The Pentagon plans to downgrade the Sea-Based X-band Radar's operational status beginning in the third quarter of fiscal year 2013, officials announced last week. According to the Missile Defense Agency's FY-13 research, development, test and evaluation budget justification document, SBX "will be placed in a limited test support status, recallable to active operational status when indications and warnings indicate [a] need for enhanced discrimination." Acting Pentagon acquisition chief Frank Kendall called SBX "a large X-band research development radar, primarily." He...
