The INSIDER daily digest -- Jan. 31, 2018

By John Liang / January 31, 2018 at 2:15 PM

A recent missile defense intercept test, the Army's M109A7 self-propelled howitzer, the Pentagon's cloud strategy and more highlight this Wednesday INSIDER Daily Digest.

The Pentagon hasn't disclosed the results of a high-stakes shoot-down test of the Aegis Ashore combat system and Standard Missile-3 Block II interceptor:

Pentagon conducts major BMD intercept test, mum on salient details

The Defense Department executed a ballistic missile defense flight test over Hawaii today but will not disclose whether the interceptor hit the target.

More missile defense news:

Army moving to pave way for lower-tier missile defense sensor prototypes

The Army will hold an industry day next month to begin planning the way forward on its lower-tier air and missile defense sensor acquisition strategy.

The Army is preparing for the second test and evaluaiton of its M109 program in the second quarter of fiscal year 2018:

Army may eventually replace entire upper half of howitzer

A new breech is included in the plans for a future incremental upgrade to the Army's M109A7 self-propelled howitzer, as well as a new gun -- potentially meaning a complete replacement of the vehicle's upper half, according to program officials.

House Armed Services emerging threats and capabilities subcommittee Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and Ranking Member Jim Langevin (D-RI) are among those concerned that a Pentagon steering group is not being transparent with its cloud strategy:

Lawmakers concerned by 'lack of transparency' from Pentagon cloud steering group

Members of the House Armed Services Committee are raising concerns over the Pentagon cloud executive steering group's work to accelerate the U.S. military's adoption of commercial cloud computing.

Related stories:

Yesterday's vote on the FY-19 defense appropriations bill, which occurred hours before President Trump's State of the Union address, is meant to highlight Republican efforts to increase defense spending and bolster the allegation that Democrats are obstructing national security:

House again passes FY-18 defense spending bill that can't clear Senate

The House, in a largely symbolic move by Republicans, voted 250-166 to pass a $659 billion fiscal year 2018 defense appropriations bill with no hope of passage in the Senate, where Democrats continue to oppose any spending measure that does not include a promise of immigration reform and also provide parity between defense and non-defense priorities.

If the Army Reserve is required to generate a particular capability for a full-spectrum conflict "on no notice," leaders have to assess the feasibility of meeting the time line, and adjust their preparations accordingly:

Luckey: USAR capabilities should be 'harmonized' prior to mobilization

The Army Reserve possesses an array of "niche capabilities" that contribute to total force readiness, but has to properly integrate them to ensure efficacy, its chief said last week.

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