The INSIDER daily digest -- Feb. 15, 2024

This Thursday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Marine Corps seeking to change its "risk-aversion culture," U.S. Pacific Fleet standing up a second unmanned surface vessel squadron and more.

Changing the "risk-aversion culture" within the Marine Corps acquisition community was recognized as a priority by former Commandant Gen. David Berger shortly before he retired in July. The service is now looking to deliver on this charge under current Commandant Gen. Eric Smith:

Marine Corps to increase risk tolerance in acquisitions, restructure systems command

SAN DIEGO -- The Marine Corps needs to get comfortable with more risk -- both technical and financial -- within its acquisition system to expeditiously field warfighting capabilities in the face of heightened great power competition, according to Brig. Gen. David Walsh, who leads Marine Corps Systems Command, the service’s chief acquisition body.

More news from the AFCEA West 2024 Conference:

Pacific Fleet will stand up second USV squadron in May, though Navy is tight-lipped on developing tech

SAN DIEGO -- U.S. Pacific Fleet will stand up a second unmanned surface vessel squadron in May as the Navy pushes to develop uncrewed and autonomous systems, the presumptive new head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said today, while indicating that the service is deliberately withholding specific information on its developing unmanned capabilities.

The U.S. needs to work with allies to make sure it has access to space launch facilities outside the country:

Space Force will need to work with allies, partners for more launch sites

DENVER -- To ensure U.S. access to space-launch capabilities, the Space Force will need to work with allies and partners to use or build launch facilities in other countries, the commander of U.S. Space Forces Indo-Pacific said.

Adm. Samuel Paparo, the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet who has been nominated to be head of INDOPACOM, spoke at a Defense Innovation Unit summit Tuesday, saying it is INDOPACOM’s goal to begin using autonomous systems to deter China from attacking Taiwan through "constant stare":

INDOPACOM seeks autonomous 'stare' to deter China in the Taiwan Strait

The presumptive chief of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said he is wrestling with how to interweave autonomy into weapons platforms and systems controls to provide "constant stare" for a new era of warfare, while the Pentagon continues work on the first tranche of Replicator drone capabilities to meet his stated needs.

Inside Defense previewed a space launch that successfully took place yesterday:

New 'cradle-to-grave' hypersonic tracking satellite prototypes set for launch, testing

The Defense Department today plans to put in orbit new space capabilities -- including a pair of competing prototype satellites built by L3Harris Technologies and Northrop Grumman -- that aim to solve one of the U.S. military's most vexing and pressing technical challenges: how to detect and track hypersonic glide vehicles that exploit blind spots in today's radar networks.

Maj. Theresa Christie, the executive officer of the Army's Indo-Pacific Sustainment Command, spoke this week at an event hosted by Vertex in Austin, TX:

Army and Marines need joint solution on supplies when deployed abroad, says sustainment officer

The Army and the Marine Corps need a joint solution to maintain supplies when abroad and before the onset of conflict, according to an Army sustainment officer.