The INSIDER daily digest -- March 17, 2025

This Monday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on civilian personnel reductions within the Space Force, plus a Defense Innovation Unit contract for long-range, one-way drones and more.

About 5,400 of the Space Force's 14,700 guardians are civilians as of the beginning of the month, but that number is already shrinking as they choose to apply for the administration's deferred resignation program:

Space Force bracing for upcoming civilian personnel reductions

Top officials within the country's smallest military service are bracing for major disruptions as the Trump administration promises to cut civilian personnel across the federal government.

The Defense Innovation Unit is looking to develop long-range, one-way drones:

DIU awards contracts for long-range, one-way drones; Ukrainian companies involved

The Pentagon's innovation arm has selected four companies, two of which are partnered with Ukrainian firms, to receive contracts under its project to operationally evaluate long-range, one-way drones, the Defense Innovation Unit announced late last week.

More coverage of a recent Defense Department inspector general's report on the Army's Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor program:

LTAMDS estimated to be a $13 billion program to acquire 94 air and missile defense radars

The Army estimates the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor program, designed to replace the aging Patriot radar, is on track to become one of the service's largest air defense modernization efforts with a total estimated cost of $13 billion, a sum not previously reported.

Document: DOD IG report on LTAMDS

The 3rd Multi-Domain Task Force was activated in September 2022 to support U.S. Army Pacific as a component of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command:

Army's 3rd MDTF will stand up long-range fires battalion over next 12-18 months

The Army's 3rd Multi-Domain Task Force will stand up its long-range fires battalion over the next 12 to 18 months, as part of a "sizeable amount of growth" for the task force, according to its commander.

We conclude with news on the Defense Department's Office of Net Assessment, which was created by President Richard Nixon in 1973 to serve as an internal think tank for the Pentagon:

Hegseth to restructure Office of Net Assessment

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the disestablishment of the Pentagon's storied Office of Net Assessment with the intent to "rebuild it."