Congress

Air Force wants to retire 250 aircraft as part of $188B FY25 budget request

Air Force wants to retire 250 aircraft as part of $188B FY25 budget request
Air Force wants to retire 250 aircraft as part of $188B FY25 budget request

“We’re very, very fixated on being competitive with the pacing challenge [of China],” said Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall. “I think the budget that we’ve submitted moves us forward — not quite as fast as we would like to, but it moves us forward in the right direction while maintaining current capabilities that are essential to the nation.”

Army’s $186B budget request shuffles artillery, aviation plans

Army’s $186B budget request shuffles artillery, aviation plans
Army’s $186B budget request shuffles artillery, aviation plans

The Extended Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA) platform joins the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) on the budget cutting room floor for America’s largest service.

Pentagon emphasizes ‘continuity’ in $849.8B FY25 budget request, amid political deadlock

Pentagon emphasizes ‘continuity’ in $849.8B FY25 budget request, amid political deadlock
Pentagon emphasizes ‘continuity’ in $849.8B FY25 budget request, amid political deadlock

“We kind of depend on having [that] ‘24 bill finish and finish in a way that looks a lot like what we asked for. Otherwise, we’re going to have to go back to the drawing board on a couple of fronts,” said a senior defense official.

Shyu: Budget gridlock hamstrings Pentagon’s tech fast-track programs like RDER, APFIT

Shyu: Budget gridlock hamstrings Pentagon’s tech fast-track programs like RDER, APFIT
Shyu: Budget gridlock hamstrings Pentagon’s tech fast-track programs like RDER, APFIT

“On an annual basis, we have a CR, half the year’s gone,” the undersecretary for Research & Engineering said. “Our adversary doesn’t have the same constraints.”

F-22s ‘highest priority’ for near-term fight, Air Force acquisition boss says

F-22s ‘highest priority’ for near-term fight, Air Force acquisition boss says
F-22s ‘highest priority’ for near-term fight, Air Force acquisition boss says

Despite disagreements with Boeing on pricing for the E-7A Wedgetail, Air Force acquisition chief Andrew Hunter said officials still see the radar plane “as a capability that makes sense and that we need to field in the near term.”  

Sen. Sullivan says CNO ‘assured’ him new shipbuilding plan will have 31 amphibs

Sen. Sullivan says CNO ‘assured’ him new shipbuilding plan will have 31 amphibs
Sen. Sullivan says CNO ‘assured’ him new shipbuilding plan will have 31 amphibs

The comments from Sen. Dan Sullivan come after a contentious year during which the Navy, Marine Corps and Congress publicly feuded over the state of the amphibious fleet.

Lawmakers press Army aviation leadership on FARA cancelation

Lawmakers press Army aviation leadership on FARA cancelation
Lawmakers press Army aviation leadership on FARA cancelation

UH-60M Blackhawks from Lockheed Martin Sikorsky and CH-47F Block II Chinooks from Boeing would have ended production in 2030 if the Army kept FARA going, a top service official testified.

‘Generational change’: New Aussie export regime to deliver $600M in benefits, DepSecDef claims

‘Generational change’: New Aussie export regime to deliver $600M in benefits, DepSecDef claims
‘Generational change’: New Aussie export regime to deliver $600M in benefits, DepSecDef claims

“The reforms will deliver, in our judgment…a net decrease in regulatory compliance costs, and actually expand the amount of research that can occur internationally without a permit,” Hugh Jeffrey, Australia’s deputy secretary of strategy, policy, and industry, said today.

Pentagon’s budget process needs ‘fundamental restructuring,’ panel says

Pentagon’s budget process needs ‘fundamental restructuring,’ panel says
Pentagon’s budget process needs ‘fundamental restructuring,’ panel says

The almost 400-page PPBE report draws on two years of research and more than 400 interviews, and resulted in 28 recommendations, half of which are denoted as key changes.

The mythical national security argument for protecting the steel industry

The mythical national security argument for protecting the steel industry
The mythical national security argument for protecting the steel industry

In this op-ed, William C. Greenwalt argues that American-made steel is not as imperative to the defense industry as it once was.

Congress renews stopgap funding, averting partial shutdown

Congress renews stopgap funding, averting partial shutdown
Congress renews stopgap funding, averting partial shutdown

Despite reaching an agreement on spending toplines in January, House and Senate lawmakers still have not approved a fiscal year 2024 budget.

House GOP pile on Austin over secretive hospitalization as Dems try to pivot to Ukraine

House GOP pile on Austin over secretive hospitalization as Dems try to pivot to Ukraine
House GOP pile on Austin over secretive hospitalization as Dems try to pivot to Ukraine

“I understand that leaders have to set the example. Again, I said that we didn’t get the notification right. Again, I was the patient, and so I expect that my organization would do the right thing,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.

The Army’s cuts, force structure changes put it on the right path

The Army’s cuts, force structure changes put it on the right path
The Army’s cuts, force structure changes put it on the right path

In this op-ed, retired Army Maj. Gen. John Ferrari argues that the Army’s decision to make cuts to force structure, while tough, is ultimately the right one.

With a year-long CR a real possibility, the service under secretaries sound the alarm

With a year-long CR a real possibility, the service under secretaries sound the alarm
With a year-long CR a real possibility, the service under secretaries sound the alarm

One of the under secretaries compared the damage of a year-long continuing resolution to the effects of sequestration in 2013.