The INSIDER daily digest -- July 19, 2023

This Wednesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on deterring China, the Air Force's E-3 Wedgetail aircraft and more.

Navy Adm. John Aquilino spoke about China's growing arsenal during a national security forum this week:

INDOPACOM commander stresses urgency in delivery of deterrent capabilities

The head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command is calling for an "increased sense of urgency" in the delivery of deterrent capabilities to the Pacific theater to counter China's buildup of military capabilities, including hypersonic and nuclear weapons.

The latest on the Air Force's acquisition of the E-7 Wedgetail early warning aircraft:

Hunter: E-7 Wedgetail looking like a 'good news story'

Despite a recent report from the United Kingdom decrying its problems acquiring E-7 Wedgetail aircraft, Air Force acquisition chief Andrew Hunter doesn't foresee significant hurdles in procuring the U.S. version.

In a recently issued draft solicitation for the "Fire-control On Orbit-support-to-the war Fighter Program," the agency said it is planning to purchase and deploy eight F2 space vehicles featuring electro-optical and infrared sensors:

SDA Director says FOO Fighter will aim to address specific unidentified threats

The FOO Fighter, a new classified initiative of the Space Development Agency, will track specific threats that are not addressed by the existing tracking constellation, SDA Director Derek Tournear said Tuesday.

More coverage of the Pentagon's latest omnibus reprogramming request:

NGJ-LB source selection in $5 billion do-over between NOC and L3Harris set for September

The Navy estimates a key contract to launch the Next Generation Jammer-Low Band into engineering and manufacturing development -- a milestone originally reached in December 2020 but delayed by a series of protests and legal wrangling -- will now be awarded in September.

Document: DOD's FY-23 omnibus reprogramming request

The Defense Innovation Board met this week:

Defense Innovation Board calls out 'culture of obstruction' in new reform recommendations

The Defense Innovation Board met today and reached the unanimous conclusion that the Pentagon suffers from a "culture of obstruction" that is blocking the adoption of cutting-edge technologies needed to compete with China.

Coverage from this week's All Domain Warfare Symposium:

JADC2 panel assesses tech performance for the warfighter

The MQ-9 Reaper and other unmanned systems that use a robust suite of sensors and cameras to stream target images are an example of the "tremendous information flow" that warfighters obtain from recent technologies, Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Stephen Lightfoot, director for capabilities development directorate, said today.

Grady: Real-time digital information is key to gaining 'decisive decision advantage'

Defense leaders have a "path-breaking opportunity to transform how we fight" by prioritizing informational advantages in defense strategy, Adm. Christopher Grady, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a joint warfighting conference Tuesday.