Wednesday, May 8, 2024
Wednesday, May 8, 2024
This Wednesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on hypersonics, the Army's Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle, a nascent chief information security office and more.
The Navy's Strategic Systems Programs office this week awarded Lockheed Martin a multimillion-dollar hypersonics contract:
DOD awards Lockheed $405M contract to re-purpose Navy hypersonic booster for Army use
The Defense Department has awarded Lockheed Martin a $405 million contract to re-purpose a Navy rocket designed for submarine launch for use by the Army to give ground forces the means to fire a hypersonic glide body, marking a major development by the Pentagon to ready a new class of ultra-fast conventional weapons to strike high-priority targets in the open salvos of a major fight.
The Army is reevaluating its plan to cut Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle funding:
Army reassessing AMPV 'Night Court' cut
The Army is taking a second look at some of the program cuts driven by its $25 billion "Night Court" budget review, including that of the Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle.
And check out this Inside Defense scoop on the "Night Court" in case you missed it last week:
Army 'Night Court' deep cuts revealed as Esper eyes expanding process Pentagon-wide
The Army's "Night Court" process cut $25 billion from legacy weapon systems to spend more on emerging technologies, with $15 billion coming from program eliminations and reductions detailed in documents obtained by Inside Defense.
In a memo issued last month, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Acquisition Kevin Fahey directs the immediate establishment of the chief information security office and names Katie Arrington to lead the office as the first chief information security officer:
Pentagon acquisition shop establishes 'chief information security office' to take on cyber threats
The Pentagon's acquisition organization has established a chief information security office to lead efforts aimed at protecting sensitive data related to the Defense Department’s weapon systems and critical infrastructure.
Col. Chuck Worshim, the Army's cruise missile defense systems project manager, recently told Inside Defense the plan to acquire a pair of Iron Dome batteries to provide an interim cruise missile defense capability by next year remains on track:
U.S., Israel readying contract for Iron Dome purchase
Government negotiators from the United States and Israel are finalizing contract terms for the Army to purchase two Iron Dome batteries from state-owned Israeli defense contractors, an approximate two-month delay that nevertheless will not impede service plans to meet the Oct. 1, 2020 fielding goal, according to an Army official.
Kevin Stein, TransDigm's chief executive, spoke with Wall Street analysts this week about his company's decision to voluntarily repay $16 million in excess profit on the contracts it reviewed:
TransDigm CEO: $16 million voluntary repayment was 'in the best interest of the company'
TransDigm Group executives today said a new Defense Department inspector general audit underway will likely yield the same results as a previous review.