The Air Force's agile combat employment concept would prepare units to operate from dispersed, austere bases in a war against a major adversary like China.
The X-65 plane Aurora Flight Sciences is building for DARPA would use experimental air burst technology to steer, instead of traditional flaps or rudders.
The bills passed as part of the deal that ended the longest U.S. government shutdown in history include billions of dollars for the Air Force and Navy.
Experts agreed if the U.S. resumed full nuclear weapons tests, other nations would do the same — giving them a chance to catch up on nuclear knowledge.