Page 17 – Defense Daily

DIU Adds Companies To Hybrid Space Architecture Effort Ahead Of Upcoming Pilot

Building on its existing network of companies that are helping lay the foundation for a Hybrid Space Architecture (HSA), the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) on Monday said it has awarded additional contracts to new companies to help bring the effort to an operational pilot in 2026 that leverages commercial and government systems.

The new awards were made to Capella Space, Japan’s EdgeCortix, Eutelsat America + OneWeb Technologies, a team of Fairwinds Technologies and AST SpaceMobile [ASTS], Illumina Computing Group, Lockheed Martin’s [LMT] Space segment, MapLarge, SES’s Space & Defense business, Skycorp Inc., SkyFi, Ursa Space Systems, and Viasat [VSAT].

Capella said its contract is worth $4.2 million. The company develops synthetic aperture radar satellites, which will be used to provide low-latency, broad-area imaging capabilities for maritime domain awareness in all weather, it said.

The HSA effort also includes a number of Defense Department entities with the aim being to integrate commercial and military space assets into a resilient mesh network to bring data and communications to the warfighting edge. The Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC), in particular its Tactical Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Tracking (TacSRT) pilot program, is partnered with DIU on developing the HSA.

“Together with DIU we’re accelerating the integration of commercial capabilities through HSA demonstrations and pilot efforts to scale quickly into a resilient, multi-orbit architecture supporting the DoD’s vision for seamless, uninterrupted global communications,” Lt. Col. Tim Trimailo, director of SSC’s Commercial Space Office, said in a statement.

Over the next year the commercial vendors, including existing performers under previous DIU contracts, will demonstrate their capabilities in the U.S. Indo-Pacific, European, Central, and Southern Command areas of responsibility, DIU said.

“In addition, the HSA project team will soon activate a live hybrid network for demonstrations, exercise support, and further integration of tactics and warfighting capabilities,” DIU said. “Success with these demonstrations will be moving the department closer to realizing an operational, resilient, and hybrid space architecture.”

The existing HAS awardees include Aalyria Technologies, Amazon’s [AMZN] Web Services and Kuiper businesses, Anduril Technologies, Astranis Space, ATLAS Space Operations, Enveil, Google [GOOG], Palantir Technologies [PLTR], Planet Labs’ [PL] federal business, Microsoft [MSFT], and SpiderOak.

SSC’s TacSRT program office credited DIU’s use of rapid acquisition pathways to quickly bring commercial vendors into the HSA effort.

Amid Army’s Planned Cancellations, AM General To Continue Operating JLTV, Humvee Lines

As the Army has detailed its intent to cut the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) and Humvee programs, manufacturer AM General has said it plans to continue both production lines for now to fulfill remaining contract obligations.

AM General, in a new statement, acknowledged the Army’s decision to end both programs while noting it still has multi-year contracts in place with a “backlog of deliveries” for both vehicles through 2027.

AM General’s JLTV A2 on display at the 2023 AUSA conference in Washington, D.C. Photo: Matthew Beinart.

“At this time, AM General has a backlog for deliveries of vehicles through 2027 and AM General remains committed to meeting our contractual delivery requirements. As we work to understand the significance of the DoD’s recent communications, we will continue to operate our Humvee and JLTV A2 assembly lines and our Aftermarket Fulfillment facility as normal to meet our contractual requirements and serve the warfighter.”

Along with JLTV and Humvee, the new wide-ranging Army Transformation Initiative has also resulted in cutting “obsolete” programs such as the M10 Booker combat vehicle, the AH-64D Apache attack helicopter and Gray Eagle drone as well as ending development of the Improved Turbine Engine Program, the Future Tactical UAS and the Robotic Combat Vehicle (Defense Daily, May 1).

“Humvees, we have more than 100,000 of them. We don’t need them. It’s an old vehicle. We’ve been producing them for close to 50 years, if not more than 50 years,” Gen. Randy George, the Army chief of staff, said in a recent discussion on the War on the Rocks podcast. “We have what we need [with JLTV]. We’re not going to spend, you know, more on that.”

The JLTV cancellation is a major pivot for the Army after the service awarded AM General a potential 10-year, multi-billion dollar deal just over two years ago to build the new JLTV A2 and take over as prime contractor from Oshkosh Defense [OSK]. AM General has said it remained on track to support the Army’s plan to begin fielding the JLTV A2 in mid-2026 (Defense Daily, Feb. 9 2023).

AM General built a dedicated production facility for JLTV A2 at its manufacturing campus in Mishawaka, Indiana, where it also manufactures Humvees, with CEO Jim Cannon previously describing it to Defense Daily as a “smart factory” that was “state of the art” (Defense Daily, March 2 2023).

The Army in May 2023 placed an initial delivery order with AM General covering 271 JLTV A2s for the Army and 206 vehicles for the Marine Corps (Defense Daily, May 25 2023).

Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.), ranking member of the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, said during a hearing last week with George and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll that she was “disappointed” that the Army did not coordinate the JLTV cancellation announcement with the Marine Corps.

“Where you might see this as a money savings [decision], the Marines might need them and we might see the Marines’ cost per vehicle shoot through the roof,” McCollum said.

McCollum at the hearing said HAC-D requires more details from the Army to quell the “questions and anxiety” on how it plans to carry out the program cuts (Defense Daily, May 8).

The Army in October 2018 awarded AM General an $89 million deal to deliver 740 new Humvees for the Army National Guard and a separate $121 million to integrate new capabilities on the vehicles over the next five years, and in March 2019 the company said it had received another $89 million deal to deliver 739 more Humvees for the Guard (Defense Daily, March 21 2019).

MDA Seeks ‘Paradigm Shift’ With New Missile Defense Targets Program

The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is starting market research via a Request for Information (RFI) to help shape the acquisition of its future target systems, which includes a “paradigm shift” to procure more systems at lower cost for growing flight test requirements.

“This market research is focused on embracing innovative technologies and approaches to dramatically reduce the cost and schedule of developing threat representative Reentry Vehicles (RVs) and Payloads. The Target Program is seeking innovative solutions to provide capable, flexible, high quality RVs and payloads that can be rapidly adapted to meet future testing requirements” a May 8 notice said.

Launch of a Black Dagger target missile during the second flight test of the IBCS limited user test at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. Photo: U.S. Army.

MDA said it intends to integrate these new RVs and payloads into a “wide range” of launch vehicles, including the currently used family of vehicles and non-traditional commercial launch vehicles.

The notice said the RFI is aimed at helping MDA make “informed decisions and business case analyses” related to understanding the current marketplace and industry capabilities, get industry recommendations on acquisition strategies that enable rapid design and manufacturing of flight hardware, identify primary technical and programmatic risks, determine industry ability to supply accelerated execution, and get input on payloads providers’ ability to provide pre and post-mission analysis to support flight tests.

MDA also noted it wants the future target RVs and payloads to be able to provide mission selectable target scenes after separating from the launch vehicles. The scenes should include dynamics, radio frequency and infrared signatures, object deployments, telemetry and instrumentation.

To this end, the agency specifically information and sources able to support their paradigm shift and rapidly produce and perform payload services including:

designing, developing, testing, producing, delivering and integrating payloads with RVs of multiple sizes and types;
a payload deployment module;
RV section for ballistic, maneuvering or hypersonic targets;
integration support for the overall payload system; and
and support of flight test planning and execution activities.

Under technical requirements, MDA said respondents need to show or prove their ability to fabricate classified hardware with some specific technical requirements for the reentry vehicles: an objective of six months from order to delivery but a goal of 12 months, weight of 200 to 2,000 pounds, eight to 16 feet long, maximum width of 62 inches and able to survive atmospheric re-entry to an altitude of 10 kilometers or 6.2 miles.

MDA also seeks some Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) basic cost estimates in the RFI.

“Respondents should provide an estimate to accomplish and execute the requirements as stated in this RFI. The ROM should highlight the initial capability, long lead-items, specialty items, materials, delivery, availability, and related costs in each area they can support. Cost estimates should be separated into non-recurring engineering (NRE) and recurring engineering categories to perform high-level requirements listed.”

Responses for the RFI are due by June 23.

Lockheed Martin Expands Investment In X-Bow To Add Startup As Independent Rocket Motor Supplier

X-Bow Systems on Monday said it has received an additional investment by Lockheed Martin

[LMT] that will help the startup accelerate its work to become an independent supplier of solid rocket motors (SRMs) for the aerospace and defense giant, which has billions of dollars of missiles and munitions in backlog.

The investment underpins a seven-year strategic agreement negotiated between X-Bow and Lockheed Martin’s corporate development office for SRMs and other strategic services for Lockheed Martin’s existing and future programs. At the ground level, X-Bow will be working with Lockheed Martin’s Missiles and Fire Control operating segment, which develops and produces tactical, missile defense, and hypersonic missiles.

The particular programs of Lockheed Martin that X-Bow will support with SRMs and other services were not disclosed.

“This agreement is focused on alleviating fragility in the supply chain of solid rocket motors,” Lockheed Martin said in a statement. “As we progress, we will evaluate solid rocket motor programs that can benefit from this work.”

Lockheed Martin’s agreement with X-Bow follows one the company made with General Dynamics last summer to become a second source supplier of SRMs for the Guided Multiple Rocket System (Defense Daily, Aug. 13, 2024).

The new investment closes a more than $105 million Series B round in X-Bow, which previously raised over $70 million in an initial close that included Lockheed Martin, Boeing [BA] and others. Lockheed Martin accounted for the largest piece of the new investment, which also includes first time investors Upsher Management Company and Event Horizon Capital. The amount each company provided was not disclosed.

Jason Hundley, X-Bow’s co-founder and CEO, said the fact that the strategic investment is being led by Lockheed Martin’s corporate office means it had to “come to a serious business case to make these levels of investments” versus a funding thesis made by the company’s venture arm.

“And so, there’s a whole different level of technical and business due diligence that we had to go through last year,” Hundley told Defense Daily. “And there’s some specific language on solid rocket motors and things, but it basically gives a good template for us to enter into multiple programs, and multiple things in the future with Lockheed Martin.”

Lockheed Martin has $10 billion to $20 billion in missiles and munitions backlog, and the “Intent is to mature us as a new independent supplier so that we can help fulfill some of that backlog,” he said.

X-Bow is already developing the Large SRM for the Defense Department to become a second source on the Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike and the Army’s Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon Systems, both of which are being developed by Lockheed Martin. Northrop Grumman [NOC] is the current SRM supplier for both hypersonic missiles.

X-Bow is also under contract with the Navy as a potential alternative SRM supplier for the Standard Missile (SM)-2 and SM-6, and is developing a seven-inch tactical air-to-air SRM under contract with the Air Force Research Laboratory, and is working on additional motor efforts with multiple undisclosed customers, Hundley said.

X-Bow currently manufactures propellant for its motors at its research and development facility in Albuquerque, N.M. By the end of June, the company expects to have the first phase of a new production facility completed in Luling, Texas, with the initial manufacturing line begin operations in the current quarter too, Hundley said.

In 2026, X-Bow expects to be able to produce about one million pounds of propellant a year at the Texas facility using the first production line, Hundley said. This will be enough fuel for 10,000 to 20,000 rocket motors per year, he said.

The new plant is being designed for 40 manufacturing lines, he highlighted.

Scaling Up of Black Arrow Control System Eyed by Moog

Moog, Inc. [MOG.A] said last week that its Salt Lake City, Utah plant will be able to scale up production of the custom fin Control Actuation System (CAS) for the 200-pound class Black Arrow small cruise missile by Leidos‘ [LDOS] Dynetics unit.

U.S. Special Operations Command has said that Black Arrow, flight tested from an Air Force Special Operations Command AC-130J last November, may become operational in

late fiscal 2026 (Defense Daily, Oct. 4, 2024).

“In collaboration with Leidos, Moog is committed to producing additional CAS shipsets for continued testing,” Moog’s Mike Gruver, a company senior vice president, said in a statement last week. “Our Salt Lake City missile manufacturing center of excellence is fully prepared to quickly stand up the necessary production lines to meet future expanded needs.”

A CAS shipset has four electromechanical actuators and a control electronics card, according to the company.

Dynetics’ collaboration with Moog stretches back more than a decade to include the GBU-69 small guided munition and the X-61 Gremlin drone, according to Mike Miller, the senior vice president of Dynetics’ missile and aviation systems division.

Since the SCM Collaborative Research and Development Agreement for SCM began in 2022, “the strike weapons community has widely acknowledged the advantages of affordable mass,” Moog said.

While the Air Force said last year that its inventory of $1.5 million unit cost high-end munitions, like the Lockheed Martin [LMT] AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) family, is sufficient, the service is moving to field lower-cost, $100,000 models in the coming years to bolster capacity to deter China and Russia (Defense Daily, Nov. 13, 2024).

Such munitions may include the “Franklin” low-cost cruise missile–so named as a nod to soul legend Aretha Franklin and her hit song Respect. The homage is also meant to connote “respect” for the low-cost, high-punch missile under development.

In March, Lockheed Martin said that it is developing a Common Multi-Mission Truck System (CMMT–“comet”)–what could serve as a drone, sensor, or a high-subsonic cruise missile that is to cost $150,000 per unit or less and to be a modular weapon that military forces can alter on the go for different missions from cargo planes, fighters, and bombers at ranges up to 1,000 miles (Defense Daily, March 3).

In addition, a smaller CMMT version could serve as a “long-range launched effect” from helicopters, Lockheed Martin said.

MGUE Program Awaiting Army Guidance on Any Effects of Gray Eagle Cancellation

The Military GPS User Equipment (MGUE) program under U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC) is awaiting guidance from the U.S. Army on any effects that the service’s cancellation of the General Atomics‘ MQ-1C Gray Eagle drone may have on certification of an aviation card for MGUE Increment 1.

The Army Transformation Initiative cuts “obsolete” programs such as the Gray Eagle, M10 Booker combat vehicle, Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTV), Humvees, and the AH-64D Apache attack helicopter to align with a May 1 Army “Letter to the Force” and April 30 memo from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (Defense Daily, May 1).

Gray Eagle is the lead aviation platform for MGUE Increment 1.

“In reference to the Army Letter to the Force, the Space Force and Army will continue working in partnership with the MGUE Inc 1 program,” according to Friday email from SSC’s program executive office for military communications and positioning, navigation, and timing in response to questions on the Gray Eagle’s stance as the lead aviation platform for MGUE Increment 1. “Should further Army direction be provided, both services will explore how to make the MGUE Increment 1 program successful.”

Last fall, due to development challenges, SSC scrapped the Northrop Grumman [NOC] B-2 Spirit stealth bomber as the lead air platform for MGUE Increment 1 and switched to a plan to certify the Gray Eagle as the lead aviation platform for MGUE Increment 1 by July this year.

Space Force had planned to conduct operational testing on the B-2 for MGUE Increment 1 in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2024.

The SSC program executive office for military communications and positioning, navigation and timing said that it has certified the Army JLTV and Stryker as the lead testing platforms for the MGUE, Increment 1 ground variant and the Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class (DDG-51) destroyer for the maritime variant.

“With regards to the MGUE program, JLTV, and Stryker, there is no effect to either platform,” according to the email answers on Friday from the SSC program executive office for military communications and positioning, navigation and timing. “MGUE completed the card-level PEO certification for JLTV in June, 2020. MGUE completed Army Stryker PEO certification of readiness for field test in March, 2021. For these two platforms, services are currently procuring Increment 1 cards as they deem necessary.”

L3Harris Technologies [LHX], RTX and BAE Systems have received MGUE contracts.

Since the late 1990s, the Pentagon has been developing the GPS M-code to have a stronger signal and more advanced encryption to counter jamming and spoofing, and the first GPS M-code capable satellite went aloft in 2005. But GPS M-code initial operational capability has seen delays due to required upgrades of ground and user equipment for hundreds of vehicles, ships, and aircraft.

For some time starting by the end of this year, both the current GPS operational control system–MUP–and RTX‘s Next-Generation Operational Control System (OCX) OCX are to be in simultaneous use, as Space Force aims to field OCX by the end of the year.

Congress has criticized OCX for being nearly a decade late.

Vatn Systems Introduces AUV For Torpedo, Other Roles; Opens Manufacturing Facility

Vatn Systems on Monday unveiled a new autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) product, the Skelmir S12, which can carry a warhead to function as a lightweight torpedo, or sensors and electronic warfare payloads to fulfil multiple missions.

The 12.75-inch diameter S12 can be deployed from submarines, surface vessels, and aircraft and exceed 30 knots. As a torpedo, the 9-foot long system can carry a payload up to 200 pounds, and boasts a range over 100 nautical miles. Vatn says the torpedo variant offers a one-for-one replacement for the Mark 54 lightweight torpedo supplied by RTX [RTX].

In the AUV configuration, the modular S12 can be between 14 and 20-feet long, travel more than 200 nautical miles, and carry more than 200 pounds of payload.

The S12 in the AUV configuration has completed its first production run and will be delivered this year to a U.S. government customer, the Rhode Island-based startup said.

“With the Skelmir S12, we set out to fill a critical market void—creating a vessel that merges the capabilities of a traditional AUV with the agility and performance of a lightweight torpedo for a fraction of the cost,” Nelson Mills, Vatn’s co-founder and CEO, said in a statement. “We’ve created a platform that delivers superior payload capacity, flexible deployment, and unmatched cost effectiveness compared to existing solutions, and we’re excited to be able to produce these at scale in our new manufacturing facility to fill that gap in the market and meet customer demand starting this summer.

The new, 15,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Bristol, R.I., adjacent to Narragansett Bay, is designed to sale production to up to 2,000 vehicles annually. Vatn last November announced a $13 million seed round to help lay the foundation to begin production of its AUVs this year (

Defense Daily, Nov. 12, 2024).

Vatn previously developed the Skelmir 6, a four-foot-long, six-inch diameter AUV that can carry a 20-pound payload, has a 20-nautical mile range, and a speed of 12 knots. Mills said the unit price for the AUV is $75,000, and could come down depending on a production order (Defense Daily, April 16).

Vatn’s manufacturing operations are led by Brendan Smith, who recently joined the company from robotic solutions developer Boston Dynamics, where he was involved in production.

“With current industry standards at about 200 vehicles per year, this facility will enable a strong competitive differentiation for us as we scale production capacity to 2,000-plus vehicles annually to meet growing customer demand,” Smith said in a statement. “By leveraging modular design and vertically integrated production, we’re able to reduce lead times, minimize handoffs, and eliminate many of the inefficiencies common in traditional assembly processes.

Another startup, Saronic, which is developing and manufacturing autonomous surface vessels, earlier this year closed a $600 million Series C round. The Texas-base company already had 520,000 square feet of manufacturing space before recently acquiring a small Louisiana-based shipbuilder, adding another potential 100 acres in space (Defense Daily, Feb. 18 and April 16). Saronic also plans to use the new funding on its future Port Alpha to dramatically expand manufacturing operations.

Vatn and Saronic are two of a number of startup defense companies that have partnered with the software firm Palantir Technologies [PLTR] to optimize their manufacturing operations. Vatn last month said that Palantir will help it accelerate production (Defense Daily, April 16).

Navy Tests Solid Fuel Ramjet From Drone

The Navy recently launched a Solid Fuel Integral Rocket Ramjet (SFIRR) from an unmanned aircraft target drone for the first time in what it says is a step that advances air-launched missile technology.

The May 8 announcement by Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD) said they launched the SFIRR from a Northrop Grumman [NOC] BQM-34 target drone over Point Mugu Sea Range in California.

NAWCWD argued SFIRR “simplifies missile propulsion by eliminating the complexity found in liquid fuel ramjet propulsion,” reducing weight and allowing missiles to carry more payloads and travel greater distances with more maneuverability.

The service said the test also integrated use of a fire control system on the BQM-34 for live firing, which it argued demonstrated advancements in high speed and long range weapon capabilities.

As the Lead Prototype Integrator, NAWCWD, boasted it only took 12 months to combine advanced propulsion, avionics and fire control technologies into the technology demonstrator, allowing quick turnover for potential operational use. Ultimately, the division argued that launching this kind of solid fuel ramjet weapons from an unmanned vehicle “can allow warfighters to safely engage targets from greater distances.”

Abbey Horning, product director of NAWCWD’s Advanced Concepts, Prototyping and Experimentation office, admitted that while solid fuel ramjet technology is not new, the test is proving its utility to modern missions. “We’re not just revisiting an old idea; we’re refining and modernizing it to fit today’s mission,” she said.

“This successful integration validates key aspects of our design and moves us closer to delivering an advanced propulsion system that will provide warfighters with greater range and speed,” Horning continued.

She said that beyond simplifying the propulsion and reducing weight by using solid-fueled technology, SFIRR also “offers a balance of affordability, reliability and performance tailored to the Navy’s operational needs.”

Ephraim Washburn, deputy director for energetics at NAWCWD, compared this ramjet advancement to automotive improvements while the base technology has been available for many decades.

Solid fuel ramjet technology previously had a major push in the 1970s and 1980s, but Washburn said now they hope to make it a ‘modern propulsion solution for the fleet today.”

Ramjet have historically usually used liquid fuel that mixes with atmospheric air to result in thrust at high speeds, but the military has remained interested in a more storable solid fuel.

Washburn said NAWCWD is now working to refine the SFIRR’s range endurance and targeting capabilities, but did specify next steps or timelines.

Back in 2010, GenCorp’s Aerojet announced a successful test of an advanced solid ramjet fuel in an engine ground test. Back then, Aerojet was part of GenCorp before the parent company bought rocket engine maker Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne from United Technologies Corp., renaming them as Aerojet Rocketdyne. Subsequently, Aerojet Rocketdyne was acquired by L3Harris Technologies in 2023 (Defense Daily, Aug. 15, 2010).

In 2022, Boeing [BA] said it and the Navy were co-developing a ramjet flight demonstrator missile, the Supersonic Propulsion Enabled Advanced Ramjet (SPEAR) flight demonstrator, with the Navy’s Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD). The company said the aim was to help develop a future carrier-based weapon (Defense Daily, Oct. 21, 2020).

DoD Weapons Portfolio Manager Ingraham Tapped To Be Army Acquisition Chief

President Trump has nominated Brent Ingraham, a Pentagon official who has held several roles overseeing weapons portfolios, to serve as the Army’s next acquisition chief.

If confirmed, Ingraham, who is currently the acting deputy under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, would take helm of the Army’s acquisition office as the service moves out on its new transformation initiative with cuts to legacy programs and bolstered investments in autonomous and unmanned technologies.

Brent Ingraham, nominee to be the Army’s next acquisition chief. Photo: DoD.

Ingraham was nominated for the assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology (ASA (ALT)) role on April 29, according to a congressional notice, and would succeed Doug Bush, who held the position for the last four years.

During the second half of the Biden administration, Ingraham was the deputy assistant secretary of defense for platform and weapon portfolio management.

“In this position, he is responsible for managing and analyzing major platforms and weapons capability portfolios across the department – to include air, surface, cyber, and electronic warfare systems,” his DoD bio states.

Before that role, Ingraham served as executive director of the Office of the Secretary of Defense’s Joint Rapid Acquisition Cell from July 2020 to July 2023, where he was responsible for “monitoring the progress and completion of actions to satisfy Urgent Operational Needs identified by the combatant commands.”

Ingraham, a member of the senior executive service, has also spent time in the Pentagon’s acquisition office as the director of surface warfare and as technical director for unmanned systems “where he was responsible for the acquisition, policy, governance and developing technology roadmaps for unmanned, robotic and autonomous systems portfolio,” according to his bio.

As ASA (ALT), Ingraham would have a key role in carrying out the new Army Transformation Initiative (ATI), which has already resulted in cutting the M10 Booker combat vehicle, Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, Humvees, the AH-64D Apache attack helicopter and Gray Eagle drone programs and ending development of Improved Turbine Engine Program, the Future Tactical UAS and the Robotic Combat Vehicle (Defense Daily, May 8).

A recent memo from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, which informed the ATI, also directed the Army to pursue a series of acquisition reforms, to include continuing its push for flexible funding authorities, expanding the use of Other Transaction Authority agreements “to enable faster prototyping and fielding of critical technologies,” including software, implementing performance-based contracting “to reduce waste” and expanding multi-year procurement agreements “when cost effective” (Defense Daily, May 1).

Defense Watch: FORGE, Cloud Contract, Another Super Hornet Lost, AFC/TRADOC Merger Name, TOC-L Protest

FORGEing Solutions. The Defense Innovation Unit last week issued the “FORGE: Foundry for Operational Readiness and Global Effects

” solicitation, which is getting after advanced manufacturing solutions to “boost production capacity and remove production bottlenecks for cast metal parts used in high-performance aeronautical systems.” DIU is open to novel manufacturing methods that support high rate production and achieve the government goals for survivability, reliability, and affordability. Responses are due by May 26.

Upcoming Cloud Contract. Acting Defense Department Chief Information Officer Katie Arrington says the next evolution of the department’s cloud computing service contract will broaden opportunities and take advantage of the “entire buying power of the Department of Defense.” There will be more small business opportunities, “that’s thing one,” she told a House Armed Services subcommittee last Thursday. “Looking forward to this contract and having the multitudes of capabilities out there, from large providers all the way to the micro providers,” she said. The “full force” of DoD’s buying power will include software-as-a-service, Arrington said, adding that a “core tenant” will be a zero trust approach to cybersecurity.

Hypersonic Navigation. Included in two recent successful flight tests of a hypersonic vehicle that reached sustained speeds above Mach 5 included Northrop Grumman’s Advanced Technology Hypersonic Technology Inertial Measurement Unit aboard the Stratolaunch Talon-A2 aircraft. The successful flights “move engineers one step closer to precisely navigating hypersonic vehicles in GPS-denied environments, further protecting the trajectory of the hypersonic vehicle from adversary threats,” Northrop Grumman said last week. “No inertial measurement system built today has been up to the task of navigation at hypersonic speed, until now,” Josei Chang, senior director of advanced technologies at Northrop Grumman’s Research and Development business unit, said in a statement.

Cislunar Awareness. A satellite designed to provide space situational awareness between Earth and the moon successfully completed hot fire testing in March, a critical milestone in Oracle-M’s readiness, Space Systems Command (SSC) said last week. The pathfinder satellite is “designed to provide persistent situational awareness in cislunar space, demonstrating new tracking and navigation capabilities essential for future space operations,” SSC said. “The mission will showcase tracking and tracking and trajectory estimation for monitoring cislunar objects, cloud-based ground operations with integrated government and contractor collaboration, and navigation and communications using affordable commercial ground systems.” SSC and the Air Force Research Laboratory are managing Oracle-M, which AFRL developed.

OSC Data Support. The Defense Department’s Office of Strategic Capital is interested in rapidly prototyping solutions that can leverage data to help it fulfil its mission of attracting and scaling private capital for critical supply chain technologies with commercial and national security applications. The four focus areas in the “Increasing Access to Data and Effective Knowledge Management” Area of Interest include credit-based financial tools to attract and scale investment in enabling and frontier technologies, teaming with private capital investors to co-develop critical technologies, identifying critical technologies developed by emerging international companies, and exemplary risk management. Solution briefs are due by May 19.

Drone Swarming Collab. Artificial intelligence and machine learning company Hardy Dynamics is leveraging BigBear.ai’s AI, data, and sensor orchestration platform, ConductorOS, to help drones operating in swarms work autonomously with each other. Hardy is working under a Direct-to-Phase II Small Business Innovation Research contract in support of an Army initiative under the Defense Department’s Project Linchpin that seeks to deliver trusted AI/ML capabilities to the Army’s Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare & Sensors.

Mesh Networking. Off-grid connectivity hardware and software supplier goTenna last week introduced its first mesh networking solution for integration on military and law enforcement platforms. The Pro X2m devices expands on goTenna’s Pro X2 radio used by tactical operators by integrating the “secure communications technology into autonomous and machine-based systems to bolster interoperability, situational awareness, and operator safety,” the company said. The New Jersey-based company says the X2m offers line-of-sight ranges from 15 to 55 miles and is difficult to detect.

Lionfish Cyber. Program Executive Officer for Unmanned and Small Combatants Rear Adm. Kevin Smith recently boasted that the Navy and industry partner HII’s Mission Technologies business segment have made “great strides” on the Lionfish small UUV. They are “quickly accumulating a number of firsts,” like making it the Navy’s first cybersecure UUV in the last weeks, he said May 7 during the International Mine Warfare Technology Symposium. Smith said other UUVs without the same level of cybersecurity protection will require “significant updates” to comply with a security classification guide set down by the Undersea Warfare Division in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, N97.

…Acceleration. Notably, Smith said the kinds of accelerated acquisition the Navy used in Lionfish has saved over two years in time and money compared to typical acquisition. He argued Lionfish is a good example of how partnerships with the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) and other Other Transaction Authority (OTA) arrangements are “becoming more common than your typical program of record acquisition framework” on new unmanned systems. Smith also said Lionfish has more modularity than previous UUVs so they can more easily swap out sections like freshly charged batteries and new sensors, so it needs less maintenance or repairs. Smith said the Navy hopes “more companies will study that process, that success of Lionfish, and offer to pursue similar pathways of development, acquisition and broader use of innovation maintenance and strategies.”

Restoring T-10. The Navy is currently performing “significant revitalization” at Naval Air Systems Command’s T-10 Test Cell Facility at Patuxent River, Md., to allow engine testing in a noise-suppressed environment. T-10 has been closed for over a decade, but now the Navy said this restoration work is “essential for supporting the Engine Test Instrumentation Replacement System (ETIRS), a next-generation capability designed to improve engine performance evaluations across multiple aircraft platforms.” Once T-10 is operational again, it will provide a controlled, weather-independent testing environment that reduces reliance on more costly off-site evaluations and mitigates schedule risks. The Navy noted ETIRS will provide faster and more accurate diagnostics for Fleet Readiness Centers (Level II), Carrier Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Departments, and Marine Aviation Logistics Squadrons.

Formidable Shield 2025. The 2025 edition of the NATO At Sea Demonstration/Formidable Shield (ASD/FS) maritime exercise began on May 3, led by U.S. 6th Fleet. Executed by Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO), the biennial exercise in the North and Norwegian Seas and North Atlantic Ocean is the largest at-sea live-fire exercise in the European region. It aims to enhance alliance interoperability with a joint, Integrated Air and Missile Defense environment using NATO command and control reporting structures. This increment will include live-fire events against unmanned air and surface systems; subsonic, supersonic and ballistic targets; include multiple allied ships; multi-nation and service ground-based air defenses; and aviation forces working across multiple battlespaces. Participants include Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, U.K. and U.S. The Navy noted Australia is participating but only providing a radar sensor for data collection. Tis includes more than 16 ships, 27 aircraft, eight ground units, 6,900 personnel, and both the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) and High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS).

Another Lost Super Hornet. Another F/A-18E/F assigned to the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) was lost overboard on May 6, CNN first reported. The two-seater F/A-18F reportedly went overboard after an unsuccessful attempt to slow down when landing on the carrier. While both aviators safely ejected, the aircraft was lost in the Red Sea. This came a week after an F/A-18E was lost overboard with its tow tractor. Previously, in December one of the Super Hornets assigned to the carrier was shot down in a friendly fire incident by the USS Gettysburg (CG-64). No servicemembers have been lost in these incidents. CVN-75 started operating in the Red Sea in February, following emergency repairs in Greece after a collision with a merchant vessel in Egypt.

PEO SSN. Rear Adm. Jonathan Rucker, program Executive officer for Attack Submarines (SSN), visited Austal USA’s facility in Mobile, Ala., on May 8, touring their advanced ship manufacturing facility. He specifically saw progress made on the company’s construction of its new 369,600 square foot modular manufacturing facility, Module Manufacturing Facility-3 (MMF-3), designed to produce submarine modules. MMF 3 is one of the submarine industrial base outsourcing sites as the Navy works with prime submarine builders General Dynamics Electric Boat and HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding to move more work outside their facilities to quicken boat construction. MMF-3 is expected to achieve initial operating capability by summer 2026. During his visit, Rucker saw seven submarine modules under construction.

TOC-L Protest. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has rejected a protest by Lockheed Martin of a U.S. Air Force $293 million award to Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) last year in the second round of the service’s competition to find an integrator for the Tactical Operations Center-Light (TOC-L) program under the Air Force’s Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS) effort. Lockheed Martin is the integrator for the first stage of the program–a three year effort which began in January 2023 and includes procurement of 16 TOC-L experimental systems and integration with sensors. Lockheed Martin contended that SAIC’s position as the cloud-based command and control (CBC2) contractor for the Air Force and SAIC’s membership in the digital infrastructure consortium create an organizational conflict of interest, but GAO agreed with the Air Force that the service’s systems engineering and design review processes had “mitigated” any OCI.

AFC/TRADOC Merger. With the Army planning to merge its modernization-focused Futures Command with Training and Doctrine Command, Gen. Randy George, the service’s chief of staff, told lawmakers this week the combined organization will be called Army Transformation and Training Command. The primary headquarters for the consolidated command will be in Austin, Texas, where Futures Command is currently located. The Army is combining the two organizations as part of its new transformation initiative.

Obadal Perspective. Michael Obadal, nominee to be Army under secretary, said during his confirmation hearing this week that Army leadership must give this merged AFC and TRADOC command “very specific outcomes and milestones to meet and define how they are going to streamline the requirements in the interests of the soldiers and defense industrial base.” “We know that we need to, according to the statements of the secretary, streamline our commands and our organizations. When I look at a merged TRADOC and AFC, I am confident that the Army can utilize the lessons learned over the last several years and apply them,” Obadal said.

Menace. Anduril Industries said on May 7 that its Menace family of expeditionary command and control capabilities is now the “preferred hardware platform” for Palantir’s Edge software. “Modern battlefield software relies on hardware that can survive and scale in the real world. With Palantir’s stack running natively on Menace systems, government operators get a software-defined solution that’s built to deploy fast, operate anywhere, and integrate with the systems they already use,” Anduril said in a statement.

Saudi Arabia/AMRAAMs. The State Department said on May 2 it approved a potential $3.5 billion deal with Saudi Arabia for 1,000 AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles and 50 AIM-120C-8 AMRAAM guidance sections. Along with the RTX-built AMRAAMs, the new foreign military sale (FMS) also includes missile containers, support equipment, spare parts and engineering, technical, and logistics support services. “This proposed sale will support the foreign policy goals and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a partner country that contributes to political stability and economic progress in the Gulf Region,” the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement.

Ukraine F-16 Support. The State Department on May 2 also approved a potential $310.5 million FMS case with Ukraine for equipment and service in support of the F-16 fighter jets that have been provided to Kyiv by international partners to assist in its fight against Russia. The deal includes aircraft modifications and upgrades, personnel training related to operation, maintenance and sustainment support, spare parts and engineering, technical and logistics support services. “The proposed sale will improve Ukraine’s capability to meet current and future threats by ensuring its pilots are effectively trained and by increasing its interoperability with the United States through comprehensive training with the U.S. Air Force. This proposed sale aligns with international coalition contributions for the establishment of Ukraine’s F-16 program and the overall modernization of Ukraine’s air force,” the DSCA said in a statement.

Czech and Norway FMS. The State Department on May 5 then approved two more possible FMS cases to include a $181 million deal with the Czech Republic for communications equipment and a $370.9 million sale of AIM-9X Block II Tactical Missiles to Norway. The deal with the Czech Republic includes AN/PYQ-10A(C) simple key loaders, AN/PRC-160, AN/PRC-163 and AN/PRC-167 radios, RF-300M-DL(C) small secure data links and support equipment, with L3Harris as prime contractor. The FMS case with Norway covers 300 RTX-built AIM-9X Block II Sidewinder tactical missiles, two AIM 9X Block II special air training missiles, 24 AIM 9X Block II captive air training missiles (CATM), 20 AIM 9X Block II Tactical guidance units and 20 AIM 9X Block II CATM guidance units.

Prospecting. The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency is seeking information from contractors who can get access to data and analysis on rare earth minerals and battery industrial sectors to improve the agency’s global view of trade. “This will allow NGA to monitor key developments in precious mineral markets, and the precious mineral global supply chains,” it says in a May 9 Request for Information titled, Prospector. Responses are due by June 9.

Oracle-M. The United States Space Force Space Systems Command and the Air Force Research Laboratory say that they conducted a hot fire test for the Oracle-M (Oracle-Mobility) pathfinder satellite at Edwards AFB, Calif. on March 16-21 to improve cislunar space situational awareness. The test’s propulsion featured Hall Effect thrusters fueled by Xenon gas with propellant management and power processing units. “This test marks a major step toward ensuring Oracle-M’s readiness for its upcoming mission to monitor and track objects as they traverse cislunar space, the vast region between Earth and the Moon,” the organizations said. “The mission will showcase tracking and trajectory estimation for monitoring cislunar objects, cloud-based ground operations with integrated government and contractor collaboration, and navigation and communications using affordable commercial ground systems. It will also support data collection and distribution to those charged with maintaining cislunar situational awareness.”

HIMARS Award. The Army on May 9 awarded Lockheed Martin a $742.2 million firm fixed price contract for High Mobility Artillery Rocket System launchers. Work on the new HIMARS production deal is expected to be completed by the end of May 2027.