The INSIDER daily digest -- Nov. 9, 2022

This Wednesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on missile defense, overall weapons production, the long-anticipated Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability and more.

In mid-October, the Army Test and Evaluation Command completed the second of two planned phases of initial operational test and evaluation of the main element of the Integrated Air and Missile Defense program -- IAMD Battle Command Systems (IBCS) -- and prime contractor Northrop Grumman is bullish about the testing performance and future prospects:

Final phase of IOT&E for IBCS wraps, program eyes full-rate production, follow-on development

Army testers are readying a final assessment of Integrated Air and Missile Defense operational effectiveness, suitability and survivability after completing a major appraisal, setting the stage for an early 2023 full-rate production decision and a pivot to follow-on development that includes integration with the F-35 fighter and the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system.

The No. 2 top civilian Pentagon official's meeting with DOD's top defense contractors this week comes as the department seeks to sharpen its focus on increasing weapons production, especially munitions for the long-range artillery and anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems being transferred to Ukraine from U.S. stocks to fight off a Russian military invasion:

Hicks meets with top weapons makers amid LaPlante's push for boosted production

Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks met with the Pentagon's top eight defense contractors this week to discuss industrial base issues including the surging demand for U.S. weapons in Ukraine, supply chain bottlenecks and labor challenges.

In the lead-up to the long-anticipated Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability selection, one Defense Information Systems Agency official said the organization is working to put in place what she called "cloud accelerators" that will allow the military "to not only access the contract but be able to consume cloud in a faster and smarter way":

DOD eyes mid-December for JWCC award

TOWSON, MD -- Defense Department officials are planning to award their multivendor, multicloud enterprise solution contract by the middle of next month, following a delay that pushed the announcement back by more than half a year.

Top brass at NORTHCOM and NORAD have for the last three years sounded the alarm about potential Russian and Chinese capability to attack the United States below the nuclear threshold, including against targets that could disrupt military deployments:

DOD wants new Over-the-Horizon Radar operational by 2027 at up to four CONUS sites

The Defense Department wants a new over-the-horizon radar to be operational by 2027 to detect and decrease risk from potential Russian and Chinese cruise missile strikes against U.S. critical assets and plans to brief industry in early December on a new homeland defense sensor competition that will launch next summer to support this goal.

Twenty-four hours after Election Day began, it's still not clear which party will control Congress:

Elections set to reshuffle Capitol Hill's key defense committees

Midterm elections this week are poised to set off a political game of musical chairs on Capitol Hill that could have significant impacts on defense issues ranging from topline spending to Ukrainian military aid to U.S. shipbuilding.