The Insider

The Air Force has awarded autonomy startup Xwing military approval to fly cargo missions across California after successful completion of the AGILE FLAG 24-1 Joint Force exercise, the company said in a Friday news release.

This designation of airworthiness via a military flight release in unrestricted airspace marks the first granted under the Air Force Research Laboratory's AFWERX Autonomy Prime program.

“Xwing had to meet the rigorous safety and the technical standards necessary to transparently integrate its autonomous aircraft into the National Airspace System (NAS),” the announcement said. “Xwing proved its dynamic capability for rapid and cost-effective dispersed logistics, delivering mission-critical, time-sensitive cargo to multiple operating stations, demonstrating the potential of autonomous operations as a force multiplier within Agile Combat Employment (ACE).”

Autonomy Prime is an arm of the AFWERX program, which intends to bring small businesses and startups to the table to address the Air Force’s top priorities, including autonomy, and strengthen the industrial base. The goal is to better facilitate the transition from research and technology to operational capability.

Over the span of nearly two weeks, Xwing worked with Air Combat Command and Air Mobility Command to transport mission critical cargo between eight different public and military airports, racking up 2,800 autonomous flight miles across California and 22 overall hours in the air.

“AGILE FLAG was an opportunity to showcase autonomous light cargo logistics and demonstrate operational relevance and increased technical readiness,” AFWERX Autonomy Prime deputy branch chief Kate Brown said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the ACE concept encourages improved distribution among the bases to ensure that one is not singularly targeted and that each is capable of defending itself when faced with pacing threats. The Air Force has said that autonomy will play a major role in this and future efforts.

“We saw first-hand during AGILE FLAG that the use of Xwing’s autonomous aircraft eliminated the need to fly a larger aircraft such as a C-130 to deliver critical cargo to the warfighter on short notice,” said Maxime Gariel, president and co-founder of Xwing. “When you fly missions autonomously, you operate with the speed and efficiency required for dispersed ACE operations, delivering cargo and personnel at a much lower cost and risk.”

The Army's Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office and Directed Energy Project Office are seeking high-energy laser solutions that can address Group 3 unmanned aerial system threats.

The service will hold an industry day in early April at Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, according to a Feb. 6 government notice.

The directed-energy office wants to increase the ability of high-energy lasers to address Group 3 UAS threats, and will “asses the operationalized maturity” of industry solutions at the subsystem level, which includes the beam-control system, beam director, power/thermal systems and threat tracker, according to the notice. The system is to demonstrate a modular, open-system architecture, it states.

The Pentagon defines Group 3 UAS as those weighing between 55 and 1,320 pounds, and that operate at flight level.

Following the vendor demonstration, the government plans to issue a solicitation to develop a high-energy laser prototype solution, the notice states.

Companies are asked to submit a two-page summary and quad chart to the contacting officer by Feb. 21.

The Marine Corps has postponed an Advanced Reconnaissance Vehicle industry day, first scheduled for Feb. 29, to an undisclosed date later in fiscal year 2024 in order to further refine program requirements.

“The USMC has gained critical knowledge through the ARV prototyping effort and is applying that knowledge to refining the requirement,” according to a Feb. 8 announcement that provides no further explanation for the delay.

The Marine Corps spent FY-23 evaluating initial ARV prototypes from contractors Textron Systems and General Dynamics Land System. The two companies are now working to mature these vehicles and preparing to build additional 30mm cannon vehicle prototypes for further government testing ahead of the program’s engineering and manufacturing development phase.

At the industry day, the Marine Corps is expected to provide information on the upcoming EMD phase. The service anticipates releasing a request for proposals in the second quarter of FY-25 and awarding an EMD contract in the second quarter of FY-26.

The Marine Corps is eyeing a family of six ARV mission role variants to replace the legacy Amphibious Assault Vehicle and become the primary platform supporting the new mobile reconnaissance battalions.

The service’s FY-24 budget request includes $63.6 million in continuing research and development funding for the program and projects procurement to begin in FY-28.

This Thursday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Pentagon's Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program, unmanned underwater vehicles, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and more.

We start off with coverage of the Pentagon's Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program:

Pentagon rejects industry request to extend comment period for CMMC proposed rule

The Defense Department is turning down a request from industry groups to extend the comment period for its long-awaited proposed rule to implement the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program, according to a Pentagon spokesperson.

The U.S. military is working on a Large Displacement Unmanned Underwater Vehicles fleet that has diverse capabilities to help these platforms:

Navy partners with DIU for prototyping of unmanned underwater vehicle platforms

The Navy and Defense Innovation Unit have partnered to select three vendors tasked with Unmanned Underwater Vehicle platforms prototyping and development.

A recent Joint Strike Fighter review assessed the progress and efficiency of the platform's new computational core, known as Technology Refresh 3, which is meant to bring greater processing power, better computer memory and a panoramic display to F-35s:

Joint F-35 office completes critical technology review amid crucial delays

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program office in mid-January completed a technical baseline review for its long-overdue hardware and software upgrade, an F-35 Joint Program Office spokesman told Inside Defense.

Adm. Samuel Paparo, the U.S. Pacific Fleet commander nominated to replace retiring Adm. John Acquilino as the head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, warned lawmakers this week that there is "no holiday" between now and when Beijing could potentially attack Taiwan:

Presumptive new INDOPACOM boss on China's massive navy: 'We are not overmatched'

China's naval forces -- the largest in the world, including a battle force of more than 370 ships and submarines -- cannot "overmatch" the U.S. Navy's 292-ship fleet, the presumptive new head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command assessed, while also cautioning the pace of Beijing's warship buildup is on a "concerning trajectory."

The Mitchell Institute think thank hosted a wargame in July 2023, during which three "blue" teams overwhelmingly opted for collaborative combat aircraft to disrupt and confuse a peer adversary, in this case China, by helping to "determine key threats and nodes, and then target them," and "impose costs, and open the path to follow-on crewed and uncrewed forces":

Report: Air Force needs an 'affordable mass' of autonomous drones to defeat China

The Air Force needs collaborative combat aircraft to fill capability gaps as its legacy fighter fleet shrinks and the service prepares for a potential fight with China, according to a report published yesterday by the Mitchell Institute.

The State Department has approved a possible $1.2 billion foreign military sale for airspace and surface radar reconnaissance aerostat systems, according to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency.

The deal, according to DSCA, would cover the ASRR systems and a variety of radars, sensors and other equipment.

“The proposed sale will improve Poland's capability to meet current and future threats of enemy air and ground weapons systems,” DSCA said. “Poland will use the capability as an airborne early warning system to defend against incoming regional threats. This will also enable Poland to increase its contribution to future NATO operations.”

The agency recently reported that U.S. foreign military sales increased by 56% in fiscal year 2023 partly driven by $30 billion in new deals with Poland, which has grown increasingly alarmed by Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

The principal contractors involved in the deal will be Raytheon Intelligence and Space, of El Segundo, CA; TCOM, L.P., of Columbia, MD; ELTA North America, of Annapolis Junction, MD; and Avantus Federal LLC (a wholly owned subsidiary of QinetiQ), of McLean, VA, according to DSCA.

The agency noted that the actual dollar value of the deal will likely be lower than $1.2 billion if and when the arrangement is concluded.

This Tuesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on Army counter-drone capabilities, the Pentagon's Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program plus Navy shipbuilding and Army ammunition stockpiles.

The Army's top uniformed officer spoke this morning during a breakfast hosted by the Association of the United States Army in Arlington, VA:

Army chief seeks 'broad funding lines' for counter-UAS capabilities

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George said today that he thinks it would be more effective to have "broad funding lines" when it comes to purchasing counter-drone capabilities that would create more flexibility in the service's budget.

The latest CMMC news from our colleagues at Inside Cybersecurity:

Major coalition asks for CMMC proposed rule 60-day extension amid notable increase in stakeholder feedback requests from agencies

A coalition representing major defense associations and government contractors is asking the Defense Department to extend the comment period for a proposed rule to implement the Pentagon's cyber certification program, in a new letter highlighting three public comment periods for cyber rulemakings that closed last week.

DOE releases guide to help maturity model stakeholders understand Pentagon's CMMC program

The Energy Department has published a guide comparing its voluntary maturity model for developing cybersecurity plans to the Pentagon's upcoming program for defense contractors who are handling sensitive government data on nonfederal systems.

The Army's acquisition chief spoke this week at a virtual event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies:

Bush suggests maintaining larger ammo stockpiles could be helpful during largescale conflicts

Ukraine's war with Russia has shown how the U.S. defense industrial base would benefit from maintaining larger stockpiles of ammunition during instances of largescale conflicts, Army acquisition chief Doug Bush suggested Monday.

The Heritage Foundation held an event this week on "Regaining America's Maritime Security and Competitiveness":

Rep. Waltz: U.S. must focus on shipbuilding to contend with China's naval 'overmatch'

A decline in American shipbuilding coupled with China's rise as a maritime powerhouse could soon become a crisis for United States security and economics, according to Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL), who is leading a growing group of lawmakers calling for more aggressive action to bolster U.S. industry.

The Defense Science Board will hold closed federal advisory committee meetings this week, starting tomorrow and ending Thursday, to analyze classified information pertaining to advanced capabilities needed for future conflicts, according to a notice posted in the Federal Register today.

The board is scheduled to hear from Heidi Shyu, defense under secretary for research and engineering, on Wednesday on symmetric and asymmetric capabilities.

The first closed meeting on Tuesday will include Lt. Gen. Charles Moore, chair of the DSB task force on future cyber warfighting capabilities, supplying a briefing on the task force’s technical evaluations of cyber capabilities. The DSB will then take a vote based on these recommendations.

Then, Katherine McGrady and Robert Wisnieff, chairs of the DSB task force to advise implementation and prioritization of national security innovation activities, will brief the board on findings related to emerging hardware and materials areas with potential dual-use impact. The DSB will take another vote after hearing the chairs’ recommendations.

Robert Grossman, study chair, will present a report by the DSB task force on digital engineering that covers DOD’s implementation progress of the requirements listed in the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act. This will be followed by a vote.

Following that presentation, the DSB task force on test and evaluation, which researched resources and capabilities for DOD test and evaluation organizations and laboratories, will present a minority opinion document, followed by another vote.

Next, David Knoll, director for analysis and study director in the defense secretary’s office, will lead a team, comprised of OSD workers and study members, briefing on lessons learned from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Doug Beck, director of the Defense Innovation Unit, will conclude Tuesday’s session with a classified briefing on DIU’s strategy, obstacles and primary goals.

Wednesday’s classified briefing will begin with an objectives overview of the 2024 Summer Study on Advanced Capabilities for Potential Future Conflict led by Betsy Kowalski, DSB DFO, and Eric Evans, DSB chair.

Then, the board will discuss strategies that help DOD’s “continued development of symmetric and asymmetric capabilities that will characterize future conflicts,” according to the Federal Register notice.

Finally, Shyu will brief the board on her own view of how future conflicts will be altered by symmetric and asymmetric capabilities.

Thursday’s meeting will be a chance for DSB members to continue their discussion about symmetric and asymmetric capabilities.