The Insider

JSF Weapons Sale
By John Liang
May 23, 2013 at 12:01 PM

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced yesterday it had notified Congress of a proposed $793 million foreign military sale to South Korea for F-35 aircraft weapons and associated equipment:

This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy goals and national security objectives of the United States by meeting the legitimate security and defense needs of an ally and partner nation. The ROK continues to be an important force for peace, political stability, and economic progress in North East Asia.

The proposed sale will provide the ROK with aircraft weapons for the F-35. These aircraft and weapons will provide the ROK with a credible defense capability to deter aggression in the region and ensure interoperability with U.S. forces. The ROK will use the enhanced capability as a deterrent to regional threats and strengthen its homeland defense. Additionally, operational control (OPCON) will transfer from U.S. Forces Korea/Combined Forces Command (USFK/CFC) to the ROK’s Korea Command (KORCOM) in 2015. This upgrade will enhance the capability needed to support OPCON transfer.

To view the full DSCA statement, which includes a detailed list of the weapons that would be sold if lawmakers approve the deal, click here.

Last month, F-35 Program Executive Officer Lt. Gen. Christopher Bogdan appeared before the Senate Armed Services airland subcommittee and discussed long-term plans to reduce sustainment costs on the F-35 aircraft -- and the potential to add new international partners Singapore and South Korea to the program, among many other issues. One issue outlined in his written testimony was the status of the F-35's developmental helmet, which has suffered from image latency, jitter and a coloration in the visor known as "green glow." As Inside the Air Force reported in April:

According to Bogdan's prepared statement, the F-35 program completed a five-month test period dedicated to helmet issues in March. That five-month test phase involved developmental and operational test pilots flying "a number of operationally representative missions," and has given the program significant new insight into why those problems exist and how to fix most of them, he wrote.

"As a result of this testing, the program now understands and has mitigated the effects of 'green glow,' latency, jitter and alignment," Bogdan said. "Additional work still needs to be done to ensure that the program has a night vision camera that is effective for operations as our testing indicated that the current night vision camera is unsuitable for operational use."

The program is developing a secondary or backup helmet that would require pilots to wear night-vision goggles over their helmet to meet night-vision requirements.

The F-35 program has a number of major decision points coming up in the next six months, ITAF reported:

JSF officials have completed a critical design review of the F-35C carrier variant's new tail hook and intend to ground-test it in New Jersey in the late summer or fall; Singapore and South Korea are expected to make a decision this summer on whether to buy into the program; and the Air Force and Navy are congressionally mandated to declare their projected initial operational capability dates by June 1. The Marine Corps has already done so, announcing that it plans to hit IOC in 2015.

Read the full story here.

Tanker Times (Updated)
By Gabe Starosta
May 22, 2013 at 2:49 PM

Kansas and New Hampshire lawmakers announced today, and the Air Force confirmed in a statement released this afternoon, that Pease Air National Guard Base, NH, and McConnell Air Force Base, KS, have been selected to host the service's new KC-46 tankers.

Additionally, Altus Air Force Base in Oklahoma will be the home site for the KC-46's formal training unit.

New Hampshire's Senate representatives, Jeanne Shaheen (D) and Kelly Ayotte (R), said that Pease ANGB's 157th Air Refueling Wing was picked as the first Guard site to host the new KC-46 refueling tankers. Pease ANGB's 157th Air Refueling Wing should receive12 new tankers beginning in 2018.

Kansas lawmakers also announced in a joint press statement today that the Air Force has informed them that McConnell AFB will be the main operating base "for replacing KC-135R tanker aircraft with KC-46A's beginning in 2016." Kansas Sens. Jerry Moran and Pat Roberts and Reps. Lynn Jenkins and Mike Pompeo, all Republicans, issued the joint statement. McConnell AFB, which will receive a total of 36 new KC-46s, is the home of the 22nd Air Refueling Wing.

"This is great news for Pease and the dedicated members of the 157th Air Refueling Wing," Shaheen and Ayotte said in their statement. "We're thrilled that the Air Force recognizes Pease's many strategic advantages as well as the 157th's exceptional record of service. We’re confident that Pease will continue to provide the best air refueling support in the Air Force for decades to come."

Shaheen and Ayotte boasted in the statement about the jobs and funding the base's selection would bring to the state. In January, the Air Force announced that Pease was one of five Air National Guard finalists to receive the KC-46. The others were Forbes Field Air National Guard Base, KS, Pittsburgh International Airport Air Guard Station, PA, Rickenbacker Air Guard Station, OH, and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, NJ.

Pease ANGB was chosen because of its location in a high-demand area for aerial refueling and because of its history as a successful active-reserve association location, the Air Force said in its statement.

Kansas lawmakers, in their statement, noted that Forbes Field in Topeka had originally been one of the Guard candidate bases but was not selected by the Air Force. Forbes Field is the home of the 190th Air Refueling Wing.

"The selection of not just one, but both Kansas Air Force bases as candidates is a testament to the critical role our state plays in supporting all branches of our military and allied partners as they carry out missions overseas and at home," Kansas lawmakers said in their statement. "Strategically positioned in the heart of the United States, the location, capacity and mission of McConnell and Forbes make both bases exceptionally equipped to provide air mobility globally at a moment's notice." Forbes Field remains a strong candidate for future basing decisions, according to the statement.

The Air Force statement adds that McConnell AFB is also located in a prominent location with high demand for aerial refueling and will provide a "central location for the new KC-46A Regional Maintenance Training Center."

For the training unit, the Air Force said that Altus AFB was selected because it has superior infrastructure, requires minimal new construction, and because of the presence of tanker and cargo aircraft training units there. "There is significant benefit of collocating KC-46A trainers with both tanker and heavy receiver aircraft for training purposes," Timothy Bridges, the Air Force deputy assistant secretary for installations, said in the service's release.

Altus AFB hosts KC-135 tanker and C-17 cargo aircraft training.

The site selections announced by the Air Force today mean that Altus AFB, McConnell AFB and Pease ANGB are very likely, but not certain, to receive KC-46 aircraft later this decade. The service still needs to perform a formal environmental impact statement for each site, and those EIS documents must be certified by the Air Force secretary and chief of staff before construction or other activity can begin to prepare the bases to accept the new tankers.

The KC-46 will replace a portion of the service's KC-135 fleet, which dates back to the 1950s. The legacy aircraft is operated by the Air Force's active and reserve components.

(Editor's Note: This blog was updated at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time to include an Air Force statement on the basing of KC-46 tankers at bases in Kansas and New Hampshire.)

Naval Forces Northern Command
By John Liang
May 21, 2013 at 3:52 PM

The Navy has established its own component commander for U.S. Northern Command, according to a service memo.

The May 17 memo states:

This action establishes a Navy component commander for U.S. Northern Command, which had not previously had a Navy component commander. U.S. Northern Command had assumed many responsibilities of the former joint forces command for which Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command (COMUSFLTFORCOM) has served as Navy component commander, and Northern Command is seeking the same type of Navy component commander support.

The mission of the new head of U.S. Naval Forces Northern Command, which will be based in Norfolk, VA, is to "contribute to the defense of North America through coordination, collaboration, and communication with allied, coalition, and joint forces in the U.S. Northern Command area of responsibility," according to the memo.

DOD Reprogramming Request
By John Liang
May 20, 2013 at 2:25 PM

On Friday, InsideDefense.com reported that the Defense Department had provided Congress two reprogramming requests totaling $9.6 billion, according to a cover letter sent to lawmakers by Pentagon Comptroller Robert Hale:

The fiscal year 2013 reprogramming actions "represent an important step in our efforts to avoid further adverse effects on critical military capabilities," Hale writes. "These reprogramming actions, which depend entirely on the use of existing transfer authority, are designed primarily to offset large shortfalls in Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding and unanticipated fuel bills, not to offset the effects of sequestration." InsideDefense.com first reported the details of DOD's reprogramming plans on May 3, based on a draft request.

Most of the money at issue -- about $7.3 billion -- would offset shortfalls in OCO funding. These shortfalls have occurred because operating tempo exceeds the level anticipated in the FY-13 budget put together almost two years ago, according to Hale's letter, which notes transportation costs are also higher because of unanticipated problems with the ground-transportation routes involving Pakistan.

To view the full story, click here.

We now have one of the two final reprogramming requests. Click here to view it.

New USFK Chief
By John Liang
May 17, 2013 at 8:01 PM

Joint Staff Director Army Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti has been tabbed by President Obama to become the next head of U.S. Forces in Korea, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said today.

Scaparrotti will replace Gen. J.D. Thurman, Hagel said during a Pentagon briefing.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey said this about Scaparrotti:

I can think of no finer officer to be promoted to general and to take command of U.S. Forces-Korea than Mike Scaparrotti. Scap's an exceptionally competent leader, with the moral character to match. Like our current commander, General J.D. Thurman, he is extraordinarily well suited to sustaining our strong alliance with the Republic of Korea. Scrap's quiet confidence has delivered success throughout his career, and whether as deputy commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, or more recently and currently as the director of the Joint Staff.

Biz Mod
By John Liang
May 17, 2013 at 6:24 PM

The Defense Department's continuing efforts to set up a business enterprise architecture and modernize its business systems and processes still faces "long-standing challenges," according to a new Government Accountability Office report.

Not only that, "the Office of the Deputy Chief Management Officer has yet to determine and follow a strategic approach to managing its human capital needs, thus limiting its ability to, among other things, effectively address the [Fiscal Year 2005 Defense Authorization Act's] requirements," the report states. Further:

Collectively, these limitations put the billions of dollars spent annually on approximately 2,100 business system investments that support DOD functions at risk. GAO's previous recommendations to the department have been aimed at accomplishing these and other activities related to the business systems modernization. However, to date, the department has not implemented 29 of the 63 recommendations that GAO has made in these areas.

According to DOD officials, recent turnover, changes to the act's requirements significantly expanding the number of systems subject to certification, and the short time frame for implementing the new investment review process contributed to the aforementioned weaknesses. Until DOD implements GAO recommendations and addresses the weaknesses described in this report, it will be challenged in its ability to manage the billions of dollars invested annually in modernizing its business system investments.

To view the report, click here.

Inside the Pentagon reported last week on a memo signed by Deputy Chief Management Officer Beth McGrath stating that DOD has adjusted its new defense business system investment review process to better align functional strategies and organizational execution plans:

The guidance "has been revised to accommodate a maturing process that will better inform investment decision making and take into account lessons learned," according to an April 8 memo signed by McGrath.

"This investment management process takes aggressive steps to ensure that the department continues to make investments that align to mission priorities, eliminate legacy systems that are no longer required, enhances interoperability and help the department to transform to an environment where business applications are able to be rapidly deployed on a common computing infrastructure," she continues.

The new guidance will supersede the defense business system investment management process guidance from June 2012 and will be effective for the fiscal year 2014 organizational execution plans that must be submitted by June 14.

View the rest of the story here.

GAO On COCOMs
By John Liang
May 16, 2013 at 7:35 PM

The Defense Department should "periodically review and improve [the] visibility of combatant commands' resources," a new Government Accountability Office report recommends.

"Authorized military and civilian positions and mission and headquarters-support costs have grown considerably over the last decade due to the addition of two new commands and increases in authorized positions at theater special operations commands," the May 15 report states. Additionally, military and civilian personnel positions went up by "about 50 percent" between fiscal years 2001 and 2012, to about 10,100 authorized positions.

GAO further found that "mission and headquarters support-costs at the combatant commands more than doubled from fiscal years 2007 through 2012, to about $1.1 billion. Both authorized military and civilian positions and mission and headquarters-support costs at the service component commands supporting the combatant commands also increased."

While the Pentagon "has taken some steps" to manage COCOMs' resources, GAO found that DOD's processes to review size and oversee those commands have "four primary weaknesses that challenge the department's ability to make informed decisions." Those are:

• DOD considers the combatant commands' requests for additional positions, but it does not periodically evaluate the commands' authorized positions to ensure they are still needed to meet the commands' assigned missions.

• DOD tracks some assigned personnel; however, all personnel supporting the commands are not included in DOD's personnel management system and reviews of assigned personnel vary by command.

• The service component commands support both service and combatant command missions. However, the Joint Staff and combatant commands lack visibility and oversight over the authorized manpower and personnel at the service component commands to determine whether functions at the combatant commands can be fulfilled by service component command personnel.

• Each military department submits annual budget documents for operation and maintenance to inform Congress of total authorized positions, full-time equivalents, and mission and headquarters-support funding for all combatant commands that they support. However, these documents do not provide transparency into the resources directed to each combatant command.

"GAO's work on strategic human capital management found that high-performing organizations periodically reevaluate their human capital practices and use complete and reliable data to help achieve their missions and ensure resources are properly matched to the needs of today's environment," the report states. "Until DOD effectively manages the resources of the combatant commands, it may be difficult to ensure that the commands are properly sized to meet their assigned missions, or to identify opportunities to carry out those missions efficiently."

View the full report here.

Legislative Proposals
By John Liang
May 15, 2013 at 12:00 PM

InsideDefense.com reported yesterday that the Pentagon is asking Congress for a five-year extension of a pilot program that allows the government to match defense industry investments in the tamper-proof features of critical weapon system components, and aims to facilitate foreign sales and additional revenue for U.S. companies:

On May 7, the Defense Department forwarded to Congress a second package of legislative proposals to be considered along with the Pentagon's fiscal year 2014 spending request. The package includes a request to extend the Defense Exportability Features (DEF) pilot program -- which began in FY-12 and is set to terminate at the end of FY-14 -- from FY-15 to FY-20.

The goal behind the pilot program is to identify major weapon programs with foreign military sales potential, and then take steps to develop and incorporate technology-protection devices, dial back select capabilities, and factor in system and software assurance during research and development to prepare variants of the system for use by non-U.S. forces.

"Given the complex nature of the technology and programs selected to be part of the Defense Exportability Features (DEF) Pilot Program, more time will be required to prove the benefit of the DEF pilot program," the legislative proposal states. "Time is required to allow selected DEF pilot programs to complete the development and production process with the features incorporated."

We also have the first legislative proposals package. Check out our coverage from earlier this month on it:

Navy Asks Congress To Raise CVN-78 Cost Cap To $12.8B; $1.1B Increase

The Navy is asking Congress to raise the statutory cap on CVN-78 procurement costs by $1.1 billion -- from $11.7 billion to $12.8 billion, a 9 percent increase the service says is necessary to complete development and production of the Ford-class aircraft carrier lead ship, a project hampered by construction difficulties, critical parts shortages, and late delivery of government furnished equipment.

The new figure is disclosed in a package of legislative proposals the Pentagon submitted to Congress in late April for consideration along with the fiscal year 2014 spending request.

The FY-07 Defense Authorization Act set a cost cap for CVN-78 at $10.5 billion, while allowing for the ceiling to be adjusted to account for inflation as well as other factors.

"The cost cap for CVN-78 is currently $11.755 billion, having been adjusted by the Secretary of the Navy in 2010 using the authority" to account for inflation and other factors, the Pentagon states in an analysis of its suggested FY-14 legislative text. "This proposal raises the cost cap to  . . .  $12.877 billion," DOD states in its proposition.

The proposed increase is 22 percent higher than the FY-07, $10.5 billion statutory cap and 9 percent higher than the adjusted FY-10, $11.7 billion cost cap.

The Navy's FY-14 budget request seeks $588 million for CVN-78, a sum that would breach the current limit, according to the Pentagon's legislative proposal.

Collegial Concerns
By John Liang
May 14, 2013 at 10:09 PM

Six Senate Republicans have notified their colleagues that they will not support any legislation that fails to meet certain standards.

In their May 14 "dear colleague" letter, Sens. Tom Coburn (OK), John McCain (AZ), Ron Johnson (WI), Rand Paul (KY), Kelly Ayotte (NH) and Jeff Flake (AZ) note that the House "has enacted a number of requirements to ensure any bill considered by the chamber does not grow the size or cost of the government or increase our national debt. We believe the Senate should apply these and other commonsense practices to restore fiscal responsibility and increase accountability and transparency in the legislative process."

Consequently, the senators list five standards that, if not met, would be dealbreakers for them:

* All New Spending Must Be Offset With Cuts To Lower Priority Spending

* Government Programs Must Be Periodically Reviewed And Renewed

* The Cost And Text Of Bills Must Be Made Available Prior To Passage

* Duplicative Government Programs Must Be Consolidated Or Eliminated

* Congress Must Not Infringe Upon The Constitutional Rights Of The People

"By making clear these expectations now, it is our hope we can work together earlier in the legislative process to resolve any differences that could otherwise delay or stop the passage of your legislative priorities," the senators' letter states. "And while we expect all of these standards to be met for each bill the Senate considers, this is not an exhaustive list of all the reasons we may individually object to a particular bill or unanimous-consent request."

View the letter here.

UCAS-D Catapult Launch
By Lee Hudson
May 14, 2013 at 5:04 PM

The Navy completed its first ever, carrier-based catapult launch of an unmanned aerial system from the George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) off the coast of Virginia today.

The X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System demonstrator (UCAS-D) launched from the carrier's deck at 11:18 a.m., executed several low approaches to the warship and landed at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, MD, after a 65 minute flight, according to a Navy statement.

"Today we saw a small, but significant pixel in the future picture of our Navy as we begin integration unmanned systems into arguably the most complex warfighting environment that exists today: the flight deck of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier," Vice Adm. David Buss, Naval Air Forces commander, said in the statement.

Over the next few weeks the X-47B will fly approaches to the ship multiple times and eventually land on the pitching flight deck, Capt. Jaime Engdahl, the Navy's Unmanned Air Combat System program manager, said in the statement.

DARPA Doc
By John Liang
May 14, 2013 at 4:42 PM

Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter issued a memo last week that updates the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's "mission, organization and management, responsibilities and functions, relationships, authorities, and administration."

View the memo here.

Inside the Pentagon reported earlier this month that the Defense Department is at work on a new generation of science and technology efforts aimed at weaning the military from a potentially fatal over-reliance on space platforms, giving rise to alternative technologies for precision navigation and long-haul communications. In the same story, ITP reported that DARPA had recently released a new strategy that describes several efforts underway to develop GPS alternatives:

For example, the combination of inertial measurement units and chip-sized atomic clocks can provide precise position, navigation and timing capabilities, according to the DARPA strategy.

These new technologies can be integrated onto weapon systems, providing onboard precision navigation without relying on satellite signals, according to [acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Al] Shaffer. "Maybe not as exquisitely, but good enough to operate," he added.

With those kinds of technologies on the rise, GPS could one day be a capability geared more toward civilian applications, Shaffer mused. "I think the nation would still be in need of a GPS," he said. "But that would be a debate that would have to be had. It would no longer have to be a critical Department of Defense system, so I can see a date when we would start to come out of that."

View the full story.

Stacking Radars
By John Liang
May 13, 2013 at 8:12 PM

Last month, Inside the Pentagon reported on a Defense Department study authored by DOD acquisition chief Frank Kendall that determined stacking two AN/TPY-2 radars on top of each other is not the most robust or cost-effective alternative to existing midcourse defense systems. A report from the National Academy of Sciences issued last year had suggested doing just that.

As ITP reported in April:

In the March 4 report, Kendall said that the stacked radar concept would increase detection range by 68 percent, enabling the radar to act as a midcourse defense system sensor. However, current ballistic missile defense system sensors, such as the upgraded early warning radar or Sea-Based X-Band radar, still have longer detection ranges, Kendall writes in the report reviewed by Inside the Pentagon.

"The cost to build a stacked AN/TPY-2 radar array would be at least $500 million," Kendall writes, noting that this includes the cost of radar equipment, new hardware and software, and engineering. "Alternative concepts would provide a more robust capability for less cost. Each of the alternatives should be examined in the context of BMDS requirements for an additional midcourse X-band radar."

Kendall points to a single phased array radar or an X-band dish radar as options that would provide longer ranges than stacked AN/TPY-2 radars for less money.

We now have a copy of that Kendall report.

View the full ITP story.

Landpower White Paper
By John Liang
May 13, 2013 at 2:56 PM

InsideDefense.com reported on Friday about a new white paper issued by the Army, the Marine Corps and U.S. Special Operations Command that argues the United States is likely to fight another war in the next two decades, and victory will be impossible without the use of "capable" American ground forces:

The paper, signed by Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond Odierno, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos and SOCOM chief Adm. William McRaven, labels Iran and North Korea "adversaries." It mentions unrest in Syria and throughout the Middle East, tension in Africa and challenges stemming from China's rise. InsideDefense.com obtained an advance copy of the document, which the Army is due to formally release next week.

Navy and Air Force capabilities have been highlighted in the Pentagon's Air-Sea Battle initiative, aimed at countering anti-access and area-denial weapons developed by China, but the white paper on "strategic landpower" warns that long-range weapons alone cannot win wars. The paper comes amid the Defense Department's Strategic Choices and Management Review, through which high-level DOD officials are assessing how to handle potential looming budget cuts, including the likelihood of shrinking ground forces.

After a decade of war, the nation is "rebalancing its national security strategy to focus on engagement and preventing war," the senior officers write. "Some in the defense community interpret this rebalancing to mean that future conflicts can be prevented or won primarily with standoff technologies and weapons. If warfare were merely a contest of technologies that might be sufficient. However, armed conflict is a clash of interests between or among organized groups, each attempting to impose their will on the opposition."

We now have the white paper.

Read the rest of the story.

GAO On BMD
By John Liang
May 10, 2013 at 4:41 PM

Senate Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee Chairman Mark Udall (D-CO) yesterday noted during a hearing on missile defense that "there seems to be a tension between the sense of urgency and demand for missile defense capabilities, particularly to address combatant commander needs for existing regional missile threats," and the acquisition practices recommended by the Government Accountability Office. He then asked GAO's Cristina Chaplain "what acquisition improvements you believe are achievable in the near term to meet the needs of our warfighters but also ensure the assistance we provide work[s] well and are affordable," to which Chaplain responded:

I agree that there is tension because there's a lot of schedule pressure on [the Missile Defense Agency] to deliver systems within presidential set timeframes, and there's also -- you know, there are concerns about the industrial base and the need to keep it stabilized and productive over time.

And we, on the other hand, do recommend strategies that are knowledge-based. We talk about concurrency, being more sequential in terms of the development process. But we are not recommending, like, 100 percent, you know, absolutely conservative strategies given the mission that missile defense has.

But we do believe the overlap in some activities like production and testing has just been way too significant in some cases and caused just way too many problems in terms of retrofitting that end up ultimately disrupting the industrial base because you're turning them on and off and on and off, and it's just really hard to get people on and off and on and off, and it creates more problems.

For older programs it's kind of do what you can, you know, with what you have in terms of reducing that risk. Where we'd really like to see attention placed is on the newer programs and structuring them in a way, now that you have an initial capability in place, you have more the ability to follow best practices and more knowledge-based acquisitions.

So where we see new programs take higher-risk approaches, they're setting their commitment dates where all the acquisition activities ramp up before they really understand the requirements and how they match their resources. We're really encouraging them to restructure those milestones in a way that will benefit them in the long run. And to its credit, missile defense has done that on some key programs in recent years.

So we're hoping with the focus on newer programs we can have better execution paths going forward.

View the prepared testimony from yesterday's hearing

Sequestration And BMD
By John Liang
May 9, 2013 at 4:02 PM

The impact of sequestration on the Missile Defense Agency's programs and workforce "is significant," according to MDA Director Vice Adm. James Syring.

Testifying yesterday at a House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee hearing, Syring said in his prepared testimony:

We will see limitations in our ability to deliver future homeland defense capabilities. To mitigate some of the effects of sequestration cuts, I will be working with the Department to submit an Above Threshold Reprogramming request as part of the Department’s larger request this year.

Asked by subcommittee Ranking Member James Cooper (D-TN) to elaborate, Syring said:

There is an impact to the work I do in the work force of sequestration, as those cuts came down. And what we've done as part of our reprogramming request that will be submitted to the department is offer a better way and better method to take some of those cuts to mitigate and keep my highest priority issues fully funded and on schedule. So I'll share those details with you once I'm allowed to submit them via the comptroller, once they're approved. But I can assure you that what I've offered is a better use and better way to spread the cuts and preserve my top priorities for homeland regional and regional defense.

Syring is scheduled to testify this afternoon before the Senate Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee.

InsideDefense.com last week obtained a draft copy of the reprogramming request, which states that the Pentagon plans to ask Congress for permission to shift nearly $159.8 million for various missile defense activities, including the Ground-based Midcourse Defense and Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense programs. As InsideDefense.com reported:

If approved by Congress, most of the reprogrammed money would support the highly anticipated GMD intercept test slated for later this calendar year.

The draft document could undergo changes before it is approved by the Pentagon and sent to Congress, where the four defense oversight committees will have a say before any funding shifts can be made. A single "no" from any of the committees' members is enough to halt a funding transfer.

According to the draft reprogramming request, the Defense Department wants nearly $31 million for GMD flight-testing. "The Department is committed to increasing the defense of the Homeland from missile attack," the document states, adding: "This commitment requires a successful return to flight-testing of the GMD program."

View the full story here.