A report from NDIA highlights directed-energy suppliers’ struggles to get by on unpredictable “one-off” contracts for prototypes and field tests — but OSD research and acquisition officials warn there are complex tactical questions to work out before they can buy lasers in bulk.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.A new approach to speed, scale and efficiency for the industrial base
Radars, EW, EO/IR, space imagery, and microelectronics are brought under one roof for a streamlined approach to common people and factories.
While key executives tell Breaking Defense they have adjusted to the new normal, experts worry IT supply chain vulnerabilities could be exploited in the future by adversarial nations.
By Jaspreet Gill
“We don’t want your traditional industry brief. We want capabilities that we can get after the threat quickly,” explained Col. Joseph Roth, director of SSC’s Front Door industry engagement initiative.
By Theresa Hitchens
“We learned in 2016 that recovering from artificial cuts is more expensive than getting it right in the first place,” David Norquist, NDIA’s president and CEO, told Breaking Defense.
By Justin Katz
“You always have to be careful when we streamline a process,” David Norquist, recently installed as president and CEO of the National Defense Industrial Association, told Breaking Defense.
By Aaron Mehta and Theresa Hitchens Kea Matory, director of legislative policy at NDIA, told Breaking Defense the bill is a “positive first step” but won’t solve America’s semiconductor chip woes in the face of growing competition from China.
By Jaspreet Gill
The second increment of the Army’s Small Multipurpose Equipment Transport will likely include requirements for a platform that would provide a weapons system, a communications retransmission asset, extra batteries or a launch platform for small drones.
By Andrew Eversden
Insights on digital transformation following successes on B-21 and Sentinel
Customers and employees are experiencing the ‘Butterfly Effect’ of digital transformation from key national security programs.
“If you look at 2035 to field something hybrid, … the technology is kind of there now,” said Michael Cadieux, director of the Army’s Ground Vehicles Systems Center.
By Andrew Eversden
Incoming guidance will help to create a new framework to identify, assess, mitigate and monitor risk to its supply chains, according to Timothy Goddette, deputy assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology.
By Andrew Eversden
That conclusion is part of the National Defense Industrial Association’s third annual Vital Signs 2022 report, which offers an analysis of the US’s defense industrial base.
By Jaspreet Gill
The institute will concentrate on artificial intelligence; autonomy; biotechnology; cyber; directed energy; command, control and communications; hypersonics; microelectronics; quantum science; space; and ‘5G to Next G.’
By Theresa Hitchens
The new Joint Warfighting Concept to guide military operations for the next 30 years is “aspirational,” and now must be fleshed out as best the Pentagon can with the resources available, says Gen. John Hyten, vice JCS chair.
By Theresa Hitchens
“It’s ultimately a political decision, and … this demands a strong and fully staffed OSD,” said Mackenzie Eaglen, of the American Enterprise Institute. “That doesn’t seem likely until much later this year.”
By Theresa Hitchens
GAO notes that efforts to defend against Russian and Chinese hypersonic missiles are much less mature than offensive efforts, with much less funding. Only 12 of 70 projects tracked by GAO related to defenses; DoD requested $207 million in 2021 for hypersonic defense, up from $157 million in 2020.
By Theresa Hitchens
