COLORADO SPRINGS Prompted by U.S. regional commanders-in-chief (Cincs) who are increasingly concerned about the rapid proliferation of threats to military computer and communications networks, the Defense Dept. has activated a Joint Task Force on Computer Network Defense to centralize one subset of “information operations.”

LONDON The U.K. Ministry of Defense has launched a 4-year study effort for its planned new aircraft carriers, a program closely intertwined with the selection of a new carrier-borne aircraft. Six firms were invited to bid on the project last week: Boeing, British Aerospace Defense Systems, Lockheed Martin, Marconi Electronic Systems, Raytheon and Thomson-CSF.