Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on DOD's COVID-19 spending, an interview with Mercury Systems CEO Mark Aslett and more.
The Pentagon is taking too much time to spend money on countering COVID-19, some Democrat lawmakers are asserting:
DOD clashes with Senate Democrats over COVID-19 spending
Several Senate Democrats are criticizing the Defense Department for spending too little, too slowly to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Pentagon says it intends to send lawmakers a plan today for using the $10.6 billion in coronavirus relief funds Congress provided in March.
In a new white paper released earlier this month, the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence warns the economic downturn's duration and its effects on the technology sector "will determine whether the United States preserves its advantages in artificial intelligence (AI) and other emerging technologies critical to national security":
COVID-19 could erode Pentagon's progress with dual-use technology startups, Silicon Valley warns
The economic slowdown brought on by COVID-19 could set back the Pentagon's nascent efforts to leverage commercial technologies, as venture capital funding recedes and big money government contracts for nontraditional companies remain elusive, according to new reports and interviews with Silicon Valley insiders.
Mercury Systems CEO Mark Aslett spoke with Inside Defense earlier this week:
Mercury CEO says company does not anticipate production delays during coronavirus crisis
The chief executive of Mercury Systems says the company is not expecting the ongoing coronavirus outbreak to delay production or to slow its hiring.
A yearlong Air Force initial tactical training program would give young pilots more experience flying advanced jets before transitioning to fourth- or fifth-generation aircraft:
Air Force asking for industry feedback on Reforge training concept
The Air Force is asking for proofs of concept from industry in response to its plan to lease advanced training aircraft to support a proposed new fighter pilot training program.
CMMC AB board member Regan Edens spoke during a webinar from the accreditation body posted on Thursday:
Standards for cyber certification program under DOD to change as maturity model adapts
The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification Accreditation Body is developing standards for assessment that are adaptive to changes made to "source documents" coming from the Defense Department, according to CMMC AB board member Regan Edens.
The Missile Defense Agency this week published a request for information on the Long Range Discrimination Radar program, providing new public details about the scope of the planned Configuration 2 upgrade of the ballistic missile defense sensor which is currently being assembled at Clear Air Force Station, AK, with plans to deliver to the government in December:
MDA eyes four-part upgrade of LRDR by Lockheed, seeks input from other potential vendors
The Missile Defense Agency is planning a four-part upgrade of the Long Range Discrimination Radar that will be operational in 2023, a major software upgrade slated to be sole-sourced to Lockheed Martin but for which the government is soliciting feedback from industry on potential alternative vendors who might improve the sensor's ability to detect and track objects in space.
While the Army had planned to use a "universal timeline applicable to all task orders" for the LOGCAP V transition, it has rescinded that plan and is now moving to a "conditions-based timeline" specific to each task order:
As pandemic limits travel, Army moves LOGCAP V transition to 'conditions-based timeline'
To cope with the delays created by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Army has modified the guidelines for industry transitioning to the new version of the Logistics Civil Augmentation Program.