Friday, April 19, 2024
Friday, April 19, 2024
This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on small satellite deployment, Ukraine war funding, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program and more.
Space Development Agency Policy Chief Paula Trimble spoke this week during a panel hosted by the Atlantic Council:
Deployment of small satellites key to future warfighting, SDA policy chief says
As the United States races to maintain superiority in space, small satellites are expected to play an increasingly critical role in keeping an edge over competitors like China, according to Space Development Agency Policy Chief Paula Trimble.
Pentagon Comptroller Mike McCord has approved the transfer of $1.4 billion to provide "funding for the replacement of defense articles from the stocks of the Department of Defense, and for reimbursement for defense services of the Department of Defense and military education and training provided to the Government of Ukraine":
DOD draws $1.4B from special Ukraine fund to replenish U.S. stocks
The Defense Department is internally shifting $1.4 billion from the Ukraine Replacement Transfer Fund to replenish Javelin anti-tank and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles that have been transferred to Ukraine from U.S. stocks to help push back a Russian invasion, according to a document from the Pentagon comptroller.
Document: DOD's Ukraine replacement transfer fund tranche #1 reprogramming action
The Senate Armed Services Committee held a hearing on the Army's fiscal year 2023 budget request this week:
Army Alaska could become 11th Airborne Division
The Army is considering renaming its two-star headquarters in Alaska the 11th Airborne Division, but the service does not plan to change the size of its presence in the state, senior officials told the Senate Armed Services Committee today.
Document: Senate hearing on the Army's FY-23 budget request
A new Government Accountability Office report on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program finds that the Defense Department "can't ensure that it has current records on all of the program assets that it owns, where they are located, and how much they cost":
GAO: F-35 program still not fully tracking fighter parts, costs
The Government Accountability Office has found that F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program officials still do not have a full accounting of the costs tied to the various parts of the aircraft, despite making efforts to create a baseline inventory and improve tracking of those assets in recent years.
Document: GAO report on the F-35 program
A new Army directive changes language in earlier guidance that had given Army Futures Command the power to lead service modernization efforts, shifting some authority back to the assistant secretary for acquisition, logistics and technology:
New Army directive shifts power from Futures Command
The Army is shifting some modernization leadership power from Army Futures Command and reaffirming the role of the service's acquisition executive, according to a directive issued by Secretary Christine Wormuth Tuesday.
Document: Army directive on Futures Command