service’s first collaborative combat aircraft, or drone wingmen. RTX will provide the autonomy for General Atomics YFQ-42A, while Shield AI will supply the system for Andruil’s YFQ-44A. Contracts for the aircraft airframes were awarded last year with General Atomics’s drone already flying and Andruils expected to fly in October after software delays. Shield AI, which recently partnered with HII to advance modular, cross-domain mission autonomy, is positioned to play a key role in the Air Forces autonomy strategy.

HII’s Weekly News Digest is produced by HII’s Corporate Communications team and posted to Homeport every Friday.

Please note: Social media is blocked on HII computers for most employees. Employees are encouraged to visit HII’s Facebook page and other social media sites on personal time and from non-work devices.

Send feedback to: HII_Communications@hii-co.com.