Thursday, April 25, 2024
Thursday, April 25, 2024
The bulk of this Monday INSIDER Daily Digest has coverage from this past weekend's Reagan National Defense Forum in California.
Inside Defense interviewed the Pentagon's comptroller during the forum:
Inflation to remain a contentious defense issue in FY-24 as dueling numbers emerge
SIMI VALLEY, CA -- Lawmakers and Pentagon officials are acknowledging that record inflation and its impact on the Defense Department is likely to continue driving spending debates, while the Biden administration eyes completion of its fiscal year 2024 budget request.
DOD comptroller says munitions production investments will be key theme in FY-24 budget
SIMI VALLEY, CA -- The Pentagon comptroller said one of the bigger "themes" in the next defense budget request, spurred by the U.S. response to Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine, will be a focus on investments for expanding critical munitions production, especially for weapons that could be used in a potential China-Taiwan conflict scenario.
The Navy's top civilian says the service will look to put more money in its newest class of aircraft carriers:
Investing in carriers and decommissioning cruisers: Del Toro on FY-24 budget priorities
SIMI VALLEY, CA -- In addition to prioritizing its major acquisition programs, the Navy will make material investments for future Ford-class aircraft carriers in its fiscal year 2024 budget request and ask Congress to let the service decommission more cruisers.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin talked about the new Office of Strategic Capital that was stood up last week:
Aiming to scale private capital, DOD will leverage SBA partnership for its new office
SIMI VALLEY, CA -- The Defense Department will partner with the Small Business Administration to advance its newly established office to invest in critical technology areas by using an SBA program to administer loans to investors.
The CEO of one of the Pentagon's largest contractors talked about progress payment increases:
Lockheed CEO says 100% of progress payment increases should flow down to subcontractors
SIMI VALLEY, CA -- Lockheed President and CEO James Taiclet said today that large prime contractors, like his company, should commit to flowing 100% of all progress payment increases down to smaller subcontractors to strengthen the U.S. defense industrial base.
The Air Force's next-generation stealth bomber was publicly revealed late last week:
Air Force reveals secretive B-21 Raider
PALMDALE, CA -- In a dramatic ceremony to showcase what officials called the "future backbone" of the Air Force's bomber fleet, Northrop Grumman revealed the B-21 Raider to the public for the first time Friday.
The Pentagon has ordered more High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems to replace the ones sent to Ukraine:
Army awards $431M contract to Lockheed Martin for HIMARS
The Army awarded a $430.9 million contract on Thursday to Lockheed Martin to produce the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, with the goal of replenishing Defense Department stocks and supporting allies and partners, the service announced.