The INSIDER daily digest -- June 8, 2023

The bulk of this Thursday INSIDER Daily Digest has coverage of the Government Accountability Office's annual weapon systems assessment report.

We start off with the Government Accountability Office's annual weapon systems assessment report, which is chock-full of program details (and stay tuned for more coverage in the coming days):

Watchdog report finds DOD 'paying more for less,' taking 11 years to field weapon systems

The Defense Department's major weapons programs cost more and take longer to field than in the past, despite efforts to revamp the Pentagon's notoriously bureaucratic acquisition process, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office, which asserts DOD is now "paying more for less."

Document: GAO's 2023 weapon systems assessment report

GAO on an Army artillery program:

GAO: DOD denied Army's request to extend MTA timeframe for ERCA

Top brass at the Pentagon denied an Army request for a waiver to push the middle tier acquisition timeframe beyond the standard five-year mark for the Extended Range Cannon Artillery program, according to the Government Accountability Office's Weapon Systems Annual Assessment.

GAO on the Navy's Virginia-class submarine program:

GAO: Virginia construction languishes as labor is funneled to Columbia

Virginia-class submarine production is struggling with increasingly severe labor shortages, according to the Government Accountability Office’s annual review of Defense Department weapons programs, which estimates construction time for Block V vessels will take an average of more than two years longer than the previous year’s report predicted.

GAO on an Air Force satellite program:

GAO: Next-Gen OPIR 2025 launch likely delayed

The payload deliveries of the new missile warning satellite will likely be delayed, pushing back the initial launch of the satellite scheduled in 2025, the Government Accountability Office reported on June 6.

There was also another GAO report on missile defense that came out this week:

GAO: DOD needs better plan to sustain, maintain Missile Defense System

The Defense Department "lacks comprehensive guidance" for sustaining and maintaining the Missile Defense System -- a sprawling collection of radars, launchers and command and control systems -- that, if not corrected, places at risk the readiness of the nation to defend against long-range missile threats.

Document: GAO report on missile defense oversight

Navigation Technology Satellite-3 is the Defense Department's first experimental, integrated navigation satellite system in nearly 50 years:

Air Force tests its first navigation satellite system

The Air Force successfully tested its first experimental navigation, positioning and timing satellite, which is expected to lift off in late 2023, the service announced on June 5.

Last but by no means least, the latest cyber defense news from our colleagues at Inside Cybersecurity:

Small business advocacy office to weigh in on CMMC rulemaking once it runs through DOD process

The Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy will get a chance to provide feedback on the upcoming rulemaking to establish the Pentagon's cyber certification program before it is finalized, according to chief counsel Major Clark, who spoke with Inside Cybersecurity on how SBA is involved in the review process.