Inside the Navy highlights

Some must-reads from this week's issue of Inside the Navy:

1. The Pentagon is re-considering the path forward for the Navy's frigate program yet again, with officials now mulling whether to beef up the ship's anti-air warfare capabilities and open up competition to designs beyond one based on the Littoral Combat Ship.

Full story: Defense Department re-considering frigate design, acquisition strategy

2. The Navy's V-22 program office is attempting to secure funds in fiscal year 2018 for overhaul of nearly half the Marine Corps' Osprey tiltrotor aircraft into a common configuration, according to the program manager.

Full story: V-22 program to seek 'common configuration' funding in 2018 budget

3. The Joint Requirements Oversight Council's recent decision to approve a capabilities development document for the F-35's follow-on modernization effort without an independent cost estimate from the Pentagon's cost assessment and program evaluation office was somewhat contentious and not "ideal," the head of the council said last week.

Full story: JROC chair: Council debated approving F-35 Block 4 capabilities without CAPE cost estimate

4. Congressional auditors peg the Next Generation Jammer program to be a $7.6 billion acquisition effort, the first formal cost assessment made public since the Pentagon's acquisition executive cleared the Navy airborne electronic attack program to proceed into engineering and manufacturing development.

Full story: Auditors peg Next Generation Jammer acquisition at $7.6B