Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Key Issues L3Harris and SBI Cyber risk management CH-53K contract
This Tuesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on Qatar's proposed donation of a Boeing jumbo jet to the United States as the next Air Force One, the Marine Corps wanting to own the data rights to future weapon systems and more.
The Senate Armed Services Committee held a hearing this morning on the Air Force's fiscal year 2026 posture, during which Air Force One was a topic of discussion:
Hegseth orders Air Force to plan modifications to Qatari jet for Air Force One
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the Air Force to plan modifications to turn a Qatari-owned jumbo jet into the next Air Force One aircraft, service Secretary Troy Meink disclosed today.
Document: Air Force's FY-26 posture statement
Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith spoke this week at a Council on Foreign Relations event:
Smith: Marine Corps must own data rights for platforms like F-35
The Marine Corps must own the technical data rights for the platforms it operates, the service's top officer said yesterday, describing a situation in which a forward-based F-35 Joint Strike Fighter was sidelined while the contractor delivered a replacement component that could have been 3D printed onsite in a fraction of the time.
The program executive office for command, control, communications and network (PEO C3N) published a commercial solutions opening (CSO) on Friday that lays out steps for companies to enter prototype projects for Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2), the Army's wholesale network modernization program that requires "continuous iteration of flexible requirements" through contracts with quick turnarounds:
Army to award three OTAs for NGC2 prototype projects
The Army will soon select up to three companies to deliver prototypes for its next-generation network under a competitive solicitation that may lead to a variety of projects leveraging industry's mature technology, according to a May 16 announcement.
Rather than the initial "white glove way" the Defense Innovation Unit had been vetting uncrewed aerial systems and components for clearance on the "Blue List," DIU Director Doug Beck told lawmakers the most basic tier will now enable companies to "pursue and fund their own [National Defense Authorization Act] compliance assessments with trusted partners" selected by DIU:
New DIU drone vetting process to include outside tests to hasten approvals
The new two-tiered structure for the Defense Innovation Unit's program to pre-approve dual-use drones for military use will use third-party assessments to enable the acceleration and scaling of compliance evaluations, the agency announced Friday.
On May 16, the Missile Defense Agency announced an award for deliveries of the SM-3 Block IB All-Up Rounds through March 2031, using procurement funds from fiscal years 2024 and 2025:
MDA awards $1B for SM-3 Block IB as Golden Dome prompts rethink of missile inventory
The Pentagon has awarded Raytheon Technologies a $1 billion contract to produce up to 55 Standard Missile-3 Block IB interceptors, a move that comes as defense leaders reconsider the future of the combat-tested interceptor -- slated for a production sunset -- amid growing demands from the emerging Golden Dome domestic missile defense architecture.