The INSIDER daily digest -- Oct. 27, 2023

This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the foreign military sales process, Oshkosh's and L3Harris Technologies' quarterly earnings and more.

Defense Security Cooperation Agency Director James Hursch, speaking at this week's annual Common Defense Conference, discussed the "six pressure point recommendations" that the Foreign Military Sales Tiger Team created and released in June:

DSCA director pledges continued FMS reform, signaling lessons learned from global crises

The director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency spoke this week about Pentagon and State Department efforts to reform and streamline the foreign military sales process, detailing how work is ongoing to follow new “tiger team” recommendations and how they might impact the war in Ukraine and the future of allyships like AUKUS.

More defense contractors held their quarterly earnings calls this week:

Oshkosh Defense sales decrease after JLTV contract loss

After losing a production contract for tactical vehicles, Oshkosh Defense experienced a loss in sales in the third quarter but expects a “strong” fourth quarter and production capacity to increase, according to the company’s earnings call.

L3Harris planning to use Defense Production Act funding to boost Aerojet Rocketdyne capacity

L3Harris Technologies plans to use $216 million in Defense Production Act funding to boost capacity and long-term growth at recently acquired Aerojet Rocketdyne, executives said today.

House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and House Foreign Affairs Indo-Pacific subcommittee Chairman Young Kim (R-CA) sent a letter to Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro calling on the service to speed up the production and sale of weapons Taiwan needs to defend itself in the instance of a Chinese invasion, like Harpoon and SLAM-ER missiles:

Lawmakers call on Navy to accelerate Taiwan weapons transfers including Harpoon and SLAM-ER missiles

Lawmakers are calling on the Navy to speed up the production and delivery of weapons to Taiwan and are demanding an explanation for months-long delays in the transfer of two key missile systems in a letter to Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro.

Document: Lawmakers' letter to Navy on weapons sales to Taiwan

A final request for proposals for the missile warning and tracking satellite program will be released in the "May timeframe," according to a U.S. Space Command official:

SSC plans to award contracts for 18 MW/MT satellites by early 2025

U.S. Space Systems Command is expecting to award contracts for 18 new missile warning and tracking satellites between late 2024 and early 2025, a senior command official said last week.