The Insider

The INSIDER daily digest -- August 15, 2023
By John Liang
August 15, 2023 at 2:10 PM

This Tuesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on an interim report from the congressional commission tasked with reforming the Defense Department's 1960s-era budget planning and programming system, plus a Government Accountability Office evaluation of the timeliness of DOD's responses to GAO reports and more.

The Defense Department has released an interim report that "reflects the Commission on Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) Reform's commitment to ensuring the DOD's resource allocation processes are streamlined and modernized to secure the United States military's ability to deter and, if necessary, win any fight against any adversary with the right capabilities and force structure while upholding congressional oversight responsibility":

Possible calls for new spending flexibility headline DOD budget commission's interim report

The congressional commission tasked with reforming the Defense Department's 1960s-era budget planning and programming system is considering making recommendations to lawmakers that would provide the Pentagon with greater spending flexibility amid an appropriations process that has become mired in political dysfunction.

Document: PPBE reform commission's interim report

A new Government Accountability Office report, "the first in a series of four, details the timeliness of DOD's reviews over the past six months" of GAO's reports:

Watchdog agency finds DOD 'generally' tardy when responding to audits and reviews

The Defense Department "generally did not meet" deadlines for responding to reviews conducted by the Government Accountability Office, submitting about half of its agency comments late, according to a new congressionally mandated GAO report.

Document: GAO report on Defense Department reviews and responses

A new, trans-regional missile defense concept is a recently approved update by President Biden in the existing Pentagon's Unified Command Plan, that aims to provide attack operations, active and passive defense and battle management support to regional combatant commands:

SPACECOM benefitting from trans-regional missile defense concept

U.S. Space Command implementing a trans-regional missile defense concept is keeping the command in a position of advantage over strategic competitors, according to a senior space official.

The Army is scheduled to host some industry days next month on the new-start Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program:

Army will hold industry days next month on LASSO

The Army will hold industry days next month to discuss the potential fielding of the service's new-start Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program.

The Air Force has released requests for information regarding the Advanced Battle Management System Content Delivery Network and a related Commercial Content Delivery Network:

Air Force details needs and uses for content delivery network for ABMS

The Air Force laid out part of its baseline infrastructure for its contribution to the Joint All Domain Command and Control effort by describing its needs for a content delivery network in a request for information posted Wednesday.

Document: ABMS content delivery network RFIs

Venice Goodwine starts as Air Force CIO
By Shelley K. Mesch
August 15, 2023 at 11:11 AM

The Air Force has a new chief information officer, according to a service official, following the departure of Lauren Knausenberger in June.

Venice Goodwine began as CIO on Monday, the official told Inside Defense.

Goodwine joined the CIO’s office in 2021 as the director of enterprise information technology and has held several technology-focused positions, including as chief information security officer for the Agriculture Department and senior cybersecurity advisor for Marine Corps Systems Command.

Goodwine also served in the Air Force, joining in 1986 and transitioning to the Air Force Reserve in 2003. She retired from uniformed service last year.

As CIO, Goodwine oversees a portfolio valued at about $17 billion and 10,000 IT and cyber civilian personnel.

Knausenberger left the role in June after more than two years as CIO.

The INSIDER daily digest -- August 14, 2023
By John Liang
August 14, 2023 at 2:16 PM

This Monday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on a nascent trans-regional missile defense concept being implemented by U.S. Space Command plus the Army's Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program and more.

A new, trans-regional missile defense concept is a recently approved update by President Biden in the existing Pentagon's Unified Command Plan, that aims to provide attack operations, active and passive defense and battle management support to regional combatant commands:

SPACECOM benefitting from trans-regional missile defense concept

U.S. Space Command implementing a trans-regional missile defense concept is keeping the command in a position of advantage over strategic competitors, according to a senior space official.

Keep an eye out next month for some industry days on the Army's new-start Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program:

Army will hold industry days next month on LASSO

The Army will hold industry days next month to discuss the potential fielding of the service's new-start Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program.

The Air Force has released requests for information regarding the Advanced Battle Management System Content Delivery Network and a related Commercial Content Delivery Network:

Air Force details needs and uses for content delivery network for ABMS

The Air Force laid out part of its baseline infrastructure for its contribution to the Joint All Domain Command and Control effort by describing its needs for a content delivery network in a recent request for information.

Document: ABMS content delivery network RFIs

The recent Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, AL featured a plethora of speakers including the head of plans and policy for U.S. Space Command:

SPACECOM still sees Russia as space competitor despite ongoing Ukraine conflict

Russia "remains a capable space competitor" even though the ongoing war in Ukraine has slowed down its pace of building space capabilities, according to Maj. Gen. Michael Morrissey, U.S. Space Command director of plans and policy.

Our colleagues at Inside Cybersecurity covered the recent annual Black Hat cyber conference in Las Vegas:

Easterly, Ukraine cyber leader Zhora discuss lessons on partnership and resilience from war

LAS VEGAS -- Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly emphasized the need for Americans to “internalize lessons on resilience” from Ukraine's battle against Russia in preparation for cybersecurity challenges the United States is likely to face in the next few years, during an evening keynote appearance at the Black Hat conference here.

The Defense Department is working on a new artificial intelligence effort:

DARPA offers $20M in prizes, support to developers of AI for software security

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has announced a two-year competition for the development of an AI-driven tool to identify and patch software vulnerabilities, with the intent of widespread applications throughout the economy.

DOD to transfer $200M aid package to Ukraine
By Tony Bertuca
August 14, 2023 at 11:32 AM

The Defense Department announced today it will begin transferring another $200 million in U.S. weapons to Ukraine following a June review that found the congressionally approved funding remained available and unspent.

The package, provided via presidential “drawdown” authority, will include:

  • Additional munitions for Patriot air defense systems;
  • Additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS);
  • Mine clearing equipment and systems;
  • 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds;
  • 120mm tank ammunition;
  • Tube-Launched, Optically Tracked, Wire-Guided (TOW) missiles;
  • Javelin and other anti-armor systems and rockets;
  • 37 tactical vehicles to tow and haul equipment;
  • 58 water trailers;
  • Over 12 million rounds of small arms ammunition and grenades;
  • Demolitions munitions for obstacle clearing; and
  • Spare parts, maintenance, and other field equipment.

The package represents the 44th presidential drawdown action that has been ordered since August 2021.

“It includes additional air defense munitions, artillery and tank ammunition, anti-armor weapons and other equipment to help Ukraine counter Russia's ongoing war of aggression,” DOD said. “The United States will continue to work with its Allies and partners to provide Ukraine with capabilities to meet its immediate battlefield needs and longer-term security assistance requirements.”

The Biden administration last week asked Congress to approve another $9.9 billion in security assistance for Ukraine.

The United States has committed more than $43.7 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden Administration, including more than $43 billion since the beginning of Russia’s February 24, 2022, according to the Pentagon.

The week ahead
By John Liang
August 14, 2023 at 5:00 AM

Senior officials speak in person and virtually at defense industry events this week.

Tuesday

Senior defense officials speak at the in-person and virtual AFCEA TechNet 2023 conference in Augusta, GA. The conference runs through Thursday.

Wednesday

The Air and Space Forces Association holds an online event on the next phase of the Blended Wing Body aircraft prototype project.

Army to host virtual reality research day
By Nickolai Sukharev
August 11, 2023 at 6:17 PM

The Army will host an industry day on virtual and augmented reality with a focus on combat vehicles in Orlando, FL, on Aug. 24, according to a public announcement.

Hosted by the Army Contracting Command, the event will be a “means of conducting market research to identify contractors with interest in and the resources to support the requirement for Family of Maintenance Trainers (FMT) Product Line (PL),” the announcement states.

The FMT PL is a common set of hardware and software systems designed for system operations, fault diagnosis, troubleshooting, adjustments, remova and replacement of the Army’s vehicles.

Vehicles that use the system are the Abrams main battle tank, Bradley Fighting Vehicle, Stryker armored personnel carrier, Armored Multi-purpose Vehicle and the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle.

The FMT PL system also includes the Diagnostic Troubleshooting Trainers, a computer-based virtual classroom system designed to train students in vehicle repair while the Part Task Trainers and Hands on Trainers provide a realistic training environment, according to the Program Executive Office Simulation, Training and Instrumentation.

In 2020, the Army awarded the Florida-based DiSTI Corp. a $42.5 million contract for upgrades to the FMT PL system, according to a company announcement.

The event is an opportunity for the Army to engage with industry to assess current technological capabilities and develop future requirements, the announcement states.

CDAO policy chief moving to private sector
By John Liang
August 11, 2023 at 4:42 PM

Clark Cully, the head of policy at the Pentagon's Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office, is leaving his position to work in the private sector.

"After 14 years driving tech transformation in the Pentagon, I am seeking a new challenge in industry," Cully wrote on his LinkedIn page.

"During his time at the CDAO, Clark help pave the way for the Policy Team's path forward on Strategy, Governance and International Engagement," a CDAO LinkedIn post reads.

The INSIDER daily digest -- August 11, 2023
By John Liang
August 11, 2023 at 2:21 PM

This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on a nascent Army "man-portable, tube-launched, lethal payload munition, unmanned aerial system," the Air Force's Advanced Battle Management System Content Delivery Network and more.

The Army will be holding industry days in September to discuss how the service can work with contractors to field lethal unmanned systems and “create a climate of collaboration” on future investments:

Army will hold industry days next month on LASSO

The Army will hold industry days next month to discuss the potential fielding of the service's new-start Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program. The announcement could signal the beginning of a competitive approach for the program, which the service acquisition executive described this week.

The Air Force this week released requests for information regarding the Advanced Battle Management System Content Delivery Network and a related Commercial Content Delivery Network:

Air Force details needs and uses for content delivery network for ABMS

The Air Force laid out part of its baseline infrastructure for its contribution to the Joint All Domain Command and Control effort by describing its needs for a content delivery network in a request for information posted Wednesday.

Document: ABMS content delivery network RFIs

A senior U.S. Space Command official spoke at this week's annual Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, AL:

SPACECOM still sees Russia as space competitor despite ongoing Ukraine conflict

Russia "remains a capable space competitor" even though the ongoing war in Ukraine has slowed down its pace of building space capabilities, according to Maj. Gen. Michael Morrissey, U.S. Space Command director of plans and policy.

Our colleagues at Inside Cybersecurity are in Las Vegas, covering the annual Black Hat cyber conference there:

Easterly, Ukraine cyber leader Zhora discuss lessons on partnership and resilience from war

LAS VEGAS -- Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly emphasized the need for Americans to “internalize lessons on resilience” from Ukraine's battle against Russia in preparation for cybersecurity challenges the United States is likely to face in the next few years, during an evening keynote appearance at the Black Hat conference here.

We end off with a new Defense Department artificial intelligence effort:

DARPA offers $20M in prizes, support to developers of AI for software security

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has announced a two-year competition for the development of an AI-driven tool to identify and patch software vulnerabilities, with the intent of widespread applications throughout the economy.

DOD seeks additional $9.9B in Ukraine funding 
By John Liang
August 10, 2023 at 5:48 PM

The Biden administration is asking Congress for an extra $9.9 billion in funding to replace weapon systems sent to Ukraine as well as paying for service members who have been temporarily deployed to Europe.

In an Aug. 10 letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young writes the Biden administration "is transmitting a supplemental funding request to the Congress to address three sets of critical needs for emergency funding as part of a potential short-term continuing resolution for the first quarter of [fiscal year] 2024," including money for Ukraine.

Specifically, the administration is requesting $9.9 billion for the Defense Department "for several large activities in response to the situation in Ukraine, including: $4.5 billion to replace defense articles from the DOD stocks; reimbursement for defense services and military education and training provided to the government of Ukraine under section 506(a)(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended; improve ammunition plants and equipment to increase the capacity and accelerate production of equipment to more rapidly replenish defense stocks; and $5 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. The request would also provide personnel and operational support such as temporary duty costs, intelligence analysis, flying hours, maintenance, weapon system sustainment, and other unit support costs."

Read Young's letter, which includes a further breakdown of where that $9.9 billion would go.

Army awards contracts for breach vehicle
By Nickolai Sukharev
August 10, 2023 at 5:45 PM

The Army has announced contract modifications for its Assault Breacher Vehicle, according to a series of public notices.

Contracts include upgrades to the vehicle’s vision system, demolition charges and diagnostics systems designed to identify problems in the vehicle, the announcements state.

Based on the M1 Abrams hull, the M1150 Assault Breacher Vehicle (ABV) has a modified turret without a 120mm gun but with a forward-mounted plow and demolition explosive launchers, designed to breach obstacles and clear minefields.

Adopted in 2009, the Marines first used the vehicle in a 2010 offensive against the Taliban in southern Afghanistan.

The first contract covers the vehicle’s vision system, which includes a laser range finder, infrared sensors, cameras and fire control systems.

The second contract covers the vehicle’s demolition charge systems, which include the control systems and lifting system.

Three of the contracts cover the vehicle’s diagnostics systems, which are designed to help the crew identify and manage problems in the engine and other areas of the vehicle.

In 2021, Australia purchased the M1150 and remains the only foreign operator of the vehicle.

Hicks establishes 'Task Force Lima' to field generative AI capabilities
By John Liang
August 10, 2023 at 3:57 PM

Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks has established a task force to focus the Defense Department's "exploration and responsible fielding" of generative artificial intelligence capabilities, including Large Language Models.

"Generative artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, such as Large Language Models (LLM), are growing in popularity, capability, and impact around the globe," Hicks writes in a memo issued today. "These capabilities are trained on massive datasets in order to generate content at a level of detail and apparent coherence that would have previously required human authorship. These capabilities unlock new opportunities, just as they pose significant new risks. The DOD faces an imperative to explore the use of this technology and the potential of these models' scale, speed, and interactive capabilities to improve the Department's mission effectiveness while simultaneously identifying proper protection measures and mitigating a variety of related risks."

Hicks wants Task Force Lima to "develop, evaluate, recommend, and monitor the implementation of generative AI technologies across DOD to ensure the Department is able to design, deploy, and use generative AI technologies responsibly and securely. The Task Force will provide guidance and make recommendations for the relevant policy-making bodies to address."

The deputy secretary has designated the Pentagon's Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Officer to lead Task Force Lima, according to the memo, which was released publicly but is marked as "CUI" (controlled unclassified information).

"[S]pecific roles and responsibilities for governance are discussed in the attached Charter and Generative Artificial Intelligence Coordination and Governance Plan," her memo states.

The task force, the memo states, "will provide the framework and initiative for DOD to:

  • "Accelerate promising generative AI initiatives and joint solutions;
  • "Federate disparate developmental and research efforts into a DoD community of practice to accelerate innovation and implementation;
  • "Evaluate solutions across Doctrine, Organization, Training, Materiel, Leadership, Personnel, Facilities, and Policy;
  • "Drive education and build a culture of responsible implementation and use; and,
  • "Ensure coordinated DoD engagement with interagency, international, educational, civil society, and industry partners regarding responsible development and use of generative AI."
Joint C-sUAS office asking for white papers from industry on anti-swarm solutions
By Dan Schere
August 10, 2023 at 2:29 PM

A request for white papers from the Joint Counter-small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Office (JCO) asks industry for solutions to detect, track, identify and defeat sUAS swarm threats.

The notice, posted earlier this month, follows a request for information the office released in July soliciting feedback from industry on the cost and procurement of targets that would potentially be used in a future demonstration focused on swarm attacks.

Army officials have said this next counter UAS demonstration, the fifth in a series, is scheduled for June 2024. It's not yet clear who will be present, but an Army spokesman told Inside Defense last month that the Defense, Justice and Homeland Security departments are among those invited.

The request for white papers asks industry for solutions that have a technology readiness level of six -- meaning the government has deemed it mature enough to operate in a relevant environment.

The notice states respondents must be able to demonstrate either a full system or subsystems of detect, track, identify or defeat capabilities in a “live-fire environment” by May 31, 2024. The Defense Department may craft its acquisition strategy or statement of objectives based on information provided in the white papers.

After the white papers are evaluated, the government could choose up to 10 companies to further discuss their proposed solutions, according to the notice. Those companies would then give presentations to a JCO subject-matter expert panel. In the next phase, companies who are chosen would be invited to provide a demonstration of their product, which would be followed by a prototype proposal phase and the eventual awarding of one or multiple other transaction authorities.

DOD seeks to mandate explanations for unsuccessful small contractors
By John Liang
August 10, 2023 at 2:15 PM

The Pentagon wants to tweak the acquisition rules to require explanations to companies who lose certain defense contracts worth less than $6 million.

The requirement is mandated by language in the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, "which, for task orders or delivery orders exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) but not greater than $6 million, requires contracting officers to provide, upon written request from an unsuccessful offeror, a brief explanation as to why the offeror was unsuccessful, including the rationale for award and an evaluation of the significant weak or deficient factors in the offeror's offer," according to a Federal Register notice published this week.

"While the statutory threshold is $5.5 million, this rule is imposing these debriefing requirements at the higher $6 million threshold to align with the current threshold at [Federal Acquisition Regulation] 16.505(b)(6)," the Aug. 9 Defense Department notice states. "This avoids a gap between $5.5 million and $6 million. This new debriefing requirement for orders above the SAT and below $6 million does not provide a debriefing at the level of detail currently afforded to unsuccessful awardees over $6 million, however, this information is expected to benefit entities by improving future offers.

"While not expressly required by the statute, the proposed rule adds a postaward notification requirement for the applicable task orders and delivery orders to ensure unsuccessful awardees are provided an opportunity to obtain the debriefing information in a timely manner," the notice continues.

DOD says it expects the proposed rule "to increase the availability of debriefing information to significantly more small and large entities participating in fair opportunity competitions than is currently required by the FAR. When requested by an unsuccessful awardee, the information provided is expected to enable these entities to improve future offers."

The INSIDER daily digest -- August 10, 2023
By John Liang
August 10, 2023 at 2:05 PM

This Thursday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on artificial intelligence, Ukraine's cybersecurity lessons learned from its ongoing war with Russia, Army directed-energy short-range air defense systems and more.

We start off with a new Defense Department artificial intelligence effort:

DARPA offers $20M in prizes, support to developers of AI for software security

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has announced a two-year competition for the development of an AI-driven tool to identify and patch software vulnerabilities, with the intent of widespread applications throughout the economy.

Our colleagues at Inside Cybersecurity are in Las Vegas, covering the annual Black Hat cyber conference there:

Easterly, Ukraine cyber leader Zhora discuss lessons on partnership and resilience from war

LAS VEGAS -- Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly emphasized the need for Americans to “internalize lessons on resilience” from Ukraine's battle against Russia in preparation for cybersecurity challenges the United States is likely to face in the next few years, during an evening keynote appearance at the Black Hat conference here.

Army Lt. Gen. Robert Rasch, director of the Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office, spoke this week at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, AL:

Three of four DE M-SHORAD platoon sets have been delivered

The Army has delivered three out of four prototype platoon sets for the Directed Energy Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense system, with the fourth set to be delivered in the next month, a service official said Wednesday.

Senate appropriators are in favor of hypersonic defense systems:

Lawmakers prioritize hypersonic systems development to defend against adversaries

Senate lawmakers have expressed their support for prioritizing the development of hypersonic systems to counterattack enemy weapons, according to the report accompanying the Senate Appropriations Committee's fiscal year 2024 defense spending bill.

We end off with coverage from the recent Air Force Life Cycle Industry Day:

U.K. working out DMS problems with E-7 ahead of U.S. acquisition

DAYTON, OH -- The U.S. will benefit from the kinks in the manufacturing and supply chain for the E-7 Wedgetail that are being worked out by the U.K., which has faced rising procurement costs on its version of the aircraft, senior materiel leaders told reporters last week.

Read our full industry day coverage.

Navy's technology needs to be detailed at fall industry event
By Linda Hersey
August 10, 2023 at 9:40 AM

Defense industry professionals will have the opportunity to learn about the Navy's technology needs, including for unmanned systems at the Program Executive Officer for Unmanned Aviation and Strike Weapons' Industry Event 2023 next month.

The PEO(U&W) is hosting the event Sept. 26-28 in Maryland as both an in-person and virtual conference, according to an updated contract opportunity special notice.

The notice, issued Wednesday, is a request for information to identify “potential technologies and capabilities to consider for the future of the Navy from industry.”

The three-day forum is for industry participants to hear firsthand about the technology needs of Naval Air Systems Command, PEO(U&W) and of the “Navy’s unmanned community with the potential for follow-up for briefings,” according to the notice.

The briefings will collect information on technology that industry has developed, the notice stated.

Advance registration is required for each day of the forum.

Opening day is restricted to attendees with final secret-level clearance and will be held in-person only at a site on or near Naval Air Station Patuxent River, MD.

“Only contractors or subcontractors performing a current DOD or federal intelligence community contract” are permitted, the notice stated.

Individuals need to be registered with their clearance verified to attend the first day of the forum. All registration and security verification materials for day-one attendance need to be submitted by Sept. 18, according to the notice.

Day one topics will cover “the threat, the fight tonight and the fight tomorrow and how industry can help,” the notice said.

The rest of the event is unclassified and open to registered participants, with sessions held in-person and available for live-streaming online. Details will be made available on the registration website.

Day two activities will cover the following:

  • PEO(U&W) portfolio review of strike weapons, targets and mission planning followed by a panel discussion and Q&A session;
  • “Rapid capability insertion” with information on upcoming exercises and events and how industry can participate. Capability briefs will be provided by naval air warfare centers (both aircraft and weapons divisions), fleet readiness centers and the Office of Naval Research. A panel discussion and Q&A session will follow.
  • Presentations on supporting small businesses. Additional presentations and Q&As may also take place.

Day three comprises the second Navy industry outreach event as required under the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act and is described as a “follow-on” to the Navy’s March 1-3 unmanned industry event.

Day three will also include a PEO(U&W) portfolio review of unmanned aviation and mission planning. There will be presentations on aviation, surface and subsurface unmanned systems, AI and autonomy.