The INSIDER daily digest -- Sept. 6, 2024

This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program breaking a $2 trillion cost threshold, the U.S. and its allies ramping up work with the Ukrainian weapons industry and more.

We start off with news on the Defense Department's biggest acquisition program in history:

F-35 program breaches the $2 trillion cost threshold in new report to Congress

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program has reported a new cost estimate that breaks the $2 trillion barrier to acquire and operate, including a revised aircraft and engine tab of $485 billion that essentially doubles the original price tag formulated based on Lockheed Martin's design.

Document: MSAR on the F-35 program

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, at a meeting this week of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, said the United States and its allies will need to invest in Ukraine's indigenous defense industry if the nation is to make a long-term stand against Russia:

Austin: U.S. working to co-develop substitute S-300 and R-27 missiles with Ukraine

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced today that the United States, with help from several European companies, is working with the Ukrainian weapons industry to "design and build" substitute munitions for the Soviet-era S-300 surface-to-air missile system and the R-27 air-to-air missile.

The Army has been steadily ramping up its production of the artillery for the last couple of years to support Ukraine in its ongoing conflict with Russia:

Bush says engineering challenges have caused minor delays with 155mm round production

Army acquisition chief Doug Bush says the Army is still on track to meet its objective of producing 100,000 155mm rounds per month by late fiscal year 2025, but various engineering challenges in the production process have led to delays that can sometimes last a few weeks.

Air Force acquisition czar Andrew Hunter this week talked about a "next-generation acquisition model," reflective of the next-generation family of systems and programs the service is prioritizing for air dominance and aerial refueling:

Air Force's new software-based acquisition model is shaking up the way industry does its bidding

As autonomy and other innovative technology emerge rapidly out of research and development and into the field, the Air Force is changing the way it thinks about acquisition to center systems over platforms, forcing industry to also pivot how it presents products.

Coverage from this week's Billington Cybersecurity Summit:

Neuberger teases potential cyber executive order focusing on lessons learned from AI work

Deputy National Security Adviser for Cybersecurity Anne Neuberger highlighted the benefits of artificial intelligence when it comes to cybersecurity at the Billington Cybersecurity Summit and offered a sneak peek into a potential cyber executive order that will incorporate lessons learned.

Software modernization guidance coming, acting CIO says

The Defense Department is preparing to release a new instruction to further guide implementation of its software modernization strategy, Leslie Beavers, acting chief information officer for the Pentagon, said Wednesday.