The INSIDER daily digest -- Aug. 27, 2021

By Thomas Duffy / August 27, 2021 at 2:17 PM

This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest continues with our coverage of the House Armed Services Committee’s draft authorization bill, more coverage from the Space Symposium in Colorado, and more.

The House committee is questioning the Navy’s plans for its adversary aircraft program:

House authorizers want Navy to use more modern aircraft for adversary training

The House Armed Services Committee is pushing back against the Navy’s plan to use F-5s and F-16s as adversary aircraft in training scenarios and wants the service to use more modern aircraft instead, according to the committee chairman’s mark for the fiscal year 2022 defense authorization bill.

A full review of defense acquisition programs could happen if the House bill becomes law:

Draft legislation would mandate sweeping scrub of entire major weapon system inventory, identify divestitures

An influential lawmaker is proposing legislation that -- if enacted -- could establish a new framework for assessing the suitability of the U.S. military’s existing major weapon system inventory for potential future combat operations, directing a review that could reshape the $2 trillion roster of current projects by identifying programs for divestiture that are not keeping pace with emerging threats.

The Defense Department is already shifting money around to pay for the Afghan resettlement effort:

Pentagon to transfer $400M to help resettle evacuated Afghans

The Pentagon intends to reprogram nearly $400 million to support the State Department’s request for temporary housing for Afghan special immigrant visa applicants and their families.

Two more pieces from our Space Symposium coverage:

New missile warning, tracking force design could accelerate SDA Tranche 1 tracking layer

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO -- As part of a broader missile tracking and warning force design effort, the Defense Department is considering initiating the second batch of Space Development Agency tracking layer satellites sooner than planned.

House Armed Services Committee chairman’s mark paves way for fast-tracked space AQ exec

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO -- The House Armed Services Committee’s chairman’s mark of the fiscal year 2022 defense policy bill would grant the Space Force the authority to create a new assistant secretary for space acquisition and integration.

House authorizers are concerned about the state of Navy electronic warfare:

House committee wants $1.5M increase for Navy’s EA-18 to counter high band electronic warfare

House lawmakers recommend a $1.5 million increase to upgrade high band jamming capability on the Navy’s EA-18 Growler as part of the House Armed Services Committee’s chairman’s mark for the fiscal year 2022 defense authorization bill.

And finally, the House committee wants some additions to DOD’s cyber program:

House authorizers want DOD to create ‘information collaborative environment,’ new cyber program offices

The House Armed Services Committee is proposing several legislative provisions related to the Defense Department’s cyber activities, including developing an “information collaborative environment” and establishing a program management office for enterprise-wide procurement of commercial cyber threat information products

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