The Insider

This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on a proposed high-altitude missile detection sensor system, plus Navy shipbuilding funding, the Army deploying a Typhon missile system to Japan and more.

The Missile Defense Agency issued a solicitation this week seeking prototype demonstrations for a High-Altitude Infrared Search and Track program, or HAIRST:

MDA seeks high-altitude infrared sensor to better manage high-volume missile raids

The Missile Defense Agency is seeking industry proposals for a new high-altitude infrared sensor system that can scan wide swaths of the sky for large numbers of incoming missiles and generate high-resolution tracking data.

Document: MDA's HAIRST solicitation

It looks like additional funding for shipyards might still be available:

Navy official: SAWS proposal not dead, cites complications

The Navy's proposal to free up additional funding to boost shipyard wages is not quite dead, an official told reporters Thursday, despite debate earlier this year between lawmakers and the White House Office of Management and Budget over implementing the funding mechanism.

China isn't exactly happy with the U.S. deploying a Typhon missile system to Japan:

3MDTF debuts Typhon in Japan, draws Chinese rebuke

The Army for the first time has deployed its Typhon missile system on Japanese soil, sparking an incensed reply from the Chinese government, which sees the move as a threat to regional stability.

James Mazol testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee this week on his nomination to be deputy defense under secretary for research and engineering:

DOD tech deputy nominee wants private capital to expand industrial base

Private capital markets should be tapped to support the development and scaling of technologies critical to national security, the nominee to be the Pentagon's deputy technology chief told lawmakers this week.

Document: Senate hearing on DOD IG, CIO, R&E, SOLIC nominations

Our colleagues at Inside Cybersecurity interviewed the head of the Pentagon's Cyber Accreditation Body this week:

CMMC accreditation body expects to update assessment process guide in December

A new acquisition final rule for the Pentagon's Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program is accelerating the work of the independent accreditation body responsible for meeting the demand for assessments and providing guidance to assessors, according to Cyber AB CEO Matthew Travis.

The Pentagon's Defense Innovation Unit has tapped five companies to develop first-person-view drones and components under its inaugural Project G.I. prize challenge, aiming to equip small military teams with new kinetic capabilities in contested environments.

Marine Corps evaluators “selected FPV platforms from Auterion, ModalAI, Neros and Nokturnal -- as well as one component from Kraken Kinetics -- to move from the FPV tactical kinetic effects Phase of Project G.I.,” DIU said.

From here, the solutions will undergo a cybersecurity review and a verification process to deem them compliant with legislation requiring a supply chain decoupled from both Chinese parts and capital. From there, they’ll be added to DIU’s Blue UAS List and Blue UAS Framework -- lists of drones and components pre-approved for military use.

That, DIU said, will “double the amount of FPV’s available for purchase and use in the Department of War from two to four, provide capabilities like fiber optics not currently available, and deliver improved software capabilities.”

They’ll also go through a series of three 60-day sprints over the next six months to develop additional capabilities and improvements based on feedback from a designated Marine unit, the Pentagon innovation agency said.

“Testing will occur in representative electronic warfare environments, in a variety of geographic locations, and will integrate companies with end users directly to remove bureaucracy from the feedback process,” DIU added.

The announcement comes just over three months after DIU first launched Project G.I. -- its prize challenge aimed at identifying “ready now” uncrewed systems supporting enhanced mission effectiveness for small military cells in contested operational environments.

The Navy is seeking potential sources capable of crafting an unmanned aircraft system designed to resupply Marines during expeditionary advanced base operations and distributed maritime operations -- challenging logistical situations where resupply may prove more difficult due to risks to manned aircraft.

The Navy and Marine Corps Small Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program Office (PMA-263) is seeking a small to medium-sized Vertical Takeoff and Landing Tactical Resupply Unmanned Aircraft solution, one that can achieve Top Level Requirements for the Marine Corps, according to a notice posted Thursday.

The desired solution would be capable of carrying 100 lbs. for 40 nautical mile radius missions, and 150 lbs. for 10 nautical mile missions, the notice states. Additionally, it should be able to reach a minimum speed of 100 knots, be capable of autonomous low-altitude flight and obstacle avoidance, autonomous cargo delivery and return and include onboard diagnostics, AI-assisted route optimization and re-tasking abilities.

Those responding to the request for information are encouraged to state if their company has completed similar work in the past, if they can deliver three prototype systems in fiscal year 2028 and are asked to provide an overview of their company’s approach to necessary tasks and milestones. Responses are due by Oct. 20.

The service currently uses the TRV-150 TRUAS -- designed by Survice Engineering Co. and Malloy Aeronautics -- as a land-based, autonomous logistics capability.

The vehicle can reach speeds of up to 50 knots, while carrying a cargo payload up to 120 lbs. at a combat radius of nine kilometers, according to PMA-263. The office has expressed a desire to expand these kinds of operations, including shore-to-ship, ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore pickup and delivery.

The Navy proposed over $24 million in research funding for unmanned expeditionary systems according to FY-26 research, development, test and evaluation budget justification documents -- funding that will partially go toward initiating market research on the next increment of TRUAS, as well as development of the Marine Aerial Resupply Vehicle.

Defense industry players can now use Northrop Grumman's three semiconductor facilities to design, manufacture, package and test microelectronics within the United States for commercial and defense applications, the company announced today.

The facilities make up Northrop Grumman’s Microelectronics Center -- semiconductor foundries in California and Maryland and an advanced packaging facility in Florida. Interested entities would also have access to an online storefront selling Northrop-produced semiconductor products and components, the company said.

The access means “Northrop Grumman is helping to expand and strengthen the resilience of America’s semiconductor industry and supply chain,” Verne Boyle, vice president at NGMC said.

That’s important because 98% of advanced packaging needs for microelectronics are sent offshore, according to industry research.

The reliance on foreign entities poses a national security risk to the semiconductor supply chain, Northrop said. It’s a concern the Defense Department itself has pointed to in prior years, according to the Congressional Research Service.

“The Department of Defense has expressed concerns about U.S. dependence on suppliers of semiconductors located outside the United States, especially suppliers in nations that are hostile or may become hostile to U.S. interests, a situation which may create vulnerabilities,” CRS wrote in a 2020 report.

The Navy is testing technology from Israeli company Sealartec designed to autonomously launch and recover small boats, according to a Tuesday announcement from the service describing a June 2025 capability demonstration.

Held June 2 in Norfolk, VA by Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division’s Joint Prototyping and Experimentation Maritime Stiletto Program, the demonstration “showcased a significant improvement over traditional methods of maritime small boat recovery,” the announcement states.

For the demonstration, Sealartec’s technology was integrated into the program office’s Stiletto vessel, which is used to test new capabilities on a “realistic military platform,” the notice adds.

The program office identified Sealartec’s technology as a potential solution for its launch and recovery needs after meeting with the company about a year ago.

"What we are asking the driver to do is just come to the stern of the ship [and] match the speed,” Sealartec CEO Amitai Peleg said in a statement in the release. "We do all the rest. We are controlling the entire process. The capture is autonomous, and the activation of the capture is autonomous.”

The specific vessels launched and recovered from Stiletto during the June demonstration are not identified in the announcement, which describes them only as “small-scale vessels.”

However, Sealartec advertises its launch and recovery technology as a capability designed primarily to work with unmanned surface vessels to facilitate swarming operations.

The capability relies on a proprietary local positioning system capable of operating in GPS-denied environments and is designed for rapid, modular integration on various vessel types, according to the company’s website. The technology is also designed to operate in up to sea state four.

In February, the technology was integrated onto the Devil Ray T38 USV where it autonomously deployed and retrieved two smaller USVs, all produced by USV-maker MARTAC.

This Tuesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Golden Dome missile defense system's potential cost, the Army's latest watercraft modernization strategy and more.

A new analysis from the American Enterprise Institute warns the administration’s stated Golden Dome goals far exceed the $175 billion price the president has cited:

New cost analysis suggests Trump's Golden Dome vision due for reality check

President Trump's ambitious plan to shield the U.S. from modern missile threats -- a layered homeland defense system against ballistic, hypersonic and advanced cruise missiles dubbed Golden Dome -- may be technically possible to build but the price tag will depend on choices that could run into the trillions.

The Army has issued a new watercraft modernization strategy:

Army maps out path for modernized ship fleet with new strategy

The Army's scant maritime investments have pushed its fleet off track toward meeting what the future battlefield will ask of it -- but the service now has a roadmap to fix that, according to a new strategy report obtained by Inside Defense.

An AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile demonstration -- only announced this week -- dates back to fall 2024 and was conducted jointly with Air Combat Command at Eglin Air Force Base, FL:

RTX says it fired an AMRAAM to its farthest point yet

An AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile was shot off an F-22 Raptor to its longest range to date in testing, according to a company news release.

In case you missed it, here's our deep dive into what looks like the Army undergoing a base realignment and closure initiative:

Army mum on depot plans, but it has echoes of a BRAC

After a sweeping set of proposals to restructure multiple Army depots and arsenals, former officials, local leaders and experts are scrutinizing vague signals from service leadership, and seeing signs of what resembles a potential base realignment and closure (BRAC).

The Army is turning all its Infantry Brigade Combat Teams into MBCTs in a move to become more mobile and deadlier "in a leaner formation" under its Transformation Initiative:

New MBCT structure will be flexible, Army chief says

A force design update for the Army's new Mobile Brigade Combat Teams is "out on the street," the service's chief of staff announced this week, but it will need to be fluid.

The Senate is slated to take up its version of the annual defense authorization bill this week.

Tuesday

The CDAO Defense and Security 2025 conference is held in Washington. The event runs through Wednesday.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies hosts a discussion on the Commission on U.S. Cyber Force Generation.

The Hudson Institute hosts a discussion on U.S. security cooperation with Taiwan.

Wednesday

CSIS hosts a discussion on defense industrial cooperation with South Korea.

The Hudson Institute hosts a discussion on the industrial security ramifications of the Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel Deal.

Thursday

The Senate Armed Services Committee hold a hearing to consider the nominations of Platte Moring to be Defense Department inspector general, Kirsten Davies to be the Pentagon's chief information officer, James Mazol to be a deputy defense under secretary and Derrick Anderson to be an assistant defense secretary.