Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
This Tuesday INSIDER Daily Digest is chock-full of budget news, from the Navy's Large Unmanned Surface Vessel to the Air Force's MQ-9 Reaper to the Army's Precision Strike Missile and more.
Defense-wide budget news:
White House plans flat DOD budgets over five years, but Esper wants more
The White House Office of Management and Budget is projecting essentially flat annual budgets for the Pentagon over the next five years, well below the 3%-5% growth above inflation Defense Secretary Mark Esper said the military will need every year to reorient itself toward China and Russia.
DOD wants to cut military construction funds as Trump seeks more wall money
The Defense Department is requesting $6.8 billion in military construction for fiscal year 2021, a $9 billion reduction from the previous year.
Missile defense budget news:
MDA pulls funding for Pacific Radar, undertakes INDOPACOM 'sensor architecture' study
The Missile Defense Agency is not requesting any money this year to build a new radar in the Pacific after the Pentagon encountered issues getting a nation to host the site, according to MDA's director.
DOD eyes new 'homeland layered' missile defense while developing Next Generation Interceptor
The Pentagon is proposing a major reconfiguration of plans to protect the nation from North Korean ballistic missiles by starting a new Next Generation Interceptor program while simultaneously adding two "layers" beneath the current defense shield -- a new Terminal High Altitude Area Defense homeland defense capability to work in concert with the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA.
Army budget news:
Price tag for Army's hypersonic project spikes up to $3.6 billion, jumps to top R&D perch
The estimated price tag for the Army's project to develop and field a long-range, offensive hypersonic weapon has ballooned to $3.6 billion and the effort has assumed the highest perch in the service's fiscal year 2021 research and development request, an $801 million ask that is the largest single program claim on research and development funding in nearly a decade.
Army plans $1 billion Precision Strike Missile procurement over FYDP
The Army is projecting it will buy 1,018 Precision Strike Missiles for $1 billion across the fiscal year 2021 future years defense program.
Navy budget news:
Responding to congressional backlash, Navy's FY-21 budget revamps LUSV strategy
The Navy's fiscal year 2021 budget request lays out a detailed acquisition plan for the service's Large Unmanned Surface Vessel, beginning with an anticipated delay for an early solicitation this year and culminating with the first vehicle being delivered in FY-26.
Navy buying fewer battleforce ships because 'it's what we can afford'
The Navy plans to purchase fewer battleforce ships in the next five years because that's what it can afford to buy with a flattening defense topline, according to a top service official.
Air Force budget news:
Air Force budget identifies $4.1B in 'reforms' across FYDP
The Air Force's $168.9 billion fiscal year 2021 budget request proposes a $4.1 billion realignment across the future years defense program to fund increases in future air and space dominance capabilities through cuts to legacy bombers and tankers, Block 20 and 30 Global Hawks, Guard and Reserve Component A-10s and planned missile procurements.
Air Force cancels Hypersonic Conventional Strike Weapon program
The Air Force is terminating the Hypersonic Conventional Strike Weapon program -- one of two prototyping efforts the service is pursuing to achieve a capability that can travel faster than Mach 5 -- following completion of its critical design review this spring.
Air Force proposes severe cuts to B-2 DMS-M due to continued development delays
The Air Force's fiscal year 2021 budget proposes a significant scope reduction to a major B-2 upgrade after development problems delayed the program’s initial operational capability target date by two years.
Air Force to shut down MQ-9 Reaper production in FY-20, retire 24 Global Hawks
The Air Force's fiscal year 2021 budget makes major changes to the service's fleet of remotely piloted aircraft -- ending purchases of MQ-9 Reapers and retiring more than two-thirds of its RQ-4 Global Hawk fleet.
Air Force's 72-fighter procurement goal remains out of reach in FY-21 FYDP
The Air Force's fiscal year 2021 budget request doesn't project the service will meet its optimum fighter aircraft procurement rate of 72 aircraft within the next five years, showing a stagnant F-35 buy-rate of 48 aircraft per year and a gradual increase in F-15EX procurement.