Defense Tech and Acquisition

Headlines: More Munitions and Ships

Pete Modigliani — Sat, 15 Aug 2026 21:51:15 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

The biggest stories across the Department and the defense industry this week:

The Pentagon wants more munitions fast and the primes explore low-cost.
Improving accounting for contractors and assessing AI for industry selections.
The Army opens up test ranges and ground autonomy.
The White House directs the Navy to get serious on shipbuilding
Air Force doctrine and tactics must evolve with tech and new training needed.
Space Force issues unfunded priority list and looks to lasers for counter pLEO
Golden Dome current programs and future unclear with funding under threat.
China is increasing use of drones to invade Taiwan; Taiwan is responding in kind.

DONRCO Establishes National Security Plug and Play Consortium for Rapid Acquisition of Advanced Technologies

BLUF: The Department of Navy Rapid Capabilities Office (DON RCO) has established the National Security Plug and Play Consortium (NSPPC), designed to integrate advanced technology into operational systems at scale and speed.

The NSPPC, managed by the Creative Defense Foundation, will connect the DON with a network of technology companies and innovators. This consortium will provide accelerated research, prototyping, and production of vital technologies through various Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs).
The NSPPC will focus on sourcing technologies that work immediately with existing systems, providing accelerated procurement for the DON enterprise through easier access to non-traditional partners and off-the-shelf solutions. With a broad scope that provides flexible contracting to all DON domains, it will include prize challenges, Commercial Solutions Offerings, disruptor events, and wargaming challenges.
The Creative Defense Foundation will host the first meeting of the NSPPC on Sept. 18, bringing together consortium members, DoW leadership, Congressional stakeholders and defense industry partners.
SECNAV established the DON RCO in August 2025 to drive the rapid delivery of transformative solutions to solve the hardest operational problems.
With a focus on providing capabilities within zero to three years, the DON RCO leverages existing technologies in new ways and adapts emerging technologies and unconventional concepts to ensure the Navy can win decisively - both now and in the future.

“This consortium gives us another tool to move at the speed the warfighter demands It expands our access to industry, creates more pathways for competition and innovation, and—most importantly—helps us get relevant capability into the hands of Sailors and Marines faster. That is what the DONRCO is built to do.” VADM Seiko Okano, DON RCO Director
“Through the NSPPC, the DONRCO is providing our partners across the PAEs and their Rapid Capability Cells with another tool to meet their demand signals. Delivering at the speed of relevance is at the heart of the DONRCO, and the consortium is a means to make that happen.” Jim Juster, DONRCO Deputy Director

Our Take: We (Creative Defense Network) are proud to support the Creative Defense Foundation in the execution of the NSPPC. The consortium will enable rapid acquisition of integrated capabilities for the Department of Navy and beyond. The consortium is open to all traditional and non-traditional defense companies at no membership fees. It gives the Department access a broadening industrial base while employing the innovative acquisition approaches championed by the White House, Pentagon, and Congress.

Pentagon Gives Industry 21 Days to Submit Plans for Significantly Faster Weapons Production

BLUF: Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg told defense-industry leaders in an Aug. 5 memo that they have 21 days to submit plans for significantly faster, more aggressive delivery schedules and/or increased production for critical capabilities.

Years-long development cycles are not acceptable. We must dramatically accelerate our program schedules and expand our production capacity now.
Feinberg asks companies to propose specific capital investments and facility expansions and to explain how they would work with the Pentagon to increase weapons production.
Feinberg called on industry to demonstrate its willingness to put skin in the game.
The urgent 21-day deadline was communicated to arms manufacturers like Boeing, Lockheed Martin and RTX.
Feinberg identified 16 critical programs under consideration for accelerated production or increased procurement.

Feinberg Requested Defense Industry Board Members for Briefing

BLUF: Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg requested that large firms send their board members to the Pentagon to receive briefings from department leaders

It’s highly unusual for members of a company’s board of directors to be called into the Pentagon for an in-person meeting.
Some board members have met with officials through the Business Operators for National Defense (BOND).
The goal of the requested meeting was a desire to educate board members on the gravity of the threats facing the U.S. The DoW would only permit board members with security clearances to attend the session.

“These discussions centered on connecting defense industry leaders face-to-face with their government customer and addressing procurement modernization and production scaling. Our industry partners must have a clear understanding of the global strategic competition, particularly as our adversaries target aggressive production timelines. Ultimately, the warfighter and the taxpayer stand to gain when we foster a more responsive, collaborative, and mission-aligned defense industrial base.” Unnamed Defense Official

US Pacific Bases Severely Degraded, Pentagon Inspector Warns

BLUF: The DOW IG warned that US military facilities across the Pacific are in a state of decay, with problems including corrosion, holes in buildings, and the presence of mold and asbestos.

The issues affect infrastructure essential to US preparedness and have been identified through inspections of 11 US facilities across the region.
Pentagon officials attributed the severe degradation to factors including the age of buildings, environmental conditions, and personnel and funding shortages, and said that a detailed timeline for correcting the deficiencies will be established.
At Kadena, which hosts about 20,000 Americans, at least 243 homes on the base had to be vacated because of spalling.

Ethos Rolls Out Readiness Engine to Train Soldiers at the Speed of Tech

BLUF: Ethos rolled out a new training software platform that takes all the skill requirements for specific military roles, compares them with real-time assessments of people across the force, and helps commanders spot and fill training gaps.

Ethos’ training platform—already used by over 50,000 servicemembers across the Air Force, Space Force, Army, and Navy—is broken down into three main parts:
- What’s important for each person to know based on their specific role.
- Where each individual is against that baseline standard, whether through knowledge or skill assessments on the platform.
- Feeds that information into the readiness engine, which allows commanders to see exactly where people are falling short, visualize the proficiency levels across entire units, and take steps to fill the gaps.
Ethos piloted the readiness engine on the Army’s drone operations, since it’s particularly useful with the fast-moving, high-paced things, and now launching this as a general release for all of customers.

“We can’t have a static, 1990s approach to training warfighters when the threats they’re going to face on a daily basis are changing literally week over week in a pretty profound way. The readiness engine is a response to what we feel is an emerging and very important problem in the age of AI and warfare.
Instead of just thinking about completion of training or meeting compliance requirements, it’s how do we maximize the chance of success on whatever we’re asking somebody to do and ensure that they’re as prepared as possible.” Andrew Powell, Ethos CEO

Ethos helps customers like the DOW and the NFL modernize their training and education programs. Our AI quantifies skills and competencies critical to an organization, assesses team proficiency, and addresses knowledge gaps before they become a problem.

Pentagon’s S&T Boss Touts Early Benefits of Re-Org, Including Virtuous Cycles of Collaboration

BLUF: Joseph Jewell, DASW(S&T) discussed how DoW overhauled the sprawling defense innovation ecosystem to unify operational authorities and align modernization.

DoD is the largest funded of federal R&D.
In January DoW unveiled plans to reshape the R&D and innovation landscape to fuse offices, activities and functions under USW(R&E).
In DASW(S&T), they look at basic research in the first levels of applied research. Then they own the verticals for hypersonics, biotech/biomanufacturing, and manufacturing technology. S&T also oversees SBIR/STTR programs.
It also elevated and consolidated six DoD tech hubs: DIU, SCO, DARPA, CDAO, OSC, and TRMC as R&E components.
The new R&E structure sets up virtuous cycles of collaboration.
His team also steers and coordinates defense science and technical relations with foreign partners, including NATO and the Five Eyes alliance.
S&T also managed policies governing FFRDCs and UARCs for long-term studies and analysis.

“We want to move fast. And so, the new structure of R&E really sets up a lot of what you might call virtuous cycles of collaboration.” - Joseph Jewell, DASW for Science and Technology

DARPA Looking to Develop Foundation of Next-Generation Hypersonic Missile Work

BLUF: The Next Generation Hypersonic Cruise Missile effort is interested in vehicle designs, emerging capabilities, and innovative test-and-evaluation technologies.

DARPA is considering a new program to develop a hypersonic missile demonstrator that would serve as the baseline of future weapons.
DARPA’s vision goes beyond future design concepts for an air-breathing hypersonic cruise missile.
While prior technology demonstration programs have successfully proven the fundamental viability of scramjet-powered flight to counter the evolving threat landscape, existing concepts often achieve predictable, incremental gains in isolated performance metrics, representing evolutionary improvements rather than the disruptive capabilities required for future conflicts.
Legacy manufacturing processes often result in systems that are too expensive and complex to produce at the scale required for peer conflict.
DARPA is requesting industry feedback on at least one of three key focus areas. Under the first, the agency is interested in advanced air-breathing hypersonic cruise missile architectures that prioritize offering greater ranges, cruise speeds or altitudes over current systems.

The Pentagon Wants 20 Prize Fighters, Not 200 Midgets

Nathan Mintz

BLUF: Defense is following the familiar pattern of an investment heat cycle.

A handful of institutions lead the market, initially making the high-risk bets and attracting the rest of the pack.
As the table gets crowded, they pull back from the riskiest early-stage wagers and move toward the numbered bets. Eventually, many cash out and move on to the next hot table.
Meanwhile, PE and public-market investors arrive later with much larger checks, concentrating on the safer parts of the table—the field and pass line—where returns may be lower, but the odds are considerably more dependable.
There is universal consensus that six defense primes with 80%+ of the major acquisition programs is too few and that number has to grow. DoW has also made the command intent pretty clear: they don’t ultimately need 200 midgets—they need 20 prize fighters.
If the destination is roughly 20 scaled competitors, there may only be room for another five to ten prize fighters to emerge from the hundreds of companies currently fighting their way up from the bottom.
Eventually the distinction between a “venture-backed defense startup” and a “PE-backed defense platform” may matter a lot less to DoW than whether the company can reliably deliver thousands of systems on schedule.
DoW simply cannot wait another 12–24 months for industry to sort itself out and grow into the demand. If you aren’t in production already, it’s probably too late.
The government may want hundreds of companies competing to discover the best technology, but it does not want to integrate, train, sustain and operate hundreds of bespoke systems at scale.
Once winners emerge from operational testing, procurement naturally begins concentrating around the handful of platforms that can actually be fielded, integrated and supported.
This gets to the fundamental lesson of the reindustrialization wave: the factory is the product.

Other Defense Tech News:

Lockheed Martin Launches Modular Missile Tech With Storefront

BLUF: Lockheed Martin announced the launch of Strigo, a new line of modular missile and sensor hardware, along with a dedicated product center designed to get weapons into the field faster. The line covers radio-frequency sensors, missile datalinks and missile seeker technologies, all built on a common baseline architecture.

The shared architecture allows Strigo hardware to be reconfigured for different missions, including air defense, missile defense and air-to-surface strike.
Lockheed calls the Strigo Product Center a storefront for ready-now and near-ready hardware that it said can be adapted to customer needs.
The modular approach also lowers life cycle costs. Lockheed said it has made a $250M internal investment in the product center to date.
The center can move a concept from sketch to tested solution in months rather than years, allowing it to have parts on the shelf before the military even asks for them.
Technologies developed through the Strigo family played a role in developing the Increment 2 seeker package for the Army’s Precision Strike Missile (PrSM).

“The center allows us test and deploy new solutions at unprecedented speed. That’s how we turn ‘what if’ into ‘what’s next’ faster than ever before.” - Stacy Kubicek, Lockheed Martin Sensors and Global Sustainment, VP and GM

Boeing’s Low-Cost Radar Seeker for Precision Weapons Aces Tests

BLUF: Boeing recently finished another round of tests for its Ultra Low-Cost Seeker (ULCS), as it works to develop a cheaper radar sensor for precision weapons.

The testing campaign, conducted earlier this summer, examined whether the seeker could find and follow targets while handling the tough conditions it would face in real use.
The ULCS successfully detected and tracked targets during aircraft and rocket-based tests earlier this summer.
Boeing is developing ULCS for potential use across its integrated air and missile defense, direct-attack, and cruise missile programs. The technology could help make precision guidance more affordable across a wider range of weapons.
ULCS is built from commercial parts that Boeing has adapted for military use. Its modular design means the same sensor can be adjusted for different weapon programs.

“We are developing ULCS with the goal of sharing a common sensor architecture across several of our programs. It is modular, producible and built with Weapons Open Systems Architecture to speed integration and future changes.” - Bob Ciesla, Boeing VP Precision Engagement Systems

Northrop Grumman Introduces Raid Hunter for Next-Generation Gun-Based Air Defense System

BLUF: Northrop Grumman introduced Raid Hunter, its new 50mm Gun-Based Air Defense (GBAD) system, a next-generation capability designed to strengthen short-range, layered air defense against increasingly complex aerial threats.

Raid Hunter’s guided 50mm ammunition combined with a high-rate-of-fire Chain Gun delivers lethal, cost-considerate engagement with deep magazines and fast reloads, tackling the economic challenge of massed swarming threats.

Raid Hunter is built to deploy with speed and flexibility through a modular design for rapid transportation on the C-130, with future vehicle-mounted and container-based variants planned.

“Raid Hunter addresses a critical short-range defense gap by delivering rapid, high-capacity protection against complex, mass aerial threats like cruise missiles and drone swarms.” - Kenn Todorov, Northrop Grumman, VP and GM, C2 and Weapons Integration

Hanwha Defense USA Seeks to Acquire Austal USA in $1.2B Potential Deal

BLUF: Hanwha Defense USA, a subsidiary of South Korea’s Hanwha Aerospace, has made a preliminary, non-binding offer to purchase Austal USA.

Austal USA’s parent company, the Australian-based Austal, said in financial guidance released today that “The Austal Board and its advisers have carefully assessed the Proposal and determined that it merits further evaluation.
In April 2024, Hanwha put forth a takeover bid for the entirety of Austal, but the Australian company batted down the offer, citing concerns that regulatory approvals from the US and Australia would not come through.
Hanwha’s Philly Shipyard builds the National Security Multi-Mission Vessel (NSMV) currently used as a training ship at state maritime academies, and will build a new missile range instrumentation vessel based on the NSMV design to support the Pentagon’s Golden Dome missile shield system.

“Hanwha has made it a priority to significantly contribute to revitalizing American shipbuilding and is exploring a range of options to expand our footprint in the United States.” James Hewitt, Hanwha Spokesperson

Our Take: See the Navy section for White House direction that may impact this deal.

AEVEX to Acquire BlackSea Technologies for Up to $650M

BLUF: AEVEX is acquiring naval technology firm BlackSea Technologies for up to $650M, in an attempt to bolster its presence in the USV and UUV space.

BlackSea builds the Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft (GARC), a 16-foot small unmanned autonomous vessel that the Navy is experimenting with out of Naval Base Coronado.
The Navy’s USV Squadron 3, launched in 2024, operates the system.
AEVEX builds a series of autonomous systems, including an USV dubbed Mako that is designed for ISR missions, as well as kinetic operations

“BlackSea brings exceptional and strategically aligned maritime capability, but just as importantly, it brings a culture of mission focus and ingenuity that reflect the very roots of AEVEX.” - Brian Raduenz, AEVEX, Founder and Executive Chairman

Saronic Expands to Mississippi, Selects Port of Gulfport for Marauder On-Water Testing

BLUF: Saronic announced it has expanded its operations to Gulfport, MS, establishing an initial site for on-water testing of the company’s MUSV, Marauder, at the Port of Gulfport.

As production of Saronic’s Marauder platform continues to scale, the site will support testing and commissioning of the company’s 180 ft. autonomous ships as they move from production to final delivery.
The Saronic facility at the Port of Gulfport spans more than 30,000 square feet and includes dedicated port access, office space, and warehouse space that can support Saronic’s growing operations.
Saronic’s local team includes Mission Operations and Commissioning specialists, who are responsible for taking each Marauder through final end-of-line tests and on-water trials.
Saronic’s first Marauder, which was designed and launched in less than a year, arrived at Gulfport in mid-July and is already undergoing testing at the site.

“Gulfport has developed an incredible ecosystem of partners across industry, academia, and government to advance the future of maritime systems.” - Dino Mavrookas, Saronic, Co-Founder and CEO

“Thanks to innovators like Saronic, unmanned technology is advancing faster, ships are built more efficiently, and our warfighters are better equipped for the challenges ahead.” - Roger Wicker, SASC, Chairman

Boeing to Sell Three Subsidiaries to eVTOL Firm Archer

BLUF: Boeing is selling off three subsidiaries to Archer Aviation in an all-stock deal and will become a strategic partner in the electric aircraft startup

Boeing will transfer ownership of its drone subsidiary Insitu, air traffic management company SkyGrid and electric aircraft maker Wisk Aero, which was once a fierce rival of Archer.
In exchange, Boeing will take a nearly 16.5% stake in Archer.
The deal allows Wisk, SkyGrid and Insitu to accelerate capability development and time to market while ensuring Boeing capitalizes on its investments in these technologies over the past two decades through continued development in their core businesses.
The release says the deal also consists of a technology sharing arrangement, where Boeing will retain access to the Wisk core autonomous flight technology for its current and next-generation commercial and defense aircraft.

Our Take: This deal is very intriguing. A major defense prime converting holdings into a meaningful equity stake and enduring technology rights in a higher-growth mid-tier innovator. It allows Boeing to de-risk internal execution burdens while retaining strategic influence over autonomy IP critical to both commercial and defense platforms. Expect this structure to become a recurring model as primes increasingly partner with specialized mid-tier firms to accelerate fielding of uncrewed and advanced air systems without diluting focus on their core platforms.

Related Articles:

Joby Builds Defense Muscle with $500M Buy of Resonant Sciences

BLUF: Joby Aviation is buying defense contractor Resonant Sciences in a $500M deal.

Much of what Resonant is up to is not public. They employ around 250 people, advertises radomes and antennas, aircraft testing and stealth designs.
Joby already has a more than 700,000 square-foot footprint in Ohio. Resonant is doubling its footprint. Combined, that will give us roughly 1,000,000 square-feet of space in Dayton.
This gives Joby the ability to do projects that Resonant couldn't do alone and Joby couldn't do alone, but together they can accomplish.

Other Defense Industry News:

Congrats to our friend Artem Sherbinin on his new role as Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Applied Technologies. Big things to come!

The Pentagon Wants to Fix Defense Contracting for Small Business. Here’s What Would Actually Work

Frank Pound

BLUF: On 31 July, DoW issued an open call to the Defense Industrial Base: tell us how to fix contract accounting. Specifically, they want “pragmatic ways to streamline data and audit requirements” for business systems and align them with GAAP. Here are some thoughts from a small cybersecurity firm. Formal Letter

The Problem Isn’t Our Accounting. It’s Your Systems.
- Small commercial firms already run GAAP-compliant books. We track costs by project. We produce standard invoices. We satisfy commercial auditors. Our accounting is fine.
- The barrier to defense work isn’t how we account for money — it’s what happens when we try to get paid.
- Wide Area Workflow (WAWF) was designed for companies with entire contracts departments, dedicated WAWF administrators, and infrastructure to manage CLINs, ACRNs, and CAC-authenticated document routing.
- A 10-person shop has no business navigating that system. And many of us don’t. We just choose not to pursue defense work.
Here’s What Would Actually Move the Needle
- The CASB just eliminated four Cost Accounting Standards that duplicated GAAP. That’s real progress. But if the Department wants to extend that logic, it should look at the business systems too — starting with invoicing.
- Create a simplified, web-form-based invoicing portal for contractors below $10M in annual covered contract value.
  - Import contractor identity from SAM.gov.
  - Accept GAAP-standard commercial invoice data as the input.
Don’t Just Put a New Homepage on WAWF
- The Pentagon’s digital modernization efforts have a pattern: take a broken legacy system, wrap a new UI around it, hold a press conference, and call it transformation with the new ‘Digital Service’.
- The backend stays the same. The workflows stay the same. The pain stays the same. The only thing that changes is the screenshot and index.html in the press release.
- Build the new system from the ground up around what small businesses actually submit: a commercial invoice. Everything else should be the government’s problem to generate on the backend.

Our Take: This is a powerful recommendation that we hope is heard from the key stakeholders that make these decisions.

Contractor Alleges Army Inappropriately Used AI to Make $450M Contract Award

BLUF: Trax International Corporation is asking the U.S. Court of Federal Claims to direct the Army to reevaluate bids for mission support services at White Sands Missile Range — in part because the department allegedly misused AI to determine the contract award.

The Army used AI that hallucinated multiple times, creating the false impression that Trax’s bid was weaker than rival Southwest Range Services’ successful bid of roughly $450M.
The filing comes after the Government Accountability Office denied Trax’s bid protest in May.
the lawsuit claims that records the Army provided to GAO did not explain whether assigned strengths for the Southwest Range Services bid came from a human at the Source Selection Evaluation Board or an AI tool.
The Army conceded that one of the weaknesses it identified with Trax’s bid is not supported by the record.
Trax is not the first contractor to publicly allege an agency has wrongfully used AI to evaluate contract bids.

Our Take: After reading the GAO decision in detail, we assess that the AI error (which seems to have been based on a single word that was heightened to a weakness) was probably not going to make the difference in this source selection. The bigger issue is the tenuousness of the strengths that were assigned (related to staff continuity, PM hours, processes and knowledge management). Source selections are human affairs, and different groups have different impressions, which is why strengths for some small point in a proposal is very common. However, this is where it falls to senior people in the chain to assess whether these small strengths were worth $29M. We don’t see that being adequately justified given all the factors being the same. The challenge of doing source selections is why evaluators need to move to relying less on proposals and more on oral presentations (where probing questions can be asked and follow-up questions posed) and demonstrations that rely less on flowery words.

A Startup’s Guide to Working with Large Corporations

Maggie Gray and Pat O’Reilly

BLUF: Large corporations and early-stage startups need each other. While many in the startup and defense tech ecosystem love to criticize traditional defense primes and other large corporations (often for good reason), ultimately corporations serve a crucial role for American national security.

Large primes manage massive, multi-billion dollar projects developing exquisite, cutting-edge, mission critical platforms with little room for failure.
Today, startups simply do not have the engineering teams, clearances, and manufacturing capacity to build systems like nuclear submarines, aircraft carriers, and supersonic strike fighters.
Likewise, large commercial corporations have the scale and capacity to produce the high volumes of products and infrastructure essential to modern society while meeting stringent safety and reliability standards that are often beyond the capabilities of a startup.
Partnering with primes and commercial corporations as subcontractors, vendors, or suppliers can provide startups an important bridge in the early years.
These relationships can create the order volumes needed to scale production, reduce unit costs, and help startups cross the proverbial “valley of death” on the path to mass production.
It is critical for startups to understand how defense primes and other large corporations make purchasing and partnership decisions as they craft their Go-To-Market (GTM) strategies and efficiently allocate a startup’s limited resources.
Our experience indicates there are three cases when a corporation would be driven to adopt a startup’s new technology:

1. It solves a serious problem causing a large loss of revenue (ex: one of our portfolio companies is working with a large corporation to help solve quality assurance problems that can cost the customer millions of dollars each year in product recalls, fines, etc.)
2. It significantly reduces operations expenses, or Cost of Goods Sold, on the order of 10X (ex: Apex Space builds satellite buses an order of magnitude cheaper and faster than its legacy competitors, and as such has won contracts with a number of defense primes)
3. Their largest customers, or competitors, force them to adopt the technology (ex: many U.S. military programs are now requiring contractors to translate millions of lines of legacy code into memory safe coding languages, which has driven some defense primes to adopt AI code translation tools like Code Metal)

Regardless of the industry, successful startup engagements with large corporations typically follow a pattern of eight sequential steps:
1. Identify and Engage the Target Customer
2. Introduce the Technology and Demonstrate its Capabilities
3. Engage the Business Unit and Secure Agreement for a Pilot
4. Plan and Execute the Pilot
5. Validate Pilot Results, Support Building the Business Case, and Secure Budget Approval
6. Negotiate and Finalize the Purchase Order or Contract
7. Manufacture and Prepare the Product for Delivery
8. Deliver the Product and Receive Payment

Our Take: We recommend all startups and those that advise them read this entire article. While we have historically been skeptical that startups can operate effectively with large primes or corporations for long, there does seem to be a shift where these entities are recognizing that their size and internal processes are not optimized for innovation and are valuing the solutions these smaller partners are bringing. We hope to see this become more the norm and to help the government craft strategies that incentivize this type of partnering.

Army Opens Test Ranges to Private Industry to Help Break Munitions Bottleneck

BLUF: Army is expanding access to its test ranges and proving grounds in an effort to get new munitions, drones, and other types of weapons to the battlefield more quickly.

Test ranges allow companies to prove their weapons work in battlefield conditions, expediting the process of supplying the military.
Military test ranges replicate conditions weapons might encounter when used in combat, such as electronic jamming.
The demand for test ranges has dramatically increased in recent years as the military pursued new generation weapons, including drones, lasers and fast-flying hypersonic missiles.
To get access to military training ranges, companies must find and schedule with the specific range. Under the new initiative, Army officials will help schedule the company access across multiple ranges.
The Army has launched a “concierge service” where companies can schedule the tests at ranges in Michigan, Utah, Arizona and Mississippi through a new website.
The Army hopes to expand the online scheduling and concierge service to more ranges and also allow allies and foreign companies.
Firms can also book time at a new training range in Morocco established by the AFRICOM and the Moroccan military last month.

“Within 30 days of a request, a company that is capable of getting to a range will get access to either one of our domestic ranges or one of our international ranges abroad.” Dan Driscoll, SecArmy

Army Fires Community Tackling Four Capability Gaps, Including Magazine Depth

BLUF: Army PAE Fires is trying to bridge four key capability gaps as it works on 62 programs.

Propulsion and energetics. The challenge there is straightforward: high cost, complex manufacturing, limited capacity, and in some areas, constrained resources. Propulsion is foundational to almost everything we do in the missile business.
Targeting and seeker. Future conflicts will take place in heavily contested electromagnetic environments. That requires weapons that are hardened.
Industry. The Army needs open architecture and multiple sources.
Munitions breadth and depth. The increasing need to have a more diverse portfolio of weapons for soldiers to choose from.
The future consists of a mix of high-end interceptors that can take down threats like maneuverable ballistic missiles, while soldiers use lower-cost, less capable interceptors for things like non-turbo Shahed drones.

“We do not know of every threat the Army can be confronted with 10 years from now, therefore we cannot design every system as though today’s configuration is the final configuration.” - BG Robert Mikesh,, CPE for Offensive Fires

Army Shifts Autonomy Strategy to Lean More on Awesome Vendors

BLUF: After ditching its original software strategy for autonomous vehicles, the Army has decided to lean on industry to build case-specific autonomous capabilities for different mission sets.

The initial idea to have the Army develop a software backbone for its envisioned fleet of autonomous vehicles in what was called the Army Robotic Software (ARCS) program made sense before there was robust industry investment in all of autonomy.
The whole premise behind ARCS was a modular approach to acquire the pieces of autonomy from different vendor. Now there’s awesome vendors in the space that are doing great stuff, as they demonstrate.
The old architecture was designed to allowed a few vendors to plug-and-play their software on top of the Army-developed backbone.
ARCS was put to bed as the Army underwent a holistic reevaluation of its autonomy portfolio following a massive acquisition overhaul and long-festering struggles to get the autonomy piece of the puzzle working.
Now that industry has shown more robust capability, the plan is to let contractors offer more top-down solutions, teaming together ahead of time.
The Engineer Autonomous Breaching Capability (EABC) program aims to find unmanned systems that can quickly breach obstacles and minefields on future battlefields.
Caterpillar, Forterra, IDV USA and Overland AI, were each awarded a prototyping contract for their autonomy software solutions, organized themselves into teams where they would find a partner to provide the UGV.

Our Take: After many years of watching the Army pursue their suboptimal home grown autonomy software, it is refreshing to see the new leadership trust industry to compete to develop and deliver solutions.

Army Now Using Polaris MRZR for UxS Program

BLUF: Months after restructuring its Unmanned Systems (UxS) autonomy program, the Army is swapping out Infantry Squad Vehicles (ISVs) for Polaris’ MRZR platforms.

RACER is a former DARPA program that developed autonomy software stacks enabling Army and Marine Corps unmanned ground vehicles to maneuver on off-road terrain.
CPE Mission Autonomy created an environment where multiple companies can use the same base platform, as the MRZRs to test their autonomy stacks on, so the Army can get a true head-to-head comparison of where the industry is right now.

“The important thing here is continuing what the RACER program started, which was like, ‘What’s the best you can do in off-road autonomy?’” - Michael Rose, CPE Mission Autonomy, CTO

Army Tests Six Autonomous UGVs for Frontline Resupply and Casualty Evacuation

BLUF: The Army is testing six autonomous ground vehicles designed to move supplies and casualties through dangerous frontline areas.

The Army is moving to put autonomous ground vehicles into one of the most dangerous parts of the battlefield, selecting six companies to develop production-ready prototypes for missions that currently require soldiers to drive into exposed areas.
The Infantry Last Tactical Mile (ILTM) initiative focuses on the stretch between rear support areas and the forward line of own troops (FLOT), where getting ammunition, equipment and supplies forward, or bringing casualties back, can expose personnel to enemy fire.
The six selected companies are Maren-Go, Overland AI, Forterra, Hendrick’s Motorsports, American Rheinmetall and HDT.
Each is expected to provide four prototype vehicles for Army testing.
Army wants systems capable of beyond-line-of-sight autonomous operation.
The vehicles are intended to conduct logistical resupply, casualty evacuation and network-extension missions, potentially allowing troops to perform critical battlefield tasks without putting additional drivers or medics directly in harm’s way.

Army Exploring 50mm Cannon to Destroy Drones

BLUF: The Army is looking for companies that can provide a 50mm cannon and ammunition for counter-drone defense.

The goal is to integrate a 50mm ammunition solution to effectively track, engage, and defeat Class 1, 2, and 3 UAS threats.
The Army will conduct a live-fire demonstration using Northrop Grumman’s XM913 Bushmaster 50mm chain gun, with companies supplying 50mm ammunition for testing.
Contractors are asked to provide “a detailed description of the company’s capabilities pertaining to C-UAS, proposed C-UAS system architecture, fire control/sensor integration, detailed draft test or demonstration plan, and how the platform will successfully employ the 50x228mm ammunition against the specified target set.

Army Gears Up to Engage Enemy Surveillance Satellites

BLUF: The Army's space superiority efforts are focused on countering adversary ISR satellites, as well as conducting stratospheric warfare.

The Army is seeking new kit to directly “engage” adversary satellites from the ground, particularly if and when sensing sats are used to target US forces.
Army would follow US national space policy that eschews the use of destructive kinetic anti-satellite attacks that would create long-lived space debris.
The TID-SS shop is responsible for overseeing the design, development and modernization of space-enabled, missile defeat, and high-altitude architectures, as well as synchronizing combat concepts, scientific analysis and the acquisition of new technology.

“It’s not foreign for the Army to shoot a ship at sea. Why should it be any different for the army to engage a satellite in space? It’s the same construct, and it’s a matter of our core competencies to maneuver on the land to be able to deliver effects across all domains.”
“Generally, space superiority is a relative measure against the enemy. We want to have an advantage overall in both how we use space capabilities, but also how we can take away their use of space. That goal is changing the balance in our favor. So, the Army’s job is to do that from the land, and we are expanding that.” - COL Joe Mroszczyk

Army Downed More Than 1,400 Iranian Missiles and Drones in Epic Fury and 12-Day War

BLUF: During the two most recent major Middle East conflicts it has been involved in, the Army swatted down more than 1,400 Iranian missiles and drones.

His comments also come amid concerns about the tremendous expenditure of U.S. interceptors that has exacerbated the stress on America’s magazine depth of these high-end defensive weapons.
Over the 12-day war between Iran and Israel, they successfully engaged 125 ballistic missiles, and during Operation Epic Fury, over 1,200 ballistic, cruise and UAS threats have been neutralized.

“For the last 14 months, the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command has been in the largest air and missile defense fight in U.S. history. I cannot add anything to the emphasis on magazine depth… or for the need for cheaper and wide-ranging mix of interceptors. I mean that couldn’t be made more loud and clear from the highest levels of our government.” - LTG John Rafferty, Army Space and Missile Defense Command

“We need a more comprehensive missile defeat strategy that focuses on interceptors, but also equally so on non-kinetic effects, both electronic warfare and directed energy, and the type of targeting in C2 … that will enable us to use that data to make decisions to engage targets faster.” - LTG John Rafferty, Army Space and Missile Defense Command

Other Army News:

Rebuilding the U.S. Navy and America’s Shipbuilding Industrial Base

BLUF: To build upon the actions ordered in Executive Order 14269 (Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance), this memorandum sets forth additional actions to further strengthen the U.S. Navy and America’s Shipbuilding Industrial Base.

Replace the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) and Advanced Weapons Elevators with steam and hydraulic systems for CVN-81.
The “Finland Model” shall be used for up to three ship classes, provided that the foreign supplier: builds or acquires a shipyard in the U.S. and builds all ships after the first two such ships in U.S. shipyards, hires and trains an American citizen workforce, licenses the proprietary shipbuilding techniques and technologies used at the parent foreign shipyard to the U.S. shipyards; and sources a U.S. supply chain for construction and maintenance of all ships.
Submit a plan for a new competitive acquisition approach for surface combatants with sufficient inherent capabilities to perform anti‑submarine warfare, surface warfare, and convoy escort duties.
Fifth Public Navy Shipyard. Submit a plan to increase nuclear-powered submarine and aircraft carrier readiness that will include the use of private sector capabilities and the establishment of a fifth public Navy Yard.
Component Repair Center. Establish a Component Repair Center to receive new and refurbish old components and parts as required by the submarine repair industrial base.
Reforming NAVSEA. The objective of these reforms should be to: introduce results‑based accountability for NAVSEA leadership, determined by speed of delivery of vessels and systems; reduce bureaucracy and red tape; eliminate competing priorities among different NAVSEA components, which often result in delayed, cost-prohibitive, or overly complex vessels and systems; and prevent NAVSEA from imposing redesigns or iterative design changes upon original mature parent designs.

OMB Director Russ Vought

The Ford class is too costly and takes too long to build.
1. Lead ships typically cost the most but the Fords are costlier with each one. $13B for the initial Ford, then $15B for the Kennedy & Enterprise, and $18B expected for the Miller.
2. If we retire a Nimitz class every four years and replace them every 12 (at minimum based on projections), you have far fewer carriers. Not acceptable.
Our Navy shipyards are at capacity with major backlogs.
1. A way to add capacity and competition is to entice foreign investment into new DOMESTIC shipyards by block buying with foreign companies that build the initial ships overseas and then build the rest here over time with permanent US capacity.
2. The alternative? No additional ships from added capacity and ongoing backlog from limited competition. Time to try something different, which is the basis for the "Finland model" that began with the Coast Guard icebreakers & is now being extended to Navy ships. We need more ships!

Our Take: Reverting to steam and hydraulics is a pragmatic reset prioritizes delivery of operational carriers over costly, troubled EMALS. The Finland Model, paired with simpler surface combatants, a fifth public shipyard, a dedicated component-repair center, and NAVSEA reforms directly attacks the bureaucratic root causes of the current backlog. These measures represent the most coherent strategy available for restoring volume and readiness in a shipbuilding base that can no longer meet the Navy’s force-structure requirements under the existing pure-domestic, high-complexity paradigm. We suspect this will be met with much political and bureaucratic resistance.

Firestorm Labs builds drones aboard USS Essex without shore resupply

BLUF: Firestorm Labs produced 3D-printed drones aboard a Navy ship at sea using a containerized microfactory, aiding the Navy in its pursuit of easily built autonomous technology that can quickly boost a warship’s weapons capacity.

Firestorm Labs manufactured more than 1,000 parts and 12 of its proprietary 3D-printable first-person view Squall drones aboard the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex as it transited toward RIMPAC 2026 in Hawaii.
Every part xCell printed on deck is one that doesn’t need to be flown or shipped across contested waters — cutting the fuel, aircraft hours, and personnel it takes to keep a ship operational.
Repairs that once meant days or weeks waiting on a resupply run can now happen in hours, on station.
The service members also helped print mechanical test components that assessed the efficacy of the 3D printer used for drone production and fabricated military repair parts that crew members of the USS Essex needed.

Our Take: Having toured Firestorm Labs tents at the Creative Disruptors in the Desert event, we saw first hand the exciting opportunities of 3D printing drones at scale in remote environments. Every overseas base, starting with those in key theaters, should have an XCELL.

VADM Williams Champions Acquisition Reform and Industrial Base Mobilization to Meet Strategic Needs

BLUF: VADM Douglas Williams, PAE Strategic Systems Programs (SSP), provided insight into supercharging the Navy’s strategic weapons systems industrial base.

Williams keyed in on two pillars of effort related to the defense industrial base: building a resilient workforce for today’s mission and enacting meaningful acquisition reform.
We have to break the bureaucracy, we can’t let paperwork slow us down. PAE SSP’s workforce began using data-driven analysis to inform hiring plans in 2022 and has seen a return on that investment over the past four years.
In today’s acquisition reform environment, I am measuring my contracting officers based on their speed.
Partners across PAE SSP’s industrial base have invested in new facilities and infrastructure to support the modernization of the next generation Trident II D5 Life Extension 2 weapon system, the Navy’s nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile (SLCM-N) and the Conventional Prompt Strike hypersonic program (CPS).

“Supercharging the industrial base is something that keeps me up at night. We have to develop a new missile system, and that massive industrial base for all of those commodities to be integrated down to that lowest widget, has to come into production ... those muscles have not been exercised in a long time.” VADM Douglas Williams, PAE SSP

Raytheon, CET Successfully Test New Low-Cost Hadalus UUV for Navy

BLUF: Raytheon and CET demonstrated the Hadalus low-cost, long-endurance UUV in a Navy test, proving submerged launch and autonomous mission capabilities.

During a recent Navy exercise, the UUV completed a series of at-sea missions on a Navy undersea test range, successfully demonstrating its undersea launch capabilities while submerged.
This marks the first time the Navy has seen this integrated capability in the water and points toward a future where a single unmanned undersea platform can perform detect, reacquire and engage functions within one mission.
Hadalus is a 34‑foot UUV with a six‑foot cross section and more than 2,000 nautical miles of endurance. Its free‑flooded, all‑carbon‑fiber exoskeleton delivers exceptional strength and payload capacity while enabling a significantly lower‑cost architecture.
Designed to cost roughly one‑third to one‑fifth of comparable long‑endurance UUVs, Hadalus offers a scalable path to fielding affordable undersea capabilities.

“This demonstration is an important step in a broader roadmap to deliver autonomous, end‑to‑end undersea capabilities that are far less detectable than surface platforms. By tightly coupling design, integration and at‑sea experimentation, we’ve proven we can bring new autonomous solutions to the fleet quickly and cost‑effectively.” Jen Gauthier, Raytheon VP of Naval Systems & Sustainment

Blue Water Autonomy Selected by U.S. Navy for Autonomous Open-Ocean Survey Work

BLUF: Blue Water Autonomy has been selected for a multiple-award contract with the Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO) to provide high-resolution ocean floor mapping using long-endurance USVs.

Deep open-ocean survey is among the most demanding work at sea, and its value reaches well beyond a map of the seafloor. Surveys like these characterize the operating environment itself such as the terrain, the acoustics, and the shifting conditions that shape how naval forces move and operate far from shore.
NAVOCEANO and the wider Navy have steadily expanded their use of uncrewed systems for these missions to lower cost, reduce risk to personnel, and cover more ocean with fewer assets.

DON RCO, DIU and PAE Aviation Invest $50M to Scale Unmanned Maritime Strike Capabilities

BLUF: The Department of the Navy Rapid Capability Office (DON RCO) and PAE Aviation, in partnership with DIU, announce a $50M investment to rapidly scale their unmanned aviation portfolio.

To maintain maritime superiority, agility in acquisition is just as critical as the technology itself.
This effort expands existing risk reduction work led by the PAE Aviation Rapid Capability Cell (RCC) with Shield AI to advance Runway Independent Maritime Expeditionary Strike capabilities.

The Defense Sector is Under Water: Maritime Investments Reflect Growing Threats

BLUF: Three firms reached similar conclusions, on similar timelines, reflects both increased adversary challenges in this operating domain and the reality that undersea systems are poised to capture more market share.

Lockheed Martin announced it would spend $3.5B to buy undersea specialist Ultra Maritime.
French company Thales announced the purchase of a 36% stake in the French undersea warfare and defense tech company Exail Technologies.
Italy’s Fincantieri announced a nearly $700M investment in four maritime drone and undersea engineering firms.
Policy makers, military professionals and subject matter experts have long emphasized concerns about undersea challenges, but the last five years have seen a greater imperative.
China has used surface and subsea sensors to map the bottom of the ocean in preparation for a conflict in the Indo Pacific. This large-scale project, including at least 42 research vessels over five years.
While the naval sector has not been as acquisitive as other market segments, these investments join a short list of financial plays that focus on established capabilities and market positions.

Navy Receives First New Dry Dock Afloat in 40 Years

BLUF: The Navy’s first Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock Medium built in more than four decades successfully hit the water in late July.

Austal USA launched Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock Medium 15 — a maritime platform designed to lift ships from the water for maintenance — marking the largest vessel launch in the company’s 26-year history and the largest vessel ever.
The platform is 12,000 tons, 694 feet long and boasts a deck of 90,800 square feet.
The vessel, deemed a “Rennie”-type dry dock for its wing walls and pontoons providing buoyancy for lift capacity, can lift 18,000 long tons.
It is designed to accommodate Navy destroyers and cruisers.

Hunting Submarines, Underwater Drones with Two Paired Sonars Showcased by Ultra Maritime

BLUF: Ultra Maritime showed off a new underwater surveillance system at the Navy’s 2026 Lanternfish exercise. The demonstration highlighted how the company’s Sea Spear passive sonar and SSQ-125B active sonobuoy can work together to find UUVs.

The demonstration focused on the use of autonomous systems for counter-UUV and anti-submarine missions.
Sea Spear continuously listened for underwater activity without sending out signals, while the SSQ-125B used active sonar to help locate targets.
Sea Spear provides the passive sensing element of the architecture. It is designed to remain deployed and monitor underwater areas for acoustic signatures associated with potential targets.
The SSQ-125B brings active sensing to the sys. Its sonar can help pinpoint where an underwater object is once the passive sensors detect activity.
Pairing the two systems gives operators access to different forms of acoustic information. Passive sensing can support persistent monitoring, while active sonar can provide more information needed to localize a target.

Other Navy News:

Marine Corps to Get Production-ready Microwave Drone Swarm Killer

BLUF: The Marine Corps inked an $11 million contract with EW company Epirus for a vehicle-mounted weapon that can take down dozens of drones in a single zap.

The contract, awarded through the ONR, will result in the delivery early next year of a High-power Microwave Autonomous Vehicle Operational Capability (HAVOC) system that can autonomously identify drone targets to be dropped from the sky with an electromagnetic pulse.
The award follows prototype testing of the similar Expeditionary Directed Energy Counter-Swarm (ExDECS) weapon prototype that Epirus delivered to the Corps for testing last year under a $5.5M contract.
HAVOC will have 3X the power, improved ruggedness and range and autonomous capabilities intended to simplify decision-making for human operators.

“We’ve tripled the power density nearly in this system. So think of it, from a laser point of view that a lot of people are familiar with, like going from a 50-kilowatt to 150-kilowatt type laser in the same size package. So that directly kind of contributes to lethality, range, these types of things. We’ve also very much increased the reliability of the system and its suitability for various types of weather, types of different locations, dust, and all of that, where the Marines are dragging this thing around.” Andy Lowery, Epirus CEO

HII’s Watcher USV Completes US Marine Corps Test Program

BLUF: HII completed a DIU prototype program for the Watcher sUSV, demonstrating the platform’s autonomous capabilities and positioning it for potential production.

The Watcher is based on HII’s ROMULUS-25 unmanned surface vessel and was developed in partnership with MetalCraft Marine under DIU’s Production-Ready, Inexpensive, Maritime Expeditionary (PRIME) initiative.
HII delivered two autonomous vessels in December 2025 for testing focused on smaller-form-factor autonomous surface vessels for the US Marine Corps.
Watcher demonstrated its suitability for sUSV interceptor missions, including autonomously transiting hundreds of miles through contested waters, loitering in an assigned operating area while monitoring for surface threats, and sprinting to intercept a noncooperative maneuvering vessel.
The two ROMULUS-25 vessels completed a series of at-sea assessments covering autonomous mission behaviors, seakeeping, performance and operations in degraded environments. The vessels also participated in contractor demonstrations and government-led autonomy assessments.
The Watcher uses HII’s Odyssey Autonomous Control System (ACS), a modular open systems architecture designed to support autonomous navigation, mission planning, collaborative behaviors and multi-domain operations.
The system also enables AI-enabled contact recognition and identification, as well as edge-based decision-making.

Existing Airpower Theory Still Explains Modern Warfare

Grant Georgulis

BLUF: Recent articles have contended that persistent adversary effects, proliferating low-altitude threats, and emerging technologies expose deficiencies in enduring concepts such as air superiority and justify new frameworks, including the “air littoral.” The evidence offered, however actually confirms a recurring feature of warfare.

That feature is that technologies and methods change continuously, while the enduring principles governing the force employment remain remarkably durable.
The disagreement begins with the framework used to evaluate operations. Joint doctrine distinguishes among the tactical, operational, and strategic levels of war because each addresses a different dimension of military action.
Success, or failure, at one level does not determine success at another.
They argue that because Iran retains the ability to threaten maritime commerce and generate strategic effects, the operational success of recent air operations should be discounted.
Opening Iran’s skies demonstrated the ability to suppress integrated air defenses, penetrate contested airspace, strike assigned targets, and establish the freedom of action necessary to accomplish assigned military objectives.
Those are operational outcomes. Whether those outcomes ultimately compel Tehran to alter its political behavior is a strategic question informed by diplomacy, economic pressure, escalation, and military force operating together.
Evaluating one by the standard of the other conflates distinct levels of war.
The same principle exposes the weakness of the proposed “air littoral.”
Cruise missiles and small attack drones unquestionably present serious operational challenges, but those challenges do not arise because they inhabit a newly discovered domain.
They arise because modern air defenses must detect, track, and defeat a diverse threat set across a wider range of altitudes, speeds, signatures, and flight profiles.
Existing joint doctrine already addresses how to meet those challenges through offensive counterair, defensive counterair, integrated air and missile defense, command and control, and air battle management.
Military history is a record of continuous adaptation. Radar transformed air defense. Precision-guided munitions revolutionized strike warfare. Stealth altered penetration tactics.
Today, cruise missiles, one-way attack drones, autonomous systems, artificial intelligence, and increasingly sophisticated sensor networks continue that same pattern of technological evolution.
Airpower theory has evolved because thoughtful practitioners challenged assumptions, tested concepts against operational experience, and refined doctrine when evidence demanded it.

Our Take: We honestly have a hard time parsing the differences in Lt Gen Deptula and Col Georgulis arguments as both seem to be cogent and just saying that we need to adapt to the new threats and have different technological opportunities. We do like to see different factions argue so seeing the nuanced perspective between the air battle management community and the fighter community is intriguing in and of itself. We definitely understand Deptula’s point that military campaigns should be “devised around clearly defined political objectives and the integration of effects across domains” while recognizing that recent history has shown limited effectiveness in integrating economic pressure and diplomacy with military operations. The fact is adversaries are just damn resilient or obstinate.

In this way, maybe both authors are too myopic and the fact is that the pressure points we have are maybe ones we don’t understand very well. We likely still need the mix of forces to execute counterair and all the other Air Force missions but maybe we also need a whole new suite of asymmetric capabilities that are unique to each adversary and their weaknesses because the future of warfare can’t be that we bomb their country into oblivion and achieve few political objectives…as Iran is demonstrating currently.

MILDEP Manifesto

Lt Gen Luke Cropsey

BLUF: In a message to the acquisition workforce, Cropsey articulated 3 things he expects from himself and the Air Force acquirers.

First, our mission is to set the conditions for winning by adopting an operational mindset, instilling a sense of urgency, and forging high-performing teams that deliver.
Second, our focus is executing three priorities: accelerating data/digital/AI; integrating at scale; and building better enablers.
Third, our outcomes must achieve capability and capacity at cost, lethality at speed, and “ilities” that deliver.

Our Take: These are great points that I hope the Air Force acquisition workforce takes to heart. Read the whole letter here.

Air Force Seeks AI Tool to Help Manage Minuteman III ICBM Sustainment

BLUF: The Air Force is searching for an artificial intelligent agent that can centralize the various data streams underpinning its aging nuclear ballistic missile fleet.

In a request for information, the Air Force says the Minuteman III (MMIII) program manages key data across “approximately 60 disparate and disconnected systems,” from “local hard drives” to “shared networks.”
But it has no way to centrally govern all of them, requiring considerable manhours for tasks like assessing when parts may need to be replaced.
The Air Force must continuously keep 400 missiles ready to launch at a moment’s notice, a responsibility often described as a “no-fail” mission since failure could lead to catastrophic consequences.
The Air Force expects that the AI tool can collate data in “near-real time” and cut down on manual compilation by a “measurable amount” that will be negotiated with a successful contractor.

Air Force Explores AI Tools to Predict Aircraft Failures, Strengthen Sustainment

BLUF: While the Air Force is increasingly turning to AI for its sustainment and maintenance needs, officials say most efforts remain in experimentation or market research as they determine where the technology can provide meaningful gains.

One of the most popular applications for AI among portfolio executives is predictive maintenance, which is already being implemented in some programs.
The practice involves using real-time sensor data, performance records and machine learning to forecast when a military platform will fail — allowing personnel to repair or replace parts before they ever break.

“I would say we definitely have our foot in the pool, but we need to jump in a little deeper.” - Brig Gen William Ottati, PAE for Mobility
“It is super easy to say and very difficult to do in practice.” - Col Timothy Spaulding, PAE Bombers

Our Take: The Air Force is a master of overthinking and over researching things before implementation. The key here is to pick a real problem and implement a couple different solutions to see how it can be solved. The application for improving airworthiness should be an example to follow and build on to show the way.

Report Pushes New Training Approach for Air Force on AI and Tech

BLUF: A new report on modernizing Air Force training and education suggests borrowing a method from the civilian technology industry to help Airmen and Guardians build skills in key new areas like artificial intelligence: stackable certificates.

Also called stackable certifications, this approach breaks up long-duration coursework into smaller, bite-sized options that build skills upon each other to reach a higher level of technical expertise, with certifications along the way.
The idea is for training to be on-demand and “just-in-time” to meet a specific need, instead of one-time and untethered from real-world applications.
The report authors offer two approaches to integrating stackable certificates into DAF training and education:
- Integrating stackable certificates for technical skill training to the workforce, where it would benefit career fields or missions.
- Updating Professional Military Education curricula with stackable certificates where appropriate and feasible.
The authors aren’t advocating for the model to entirely replace the existing structure of in-residence schools and other more traditional forms of training. Instead, they see it as a way to complement and supplement the existing system in areas where operational and job demands make those options unrealistic.
The report highlights challenges to implementing a modernized training and education system:
- Cultural Resistance: Traditional military promotion pathways favor conventional in-residence education, which can create a bias against virtual credentials.
- Operational Burnout: Heavy day-to-day mission demands heavily limit the personal study time available to Airmen and Guardians.
- Accreditation Gaps: Inconsistent certificate quality from varied providers threatens to dilute established service-learning standards.
- Retention Deficits: Private-sector companies actively lure newly upskilled tech talent.
- Career Penalties: Misaligned promotion boards may undervalue certifications compared to standard milestones.
- Partner Coordination: Varied university timelines and programmatic constraints complicate cross-institutional funding and curriculum sync.

Our Take: We 100% support new approaches to training as our experience is that they haven’t been updated much in decades.

Swarm Aero Wins $10M Air Force Research Lab Contract

BLUF: Swarm Aero is building a Reaper-sized Group 5 drone, designed to be mass-manufacturable and capable of operating in a swarm using its own in-house autonomy and command-and-control (C2) software.

That new manufacturing approach—including the materials and processes is why AFRL awarded the startup a $10M R&D contract focused on high-rate composite manufacturing for aircraft parts.
This is pretty much what the DIU is looking for under the recently released Massed Modular Aircraft (MMA) solicitation, which is designed to find a lower-cost replacement for the workhorse (and super pricey) MQ-9 Reaper drones.
- The MMA requirements include a payload capacity of “at least” 2,800 pounds, a one-way range of 8,000 nautical miles, and a focus on payload and software modularity.
- The DIU wants that aircraft operational by 2031.

Air Force Wants a Drone Factory in a Box for Rapid, Remote Deployments

BLUF: The Air Force wants to step up its ability to field unmanned systems with deployable manufacturing equipment for turning out small drones in austere terrain.

The RSO is asking industry to submit ideas for creating expeditionary manufacturing equipment for producing and maintaining Group 1 and 2 drones for reconnaissance, attack, and counter-drone missions.
The RFI is another step in the Air Force’s march to become more self-sufficient at defending its air bases from drones and other aerial threats.
Currently, the service relies primarily on the Small Unmanned Air Defense Systems.
The Air Force “does not have a preferred production capacity” but instead is interested in “scalable” expeditionary manufacturing equipment that can be loaded into a shipping container and transported by “C-130, cargo ship, and helicopter sling-load.”
The RSO wants to hear from companies that can adapt to multiple “vendor agnostic compatible materials” and components with minimal reconfiguration.

Air Force Establishes Branch to Develop GPS Alternatives

BLUF: The Air Force recently established an organization to field new technologies that can provide positioning, navigation and timing alternatives to GPS.

The Assured and Alternate PNT Branch is a hybrid organization between the service’s Military Code Aviation Receivers Joint Program Office and AFRL.
The new organization will be co-located with PNT and navigation warfare experts at AFRL “so that they can teach some of our engineers about technology, and we can identify from a JPO perspective which things are ready to get fielded into the fusion boxes that we’re going to be fielding over the next two years.”

Our Take: We have recommended for years to push tighter integration between researchers and acquirers (for military specific tech). Our approach was to pull the researchers into the program office, but this seems to take the other option of going to AFRL.

Space Command Identifies Capabilities It Needs for the Next Space War

BLUF: Space Command has ranked offensive space capabilities and systems for countering proliferated low Earth orbit constellations as its two highest priority needs for fiscal years 2029 through 2033.

The list puts what Whiting called “integrated space fires” and “counter-pLEO” capabilities first and second.
- Integrated Space Fires refers broadly to the ability to produce military effects against adversary space capabilities.
- Counter pLEO is IDing ways to disrupt the function of an entire satellite network rather than attacking large numbers of spacecraft individually.
Those are followed by joint integrated space command and control; dedicated space domain awareness for space engagements; and sustained space maneuver.
The Integrated Priorities List is Space Command’s assessment of capability gaps based on emerging threats, planned Pentagon investments and technologies under development.

“We’re a combatant command and we fight to win wars. To win, we need credible, acknowledged, kinetic and non-kinetic fires. They are a key component of how we establish space superiority and restore credible deterrence.”
“The reason we’re highlighting counter proliferated low Earth orbit is because we see a gap right now. So, we are asking industry, we are asking research and development firms, the government labs, to please put their time, effort and attention into this problem area. I don’t want any U.S. forces to be put at risk because somebody else might have a proliferated low Earth orbit constellation that could find, fix a track and target them, for example.”
Gen Whiting

Related Articles:

Laser Weapons for Space? US Officials See Threat, Opportunity

BLUF: As the Pentagon and other militaries rush to deploy large satellite constellations designed to be less susceptible to kinetic attack, US military officials responsible see laser weapons as both a future threat and an opportunity.

ASATs are impractical so searching for node vulnerabilities to take down proliferated constellations is going to be key.
Directed-energy weapons provide new “opportunities” for counterspace operations to be executed affordably and at scale.
The Space Force over the past couple of years has increasingly been voicing concern about Chinese and Russian development of laser ASAT systems.
With regard to cyber weapons, it was noted that already the Navy’s component to SPACECOM integrates cyber and space operations in a way that “is very powerful.”
Targeting communications hubs and satellite ground stations is yet another way to cheaply and efficiently disrupt or disable proliferated constellations.

Our Take: It makes sense and our adversaries are likely already targeting us but there is some fear of escalation here. If SPACECOM is seen to focus on those vulnerabilities, adversaries may also double down and it’s unclear who has more risk.

Space: The Next Frontier for Maneuver Warfare

BLUF: The Space Warfighting framework formally declares a shift in U.S. policy toward treating space as a complex and contested warfighting domain.

Gen Whiting has directly stated that a satellite locked into a predictable orbit is not a strategic asset; it is a target.
His call for a formal maneuver warfare strategy, which Space Command is developing under a wargaming program known as the Apollo Maneuvers, is a generational shift in how DoW intends to operate in space.
This cogent argument is supported by accelerating advances in technology and logistics that will make orbital maneuver possible.
However, the current discussion tends to underemphasize what is arguably the most operationally consequential challenge: space-generated data is simply not useful without a sound communications infrastructure connecting maneuvering spacecraft to each other and military commanders tasked with decision-making.
Operationally, maneuver warfare requires real-time situational awareness, low-latency command and control and near-real time redirection of information flows as conditions change.
New advanced commercial satellites can provide an assured communications backbone using space relay services that connect military or 3^rd party satellites to space-based networks, so data securely reaches commanders on the ground.
Fundamentally, maneuverability in space is not only about propellant and on-orbit servicing. It is about the sustained, assured information flow across vast battlespace that spans every orbit and geographic theater simultaneously.

Our Take: 100%. Timely data and decision analytics will determine if space commanders can respond in a military useful way or stuck in limbo trying to understand what is happening and formulating how to respond.

Space Command to Host Live-Fly Advanced Maneuver Exercise

BLUF: Space Command is preparing to host a live-fly exercise in the coming weeks to test advanced maneuver concepts that will inform its strategy for dynamic operations in orbit.

The exercise is part of SPACECOM’s Apollo Maneuvers, a demonstration series Whiting unveiled in January aimed at refining tactics and ultimately informing future maneuver warfare doctrine.
The effort is linked to Operation Olympic Defender—a partnership between seven countries to better integrate space operations and data sharing among allies.
Whiting previously told reporters that SPACECOM would coordinate Apollo Maneuvers events to coincide with on-orbit logistics and refueling demonstrations the Space Force plans to run this year and next.

Space Kinetic Awarded $50M for Space Maneuverability

BLUF: Space Kinetic announced a $50M OTA award from the Space Force to develop Whirlwind—its space maneuverability and deployment system.

Whirlwind flings small, ruggedized microsatellites from a host spacecraft at high velocities—without firing a thruster.
The microsatellites carry their own propulsion and comms, but Whirlwind provides the majority of the initial Delta-V electromechanically, sidestepping the rocket equation.
Bringing drone economics to orbit means payloads need to be cheap, responsive, and attritable.
By decoupling the payload from the space vehicle, Space Kinetic aims to shift the burden of maneuver from the payloads to the host—minimizing mass, cost, and complexity.

Space Force Orders Two More Impulse Space Vehicles for Maneuvering Demonstrations

BLUF: Space Force has added $28M to an existing contract with Impulse Space to provide two more maneuverable spacecraft for tactically responsive space missions, in an effort to give military operators faster options for responding to activity in orbit.

The contract modification will fund Victus Salo 2 and 3, which will use Impulse’s Mira spacecraft to host government-provided payloads for missions in LEO.
Victus Salo is part of the Space Force’s broader Tactically Responsive Space, or TacRS, effort to shorten the time needed to deploy and operate spacecraft.

Related Articles:

Firefly’s SciTec Awarded $94M Space Force Contract to Advance Ground-Based Radar Digitization Program

BLUF: SciTec, a Firefly Aerospace company, has been awarded a $93.7M FFP OT for ground-based radar digitization. This contract provides for modernization efforts to create a common architecture and design for the upgrade of ground-based radars.

Bipartisan Senate Bill Would Sharpen Space Force Training for Conflict with China

BLUF: Two Senators have introduced bipartisan legislation that would direct the Pentagon to strengthen the Space Force’s preparation for a potential conflict with China by expanding training, wargaming and simulation while requiring a new public assessment of Beijing’s commercial space sector.

The Space Superiority Readiness Act would require DoW to expand the Space Force’s capacity to conduct wargaming, modeling and simulation of peer conflicts in space and develop training programs focused on the tactics, techniques and procedures needed for space control operations.
The legislation also calls for an unclassified report to Congress on China’s commercial space capabilities and their potential military applications within 180 days of enactment.
The measure comes as the Space Force increasingly emphasizes preparing guardians for combat operations in orbit rather than solely operating satellites that support military forces on Earth.
The service has been developing its Operational Test and Training Infrastructure, or OTTI, a network of simulators, live training ranges, adversary representations and distributed environments intended to allow Guardians to train against realistic threats without relying on operational satellites.

Our Take: This is desperately needed as the training of the past has not kept pace with space operations especially not those operations that will be required in the future.

SpaceX Increasing Footprint in Missile Defense

BLUF: SpaceX is no longer simply the Pentagon’s dominant launch provider but is also becoming a central supplier of the satellite networks and communications infrastructure underpinning the military’s next-generation missile defense architecture.

As more missile defense functions migrate into space, more of the Pentagon investment is flowing to companies whose roots are in the commercial space sector, led by SpaceX.
The Space Force awarded SpaceX a $2.29B contract to build the initial backbone of the Space Data Network, a secure, high-capacity communications architecture in LEO to move data among military sensors, command systems and weapons.
The service expects a fully operational prototype by the end of 2027, an aggressive schedule that favored a company with an existing satellite platform, optical communications network and high-rate production capability.
The Space Force selected SpaceX for a separate $4.16B contract to build the initial constellation for its space-based Airborne Moving Target Indicator program.
The satellites are intended to provide persistent tracking of aircraft and other airborne targets from orbit, shifting a mission traditionally performed by surveillance aircraft into space.
The Space Force also placed an order worth $1.6B for 18 Falcon 9 launches under National Security Space Launch Phase 3 Lane 1 to deploy satellites supporting its Space-Based Sensing and Targeting portfolio through the end of 2027.
By grouping the Space Data Network and AMTI contracts under the same national security business, the company signaled that it sees those programs as part of a common military architecture rather than separate procurements.
Space Force officials have said they intend to field modular architectures supported by multiple suppliers. But near-term acquisition decisions emphasize mature technology, lower nonrecurring engineering costs and delivery schedules measured in months rather than years.
The Space Force last week announced contracts totaling $615M to Rocket Lab, Systems & Technology Research and a third undisclosed company as part of a second task order under the AMTI program.

“The core focus of this second task order is diversifying our capabilities and ensuring we don’t rely on a single technical solution. The additional companies are intended to explore fundamentally different ways of accomplishing the mission while preserving long-term competition as the architecture evolves.” - Ryan Frazier, PAE Space-Based Sensing and Targeting

Our Take: This is the right approach. Field what’s available within a modular architecture and build the competition pipeline to minimize vendor lock in any one area but allow other players to mature and compete for future work - while also getting capability to the warfighter fast.

Space Force Taps 5 Companies for Space Data Network Connectivity Demos

BLUF: Space Force has contracted five vendors to demonstrate that its future mega-constellation can effectively share information between systems owned by different companies.

Each contractor will receive $12M under a set of OT agreements that will fund work for two related efforts.
Together, the deals are intended to lay the groundwork to field optical laser communication terminals for the service’s planned Space Data Network (SDN) architecture.
The five companies selected are Amazon LEO for Government, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Rocket Lab and York Space Systems — all of which are part of the Space Force’s SDN industry consortium.
The service wants to field the Space Data Network as a hybrid architecture, with both military-owned and commercial payloads built by different companies.

“The new prototyping and demonstration deals are intended to validate the Space Force’s multi-vendor approach. We have to break away from the old way of doing business, which too often locked the government into single-source vendors for decades. By investing in standardized interfaces now, we are creating a clear runway for any capable and innovative company to come in and compete. It keeps the playing field level and ensures we can constantly bring the best commercial technology to our missions.” Brig Gen Ryan Frazier, PAE SBST

Rocket Lab Corporation Announces Progress on Iridium Acquisition

BLUF: Rocket Lab Corporation, a global leader in launch services and space systems, announced substantial milestones in connection with its previously announced proposed acquisition of Iridium Communications.

The waiting period under the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, in connection with its pending acquisition of Iridium expired on August 12.
Rocket Lab also today filed its Registration Statement on Form S-4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which represents a substantial step in the process toward completing the proposed transaction.
As part of its financing strategy, Rocket Lab announced today that, together with Iridium, it intends to seek certain amendments to Iridium’s existing term loan credit facility with an aggregate amount of $1.775B.

Astranis Unveils Perceptor, an SDA Product for GEO

BLUF: The company announced Perceptor, an SDA and maneuverability platform designed to operate in higher—and strategically important—orbits, including GEO.

The announcement comes just three months after Astranis brought in a whopping $450M+ in new funding, including a $300M Series E.
Perceptor will be built on Astranis’ MicroGEO satellite platform, which the company already uses in-orbit for communications missions however, it will carry extra hardware for its mission, including:
- A suite of sensors to help with everything from determining the capabilities of adversary spacecraft, to providing details about anomalies on allied sats.
- Propulsion hardware to maneuver throughout GEO more than a dozen times in one mission.
- The ability to operate with other spacecraft as part of a constellation.

Department of War Launches the Golden Dome for America Hub To Accelerate Industry Engagement

BLUF: The Golden Dome for America office announced the official launch of the “Golden Dome for America Ecosystem Hub” (the Hub), a digital platform designed to streamline collaboration between DoW and the commercial technology sector.

Accessible immediately at hub.goldendome.mil.
The Hub serves as a unified entry point for traditional defense contractors, commercial tech companies, venture capitalists, academic institutions, research laboratories, and nontraditional entrepreneurs.
Key capabilities and features of the Hub include:
- Direct Engagement and Rapid Submissions: Traditional and nontraditional innovators can easily register, upload concepts, and submit designs directly to program decision-makers, bypassing months of administrative delays.
- Transparent Demand Signals: The Hub provides real-time, unclassified visibility into the immediate capability gaps of the Golden Dome program, allowing the private sector to align investment and R&D with active mission requirements.

If Funding Falters, ‘There’s No Golden Dome,’ Guetlein Warns

BLUF: Work on the Golden Dome national air defense shield could come to a grinding halt in October if lawmakers do not figure out a way to continue funding for the presidential initiative, the general in charge of the massive project warned.

Guetlein’s comments come as lawmakers are preparing for the upcoming midterm elections and grappling with just how to fund DoW in FY27.
Part of that challenge revolves around the White House’s strategic gamble when it asked for $1.5T for in FY27 by splitting it into two pots — $1.15T trillion in the base request and an additional $350B in a reconciliation request.
The Pentagon wants to spend some $17.5B on Golden Dome in FY27, but less than $400M of that total is found in the base budget, leaving a vast majority of the funding tied to the fate of reconciliation.
Pentagon leaders are looking at possible avenues to reshuffle FY27 funds to keep Golden Dome work going.

“There are discussions within the department about how to go forward because we have diversified execution of a lot of these capabilities, and a lot of these capabilities are already requested by combatant commands. There are some alternatives that we can pursue. We have not made any decisions on any pathway. If Golden Dome is not able to continue to invest in those type of capabilities, then the Space Force could decide at that time to continue the investments.” Gen Guetlein

Related Articles:

Space-Based Interceptor Contractors Passed First Golden Dome Milestone

BLUF: The Golden Dome DRPM said that the 12 contenders for future space-based interceptor (SBI) development contracts have passed the first of four milestones in the Space Force’s demonstration effort.

There are four “gates” under SSC’s unusual prized-based SBI competition.
The arrangement requires industry competitors to self-fund prototype development and demonstrations of space-based weapons that can neutralize enemy missiles, in hopes of winning small pots of prize money along the way.
- Gate 1 is to get the design in place and do component level testing.
- Gate 2 is to build a capability that can go into outer space.
- Gate 3 is to prove that that capability works in outer space.
- Gate 4 is to prove that the capability actually works as part of the broader Golden Dome architecture
The demonstration competition covers three flavors of SBIs for hitting adversary ballistic and hypersonic missiles, both nuclear and conventional:
- boost-phase endo-atmospheric interceptors for hitting incoming missiles within the Earth’s atmosphere shortly after launch;
- exo-atmospheric interceptors, to knock them down a little later after they have left the atmosphere; and,
- mid-course interceptors, designed to strike when the adversary missiles are partially through their flight path.

ICBM Killer Passes Two Key Tests Ahead of Design Review

BLUF: Lockheed Martin’s new ICBM killer, ordered two years ago to supersede the oft-troubled GMD interceptor, hit two major milestones this week and is expected to clear the design phase later this year.

Lockheed Martin announced that they had successfully fired its stage 2 rocket motor in a static test.
NGI should clear the critical design review, or CDR, phase by the end of this year.
In 2024, the Missile Defense Agency awarded Lockheed Martin an $18B contract to design and build the Next Generation Interceptor.

U.S. Must Fuse Missile Warning and Defense to Defeat Future Threats

BLUF: The U.S. needs to change the way it tracks and defends against future missile threats. The need to do so comes as changes in missile technology are moving faster than the current defeat system can keep up with.

The U.S. military has space-based early warning sensors that are integrated into its existing sensing, and has been for decades. But these warn of launches, they generally don’t track a weapon throughout its flight cycle.
The SDA is developing a number of missile-tracking satellites as part of their tranches that they’re launching. The MDA, meanwhile, has “a long history of integrating battle management.
Those two together are really helping Space Command take separate disparate stovepipe information and bring it together.
The reason to make this change is that “we have to make these decisions faster, and that data flow has to be able to enable our layered defenses – whether that’s coming from a THAAD, a Patriot, or directed energy, or SM-3, or space-based interceptors in the future – it is going to be dependent on our decision speed.

“Historically, if you start from the high end here, missile defense and missile warning were operating on separate and distinct stovepipe networks. Missile warning, of course, was going to detect a launch and let people know something’s coming inbound and see a duck and cover and whatnot, and missile defenders were looking to get a little bit more fidelity in their track and be able to shoot down an incoming missile. But today we don’t really have any ballistic missiles. Everything is maneuvering. Everything is complex, and so we can’t provide warning without providing a lot more observations on these missiles.”
Lt. Gen. Rick Zellman

Army Selects Air Defense Unit to Prepare for Golden Dome Mission

BLUF: An Army unit has been picked to begin training and testing out plans for the Pentagon’s Golden Dome air defense mission.

“It’s a battalion-size formation that will be the Army’s initial contribution to [Golden Dome], but there will be elements from other echelons that’ll have to play a role in that.” Lt. Gen. John Rafferty, Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC) and Joint Task Force-Gold (JTF-Gold) Commander

MDA Pursuing Mobile Radar to Detect and Track Hypersonic Missiles, Other Advanced Threats

BLUF: MDA issued a presolicitation Monday for a new highly mobile, rapidly deployable sensor system that could help the U.S. military detect and track hypersonic missiles and other advanced airborne threats.

The Forward-Based Mode (FBM) Radar Next initiative is being spearheaded by MDA’s Mobile Land-Based Sensors Project Office, which aims to prototype the technology.
Notably, officials want to create a system that can be quickly transitioned into mass production amid growing threats in the air domain.
As adversarial missile capabilities become increasingly sophisticated, the need for agile, survivable, and highly precise forward-based sensors has increased.
Current static or semi-mobile radars are vulnerable to counterattacks and lack the rapid relocation capabilities necessary for modern distributed operations.
FBM Radar Next will close this gap by providing a system that can be quickly transported, set up, and operated in austere forward locations while maintaining interoperability with existing C2BMC networks.
The new mobile radar must be transportable via C-17 military airlift and tactical ground vehicles, and provide high-sensitivity detection, persistent tracking and precise discrimination of advanced threats in “high-clutter and contested electromagnetic environments.”
Other technical objectives and requirements include flexible aperture configuration and open systems architecture, as well as physical, thermal and electromagnetic signatures that are engineered to enhance survivability.

U.S. Not Prepared to Handle Drone Attack from Inside Homeland: Deputy NORAD Commander

BLUF: The deputy commander of United States Northern Command (NORTHCOM) was asked if he could defend against an attack by a swarm of drones in the homeland. His reply was blunt and chilling: “No.”

Gen Jarrard’s statements were a sharp admission by a U.S. military leader of a number of interconnected gaps, including the lack of domain awareness over the homeland.
He was also raising other concerns we have often highlighted, like having the right systems in place to take drones down once they are detected and the proper authority to use them when needed.
In particular, near-field attacks like Operation Spiderweb pose a huge threat and one that would be hard to stop once it began.
Compared to a combat theater, there are fewer defenses and far less surveillance, let alone similar alert levels, at sensitive installations all over the U.S.

“We don’t have the sensors, and depending on where that swarm is going to attack, it depends on whether we have any sensors at all, and also on whether we’ve got any effectors to go after that problem. So, we are ill-equipped right now to handle something like that, and obviously we’ve seen it used. We’re seeing it used on a daily basis around the world, and we’ve got to figure out how to mitigate that threat, but we’re not there yet.” Lt. Gen. Joseph Jarrard

U.S. Expands Missile Production as Army Seeks More Depth in its Arsenal

BLUF: The Pentagon is pressing defense contractors to increase production of missile interceptors as recent conflicts expose a longstanding weakness in air and missile defense: inventories of the most capable weapons can be depleted faster than industry can replace them.

Army leaders say increasing production is only part of the answer.
Last week, the department announced multibillion-dollar agreements to increase output of PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense interceptors and components.
Those actions follow a $1B Pentagon investment in L3Harris Technologies intended in part to expand solid rocket motor capacity.
The production push addresses the immediate problem of replenishing inventories.
But military planners have long argued that a force built around sophisticated interceptors such as PAC-3 MSE and THAAD can face an unfavorable cost and inventory equation if those weapons are used against every type of threat.
THAAD, for example, provides a high-altitude layer of ballistic-missile defense that can’t simply be replaced by a cheaper short-range system.
Patriot generally operates lower in the battlespace. Together they give commanders multiple opportunities to engage an incoming missile.

“The future of missile defense is a mix of high end and lower cost interceptors. We’re not really in the quantity business, we’re more in the consumption business” Lt. Gen. John Rafferty

Our Take: This is why we need a serious Low-Cost Interceptor program that is well funded and has high prioritization from the Department.

CENTCOM Creates First ‘Multinational’ Attack Drone Task Force After Months of War with Iran

BLUF: With the Iran war in its sixth month and unmanned systems having played a defining role in the conflict, CENTCOM said it was launching a new drone task force.

Task Force Falcon Strike will use air, surface and sub-sea one-way attack drones.
This will be conducted alongside regional partners, that the command said it was still in the process of “consulting and officially inviting” to the new unit.
The announcement comes months after CENTCOM launched Task Force Scorpion Strike, a separate drone squadron known for its use of the LUCAS, which the U.S. reverse-engineered from an Iranian UAS.

How a Drone ‘Hellscape’ Might Stop a Chinese Invasion of Taiwan

BLUF: To repel any future Chinese invasion, Taiwan is building fleets of flying drones and unmanned attack boats. The goal is to use them to help locate and attack Chinese forces approaching the island, relying on Taiwanese soldiers trained to move quickly before China can strike them.

U.S. commanders who developed this strategy call it a “hellscape”: overwhelming an invading force with waves of drones, missiles and artillery, and making an amphibious assault so risky that China’s leaders are deterred from trying.
Inspired by lessons from Ukraine and other recent war zones, Taiwan is now accelerating efforts to put that strategy into practice.
Taiwan faces a particularly urgent threat: China, which is roughly 110 miles away, claims the self-governed island as its territory. Chinese leaders say they want to absorb Taiwan peacefully but will not rule out using force.
Aiming to make the island a drone superpower, the government says it wants Taiwan to make 100,000 drones a month by 2030, with around half exported.
It also wants the military to acquire over 210,000 flying and seaborne drones.
For Taiwan, acquiring the drones may be the straightforward part.
To master drone warfare, Taiwan must also retool its military organization, training and doctrine. It must learn to operate swarms of drones, rapidly assess and share the intelligence they provide and prevent an enemy from disabling them.
This will require troops to be more mobile and self-sustaining.
Taiwan also recently created a Littoral Combat Command, integrating drones, mobile missiles and artillery into a coastal shield against a Chinese invasion.
In the first three months of 2026, Taiwan exported drones worth $115 million, exceeding its total drone exports for all of 2025.

America is Sailing Through the Taiwan Strait Less. Does It Matter?

BLUF: In December 2025, high-intensity Chinese military exercises around Taiwan featured a mock comprehensive air and naval blockade of the island. Weeks later, US naval vessels entered the Taiwan Strait to carry out the first naval transit of 2026.

While the transit provided reassurance to some regional capitals, especially Taipei, it remains the only publicly declared transit the US Navy has initiated in the Taiwan Strait this year, and one of only three since the start of this administration.
That marks a substantial decrease from prior years, which — at a time when Chinese military coercion has intensified — raises some serious concerns.
In contrast, current rates project only 14 publicly reported transits for the entirety of Trump 2.0 — in what would amount to a 50 percent decline from Trump 1.0 and a 56 percent decline from the Biden administration.
If America’s presence in one of the world’s most contested waterways is quietly fading, the strategic ramifications could be serious.
Transits give the US Navy practical experience navigating the Strait and if there is a prolonged decline in Taiwan Strait transits, the U.S. will lose that operating experience and it could possibly embolden Beijing to pursue coercive, illegal and destabilizing military activities with greater confidence.
The severing of undersea cables and lately the unlawful stops and inspections of Taiwanese vessels are part of Beijing’s “salami-slicing” tactics aimed at draining the vigilance of Taiwan’s government.
Some observers posit that the dip since the start of Trump 2.0 is the result of the US Navy engaging in “silent transits,” in which the Pentagon declines to publicize passages to dampen tensions with Beijing.

Cambridge Aerospace Raises $300M at a $3.4B Valuation

BLUF: UK-based defense hotshot Cambridge Aerospace announced that it’s raised a $300M Series C at a $3.4B valuation.

Cambridge’s central thesis is pretty simple: The team set out to build interceptors that were cheap enough (and quick enough to produce) to match a Shahed or a Geran. As we all know by now, it is stupid to waste a Patriot on a $50K drone.
So far, the company’s building two main platforms:
- Skyhammer: A “high subsonic interceptor” designed to take down moderate-speed threats. Skyhammer flies at 700km/h and has a range of about 30 km. This mini-missile is in production and on contract with the MoD.
- Starhammer: A high-speed rocket-powered interceptor designed to take down more “high-speed, high-value threats” like cruise missiles. Starhammer will fly at Mach 2 with a range of about 10 km. This larger interceptor is at TRL 3-4 with flight tests planned for the back half of this year.

The Defence Startup That Should Have Succeeded

Willem Mulock Houwer

Our Take: Read the whole post as it presents an interesting scenario that all acquisition professionals need to take into account as they engage with maturing vendors.

Chinese Army Drones Target USVs in Exercises

BLUF: The People’s Liberation Army Ground Force trained last week to use armed drones against unmanned surface vessels.

A Chinese military media post highlighted the armed KVD002 unmanned combat aerial vehicles engaging fast moving drone boats with missiles.
The footage depicted at least 13 drones attached to the PLA’s ground force unit.
In recent years, UCAVs have been deployed by the U.S. and Ukraine to strike small craft, fast boats and drones in the Caribbean, Black Sea and the Middle East.
The service’s growing drone force – as well as missile launchers equipped with specialized long-range munitions – can aid Beijing’s efforts during a potential invasion or blockade of the island.
American allies in the region have also eyed the utility of unmanned assets to asymmetrically counter Chinese naval forces.
Tokyo views USVs as a key component of its broader unmanned defensive plans.
In the South China Sea, the Philippine Navy is actively operating American-made and funded USVs to monitor Chinese forces operating around disputed maritime features. It is set to receive armed drones from the U.S. asymmetric capabilities program in 2027.

China’s Long March 7A Rocket Explodes 85 Seconds After Liftoff, Losing ChinaSat-4B

BLUF: A Long March 7A rocket broke apart shortly after liftoff Monday, destroying a communications satellite and ending China’s latest orbital mission. The failure occurred before the rocket could complete its initial powered flight.

Some spaceflight observers have suggested the flight termination system may have destroyed the rocket. Such systems can end a mission when a vehicle becomes unsafe or deviates significantly from its planned trajectory.

Other International News:

How Congress Is Reshaping the Administration’s FY27 Budget

BLUF: Three of the four House and Senate committees have marked up the defense spending proposal. None addressed the White House's proposal to spend $350B through reconciliation, though discussions are underway for a smaller package that could include money sought in a supplemental request for operations in Iran and other priorities.

Even without reconciliation, all the budget proposals released by congressional defense committees so far sign off on a $1.1T discretionary budget request, which is around $242B more than the FY26 base budget and $91B more than the total FY26 enacted level.
The administration’s efforts to quickly increase production of munitions, drones, and missile defenses, among other priorities, may have to be tempered.
The GOP has been working on a smaller reconciliation bill that includes $60 billion for the Pentagon. If adopted, that funding would primarily support initiatives contained in the Iran war supplemental request, particularly munitions replenishment.

See our NDAA and budget posts for the latest insights and analysis.

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Headlines: Acquiring Drones, Counter UxS Faster

Pete Modigliani — Sat, 08 Aug 2026 19:49:03 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

The biggest stories across the Department and the defense industry this week:

JIATF-401 rolls out a Counter UAS Marketplace
DoD focuses on factories and critical mineral strategic investments
There are many new PAEs and new calls to reassess pending AI rule
The Army breaks out the big guns and pursues new c-UAS solutions.
The Navy drives software updates to stay ahead of the tech/threat curve.
Air Force progressing fast on F-47 and exploring options for new MQ-9
Space Force needs to avoid space version of the Hormuz situation.
China continues improvements on J-36 and Australia buy JATM missiles
Congress advances continuing resolutions before leaving town.

JIATF-401 Rolls Out Amazon-Style Counter-Drone Marketplace

BLUF: JIATF-401 counter drone task force is taking a page out of Amazon’s book and building Prime for the primes and startups. Today, they officially unveiled an online marketplace for companies to submit and list the latest and greatest in counter-drone tech and for government customers (both US and allied) to see what’s on offer, evaluate it, and buy it.

C-UAS Marketplace

The marketplace was developed by NYC-based software startup Kaizen in “less than nine weeks under a $15M prototype OTA contract awarded by JIATF-401.
It went live a week and a half ago, and we’ll continue to bring on more partner nations and a ton more vendors to the system.
Kaizen has raised $35M from Accel, NEA, a16z’s American Dynamism practice, and others, including a $25M Series A last October.
Taproot is Kaizen’s global library of compliance-engineered building blocks that we believe can help make any constituent service far better than it currently is—forms, marketplaces, permits, applications, reporting, payments, scheduling, and more.
Blacksmith is an Agentic AI-assisted harness that rapidly configures those building blocks to any new mission set” that they work with the government on.
So far, a handful of drone orders have been placed through the platform, but it’s still “largely in testing with administrators to make sure that the orders are coming through and they’re being adjudicated correctly. But even in the early stages, users are fired up about it.
Anduril, SmartShooter, DroneShield, AeroVironment—all of these vendors that are publishing their products already to the marketplace…have given us extremely strong feedback about how simple it was to get onboarded and go through the vendor onboarding experience

"JIATF-401 remains focused on delivering the right counter-UAS capabilities to the right users at the right time. Our revolutionary marketplace, powered through our partnership with industry, creates a streamlined, trusted pathway for the Joint force, domestic law enforcement, and our international partners to rapidly discover and acquire validated technologies." MAJ Mike Hapner, C-UAS marketplace lead for JIATF-401.

Our take: This is precisely the kind of commercial-style marketplace the DoW needs to scale across every major portfolio. By leveraging OTAs and commercial software to create trusted, two-sided platforms for discovery, validation, and rapid purchase, JIATF-401 is operationalizing the commercial preference in a way that lowers barriers for both primes and startups while putting capability in operators’ hands faster. PAEs should stand up similar marketplaces for UAS, EW, autonomy, munitions, and software-defined systems, paired with recurring competitions and real user feedback. Done right, these become the competitive engines that harness private capital and deliver the speed and scale the threat environment demands.

SOUTHCOM Establishes Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere

BLUF: SOUTHCOM activated Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere yesterday, a purpose-built, joint task force that will synchronize U.S. military operations with allies and partners to counter threats, strengthen regional security and respond rapidly to crises across the hemisphere.

The task force provides unified C2 at the tactical and operational levels and integrates military capabilities with the 18 partner nations of the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition.
It will increase SOUTHCOM operational effectiveness against threats that undermine regional security and impact the United States and partner nations, while also strengthening the command's ability to respond quickly to contingencies and humanitarian crises throughout the region.

"JTF-WHEM strengthens our ability to work alongside trusted allies and partners, synchronize military capabilities and apply sustained pressure against the networks that threaten our collective security. Together, we are increasing security across the hemisphere and protecting our homeland." GEN Francis Donovan, SOUTHCOM Commander

Defense Tech Investors Thought the War in Iran Could Make Them Millionaires. Instead, They Faced a Wall Street Bloodbath

BLUF: Despite continued conflict and historic levels of defense spending requested by the Pentagon, investors betting on a defense windfall have watched many top contractors lose value.

Trading volumes in major defense contractors surged in the conflict’s opening days—rising for some as much as 140% above their average level since 2025, but the gains didn’t last.
Northrop Grumman is now down over 30%, L3Harris has fallen over 20%, and Lockheed Martin declined nearly 13%. RTX was at one point down 18%, but has since recovered to up 4%.

The good news was already priced in. Investors are hunting for the industry’s next payday are waiting to see whether higher defense budgets actually translate into new contracts, faster production, and stronger earnings—or whether political and economic pressures slow long-term momentum.
Many of the defense players are entering the second half of the year on strong footing thanks to enlarged order books.
In the first quarter of 2026 alone, venture capital firms deployed a record $19.8B into defense tech across 262 deals.
Companies like Anduril (whose valuation recently doubled to $61B), Shield AI ($12.5B), and Saronic ($9.25B) are among Silicon Valley’s fastest-growing defense startups.
Yet contract dollars to the 15 highest-valued defense-tech startups tripled between FY22-25 accounted for <1% of all DoD contracting dollars

“Investor alpha is most likely gained when investments are made before wars and before legislated funding, not after a war has begun, become unpopular, or when associated plus-ups are in doubt,” Mike Derrios, GMU Baroni Center Exec Director

Our Take: This piece is more hype than analysis, but it shows the traditional primes reverting to their long-term straight-line growth trajectory after a bout of investor euphoria during the war with Iran. We’ll examine traditional versus non-traditional players in an upcoming piece; for now, defense-tech companies still capturing just 1% pose no real threat to the primes.

XQ-58 Valkyrie Drones With Built-In Landing Gear Are Now In Production

BLUF: Kratos has built the first landing gear-equipped versions of its stealthy XQ-58 Valkyrie drone, with several additional examples now in various stages of construction. The company is also still producing XQ-58s designed for rocket-assisted takeoffs via static launchers, and Valkyrie production is ramping up overall. Both types offer certain advantages in different operational scenarios.

The rocket-assisted takeoff (RATO) and landing gear-equipped conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) versions of the Valkyrie are the two main known configurations of the design.
The RATO type, which first flew in 2019, also lands via parachute. Kratos has also developed a special launch trolley that allows RATO Valkyries to conduct runway takeoffs, though they still land using the parachute recovery system.
Valkyrie is a highly modular design with an open mission systems architecture intended to be readily configurable to meet customer needs.
RATO XQ-58s can carry up to 1,200 pounds of stores in their internal centerline bay, as well as payloads weighing up to 600 pounds on a single hardpoint under each wing.

US Tech Helps USV Conduct Search Mission, Spot Target Autonomously

BLUF: Shield AI and Taiwan’s Thunder Tiger have successfully completed the first demonstration of Hivemind-enabled multi-asset autonomous maritime teaming in Taiwan. This marks a significant milestone in the evolution of AI-driven naval operations.

The demonstration showcased how multiple unmanned maritime systems can operate collaboratively with minimal human intervention, highlighting the growing role of AIin modern defense.
The exercise featured Shield AI’s Hivemind, an AI-powered autonomy software that enables unmanned platforms to navigate, coordinate, and execute missions without relying on continuous GPS connectivity or human control.
During the trial, several autonomous maritime assets worked together as a coordinated team, demonstrating intelligent decision-making and real-time mission execution in a challenging operational environment.
the demonstration is the first step in a broader collaboration with Thunder Tiger aimed at integrating Hivemind across the Taiwanese company’s portfolio of unmanned systems.
The partnership focuses on improving autonomous capabilities for USVs and expanding coordinated operations across multiple domains in the future.

The Pentagon Can Build Killer Drones. It Needs to Move Faster

John Ferrari and Dillon Prochnick

BLUF: The Pentagon is moving too slow owing to funding, procurement, organizational, and oversight systems that are poorly suited to fielding and continuously updating the most decisive capability on the modern battlefield.

If the U.S. neglects to develop them proactively, it risks having to develop them reactively in a crisis, with far less time to conform with our ethical standards.
What happens to a force that has to disperse to survive when you knock out its ability to coordinate and sustain action?
Cheap sensors and precision strike options are disrupting the American way of war.
Sanctuaries for American forces to operate near the conflict are gone and the concentrated bases that remain are vulnerable targets.
The Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps all have distributed operations concepts that internalize the dilemma: disperse or die. Dispersed forces strain already-taxed command and sustainment networks.
Humans make mistakes when exhausted and scared. The real questions is not whether machines will be flawless. It is whether they can perform certain functions reliably and at lower cost.
Acquiring drones requires the flexible, multi-year funding already requested in the FY27 budget to be dispersed in a competitive process to groups of soldiers and sailors mixed with civilian engineers, materials scientists, and software engineers, stood up inside the services and command headquarters that face most sharply the operational problem.
Autonomy needs both protected space to grow and rivalry so that losers can be culled.
Responsible autonomous targeting should be bounded.
Moving imperfectly will be less risky than not moving. The best way to protect civilians’ lives and prosperity is to deter conflict.
The technology will arrive either way. The real open question is whether the United States or its adversaries decides what it does. Does the U.S. develop the systems of the future on its terms in advance where we can set appropriate guardrails and train our forces to use them or is it forced to react in a crisis?

Read John and Dillon’s full report Killer Drones: Ready or Not, Here They Come

Our Take: John and Dillon are spot on. Detractors and hand-wringers seeking to slow U.S. drone dominance threaten our military edge. Valid concerns remain for the Department and industry to resolve, yet a slow-and-steady, risk-minimizing approach simply cedes competitive advantage to our adversaries. We must invest tens of billions to rapidly field drones across air, sea, undersea, and ground from innovative American companies, then exercise and experiment with them for swift integration into OPlans.

Where the Giants of Defense Tech Get Their Engineers.

The Arena

BLUF: The Arena traced the career history of every 2026 software-engineering hire at nine of defense tech's biggest names — 908 people, from Anduril and Palantir to Saronic — to see where the talent actually comes from. It isn't the primes, and it isn't the military.

SW Engineers hired: Anduril 258, Palantir 217, Scale AI 152, SpaceX 115, Applied Intuition 57, Shield AI 52, Saronic 34, Skydio 18, and Vannevar at 5
The come from Commercial tech 61%, Big Tech 18%, Academia 8%, Other defense startups 6%, Legacy primes 4%, Military/Gov 2%, and Neo-prime 1%.
They come from: Amazon 88, Microsoft 32, Meta 21, Google 17, and NG 13.
Anduril 9.3 years and Scale AI 8.7 hire more experienced while Palantir’s forward deployed engineers drive the average down to 5.1 years experience.
These companies rarely poach from each other - only 1.3%.

War Data Platform Integration Plans Under Scrutiny

BLUF: Concerns are mounting as new details slowly emerge about the government’s high-dollar core integration contract for the War Data Platform, formerly known as Advana, that Accenture Federal Services recently won.

Accenture Federal Service won an $821M task order to supply core integration support to the WDP and two weeks later the DoW reported CDAO with GSA tapped them to lead the complex military and data tech integration effort for an undisclosed amount.
One former official criticized this: The entire rationale for rebranding Advana into the War Data Platform was to shift toward real warfighter outcomes and mission impact. Selecting a traditional cost-plus consultancy, after 18 months of contrary administration guidance, with a mixed track record does not signal that shift.
The platform is billed as an ever-maturing asset that enables DOD to provide standardized, secure data access needed to run operational AI that can adequately inform commanders’ fast-paced combat decisions, enterprisewide and across its many disparate military components.
It powers advanced AI systems and agents by providing data and analytics products using more than 700 data sources.
EO 14402 and the Department’s own acquisition reform guidance are explicit about moving away from open-ended, cost-plus consulting arrangements toward firm fixed price, outcome-based, mission-focused contracts that protect taxpayers and reward measurable performance.
Instead, it defaulted to a traditional consulting model that prioritizes manual labor over efficiency and outcomes. That is not how you accelerate AI adoption — it is how you slow it down.

Pentagon appoints new Maven Smart System program director in fresh push for C2 integration

BLUF: CDAO appointed COL Molly Solsbury to serve as Maven Smart System program director. She is intended to further anchor MSS as a core operational cornerstone for C2 integration across the Department.

DoD has been hustling for years to realize its strategic vision for CJADC2. The overarching aim is to enable a network of networks that security links all of the military’s sensors, data, weapons and decision-makers across the services and combat domains.
Palantir’s widely-used platform Maven Smart System is emerging as a key operational asset for interoperable user interface powering the department’s foundational plans for CJADC2.
DEPSECWAR Feinberg issued a memo in March: Transitioning MSS to a POR will provide the stable funding and resourcing necessary for deliberate, sustained development and enterprise-wide integration to give our commanders the C2 necessary to fight and win wars.
The FY27 budget request includes >$1.5B to expand defense users’ access to Maven Smart System as part of Joint Force AI-Enabled Headquarters initiative.

The Factory Is the Product

Nadia Schadlow and Mislav Tolusic

BLUF: Congress is debating anew whether to add billions of dollars to next year’s defense budget. But just as important as how much to spend is what those additional dollars should buy.

For decades, the answer was ships, aircraft, tanks, and other platforms.
But an F-35 that does not have a steady supply of munitions is hardly a capability. A submarine awaiting critical spare parts cannot go out to sea and deter.
What matters is not simply the advanced platforms, but fielding capabilities that can be sustained, replenished, and adapted in combat.
The ability to surge, adapt, and manufacture at scale will increasingly determine military advantage.
We are in the midst of a fundamental realization: the factory is the product.
Our ability to achieve ADM Paparo’s vision of a hellscape of thousands of autonomous systems is highly questionable, today, that we can deliver.
Doing so requires an industrial base capable of producing enormous numbers of inexpensive systems—capabilities—at operational speed.
The FY26 NDAA expanded the Defense Industrial Base Fund to support investments in machine tools, castings and forgings, production modernization, and related industrial infrastructure and established the Civil Reserve Manufacturing Network (CRMN).
If the factory is the product, the question is no longer simply what equipment the Pentagon should buy, but what manufacturing assets it should own or incentivize so that industry can produce capabilities at whatever scale future conflicts require.
One way to broaden this approach and to draw in needed private capital is through a Capacity-as-a-Service (CaaS) model.
If the objective is to deliver continuously improving operational capabilities rather than a single platform, a CaaS model would reward industry for providing capability over time—not just a one-time production run of hardware.
Under CaaS, the DoW would pay contract manufacturers annual retainers to offer rapid production scaling—much like DoW pays commercial shippers to ensure adequate shipping capacity is available in case a contingency develops.
It also changes the economics of defense production. Instead of financing short production runs, companies can invest in scalable manufacturing methods, advanced tooling, and automation that lower costs and increase production rates over time.
Advantage will belong to the nation that can build factories as quickly as it builds weapons, continuously improve production, and translate commercial innovation into military capability. In this age of rapidly evolving warfare, factories are strategic assets.

Our Take: We fully agree. This requires deeper Department-Industry partnerships on production capacity, adaptability, resilience, and long-term strategic growth. We can no longer afford to lock in legacy systems for decades or disrupt industry and investors with highly unstable demand signals. As we note in our piece It’s Time for PMs to Own the Supply Chain, program managers, PAEs, and SAEs can serve as orchestrators for a portfolio of components.

Defense Execs Feel Good About Pentagon Spending Despite Uncertainty on FY27 Budget

BLUF: Defense primes have been attempting to soothe Wall Street’s anxieties surrounding the Pentagon’s uncertain outlook for a $1.5T budget in FY27, with executives pointing to sustained weapons demand as proof that a meaty defense budget will ultimately materialize.

Although RTX has signed off on initial framework deals for munitions like Tomahawk and AMRAAM, those deals are not yet built into the company’s backlog and financial expectations.
If reconciliation funding fails to materialize or is much smaller than anticipated, it could impede the Pentagon’s ability to move forward on multi-year munitions deals — which make up $47B of the reconciliation request.
It could also impact Golden Dome, where the Pentagon requested $17.1B in reconciliation dollars with only $400M for the program included in the base budget. The Pentagon also requested billions in reconciliation dollars for other key programs, like the Navy’s Landing Ship Medium and the F-35 JSF.
Lockheed believes the budget and regulatory environment will ultimately be influenced by a wide array of factors, including Congress, the US political landscape, macroeconomic factors and global threats.

“I know there’s lots of discussions on budget amounts and mechanics, but what I can tell you, as we engage with Congress, is there’s a bipartisan support for increased munitions and ramping in those areas, which are pretty core to our capabilities.” Chris Calio, RTX CEO
“We’re not dependent on significant supplemental or incremental funding above the base budget to drive that growth into 2027.” Kathy Warden, Northrop CEO
“I anticipate the highest defense budget in our country’s history and a supplemental budget that would fund multi-year munitions contracts.” Chris Kubasik, L3Harris CEO

New Initiatives at the DoW’s Office of Industrial Base Growth

Nadia Schadlow and Michael Dressler

USW(A&S) Office of Industrial Base Growth (IBG) has set the following goals:

In the short term, identify companies that have left, been unable to enter, or previously not had a place in the defense ecosystem.
In the medium term, help American companies remove Chinese suppliers from their production chains and minimize risk to the broader US DIB.
In the long term, cultivate a self-sustaining pipeline of domestic companies capable of competing at the prime level, reducing reliance on a small number of large primes.
IBG Initiatives
- LYNX is a platform with a streamlined website that enables new contractors to discover DoW contract opportunities, gain visibility across the defense industrial sector, understand the requirements their companies must meet, and receive individualized support for regulatory compliance.
- The Civil Reserve Manufacturing Network (CRMN) enables commercial manufacturers to voluntarily enter into agreements with the DoW.
- The 1260H List, Section 805, and Section 851 to reduce US reliance on Chinese inputs by working with other DoW organizations to identify domestic suppliers to replace inputs sourced from Chinese military-affiliated companies.
The modern US DIB has undergone drastic changes while experiencing cycles of expansion and contraction.
The industry has seen decades of contracting demand, large government-backed mergers and acquisitions, and the offshoring of manufacturing and processing capabilities, primarily to China, as the government supported globalization.
As a result, today the defense sector is hyper-consolidated and relatively undiversified.

Hadrian Valued at Nearly $8B After Fresh Funding as Money Pours Into Defense Tech

BLUF: Hadrian raised nearly $1.4B in new funding at a $7.9B valuation. The fresh funds will allow it to invest in its workforce and its Opus software platform.

Hadrian builds advanced factories for defense and aerospace companies and agencies.
Opus software is being used by the Army and Navy, and Hadrian will be announcing other defense primes soon.

“It enables us to make massive investments to scale our workforce, our software platform Opus that powers our factories, and frankly, get ahead of the massive amounts of production challenges the country has in areas like submarines, munitions, the drone industrial base. With physical AI sweeping the physical economy, which is 100 times larger than the digital economy, everyone’s going to need to rebase their software to adapt and compete in this new world.” Chris Power, Hadrian CEO

Scaling the US Defense Industrial Base to Meet Record Demand

Steve Beckey, JD Kearney, Nathan Miller, and Timothy Wickham

BLUF: The U.S. defense market is in a historic period of production ramp-up, but the industrial base is struggling to meet the demand. We conducted a comprehensive survey from over 160 companies, including OEMs and Tier 1 & sub-tier suppliers.

As markets signal rising demand — and conflicts are likely to increase the backlog to ~$900B — companies across the industry told us they are navigating complex shifts in operational resilience, financial stability, and technology.
Each segment of the value chain faces distinct pressures, but the overall picture is an industrial base is unprepared for the pending production ramp.
Six key insights on the state of the defense industrial base
1. The ramp is real, but the supply base lags behind. Suppliers see the demand signal, but many do not believe they can translate it into executable capacity quickly enough.
2. Uncertainty is stalling investment. Demand uncertainty, both in timing and in scale, is keeping suppliers from making the necessary investments.
3. The market is burdened by a growing “trust tax.” Suppliers are holding excess capacity in reserve and carrying buffers as insurance against sub-tier delivery risk.
4. Workforce issues could cripple the ramp-up. The industry continues to struggle with labor challenges, including finding, training, and retaining the expertise required to scale production.
5. Tier 2+ suppliers are often the hollow middle of the ramp. Sub-tier suppliers are a structurally exposed segment of the industrial base, with the least financial, operational, and digital room to absorb the surge.
6. AI adoption has begun, but it is not yet a ramp solution. Early adopters are beginning to see marginal benefits, but the technology remains too unevenly deployed to offset the broader challenges.

Our Take: The good news is that vendors (at all levels) don’t think they need more than 2 years to double production and more importantly they don’t seem to need major capex to make it happen. The downside of the responses is that a skilled workforce is a top barrier which is not always an easy fix depending on the locale. One area of interest is that tooling and automation could have a major impact on the Tier 2+ suppliers and while they say they don’t need capex to double production, they could potentially use capex to treble production with more automation. The report notes that suppliers should focus on “targeted automation, AI, advanced manufacturing, process redesign, and knowledge-capture opportunities” which is a solid recommendation and an area for OSW to help. Read the full report.

Full Report: The defense ramp-up reality check

Northrop gets $3B Framework Deal to Increase Motor Production for PAC-3, THAAD

BLUF: Northrop Grumman will become a second supplier of rocket motors for the in-demand PAC-3 interceptor while also increasing motor production for THAAD missiles.

Both agreements span a total of seven years, with the PAC-3 deal valued at $2B and the THAAD deal valued at $1B.
Northrop’s Allegany Ballistics Laboratory in West Virginia will stand up production for solid rocket motors for PAC-3, while the additional THAAD motor production will take place at its San Diego plant.
The Northrop deal follows a similar agreement to boost THAAD and PAC-3 solid rocket motor production, signed last week by L3Harris and the Pentagon. L3Harris is currently the sole producer of SRMs for PAC-3.

Our Take: While the company announcements hedge a bit more on exact increases, A&S is expecting this agreement to quadruple the production of THAAD interceptor structural components. This includes critical parts such as mid-body shells, muzzle covers and rail car assemblies. Establishing a second source for PAC-3 SRMs is a positive development given the current demand…and could also be useful for other iterations of high-end defensive munitions.

HII Teams Up with GrayMatter and Path for Robotic Shipbuilding

BLUF: HII (formerly known as Huntington Ingalls Industries) announced that it signed agreements with GrayMatter Robotics and Path Robotics to “accelerate the development and deployment of advanced physical AI automation across U.S. Navy shipbuilding programs, including aircraft carriers, submarines, destroyers, amphibious ships, future frigates and unmanned surface vessels.” in a deal worth up to $900M.

GrayMatter combines an autonomous intelligence layer with COTS robots to do the “last-minute,” often super-precise parts of the manufacturing process. Think sanding, grinding, coating, and inspection.
- Their software (called SCAN&) scans a part with 3D sensors, creates a digital model, and figures out what finishing steps need to be done—then programs a robot to do them.
- That saves operators hours on reprogramming robots every time the geometry of a ship or part changes. Their setup is very helpful for high-mix, high-variability stuff—like a shipyard.
Path builds autonomous welding robots that can also work on a variety of parts without being reprogrammed.
- Traditional robotic welding requires engineers to manually teach the robot the exact weld path. That works well when you’re building thousands of identical parts, but not so well when you mix it up.
- Path has built a physical AI model it calls Obsidian that scans parts with cameras and sensors, identifies where a weld should go, and then assigns robots to do it automatically. It also tests weld quality as it works.

Our Take: Given HII currently builds at least 3 major Navy ship platforms that GAO reports are behind schedule, with delays ranging from roughly one year to nearly five years, this is a promising development that can maybe help improve the speed and predictability of our critical maritime capabilities.

AE Industrial Closes Purchase of L3Harris’s Space Propulsion, Power and Electronics Units Establishing the Business as Rocketdyne

BLUF: AE Industrial, a private investment firm, has finalized the acquisition of the space propulsion, power and electronics units from L3Harris Technologies and is launching the entity as Rocketdyne.

The transaction re-establishes Rocketdyne as an independent company with more than 60 years of spaceflight heritage and a proven track record across civil, commercial, and national security space.
L3Harris will retain a minority stake in the business and continue to be a strategic partner.
AE Industrial will provide investment in Rocketdyne’s core capabilities, including:
- upgrading the technology and manufacturing of the RL10 rocket engine
- ramping up production of in-space propulsion thrusters
- advancing nuclear power and energy solutions for space applications.

Our Take: L3Harris acquired Aerojet Rocketdyne in 2023 but its only divesting of the space business as part of this deal so it retains the SRM business which it has received OSW investment of a $1B convertible preferred equity to expand and modernize SRM production facilities, accelerate R&D, and increase production capacity. L3Harris is said to have retained a 40% share and by retaining the strategic partner connection is likely making out very well with this deal. It allows it to focus its IR&D and attention on the SRM business while allowing a separate entity to invest in and grow its space business.

OSC Signs $820M Loan Commitment with Performance Drone Works to Expand Domestic Drone Component Manufacturing

BLUF: The investment is intended to supply components to multiple manufacturers and platforms for a range of Group 1 and Group 2 unmanned aircraft produced by PDW and other domestic manufacturers.

Xona Clears Final Regulatory Hurdle for PNT Constellation

BLUF: Xona Space Systems has won FCC approval to broadcast its Pulsar navigation signals from a full satellite constellation, clearing the last regulatory hurdle before the company can scale deployment.

The authorization makes Xona the only FCC-approved private navigation constellation cleared to broadcast in the L-band, putting Pulsar alongside GPS and other nation-state networks.
Pulsar is built to augment legacy GPS including with signals up to 100x stronger than GPS, spoofing protection using a dynamic cryptographic watermark and compatibility with existing GNSS hardware.
Xona launched Pulsar-0 in 2025 to prove the signal could work without interfering with GPS. Since then, the company says it has logged 350+ transmission passes tracked by more than a dozen commercial receivers.
Xona’s biggest hurdle was proving to regulators it wouldn’t interfere with existing GNSS signals in the heavily protected L-band.
The first six Pulsar satellites are slated to launch in October, with initial operations set to begin in early 2027.

Quantum-Inspired Tech Lets Engineers Test Tens of Thousands of Drone Designs at Once

BLUF: Technology, developed by quantum-accelerated simulation software company BQP, uses advanced computing methods to explore thousands of engineering designs on existing high-performance computing and GPU systems.

Drone maker Modovolo has integrated BQP’s BQPhy simulation platform into its engineering workflow to test a much larger number of propeller designs than traditional methods allow to design its next-generation propellers.
The goal is to shorten the process of finding designs that can improve drone flight time and payload capacity while keeping manufacturing costs low.
Traditional computational fluid dynamics and structural analysis tools can make design optimization slow because engineers have to narrow many possible configurations into a manageable set.
BQP says this can compress tens of thousands of simulations into a fraction of the usual time and computing resources.

Our Take: The potential here is endless, definitely some exciting possibilities ahead. One misconception that many have about quantum is that it can process things like this because its inherently faster than a traditional GPU. The reality is that quantum tackles the problem from different vantage points given its parallel-like processing which allows for truly unique outputs that traditional methods might never arrive at even with the biggest supercomputer.

High-Purity Iron Producer Addressing Rare Earth Magnet Gap

BLUF: Hertha Metals, a high-purity iron production company from Texas, uses a unique single-step process to turn any grade domestic iron ore — mixed with natural gas — into high-purity iron, which it then converts into neodymium magnets.

China produces 90% of the world’s high-purity iron, dominating the industry.
Chinese high-purity iron is made electrolytically, using electric currents to drive a chemical reaction.
High-purity iron magnets are critical for defense systems because they require electric steel, which is high-purity iron combined with silicon.
High-purity iron is included in precision-guided munitions, autonomous vehicles, electric drive systems and F-35s.
Hertha was scheduled to break ground on a new plant that will produce high-purity iron by early 2028 and help achieve the company’s goal of delivering 300,000 to 500,000 tons of the metal per year by the end of 2030.

Our Take: Quite simply, this is huge. The ability to produce this onshore will be a dramatic relief to multiple supply chains that struggle to buy magnets from non-restricted sources.

Securing America’s Critical Data Supply Chain

Lucian Niemeyer and Sue Ghosh Sticklett

BLUF: The Supply Chain EO directing DoW to illuminate defense supply chains using complete indentured Bills of Materials tracing components, parts, equipment, software, and material through every tier of the supply chain and back to their origin is a timely and critical initiative. Yet it secures only half the battlefield.

The EO focuses on steel, titanium, microchips, rare earth minerals, and the industrial base that transforms them into military capability.
But every modern defense system depends upon something just as indispensable: trusted, verifiable, and fit-for-purpose data.
Critical data now flows through the armed forces with the same strategic importance as fuel, ammunition, and replacement parts.
However, if that information is corrupted, incomplete, biased, misleading, outdated, or stripped of context, even the most sophisticated weapon system can become extraordinarily expensive monuments to misjudgment.
Our adversaries understand the power of corrupting information for advantage.
- A manipulated maintenance record can ground aircraft at the wrong moment.
- Poisoned logistics data can send critical supplies to the wrong location.
- A fabricated intelligence report can redirect surveillance.
- Biased training data can cause an AI-enabled system to misclassify a legitimate target, overlook a threat, or fail in the operational environment.
By the time commanders discover the data corruption months after the exploitation, the operational consequences may already be irreversible.
When sensitive information crosses international boundaries, resides under competing legal jurisdictions, and moves through systems operating under uneven security standards, the chain of custody can be lost.
The new demand is Data Provenance—verifiable evidence showing where mission-critical data originated, which organizations/systems handled it, transformations it underwent, and whether its integrity and context were preserved.
The Department and the defense industrial base should adopt commercial technologies to preserve evidence of origin, transformation, custody, and authorized use across structured and unstructured data, including video, audio, documents, sensor feeds, databases, and AI outputs.
Certain mechanisms should include cryptographic signatures, trusted timestamps, secure metadata, content credentials, tamper-evident logs, hardware-backed attestations, robust watermarking, independent corroboration, and validation.
These capabilities should also enforce data use restrictions and ensure that only authenticated information is ingested into AI systems, allowing trust to travel with the data wherever it moves.

OSC/EDU Loans and Deals

Other Defense Industry News

Portfolio Executives Describe Changing Roles as Air Force Completes Acquisition Overhaul

“This is a monumental step forward, but our work is not done. Pushing these critical decisions down to the PAE level demands a heightened commitment to delivering results and holding ourselves accountable. We must continue to be bold, to learn and to adapt — ensuring we provide our warfighters with the decisive edge they need when they need it. We’ve focused on in on the decision making and matching the authority with the accountability at that point of a PAE. It gave us a chance to take a look at what level are we making those decisions and how far down can we delegate and streamline.” William Bailey, Acting Air Force SAE
“Each PAE has oversight over the entire lifecycle of all platforms in its portfolio. Rather than dividing authority across fragmented offices, they’re charged with enterprise-wide modernization, procurement and sustainment efforts while individual program managers retain responsibility for specific platforms.” Col. Timothy Spaulding, PAE for Bombers
“Instead of a program-by-program type focus, we now have a portfolio or enterprise focus. That means that I can help drive integrated propulsion acquisition strategies and outcomes across the enterprise, enhance those enterprise-wise results, ensure the vitality and protection of the propulsion industrial base and align our demand signal to optimize the use of limited funds that we have.” John Sneden, PAE for Propulsion

Air Force Delivers on Acquisition Transformation, Redesignates Executives as PAEs

While last month we reported the Air Force redesignated all the remaining PEOs to be PAEs, this latest announcement provides the updated list of PAE portfolios and executives.

Department of the Navy Establishes Direct Reporting Portfolio Manager for Robotic and Autonomous Systems

BLUF: SECNAV established Direct Report Portfolio Manager for Robotic and Autonomous Systems (DRPM RAS) a strategic restructuring to tightly integrate the development, requirements, and acquisition of RAS capabilities across the Department of the Navy (DON).

Chris Miller will serve as acting DRPM RAS reporting directly to William Toti, PTDO USECNAV and concurrently serve as acting PAE RAS.
RADM Casey Moton will replace Miller as PAE Maritime.

“We are at an inflection point in naval warfare, and the Department has been approaching robotic and autonomous systems through arcane processes that do not deliver capabilities at the speed our Sailors and Marines need.” William Toti, PTDO USECNAV

Weeks Relieve Downey as PAE Industrial Operations

VADM James Downey was relieved of his dual-hatted role as PAE Industrial Operations by RADM Todd Weeks and as NAVSEA Commander by RADM Pete Small during a joint change of command. Following the change of office and change of command, Downey is slated to retire after 40 years of distinguished and dedicated service to the U.S. Navy. Our Take: May VADM Downey have fair winds and following seas.

Can’t keep track of all the PAE and DRPM changes? No worries. You can see all the Portfolio Acquisition Executives and DRPMs on our Digital Pentagon platform.

Top Cover and Clear Metrics: How to Make the New PAE Structure Work

Tim Cooke

BLUF: What will it take for acquisition reform to finally succeed? New org charts aren’t enough: The people in the organization need new incentives.

The new PAEs have the power to launch sustainable reform that, at long last, shifts defense acquisition from a focus on procedural compliance to one on accomplishing the mission if they use that power to:
- Provide believable, executable top cover for contracting officers, not just lip service about taking risks.
- Refocus performance metrics to measure whether and how quickly acquisition outcomes produce mission results.
Compliance culture is not an attitude problem. The acquisition workforce is rational.
When COs exercise flexible methods and face a protest, an audit, or a congressional inquiry, they are personally exposed. They’re the ones who sign for the government: Their name is literally on the line. When COs follow standard procedures and an acquisition produces a poor outcome, bad career consequences rarely follow. Compliance remains the smart choice.
The PAE now holds direct authority over the PMs and COs within a portfolio. The PAE responsible for capability delivery across that portfolio as a whole, not just for milestone compliance on any single program.
For the first time, the leaders with institutional authority over COs have a mission that requires them to provide real top cover, because the PAE’s own success depends on the outcomes that cover enables.
This is what every past reform lacked.
Deploy top cover first, and the CO begins exercising flexible methods, because the risk of professional exposure has been removed. When metrics arrive, they make the resulting outcomes visible. The PAE can see what is working. Resources flow toward what works. The loop closes.
Top cover is a written, public commitment by the PAE, by name, to defend specific contracting decisions made in good faith using specific flexible methods.
Three metrics constitute a viable starting set.
- Time-to-mission-effect tracks elapsed time from a validated operational need to capability in the operator’s hands
- Post-award mission satisfaction, a structured assessment conducted by the requiring activity at six and 12 months, links the contract to the operator’s lived experience of how the product actually performs, rather than to technical acceptance alone.
- Competitive yield, the number and quality of offers received, makes visible the firms that did not bid because the solicitation signaled that innovative vendors were unwelcome.

Law Firm Skeptical AI Can Help Speed Up Security Clearances

BLUF: DCSA has proposed using AI in its security clearance application process, but a New York-based law firm says questions remain about the technology’s potential benefits.

The firm (Tully Rinckey) helps candidates applying for security clearances, assists when clearance is in jeopardy over alleged violations of adjudicative guidelines.
Adjudicative guidelines are standardized rules used by the government to determine if an individual is trustworthy enough to hold a security clearance.
The firm uses 13 of these guidelines to help individuals either obtain or keep their security clearance.
At any given time, tens of thousands of applicants are stuck in backlogs.
The fear is that the very reason the agency wants to incorporate AI — to speed up the process — might have the opposite effect if an AI creates inaccurate results.
If the agency allows AI enough authority to flag cases and move the applications to a notice of intent to deny or revoke, then the cases Tully Rinckey responds to and potentially litigates will significantly increase.
Additionally, AI cannot follow up with references, such as an applicant’s prior employer, to confirm the answers on the application.

“Artificial intelligence may help accelerate parts of the background investigation process, particularly by identifying objective issues that warrant further review. However, AI is only as reliable as the data behind it, and accuracy concerns remain. Security clearance decisions often require human judgment to evaluate context, mitigation and credibility in ways that a machine cannot.” Anthony Kuhn, managing partner at Tully Rinckey

Palantir Calls on GSA to Withdraw Draft AI Acquisition Rule

BLUF: GSA should axe its draft large language model-specific acquisition rule, in part because it is purportedly unlawful and would undermine Trump administration goals if it were finalized, Palantir argued in recent comments on the proposal.

Palantir argued that GSA has no independent authority to finalize the proposed LLM rule and would violate FASA by mandating contracting requirements beyond standard commercial practices if it did finalize it.
Palantir also called the proposed LLM rule incompatible with legal requirements for defense acquisitions — such as limitations on the clauses defense agencies can require of contractors and prohibitions on “demanding proprietary IP rights as a condition of contract award”
Overall, it said it disregards decades of intellectual property rights precedence.
During last month’s listening session, industry groups widely urged GSA to clarify definitions and modify flowdown requirements if the agency wanted to achieve its goal of safeguarding government data processed by LLMs.
Groups also urged GSA to clear up the “unbiased AI principles” language with objective metrics contractors could use to ensure compliance with the regulation.
One group pointed to NIST AI RMF 1.0 trustworthiness criteria and the IEEE 7003 Algorithmic Bias standard as some third-party standards GSA could use instead.

Our Take: We have yet to see contract clauses that deal with highly technical elements and complex policy compliance ever result in the outcome desired. The key issue is always that there need to be skilled government officials who can monitor compliance and deal with the inevitable nuances. Those folks are not always readily available and therefore compliance becomes uneven and proforma. A better approach is to keep it simple so that principles that contractors need to adopt are articulated to get at the intent (with legal liability) or there can be a requirement to adopt a commercial standard for which there is third-party verification.

Contracting for Rapid Acquisition

Lorna Tedder, our former teammate and a Rapid Contracting OG, is what thirty-plus years as a Federal contracting professional, with rapid acquisition as her special sauce, actually looks like when distilled into the frameworks and mindsets that outlast every regime change, every new administration, and every round of acquisition reform.

The Trifecta of Effectiveness
The Crumblestones of Acquisition
The Fourth Turning lens
How to set up your own rapid contracting office

Contracting for Rapid Acquisition

Giant US Army Cannon Fires Hypersonic Warhead in First Successful Live-Fire Test

BLUF: The Heavy Artillery Test System (HATS) carried out its first hypersonic live-fire test at Yuma Proving Ground, AZ.

The trial was conducted through a collaboration between the Army’s DEVCOM Armaments Center, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNR), and the test range.
The team fired a specially made Integrated Launch Package (ILP) from the HATS, instead of a hypersonic missile. ILP is a hardened test package carrying the experimental payload.
The test demonstrated a faster, cheaper way to evaluate hypersonic payload performance at impact.
While a single complete hypersonic missile test can typically cost anywhere from $9.5-15M per launch, depending on the testing vehicle and program scope, the cannon-based approach significantly reduces testing costs.

ACC Exec Director Highlights Efforts to Accelerate Software Acquisition

BLUF: Danielle Moyer, ACC Executive Director, discussed how they are leading initiatives to reform the Army’s software acquisition infrastructure.

Army Contracting Command is focused on improving how software is purchased by consolidating contracts, adjusting contracting approaches and exploring new pricing strategies to create a more effective acquisition model.
One of the Army’s key software acquisition challenges is the fragmented way commercial software purchases are managed.
The Army frequently acquires identical commercial software products through numerous separate contracts, sometimes numbering in the dozens or hundreds, which makes it more difficult to track spending and limits the Army’s ability to negotiate more favorable terms.
Many existing Army procurement vehicles are not fit for commercial software purchasing.
When it comes to pricing, Moyer explained that because the FAR does not provide a dedicated framework for software purchases, contracting officers do not have specific guidance for commercial software pricing or assessing software labor categories.
The Army is moving toward greater enterprise-level contract consolidation for frequently purchased commercial software.
To improve commercial software procurement vehicles, the ACC is developing a smart contracting tool aimed at creating the foundation for a more centralized and data-driven software acquisition model.
In terms of pricing models, the command is exploring outcome-based and value-based pricing models that focus on the operational benefits a technology provides rather than only examining its underlying cost components.

Our Take: ACC’s push to consolidate commercial software contracts, modernize contract vehicles, and pilot outcome/value-based pricing is exactly the kind of pragmatic reform the Army needs! Danielle and her team are building a more scalable, data-driven acquisition model that will deliver better capability faster and at lower total cost. We strongly support these initiatives and their continued progress.

The Army’s Drone Bet Is Rational. The Timing Isn’t

Jay Rogers

BLUF: The Army is dismantling manned aviation capacity on a fixed schedule while the systems meant to replace it remain, in large part, still on the drawing board.

The Army plans to cut close to 6,500 active-duty aviation positions in fiscal years 2026 and 2027, pulling pilots, aircrew, and maintenance out of the force and shifting the money toward drones and other unmanned systems.
The Army is now working against a shortfall of $4-6B, driven partly by costs tied to the Iran operation and an expanded homeland security mission, and aviation units in III Armored Corps could deploy next year at a lower state of readiness than commanders would prefer.
The FY27 budget request effectively guts new-buy funding for the legacy fleet.
The Army isn’t swapping a retired Black Hawk for a single unmanned aircraft. It’s running three efforts in parallel, and none are complete.
Launched effects are small drones a crewed Black Hawk carries and releases mid-flight for reconnaissance, jamming, or strike. Sikorsky landed a $43M contract last August to build the digital backbone that lets UH-60Ms do this, fielding targeted for 2026. That’s the helicopter keeping its pilots and picking up a new tool, not a replacement for it.
Sikorsky’s S-70UAS U-Hawk is a UH-60L with the cockpit stripped out and replaced by clamshell cargo doors, roughly 25% more hauling capacity, flying itself on Sikorsky’s MATRIX autonomy software.
The Army’s manned successor to the Black Hawk is the MV-75 Cheyenne II, a Bell V-280 Valor-derived tiltrotor flying roughly twice the speed and range of the aircraft it replaces.
helicopter reductions outrunning drone fielding, training cuts hitting crews the Army intends to keep, a fuel-driven shortfall suppressing flight hours, an industrial base harder to restart the longer it sits idle, and experienced pilots and maintainers walking out before their replacements are operational.
Any one of them is manageable alone. Stacked together, on the same two-year timeline, they describe a force thinner in the cockpit right when the drones aren’t ready to carry the load.

Our Take: This challenge is not unique to the Army. The Navy is retiring ships faster than it can deliver replacements, and the Air Force faces the same pressure with its fighter fleets. The underlying tension between sustaining manned legacy systems and fielding modern unmanned and autonomous capabilities requires PAEs and Service headquarters to manage warfighting capabilities as integrated portfolios. Leaders must deliberately balance near- and long-term force structure: protecting readiness and the ability to fight tonight while continuously modernizing, scaling new systems, and making the strategic investments required for the force of the future.

Army’s Black Hawk Helicopter Launches, Controls Multiple Combat Drones in Test

BLUF: The flight tests showed the upgraded Black Hawk can extend its battlefield reach while maintaining a safer stand-off distance.

The Army completed a major flight demonstration recently, showing that an H-60M Black Hawk helicopter can launch and control multiple air-launched effects (ALEs) during Project Convergence Capstone 6.
The tests marked another step toward giving Army helicopters greater reach in contested environments, allowing them to remain at safer stand-off distances.
The Increment 1 capability was completely designed and owned by the U.S. government. It was developed through collaboration between the Utility Helicopters Project Office and the DEVCOM Aviation and Missile Center, with help from Army technical programs and industry partners for integration and flight testing.
The upgraded H-60M can launch and control several air-launched effects using a fully networked system. This feature helps the helicopter operate farther away from enemy defenses while still reaching its targets.
During the event, soldiers and allied partners inspected the modified Black Hawk and met directly with program specialists to better understand the system’s capabilities.

“Successfully launching Air-Launched Effects from a Black Hawk is more than a milestone; it is a leap forward. By extending their reach and increasing lethality, we are changing the battlefield geometry and delivering a decisive advantage to our Soldiers.” BG Kevin Chaney, Deputy PAE for Maneuver Air.

Army Teams Up to Mature Mach 3 Ramjet Shell That Flies Above 65,000’

BLUF: Tiberius Aerospace has signed a CRADA with the Army to advance Sceptre, its precision-guided, ramjet-powered 155mm (about 6.1 inches) artillery munition.

The program seeks to extend the reach and precision of existing tube artillery without requiring militaries to purchase new launchers.
Sceptre is designed to travel beyond Mach 3, climb above 65,000 feet, and strike targets up to 93 miles (150 kilometers) away, including in environments where GPS signals are unavailable or disrupted.
Sceptre differs from conventional rocket-assisted projectiles because its liquid-fueled ramjet delivers propulsion throughout its flight.
This sustained thrust is intended to help the shell achieve greater speed, altitude, and range after being fired from a NATO-standard 155mm howitzer.

Army Launches Search for Counter-Drone Missile Priced Under $150K

BLUF: The Army is seeking industry input to acquire a Next Generation C-sUAS Missile (NGCM) that costs less than $150,000 while still capable of taking down Group 2 and 3 sUAS and compatible with Raytheon’s Coyote launcher.

The Army also wants the missile to go faster and farther than current systems capable of countering drones weighing 21 to 1,320 lbs.
The principal objectives for this effort are to develop, produce, and sustain a missile capability at extended ranges with rapid launch and reduced time-to-target over existing effectors.
Though the Army has put out similar solicitations as part of its low-cost interceptor (LCI) program, this is the first time the service has asked for a missile with such a low price tag.
The Army is looking to buy at least 5,000 of the missiles, and is hoping to acquire 50 NGCMs to be ready for operational assessments by the 1Q FY28.

Army Taps Rheinmetall-led Team for Sustainment UGVs

BLUF: Army CPE Mission Autonomy awarded Rheinmetall an 18-month prime integrator contract to develop autonomous logistics ground vehicles for the Army’s Project Sustainment initiative.

Team members include: Harbinger, Forterra, and Primordial Labs
Project Sustainment, which absorbed the Army’s Medium Multipurpose Equipment Transport (M-MET) program after CPE Mission Autonomy was stood up in March, is designed to remove soldiers from high-risk delivery routes while delivering essential supplies directly to the tactical edge.
Five companies—AM General, American Rheinmetall, Carnegie Robotics, HDT Robotics (BLADE), and Stratom—were downselected for the program last month.
The core platform that Harbinger’s delivering for the Project Sustainment initiative can carry payloads of up to 18,000 pounds, operate in temperatures ranging from -22°F to 131°F and at altitudes up to 12,000 feet, drive over 500 miles on the hybrid engine or 105 miles fully electric, and hit speeds of 65mph. It’s built to run off-road and in any type of weather (snow included). It can also export up to 350 kilowatts of power to external systems, making it a big ‘ole generator on wheels to help power operations in austere environments.
Forterra is providing the autonomy stack for the Harbinger vehicle to enable distributed, mission-aware, and resilient military operations in contested environments.
Primordial Labs is providing Anura, its software platform that turns robotic systems into battlefield teammates by using natural language commands to control and task unmanned systems.
The vehicles delivered for Project Sustainment will be integrated with an operational unit during a Transformation in Contact assessment in the 2QFY27.

Agile Acquisition: The ACC-Detroit Way

BLUF: ACC Detroit Arsenal finalized four prototype OT agreements totaling $72.8M in just 76 days from proposals to deliver autonomous breaching capabilities to heavy armor units.

That rapid turnaround illustrates how the command is aligning with the U.S. Army’s PAE model, accelerating modernized capabilities to warfighters.
ACC is aggressively implementing portfolio-centric, commercial-first strategies.
Additionally, executing the first BOAST initiative award in just over 30 days compressed traditional administrative lead time by nearly 11 months.
A Total InteGrated Engine Revitalization Hackathon brought 40 industry partners together to resolve critical bottlenecks for the AGT 1500 engine powering the Abrams tank.

"Our team is doing critical work to provide tailored, agile contracting support aligned directly with the Army’s PAE structure. We are actively driving acquisition reform by using every tool available—from OT Authorities to expanding Project FAST TRACK—to drastically improve source selection speeds, break down barriers for non-traditional defense vendors, and deliver lethal capability at speed." John Jolokai, ACC-Detroit Arsenal Director

Our Take: Great to see John and the ACC Detroit team move out on portfolio centric, commercial first strategies, actively engaging industry, competitions, and rapid OTAs.

Army Expands Hydra-70 Rocket Supply Chain Through Innovative OTAs

BLUF: The Army’s Aviation Rocket and Small Guided Munitions (ARSGM) Product Office used OTAs to diversify the Hydra-70 rocket supply chain and revitalize its defense industrial base awarding to Firehawk, iRocket, Nammo Perry, and Albers.

They used the One Nation Innovation (ONI) marketplace to award contracts
This innovative sourcing strategy allows the Army to engage multiple industry partners and capitalize on their expertise to improve the government owned Hydra-70 Technical Data Package (TDP).
Each of the participating vendors will deliver twenty-four prototype Hydra-70 M151 High Explosive rockets alongside a modernized TDP within 18 months. This initiative delivers immediate strategic dividends by establishing multiple viable production sources to drive competitive pricing on annual orders, while simultaneously updating the munition's product definition for improved manufacturability.
Upon successful prototype demonstration, follow-on agreements are planned to expand this effort to other variants in the Hydra-70 family of rockets which typically procures 100-200K annually.

Kratos Receives U.S. Army Contract to Develop a Next-Generation Seeker for the Javelin Missile System

BLUF: The Army DEVCOM C5ISR Center awarded Kratos Defense a contract to develop an Enhanced Seeker for the Javelin Close Combat Missile System.

Kratos will develop, build, and test a next-generation infrared seeker that addresses obsolescence in the current Javelin guidance section, improving the lethality of one of the Army’s most critical close combat weapons.

Other Army News:

Updating Navy Warships at the Speed of Software

James Day and Justin Fanelli

BLUF: After years of wanting and waiting, the Navy is now updating combat systems over-the-air on ships at sea.

The Navy is now pushing over-the-air software updates to some of its most important and complex systems aboard ships.
It’s being applied to combat systems, like radar, sonar, and weapons.
The ship may set sail with one software baseline and fight with a better one.
It is a force designed to absorb new capabilities, reconfigure mission threads, and adapt faster than threats change in front of them.
CNO’s Fighting Instructions describe our Hedge Strategy, built to increase the Navy’s impact, adapt to dynamic adversaries, field asymmetric capabilities, and empower a distributed force.
Rapid software updates can strengthen the main battle force with tailored offsets against specific threats, without waiting for every platform to be redesigned, replaced, or overhauled in home port.
The Navy’s Adaptable Mission Architecture (AMA), is both a technical design philosophy and an operational mindset to build systems, teams, and decision processes that evolve continuously as missions, threats, and technology change.
AMA connects four areas that are too often treated as separate initiatives
- Common modular open systems approach (MOSA) to computing
- Common cloud and transport architecture, right down to enterprise services
- Software-defined naval force;
- Human talent required to integrate them.
Published interfaces, automated testing, secure delivery pathways, and constant Fleet feedback make components replaceable without rebuilding the entire mission thread. Every component is a tenant not a permanent owner.
Execution must match the architecture. Under Secretary Hegseth’s new Warfighting Acquisition System, the DoN established a PAE for Mission Systems to serve as a central integrator.
Portfolio accountability connects resources, integration, testing, and fielding to an operational effect, rather than a collection of programs. The PAE Mission Systems and DON CIO accept this charge.
The hardest part of modernization is changing how decisions are made, how teams work together, and how quickly the institution learns.
What we increasingly need are modular Lego blocks of capability and partners who help us phase out stovepiped systems and integration hogs — what the Navy calls Operation Cattle Drive.
Seapower has always depended on range, payload, endurance, logistics, and skilled Sailors. It now also depends on update speed and adaptation speed. Technology compresses timelines if you can adopt it well. Smart architecture accelerates integration.

Our Take: The Navy’s move to push OTA software updates to deployed combat systems and the AMA is a decisive step towards true software-defined warfighting. By treating platforms as modular, continuously updatable systems rather than static hulls, the Navy is finally closing the gap between technology cycles and operational need. We strongly support this approach and the institutional changes to execute it.

The Navy Tried a Different Approach to AI and It Worked

BLUF: The Navy didn’t just roll out AI. It rallied people around it. The Navy is currently executing a masterclass in technological adoption.

The Navy realized that simply deploying algorithms to its workforce was not enough. The bottleneck is no longer the capability of the technology. The true bottleneck is adoption speed.
To force a rapid evolution, Navy CTO Justin Fanelli just helped launch the AI Efficiency Challenge.
Start with accessible tools, clearly defining what success looks like, measuring the results, and turning top performers into champions who help others adopt AI.
Adapt what already exists, adopt what works, and scale what delivers.
The goal is to identify decentralized innovation and elevate the high achieving mavericks who are leaning the farthest forward.
Three leadership lessons from the Navy strategy
- Gamify your tech adoption.
- Demand a measured baseline.
- Emphasize human machine teaming.
The smartest executives are borrowing a page from the Navy’s playbook: building systems that encourage continuous innovation and preparing teams to execute with confidence in a high-stakes economy.

“Deployment is not adoption and adoption is not impact, but they’re all related enough that you can line them up like dominoes. Make AI adoption a competition for outcomes — gamified and inspiring if possible. Put out a starter offering. Open the doors. Define what winning looks like. Measure the results, and turn your best users into champions. Adapt what exists, adopt what works, and scale what delivers.” Justin Fanelli, Navy CTO

P-8 Poseidon Crews Controlling MQ-4C Triton Drones Becoming A Reality

BLUF: The P-8A and MQ-4Cs were designed to work in concert, but direct in-flight control of Tritons will open new tactical possibilities and greatly extend the Poseidon's reach.

Boeing and Northrop Grumman are laying the groundwork to take teaming between the P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol plane and the MQ-4C Triton long-endurance maritime surveillance drone to a new level.
A first-of-its-kind test has demonstrated common command and control architectures that will enable P-8A crews to issue orders to MQ-4Cs.
The drones would then perform their assigned missions autonomously and report back. The Poseidon and Triton were designed to operate as a team from the start, but the ability to task the uncrewed aircraft directly in flight would offer new flexibility, especially to respond to sudden changes in the battlespace.
The testing was conducted in a laboratory environment and no aircraft involved.
Data routes included satellite relay to reflect realistic operational communications. Mission management and autonomy layers communicated via OMS/UCI rather than custom point to point interfaces.
Using UCI, the platforms can collaborate with any U.S. or allied asset sharing the same interface – reducing operator workload by distributing the mission tasks and accelerating commander decisions, making integration across platforms quicker and more cost effective.
The OMS/UCI architecture used to support the new P-8/MQ-4C teaming testing could further open the door to pairing the Poseidon with other uncrewed teammates, as well. General Atomics has already been pitching the SeaGuardian version of its MQ-9B drone as a new partner for the P-8A.

Our Take: This is an excellent example of multi-vendor integration to fuze manned and unmanned platforms to unlock new operational missions, expand performance, and opportunities for further tech insertion.

Navy, Saildrone to Use USVs in Expanded Counternarcotics Role

BLUF: Following the recent announcement that a Saildrone Voyager USV directly aided the Navy during a drug interdiction in the Caribbean that led to the seizure of more than $81M worth of cocaine, the Navy has awarded Saildrone a $16.3M task order to extend operations of the Voyager fleet in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific.

The 33-foot-long Voyager is designed for persistent surface and subsurface surveillance and can also conduct nearshore mapping missions and seafloor characterization.

“The continuity of Saildrone’s presence along the southern border for nearly three years demonstrates the strategic value we bring as the world’s most experienced operators of USVs. Our unmatched ability to remain on station and on mission in critical regions for months at a time is why our fleet serves as a powerful deterrent to bad actors. We look forward to continuing to partner with the Navy in its mission to secure the country’s maritime approaches and southern border.” VADM (ret.) John Mustin, Saildrone President

Navy Seeks Seabed Superiority in Undersea Warfare Push

BLUF: The Navy is seeking seabed superiority in both offensive and defensive operations around the ocean floor as part of enhancing asymmetric advantage in underwater warfare.

Developing both defensive and offensive seabed warfare capability is a primary line of effort COMSUBFOR is delivering on, under the CNO’s Fighting Instructions for generating an integrated battleforce.

“Today, as we’re talking, we are deploying seabed warfare capability. This is for the full spectrum of operations, both defensive and offensive On defensive and offensive seabed warfare capability, this really, really is a growth area and something we’re really moving out on. On the offensive side, it’s the ability to dominate and have what I call ‘seabed superiority. We talk about sea control. We talk about air superiority. I’d like you to think in terms of dominating, controlling the undersea, controlling the seabed, and having seabed superiority” VADM Richard Seif, COMSUBFOR

Lockheed’s New Submarine-hunting Sonar That Doubles Detection Range Tested by Navy

BLUF: Lockheed Martin’s SensorMAX acts as a digital sonar assistant, helping helicopter crews handle more information during anti-submarine missions.

The software is also designed with a lightweight, platform-independent architecture. That means the same processing capability can be deployed on aircraft, surface ships, or ground stations, allowing the Navy to integrate the technology across multiple platforms instead of limiting it to a single system.
Lockheed Martin said the RIMPAC 2026 demonstration is an important step toward integrating adaptable AI with more maritime sensors. Instead of relying on fixed software, operators can keep improving acoustic detection models and distribute updates across connected platforms.
The company believes this approach can reduce the time between spotting an underwater contact and making tactical decisions. With AI systems that learn from new acoustic signatures during missions, future naval operations could keep better watch over aircraft carriers, warships, and other important assets, while improving protection against stealthier undersea threats.

Jet-Powered JDAM Production Is A Go For The Navy

BLUF: Boeing has been cleared to start producing Joint Direct Attack Munition-Long Range (JDAM-LR) precision-guided weapons for the Navy.

The JDAM-LR is essentially a small cruise missile derived from the JDAM family of precision-guided bombs. The weapon will give the Navy, and potentially other services, a new way to bolster stocks of air-launched stand-off munitions.
This all follows the Navy’s announcement of successful test launches of JDAM-LRs from F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighters back in April.
The Navy (through the Air Force) awarded Boeing a UCA for $75M related to JDAM-LR production.
Like unpowered JDAMs, the JDAM-LR is more of a kit than a munition by itself.
The PDU contains the guidance section, systems to interface with the launching aircraft, a pop-out wing kit, and a compact turbojet engine. PDU is then combined with a standardized low-drag 500-pound-class bomb as its warhead to create a complete weapon.

“This first production contract is a major milestone for the JDAM LR program, demonstrating our ability to deliver long-range precision-strike capability at a significantly lower cost. Scaling production of the GBU-75 will provide the fleet with an affordable, sustainable solution designed to eliminate long-range land and sea-based threats to U.S. and international forces and enable them to safely and effectively operate in a contested battlespace.” Bob Ciesla, VP of Boeing Precision Engagement Systems

Navy Eyes Advanced Payload Launcher for Future Attack Boats

BLUF: The Navy wants to integrate payload launchers capable of supporting undersea weapons and drones for the fleet’s future attack boats.

The Director of Submarine Programs expressed interest in launchers that could support a wider variety of payloads than the current fleet.
Representatives from General Dynamics Electric Boat and HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding division will present concepts covering future payload integration.
While unmanned underwater vessels – and other drone systems – were not explicitly named in the solicitation, attributes pertaining to supporting equipment of this type were highlighted in the Navy’s announcement.
The interest in advanced payload launchers comes amid the ongoing conceptual development of the Next-Generation Attack Submarine or SSN(X) and the introduction of modernized Virginia-class submarines.
These platforms will simulate operating autonomously in denied areas, providing critical targeting data and enhancing our ability to detect, track, and hold adversary forces at risk.
This demonstration leverages unmanned systems as force multipliers, enabling manned platforms to operate with greater stealth, lethality and efficiency.

Other Navy News:

Marine Corps Establishes Robotics Integration Group, Experiments with Drones in Field Operations

BLUF: The Marine Corps established Marine Corps Robotics Integration Group (MCRIG) to integrate, standardize, and institutionalize training for Group 1 and Group 2 small UAS and counter-sUAS across the Total Force

The establishment of MCRIG reflects the Marine Corps’ continued effort to adapt to the rapidly evolving character of warfare, where inexpensive, commercially available unmanned aircraft have fundamentally changed how modern militaries detect, target, maneuver and fight.
MCRIG also establishes a deliberate process for transitioning emerging capabilities into formal Marine Corps training.
As the service-level integrator, MCRIG receives validated capability packages, including tactics, techniques and procedures, pilot courses and training requirements, from specialized organizations responsible for experimentation and operational assessment and once validated.
It develops the curriculum, training support packages and certification standards before distributing them through designated regional hubs that execute standardized instruction across the Fleet Marine Force.

Marines Make History With First Attack Drone Live-Fire Series in South Korea

BLUF: Marines assigned to the 4th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, successfully concluded the Marine Corps’ first series of live-fire first-person view attack drone flights in South Korea.

This historic training series marks a significant milestone in force modernization, demonstrating the Marine Corps’ ability to field emerging technologies in the Western Pacific rapidly.
The series featured two distinct training events: an inaugural range conducted by the 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, and a second iteration carried out by the 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment.
Throughout the training series, Marines used the Neros Archer drone to execute precise anti-armor and antipersonnel explosive strikes.
With an effective range of approximately 20 kilometers, this technology extends the tactical influence of small units far beyond traditional squad-level infantry weapons, allowing Marines to conduct precision strikes from positions of relative safety.

U.S. Marine Corps ACVs to Counter Drones with Anduril Jammer Package

BLUF: The U.S. Marine Corps’ new amphibious assault vehicles will receive jammers to defeat UAS through a program that is set to begin this fall.

The Portfolio Acquisition Executive – Marine Corps released a solicitation on Monday identifying interest in pursuing Anduril’s Pulsar-Lite to meet an Urgent Statement of Need for a counter-UAS.
This follows an initial notice of intent announced in July for the mounting of the Anduril EW system onto the Amphibious Combat Vehicle.
According to the service’s drone downing needs, Anduril’s Pulsar-L should be able to detect group 1 and 2 UAS two miles away. The system is expected to be able to jam these threats from two miles away.
Fifty units of Pulsar-L are expected to be delivered within the first year, and further production is required to support additional counter drone efforts.

Marines Forge a Layered MADIS Air-Defense Shield in Okinawa on China’s Pacific Maritime Flank

BLUF: Marines advanced their ability to counter drones and low-flying aircraft in the Indo-Pacific after conducting a live-fire exercise with the Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) at Camp Schwab, Okinawa, only weeks after the system was delivered to the 12th Marine Littoral Regiment.

The exercise marked the shift from fielding to operational readiness, strengthening the survivability of forward-deployed forces positioned along the First Island Chain near China’s primary maritime approaches.
MADIS combines Stinger missiles, a 30mm cannon, electronic warfare, and networked sensors on mobile Joint Light Tactical Vehicles to provide layered protection against drones, helicopters, and low-altitude aircraft.
Deployed alongside capabilities such as NMESIS, it enhances the Marines’ ability to sustain distributed operations, protect critical combat assets, and reinforce deterrence by making U.S. forces in Okinawa harder to detect, target, and defeat.

Other Marine Corps News:

Marine Corps will hold AI ‘hackathon’ to prototype tools for training, education

Air Force Seeks New Ideas for Cheap MQ-9 Alternatives by Year End

BLUF: The Air Force plans to select vendors by the end of 2026 to help develop concepts for cheap, attritable drones that could perform the MQ-9 Reaper mission—providing persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, as well as strike capabilities—in a new way.

DIU issued a solicitation for a “massed modular aircraft,” or MMA, where it imagined a fleet of uncrewed aircraft operating in groups, but remaining effective even as some are shot down.
The MMA fleet should be large enough to absorb losses, he said, and inexpensive enough that losses can be replaced without difficulty. That would put the drones between a sophisticated munition and a small aircraft.
The Air Force plans to pattern its MMA contracting process similarly to its Collaborative Combat Aircraft program.
The CCA program identified competitors, fostered multiple alternatives, and even after down-selects left the door open for losers to re-enter competition later.
To differentiate MMAs from CCAs, the Air Force clarified that MMAs are intended for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions, with added strike capability, while the first CCAs are designed for air-to-air combat.

“We’re still early, we’re still seeing what industry can support. But I do think that it is more kind of that CCA mentality of, set a large target … for what this could become across the right portfolio, at the right price point, so that we can have that attrition tolerance.. We will find whether there’s a sweet spot in that cost curve to make sure that they both provide the capabilities we need, and that they are attrition or loss tolerant, so that we can use them in the right environment going forward.”
Col John Dayton, PAE for ISR & SOF

Our Take: We think the strike capability being added to this platform is misguided if its anything larger than a Hellfire/JAGM type missile because then the form factor will have to become larger and then range and time on station will become competing requirements…and the platform will get much more expensive. The only reason that the MQ-9s were used so much in the Iran conflict is because they were the only unmanned asset that was available in any volume. In the future, where there are multiple variants of CCAs flying around, this will be less necessary. However, CCAs are likely to never have the loiter time needed for an ISR aircraft so keeping it lightly armed and less visible (i.e. not big missiles hanging off the pylons) is key. The CCA strategy may also not play well here since the Air Force can’t even quantify a number that it wants to buy. Taking multiple vendors through production to then only buy 5 a year for a few years is not a viable approach. CCA worked and industry was motivated because there were a thousand+ production ramp in the pipeline.

Ondas Announces New AFRL Contract Award to Advance Long Range Grasshopper™ Autonomous Aerial Delivery System

BLUF: AFRL awarded a ~$6M contract to DZYNE Technologies, now part of Ondas, to advance the Long‑Range Grasshopper™, an autonomous, runway‑independent precision aerial delivery system designed for extended‑range logistics in contested and austere environments.

This award builds on years of collaboration between AFRL and the engineering teams now operating within Ondas Sentinel.
Their 2024–2025 flight test campaign validated the Long‑Range Grasshopper’s autonomous deployment, jet‑engine air‑start, extended‑range navigation, and precision payload delivery.
The new contract accelerates development of scalable autonomous logistics capabilities aligned with the Air Force’s Agile Combat Employment (ACE) concepts.
The effort builds on the mature Grasshopper glider architecture, which has seen extensive operational use delivering up to 500 pounds of critical payload with precision into contested or infrastructure‑limited environments.

Our Take: This is a critical capability that will need to be scaled in the near future to support logistic deliveries in areas with less-than-ideal infrastructure or where there is a high threat from adversaries. Our only problem with AFRL here is that they are picking winners before a program has even been established. If the industrial base needs funds to tailor their solutions, then distribute funds to multiple likely competitors so that when a program is kicked off, there is more than one company ready to support. Instead, AFRL is funding their preferred winner and will expect any other entrants to do the work on their own dime to compete when a program is started. This is an ok approach when DARPA is trying to push the boundaries of what the tech can do but the requirements here are not that and instead this is a development program in disguise.

F-47 Program Producing Test Aircraft, On Schedule for 2028 Flight

BLUF: The Air Force’s F-47 program has begun its engineering and manufacturing development phase and will fly in the coming years.

The program, described as “extreme teaming” with industry partners, entered the phase with “unprecedented maturity.”
The engineering and manufacturing phase includes maturing, integrating and testing all parts of the F-47. It will produce a small number of test aircraft for evaluation and includes priced options for low-rate initial production.
The first Boeing F-47 is on track for its first flight in 2028.
The Air Force plans to buy at least 185 F-47s, matching the size of the F-22 Raptor fleet it intends to replace.

Our Take: We certainly hope that speed to flight is not compromising other key aspects of the jet like readiness. With plans to only replace the F-22 force (at less than 200 fighters), if readiness is not a key design and testing criteria, then the F-35 will be put in the same spot as the F-22 where readiness is consistently below 50% which means that only a small portion of the fleet is available for operations. We have seen too many times where sustainment is an afterthought on these complex programs.

Air Force Jet Engine Manufacturing Plagued by ‘Significant Challenges’

BLUF: Dissatisfied with the quality of the engines for its fighter jets, the Air Force is looking for new engines — and perhaps new manufacturers based on a recent RFI.

According to the RFI, the Air Force will “pursue a strategic competition requiring industry to innovate manufacturing and guarantee supply chain resiliency.”
F-35 fighter deliveries and upgrades have been delayed by engine issues, with a GAO report noting last year that “the engine contractor is still not delivering engines to contract specifications after 20 years of production.”
B-52 modernization has been stalled in part by engine issues that have raised costs by $3B and delayed initial operational capability by 15 months.
The Air Force is now embarking on a multiyear fighter engine procurement project that envisions more than 180 engines per year by 2034.
The RFI specifically cites engines for the F-15EX and F-16.

Our Take: This RFI is a classic example of what’s wrong with the acquisition system. The acq community puts out an RFI essentially asking for the moon from industry (including the below gems) for engines that are milspec engines which means that they are likely unapplicable for commercial OEMs. In the RFI, they say nothing about adopting different business models that would allow for better margins to justify investments, although they do harp on performance incentives and driving lower costs. They also don’t talk about how they might support accelerated testing and verification for a new engine provider even though that has to be a major barrier. The only dim light in the whole affair is that they at least put a number on the engines buy although it’s less clear how that is guaranteed. Is the Air Force taking on the role of engine provider like it just did for the T-7 or will the Air Force direct Boeing to buy a certain number from this new vendor?

“establishes a resilient, sustainable supply chain from day one.”
“what minimum volume your supply chain can justify private capital investments (such as facility expansion, tooling modernization, or advanced automation) and how those investments will structurally lower your long-term unit costs.”

A better approach is to have a series of targeted discussions with the few companies that could reasonably support this requirement. Take the next 6 months to work out the finer points of what investments might be needed, how they could be financed possibly with a mix of private and OSW IBAS funding, what business models might be employed to support lower lifecycle costs (to include sparing strategies, field repair, relief from certain requirements etc). In those discussions, the Air Force could share what is has to offer to support this ramp up including how IP might be shared, how government facilities might be made available to companies etc.

Below is our general reaction to these types of RFIs which requires industry to spend hundreds of hours detailing responses based on a hundred different assumptions that could be executed in a more efficient and collaborative approach with industry.

Air Force Expands Autonomous Flight Tests with Live, AI-Enabled Intercepts

BLUF: The Air Force and Lockheed Martin recently demonstrated an artificial intelligent agent autonomously flying a fighter jet using live infrared sensor data — a critical step in ongoing developments of AI-enabled combat.

It conducted multiple flight tests in April where an AI agent processed live targeting data and then controlled an aircraft to execute intercepts.
The experiment featured the X-62 Variable In-flight Simulation Test Aircraft (VISTA), which performed 27 autonomous air intercepts across eight flights.
The demo — dubbed HAVE HEAT — was one of two rapid experiments held under the X-62’s ongoing Mission Systems Upgrade program.
The effort broadly aims to expand the test aircraft’s ability to evaluate AI-enabled flight for future combat applications.
Unlike previous tests that relied heavily on simulated sensor inputs, HAVE HEAT used real-time onboard infrared data to guide and target a live T-38 Talon aircraft.

Our Take: This is great progress because the ability to rapidly test and field AI agents that can help execute increasingly more advanced behaviors is crucial for DoW.

B-52 Modernization Program $3B Over Budget

BLUF: Cost overruns and schedule delays have put the program to replace the B-52 Stratofortress’ engines some $3B over budget.

The Air Force’s “Commercial Engine Replacement Program will likely continue to face significant challenges as the Air Force plans to begin production with little to no developmental flight testing” is what GAO reported.
The Air Force is modernizing 76 of the aircraft with an initial estimate of $21B for the overall program, which includes 13 capabilities, including new engines.
Ten of those 13 are experiencing cost, schedule or performance challenges.
The 13 modernization programs also include: a new radar; six new comm systems; integrating a new long-range, nuclear-capable missile still in development; a new “black box;” two new training devices; new advanced target pod displays; and a plan to reduce the crew size from five to four.
The Air Force currently plans to fly the bomber into the 2050s. Boeing developed and delivered the aircraft and continues work on the program, with Rolls-Royce delivering the new engines.
The engine and radar programs have experienced cost increases of more than 30 percent and schedule delays of more than three years since the programs began early development.

BLUF: This program is really disappointing since it was started under the MTA authority, but it seems clear that the program was trying to do too much in one chunk. This is why acquisition programs need to break these types of major upgrades into incremental improvements to disperse the execution risk. It is hard with major legacy platforms where you don’t want to take them down for long deport periods multiple times, but this is the alternative - let the debate start on which way is better.

Air Force Taps Quantum Computing to Protect Electric Grid from Cyber Threats

BLUF: Eaton, a U.S. power management company, has landed a $7M contract from AFRL to develop quantum computing tools aimed at protecting the nation’s electric grid from increasing cyber and physical threats.

The company announced the two-year project on Thursday. Eaton will team up with Infleqtion and Pennsylvania State University to develop new quantum-powered ways to detect and respond to several grid failures at once.
The research will use quantum computing, machine learning, and advanced visualization to help power operators spot vulnerabilities and handle disruptions.
The goal is to make the grid more resilient as utilities deal with more severe weather, wildfires, cyberattacks, and other risks.

U.S. Senate Confirms Schiess to Lead Space Force

BLUF: The Senate on Aug. 6 confirmed Lt. Gen. Douglas Schiess as the next chief of space operations, installing a career missile and space officer to lead the Space Force as it prepares for a sharp expansion in funding, personnel and military missions driven by growing competition with China.

He assumes command as the six-year-old service is seeking a major increase in resources to support new missile warning and tracking satellites, resilient communications networks and other classified space programs.
During his confirmation hearing, Schiess argued that the Space Force has completed its initial institution building phase but must now rapidly expand its workforce, infrastructure and operational capabilities to keep pace with China.

Our Take: We hear good things and wish Gen Schiess the best as he takes over Space Force at such a critical juncture.

Senate Installs New Chiefs for Space Acquisition, Spy Satellites

BLUF: The Senate on Aug. 7 confirmed Erich Hernandez-Baquero to oversee military space acquisition and Roger Mason to lead the National Reconnaissance Office, putting two industry veterans in charge of major parts of the U.S. national security space enterprise

Hernandez-Baquero said his priorities would be acquisition reform, integration across missions and rebuilding the acquisition workforce.
Mason told senators his top priorities would be accelerating an architecture that combines proliferated satellites with more sophisticated government systems, speeding adoption of new technology and making the NRO’s entire enterprise from satellites through ground networks more resilient.

Air Force Expands Blue Origin Rocket Cargo Contract

BLUF: AFRL has added $11.7M to a Blue Origin contract aimed at exploring how commercial rockets could be used to transport military supplies around the world, expanding the agreement to about $13M.

Under the agreement, Blue Origin will define technical and mission requirements for adapting its systems to support “point-to-point” cargo transport.
The concept involves launching supplies aboard a rocket from one location and delivering them to a designated destination, potentially cutting journeys that now take hours or days to less than an hour.
The contract remains focused on studies and systems analysis rather than an operational launch or a demonstration of a complete cargo-delivery system.
Blue Origin is one of several companies receiving funding through the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Rocket Experimentation for Global Agile Logistics program, known as REGAL.

How We Might Be Building a Strait of Hormuz in Space

Charles Beames

BLUF: The current conflict with Iran is teaching DoW some hard lessons specifically how drastically the proliferation of low-cost drones, missiles and mines will impact the future of warfare. Put simply, they give a weaker adversary the asymmetric ability to impose military consequences wildly disproportionate to their cost.

A much deeper lesson for space has almost nothing to do with drones or missiles, or even Iran. It is about chokepoints.
There is a paradox at work here that runs through business strategy, military doctrine and national security policy alike: The rational pursuit of efficiency in the near term creates profound vulnerabilities over the long term.
In warfare, those vulnerabilities can become critical – existential, even.
- Resource concentration and repeatability enable economies of scale.
- Vertical integration reduces costs.
- A single optimized architecture simplifies operations.
- Fewer contractors simplify acquisitions.
- Standardization makes systems easier to manage.
But what looks like efficiency to an acquisition official becomes an obvious target to an adversary.
The definition of resilience shouldn’t be complicated: it means after an adversary has studied our architecture, identified its critical dependencies and attacked them intelligently, can the commander still accomplish the mission?
If not, you don’t have resilience. You have a chokepoint.
In an earlier era, chokepoints were what Gen. John Hyten called our “big, fat, juicy targets,” large, exquisite and expensive satellites, most of them in GEO.
In the following years, Space Force wisely moved toward architectures composed of greater numbers of smaller, low-cost satellites built by multiple suppliers.
That was an important step. But proliferation of small satellites should not be confused with proliferation of dependencies.
Future chokepoints may emerge from a single-mission, mega-constellation; a single ground architecture; a single cloud or software environment; or a single critical supplier buried within multiple prime contractors’ supply chains.
What’s even worse? A single company controlling several of those layers simultaneously.
That is also why competition is more than just good acquisition policy.
Competition is a key part of resilience. Multiple suppliers ensure different technologies, different supply chains, different software architectures and failure modes, meaning no single attack can bring down the entire architecture.
Continuous competition also prevents any single contractor or technology from becoming too entrenched to challenge (another chokepoint).
A diverse industrial base in and of itself is a national security asset.
The best way to defend America’s Strait of Hormuz in Space is to make sure we never build one.

Our Take: Amen. Continuous competition has to be the name of the game. That does not mean you can’t scale initially with one vendor, it just means you need to be able to add new vendors in the mix over time in a dynamic architecture.

Space Force Closely Watching Execution Risk as it Implements Acquisition Reforms

BLUF: As the Space Force enacts acquisition reforms over the next few years that shift how it sets requirements, manages programs, and fields systems to operators, the SSC head wants to ensure this transformation doesn’t disrupt program execution.

Before the transformation push, the Space Force had spent the prior year scouring its procurement programs for opportunities to better partner with commercial companies, tightening the link between operational units and acquisition teams, and speeding up fielding timelines for key systems.
The Space Force has continued to make progress on many of its early reform tasks, namely: the delegation of contracting authorities to acquisition experts; and the incremental rollout of nine mission-focused portfolio acquisition executives, which the service finalized in mid-June.
It’s also creating several new processes and forums designed to streamline requirements generation and validation, including the establishment of a capability trade council with representatives from the service acquisition office as well as the user community that will help negotiate requirements trades.
The Space Force is also rethinking what role SSC will play in providing the organizational structure to support the new PAEs including on reducing the size of SSC headquarters and redistribute personnel among the PAEs.
It’s still looking at options to more closely couple its operator-acquirer teams.
The Space Force is also working with Congress to make sure its PAEs have the authorities they need to craft portfolio-level budgets and shift funding between programs as new technology emerges or as threats evolve.

Our Take: In general, it’s a little odd to worry about execution when it comes to acquisition transformation because the intent is to reexamine if the current execution plans are still the best way to deliver the needed capabilities. But we definitely get that that organization shifts have created some disruption. We would encourage SSC to not create more new orgs or change orgs in the near future but let the PAEs do their work with the new constructs they have. We are very supportive of pushing SSC staff to the PAEs. That’s an excellent start to putting the emphasis on execution.

Space Force Awards K2 Space $22.9M for Laser Communications Demonstration

BLUF: Space Force awarded K2 Space a $22.9M contract to test laser terminals designed to transmit data directly between satellites in orbit.

Under the contract announced July 31, K2 Space will procure, integrate, launch and operate two Enterprise Space Terminals, with each terminal carried as a hosted payload on a separate K2 satellite.
The demonstration is scheduled to be completed by 2028.
Space Systems Command has selected CACI International, General Atomics and Viasat as Phase 3 suppliers under the Enterprise Space Terminal program, a roughly $100M effort launched in 2024 to develop and evaluate optical communications hardware from multiple vendors.
The three companies are developing terminals designed to use common technical standards. The Space Force has not disclosed whether K2 will purchase both flight units from one company or select terminals from two different suppliers.
Optical communications use tightly focused laser beams to transmit data between satellites.
They require precise pointing and tracking, particularly when spacecraft are separated by thousands of miles and moving relative to one another

The Commercial Satellite Revolution is Changing Warfare — Here’s How America Can Stay Ahead

BLUF: Throughout the Iran war, commercial space has played a key and troubling role as Chinese commercial firms have publicly posted high-resolution, close-up satellite imagery of U.S. military platforms at Middle East bases for American adversaries to see and use.

The good news is that the United States has ample opportunities to better leverage its own commercial space advances, and those of its allies and partners, to strengthen U.S. national security as the space race heats up.
For decades, military advantage in space depended almost entirely on government-owned satellites and national intelligence organizations.
Commercial space has altered that equation, fundamentally changing how wars are fought and how military power is projected.
Put simply, the government monopoly on space has disappeared, shifting key military space capabilities from government control to the private sector.
Defense planners will have to grapple with this evolution. Future conflicts will likely be shaped by commercially-owned satellite constellations that provide communications, intelligence, and data services to governments worldwide.
The convergence of commercial satellite imagery, resilient communications, SAR space platforms, and AI-enabled analysis demonstrates a fundamental shift in military space power that the United States should work to harness.
The proliferation of low-cost launch, small satellites, and commercial remote sensing has handed the United States a strategic opportunity — but one also afforded to its adversaries. The new space race is on.

Our Take: This is dead-on. We need to rethink everything from how we used to operate. We need new business models and operational concepts ASAP.

SpaceX’s Satellite Ambitions Squeeze Out Rivals Reliant on its Rockets

BLUF: SpaceX is increasingly reserving space on its rockets to launch its own Starlink satellites, crowding out rival space companies that have long depended on the company to get their payloads into orbit.

Starlink’s share of SpaceX missions has grown year after year, rising from 54% of the Falcon 9 rocket’s manifest in 2020 to about 79% so far in 2026.
In recent months, at least seven spacecraft companies have been told that Falcon 9 is fully booked for all types of missions until 2028 or 2029.
They added that the bottleneck is driven by SpaceX’s plans to transition to the new Starship rocket, designed to be fully reusable and cheaper than Falcon 9.

Space Force Establishes $981M Contract Vehicle to Develop Testing, Training Infrastructure

BLUF: Space Force has established a pool of 15 companies to build out a complex, digital environment for testing new systems and training guardians.

The Space Force has established a pool of 15 companies to build out a complex, digital environment for testing new systems and training guardians.
The National Space Test and Training Complex (NSTTC) Innovative Technology & Engineering – Space Test and Range (NITE-STAR) is a new contract vehicle to accelerate the service’s development of modernized test and training capabilities.
The indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity deal has a value of up to $981M and includes two five-year periods, according to the Space Force.
The 15 companies in the vendor pool are Amentum Technology, BAE Systems, CACI, Firefly Aerospace, L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Pacific Crest Alliance, Parsons, Redwire Space Missions, Rocket Lab, Sierra Space, Boeing, Viasat and York Space Systems.
The NITE-STAR contract is the latest effort to develop a flagship Operational Test and Training Infrastructure (OTTI) one of the Space Force’s top priorities.

Our Take: Smart contractors will look at the actual budgets allocated to this important mission in terms of how seriously they lean forward and compete on this IDIQ. In general, we don’t like IDIQs, but it might make sense here since for the initial 5 years to get things in-place. Exercising the second 5-year option would be folly.

Related Articles:

Space Force Accelerates SB-AMTI capabilities with Multi-Vendor Awards

BLUF: The Space Force has awarded a second task order of three initial Firm-Fixed-Price Other Transaction Authority (OTAs) agreements totaling $615M under the Space-Based Sensing and Targeting portfolio.

This effort targets rapid maturity of emerging technologies through growth of the vendor base, and diversification and development of multiple Space-Base Airborne Moving Target Indicator (SB-AMTI) capabilities.
The awardees for these OTAs are Rocket Lab, STR, LLC, and one other industry company who cannot be named at this time due to operational security.
By actively seeking a wider array of commercial partners, the government is deliberately lowering barriers to entry and maturing a deeper pool of capable vendors.
This approach fosters continuous, long-term competition, reduces supply chain constraints, and mitigates industrial risk.

“Our mandate is clear: we must move fast and aggressively harness the innovation of the commercial sector. The core focus of this second task order is diversifying our capabilities and ensuring we don’t rely on a single technical solution. With these new partnerships, we are exploring unique innovations and technologies and fundamentally different ways to accomplish the airborne moving target indication mission.
Maturing these varied technical solutions now gives us distinct performance advantages for the future and guarantees we are fielding the absolute best technology available. While our initial awards allowed us to rapidly establish a baseline, these new agreements demonstrate our commitment to expanding our partnerships. A resilient space architecture demands a robust, competitive industrial base, and tapping into the broader commercial market is how we get there.”
Brig Gen Ryan Frazier, Portfolio Acquisition Executive for SBST.

Our Take: We think Ryan is nailing how a portfolio should be managed. Take advantage of what’s available while also planning for the next set of capabilities. Invest government funding where needed to build or tailor the specific thing that is needed to enable a military capability but be sending demand signals and mapping where the commercial tech space is evolving to gain a first mover advantage when an opportunity presents itself.

SDA Has Plenty Left to Give Amid Potential Dissolution

BLUF: As the Space Force looks to standdown the agency in lieu of portfolios, SDA will be remembered as a great initiative that demonstrated some new technologies and had some issues along the way but provided many lessons learned for the new PAEs.

SDA and SpRCO are not going away but rather being reimagined into the PAE structure.
SDA will continue to deliver the hardware, integrated software and ground infrastructure for what it has already awarded in Tranches 1, 2 and 3 of the architecture.

Our Take: SDA helped change the game for space acquisition by shifting the focus to the commercial sector and to proliferated constellations. It had some issues that were regretful but more recently seems to have incorporated lessons learned and is on a much better path.

The War China Might Choose: A New Taiwan Option

Eugene Gholz and Kerby Davis

BLUF: Analysts generally organize the options for a Chinese military move against Taiwan into three categories: (1) an invasion to seize direct control of the island; (2) a “joint firepower strike” that would bomb Taiwan’s cities and political institutions; (3) and a maritime blockade to starve Taiwan into submission but there is a third less examined option to consider in planning.

The first three options are complex, high-cost gambles for China that would consume large quantities of military assets and result in immense casualties and property damage.
A blockade would add the risk of directly attacking third parties—specifically, cargo ships from other countries—making it more likely that China would also have to fight international powers, including the U.S.
However, a “blockade by fire”—a missile strike campaign directed against Taiwan’s port infrastructure—would minimize the risks that China would face.
This kind of strike would not focus major combat operations in the heart of Taiwan’s cities, as in the case of an invasion or a joint firepower strike.
Nor would it put third-party ships at risk, as with a traditional blockade.
And because a blockade by fire would use only a small number of missiles aimed targets in Taiwanese ports, it would avoid the need to enforce a cordon around the island and avoid exposing China’s navy to defensive missile fire from Taiwan.
Under a blockade by fire, international commercial ships would still be free to sail around the island, meaning that other East Asian countries such as Japan and South Korea could continue the bulk of their trade essentially undisturbed.
Wargame results suggest that China would need to fire fewer than 500 missiles over 100 days to reduce Taiwan’s imports to 15% of their average peacetime level.
To deter a blockade by fire, Taiwan’s most obvious move would be to bulk up its missile defenses.
Taiwan’s best hope, then, for deterring and defending itself from a blockade by fire would be to prepare to survive one.
Taiwan should stockpile essential items, including the parts and materials needed to repair port infrastructure.
Taiwan and its willing partners should also conduct exercises that specifically focus on preparing the island’s ports to operate under crisis conditions and to practice mitigating and repairing damage.

Vatn Touches Down in Taiwan

BLUF: Vatn, the autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) startup announced that it’s inked a deal with the Taiwanese government’s top military R&D center, the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST), to collaborate on naval defense projects focused on the company’s Skelmir AUV.

The startup’s flagship AUV is called the Skelmir, which has two variants.
- The 6-inch diameter AUV (the S6) has a 10- 20 lb payload capacity, a range of 20 nautical miles, and a top speed of around 23 mph
- The heftier 12-inch diameter one (the S12) can carry a 250lb payload over 200 nautical miles and at speeds up to 34.5 mph.
Both are designed to be configurable for a range of different missions, from one-way attack with a go-boom payload to ISR and, as of last month, mine-hunting and neutralization.

“Vatn was really founded with the idea of defending Taiwan, defending Ukraine, defending our allies in challenging parts of the world. Our AUVs are cheaper than really anything else in the market, so it enables you to buy enough to actually have a fleet and an effect. They’re able to actually intercept and defeat moving targets, get on station faster if they’re carrying sensors, and act as more realistic decoys.” Vatn CEO Nelson Mills

Rheinmetall Pivots to New Frigate to Make Up for Contract Loss

BLUF: Rheinmetall AG is turning to its own frigate and several smaller boats to fill its underused shipyards after losing a German naval contract worth several billion euros.

The move was a blow to Rheinmetall, which last year ventured into shipbuilding, buying Naval Vessels Lürssen in September.
The German deal would have included Rheinmetall taking over making the frigates from Dutch naval group Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding BV that had been beset by production problems.
The defense ministry canceled the project because it feared delays, cost overruns and litigation issues and assumed that the MEKO frigates could be a faster alternative.
It’s set to buy as many as eight MEKO A-200 frigates from TKMS AG& Co., which are smaller and carry less firepower.
Rheinmetall is also trying to win new clients for support and mine hunter boats and is speeding up making autonomous vessels.

Related Article: Rheinmetall reveals new guided missile frigate

Europe’s Defense Spending Surge Favoring the Primes

BLUF: Defense spending is growing sharply across Europe, but as money trickles down from higher military budgets and funding mechanisms, its distribution has not been felt equally across the continent’s industrial base.

Startups need early traction, end-user feedback and an invitation to the big boys’ club, he said. But the current flow of money is reflective of governments that are too risk averse when it comes to purchasing a product that is under development.
As a result of legacy mindsets, many startups are still not getting traction, “even though they may be having the best product in class.”
Transformation is also seen as less important in lieu of filling gaps such as ammunition, air and missile defense systems, armored vehicles, long-range fires, stockpile replenishment and production capacity — traditional capabilities at the forefront of previous world wars.
Startups in Europe attracted around $8B to $9B of venture capital investment in 2025, a trend that is creating a new industrial landscape.
As long as procurement favors traditional avenues, there will always be a trade-off with innovation.

“We learned on the battlefield in Ukraine that craftiness and fast iteration is the way to go, but when it comes to purchasing, governments tend to be waiting for the final product. You want to know what you get.”
Jens Holzapfel, business director at Nordic Air Defense

Ukraine’s Fire Point Starts to Integrate European Tech into Missile Defense System

BLUF: Ukrainian drone and missile maker Fire Point has secured agreements from a dozen+ European defense companies to provide radar, guidance and other systems for the Freyja missile defense project and is starting to integrate the various systems.

The pan-European project was launched in Paris last month by 10 governments and 12 defense firms - including Eurosam, Leonardo, Thales and SAAB.
Kyiv currently relies on the U.S.-made Patriot system to down ballistic missiles that fly at several times the speed of sound, but global shortages of its interceptor missiles, exacerbated by the war in Iran, have left Ukraine exposed.
The Ukrainian company is providing the FP7.X – a faster version of its FP7 ballistic missile – as the interceptor and is now integrating that with the guidance system, known as a seeker.
Norway’s Kongsberg is working on the command center integrating the various systems.
Fire Point aims to produce a ballistic interceptor for less than €1 million ($1.2 million) per missile, a quarter to a sixth of the cost of a Patriot.
The project would use open-source architecture and allow different options to be swapped in and out — such as a Weibel radar for one made by Saab.
The number of industrial partners could rise to around 20, increasing production capacity.

Our Take: If we were betting people, we would put real money that Ukraine figures this out in record speed given the realities on the ground.

Telesat Secures $2.3B Arctic Military Satcom Contract w/Canada

BLUF: Telesat LEO ULC, one of the world’s largest and most innovative satellite operators, today announced that it has signed a $2.3B Telesat Lightspeed services contract with Canada’s Defence Investment Agency (DIA) to deliver secure Military Ka-band (Mil-Ka) Arctic connectivity to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) under the Enhanced Satellite Communications Project – Polar (ESCP-P) program.

This is the largest contract in Telesat’s history and will significantly expand the scale and capacity of the Telesat Lightspeed network.
This agreement allows Telesat to immediately expand its Telesat Lightspeed network by 69 fully funded satellites, bringing the initial constellation from 156 to 225 satellites, all to be built by MDA Space, with commercial and Mil-Ka capacity.
The expansion will be funded through milestone-based payments from the Government of Canada starting in Q3 2026.
This contract ensures the Canadian Armed Forces will have access to secure, resilient and sovereign connectivity years earlier than originally planned, at a great value for money, and with a scalable architecture designed to meet future global requirements and support interoperability with allies and partners.

Australia Commits to Buying Secretive AIM-260 JATM Missiles, First Non-US User

BLUF: Australia will be the first export customer for the American-made beyond-visual-range air-to-air AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile (JATM).

The country will invest “almost” $736 million AUD ($518 million USD) to buy “up to 450” missiles for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF).
Canberra first plans to integrate the AIM-260 on the RAAF’s Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet fighters, followed by its fleet of Lockheed-Martin F-35A fifth-generation fighters and then its Boeing EA-18G Growler Electronic Attack aircraft.

Our Take: It’s great for the U.S. to have an early buyer of what looks to be a very expensive missile which will help with the economics. It’s also a sign of the growing relationship between the U.S. and Australia that such an exquisite missile would be released to an ally so quickly.

China’s ‘Sixth-Gen’ Fighter Jet Spotted with Design Upgrades, J-36’s Design Improved

Our Take: New images circulating online appear to show what defense analysts believe is the fifth prototype of China’s sixth-generation J-36 fighter jet.

According to observers, the newly photographed aircraft appears to feature several refinements compared with earlier prototypes.
These include possible improvements to the airframe, engine integration, and aerodynamic design, suggesting that engineers are continuing to evaluate and enhance the aircraft through successive flight tests.
Experts suggest these adjustments are aimed at improving radar evasion, aerodynamic efficiency and engine performance.
Analysts have described it as having a tailless configuration and a distinctive three-engine layout, features that could support long-range operations, reduced radar visibility, and the integration of advanced sensors and weapons.
The emergence of another apparent prototype indicates that China may be accelerating its flight-testing program.
Developing multiple prototypes allows engineers to test different design changes, validate performance, and identify technical issues before it enters production.

Netherlands Commences USV Design for New ASW Frigates with Thales FLASH Sonar

BLUF: The Dutch Ministry of Defence, acting through the Materiel and IT Command (COMMIT), has formally commissioned Dutch Naval Design (DND) to begin designing a 12-meter uncrewed surface vessel (USV) for anti-submarine warfare (ASW).

The uncrewed craft will be deployed from the Royal Netherlands Navy’s upcoming generation of ASW frigates, significantly expanding the naval task group’s reach and underwater threat detection capabilities.
Concurrently, the Dutch MoD cleared the way to finalize the procurement of a modified variant of the FLASH dipping sonar from Thales Underwater Systems France, which will be integrated directly into the USV platform.
Development of the platform will be carried out by the “USV Alliance,” an industrial consortium formed under the Dutch Naval Design framework—a strategic partnership uniting the Ministry of Defence, defense industry leaders, academic institutions, and research centers.

Other International News:

Intuitive Machines Completes Acquisition of Goonhilly Earth Station and COMSAT

It’s Continuing Resolution Season in Washington

Senate passed a Continuing Resolution this morning 90-6 to run through Dec 11. It rejects the administration request for $1B for the Trump-class battleship and rejects obligating funds for five key munitions programs. It generally freezes most DoD programs at prior levels (restricting new starts or production increases) but includes limited carve-outs/anomalies, such as for certain shipbuilding, classified procurement, and the nuclear weapons enterprise. It further does not include the exemption for unobligated reconciliation funds that would be taxed 8%.

House passed version of the CR bill extends funding until Dec 4. They will review the Senate bill upon returning from August recess on Aug 31.

How Congress Is Fumbling National Defense

Elaine McCusker

BLUF: Congress’ reliance on stopgap funding may put the budding revival of the US military defense base and innovation on hold.

As the August congressional recess approaches, the foundational task of the nation’s elected legislators to provide for the common defense remains undone. Rather than passing annual appropriations, congressional attention has already turned to stopgap spending bills.
A 65-day continuing resolution would mean a loss of $1.7B per day in defense buying power, the difference between a continuing resolution extension of current funding and the budget needed for next year.
Put another way, just one day of lost buying power would be enough to purchase 379 of the critically needed advanced Patriot air defense missiles.
Momentum is just now building through industrial base and supply chain revitalization, investments in unmanned systems and AI capabilities and capacity, a shipbuilding surge, and overall modernization and readiness improvements.
All that is about to come to a destructive and unnecessary halt unless Congress takes decisive action.
General Caine succinctly summarized the urgency, saying that the funding was needed while we are still in the “window of opportunity” for it to matter. That goes for the supplemental request and the entire 2027 budget. Before training and exercises are canceled. Before modernization momentum is lost.
Congress must return from the August recess ready to put the nation’s security and its military above all other concerns, and to pass both the required emergency spending and the full 2027 budget request before the end of the fiscal year and before asking voters to let them keep their jobs.

Our Take: The #1 thing that Congress can do to support national security: Pass a defense appropriation ON TIME!

See our NDAA and budget posts for the latest insights and analysis.

Autonomous Warships, China’s 230X Advantage, and Swarms of Robot Ships | Dino Mavrookas and Vib Altekar
All-In-Podcast

A Conversation with the Pentagon’s Chief Buyer | Michael Duffey, USW(A&S)
Cogs of War

Contracting as the Competitive Advantage | Mike Derrios, Greg Baroni, Stephanie Halcrow, Ben Harris, Jim Hasik, and John Tenaglia
GMU Baroni Center

How AI and Quantum are Transforming Defense Cybersecurity | Vince Crisler
NDIA Emerging Tech Horizons

Modular Counter-UAS Systems for Military Vehicles | Bryan Bockmon
SAE Aerospace and Defense Technology

Why America Can’t Build Drone Batteries Without China, Yet | Trent Clawson
Drone Wars Podcast

Space and Missile Defense Symposium
Aug 11-13 • Huntsville, AL

TechNet Augusta 2026
AFCEA • Aug 17-20 • Augusta, GA

MODSIM World
NTSA • Aug 18-19 • Alexandria, VA

Fed SuperNova
Aug 18-20 • Austin, TX

ONR sBAA Industry Day
Aug 20 • Washington DC area

SmallSat Conference
Aug 23-26 • Salt Lake City, UT

DIB Accelerator 2026
ASW(IBP) • Aug 25-27 • Philadelphia, PA

Space Warfighting Forum
NDIA • Aug 25-27 • Colorado Springs, CO

Prodacity
Rise8 • Aug 25-27 • Nashville, TN

Intelligence and National Security Summit
AFCEA • Aug 26-27 • Bethesda, MD

See our Events Page for all the other events over the next year.

Headlines: $136B for Mega-Contracts

Matt MacGregor — Sat, 01 Aug 2026 17:25:33 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

The biggest stories across the Department and the defense industry this week:

The Army awards Lockheed Martin a $59B contract for PAC-3s. The Navy says hold my beer and awards General Dynamics and HII a $77B contract for Virginia and Columbia subs. DoW also pursues lower-cost munitions and drones.
An array of new drones exercise and DoD pursues drones that carry drones.
CHAOS and Atropos combine to advance modular, long-range autonomy
Acq reform requires empowered leaders and stakeholder engagement
The Army launched Reveille Forge, an Integrated Development Environment
NVIDIA provided the Navy the Department’s biggest supercomputer.
CCAs will be optionally attritable and improves ACE operations at EOU
Space Force advances AMTI; ESS progresses using novel acq framework
Ukraine Hits Russia in the Caspian While Iran Refines Missile CONOPS

Navy Awards $76.6B in Contracts for New Virginia, Columbia-class Subs

BLUF: The Navy awarded General Dynamics Electric Boat and HII Newport News Shipbuilding a $42.1B for nine Block VI Virginia-class subs and a $29.5B contract for five Build II Columbia-class subs.

Coupled with previously awarded funds of $5B for shipyard enhancements, the contracts are valued at a total of $76.6B.
The awards drive the critical, once-in a generation recapitalization of the Navy’s undersea forces and the Nation’s nuclear triad.
The Columbia Class submarines will provide an effective sea-based strategic deterrent to meet USSTRATCOM requirements.
Furthermore, these contract awards support the fielding of enhanced Virginia Class submarines, a platform engineered for unparalleled stealth, heavy payload strike capability, and multi-domain lethality.
The Navy now has seven Columbia Class submarines under contract, complementing a force of 26 operational Virginia Class submarines with 23 more slated to be built.
Meanwhile, the Virginia-class submarine program has faced some challenges and delays, stemming from late material deliveries and a shortage of experienced workers, according to a GAO report released this month.
Shipbuilders are constructing Virginia-class submarines at the pace of one per year as of June 2025, falling short of the Navy’s target of two per year.

“This historic investment underscores the Department’s continued commitment to undersea superiority and the recapitalization of our nuclear triad. By securing the continuous production of both the Columbia and Virginia classes, we ensure we will continue to deliver the world’s most lethal, survivable and resilient combat platform to our global Combatant Commanders, while providing long-term stability to our shipbuilding industrial base.” VADM Robert Gaucher, DRPM Strategic Submarines

Army Adds $54B to Lockheed PAC-3 Agreement, Totaling $59B

BLUF: The Army awarded Lockheed Martin an undefined contract action (UCA) mod worth $53.86B for PAC-3 MSE interceptors, bringing the total value of the seven-year contract to $58.62B.

The contract is undefinitized, meaning dollar values and quantities could change as negotiations continue.
The UCA enables a highly resilient, warm production line capable of rapidly scaling the delivery of critical PAC-3 MSE interceptors to U.S. and allied forces.
Lockheed Martin inked another deal with the Pentagon to ramp up production for the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) in March, and late last month, signed another massive UCA for nearly $35B to increase production of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptors over a seven-year period.
The additional funding from the UCA allows the company to supercharge PAC-3 MSE production and triple capacity by the end of 2030

“Today’s announcement turns concept into reality, providing industry with the long-term demand signals it needs to build a resilient supply chain, scale production, and deliver critical capabilities to our Warfighters at the speed of relevance.” Michael Duffey, USW(A&S)

US Missile Defenses to Get Strengthened with New 4-fold THAAD Propulsion Expansion

BLUF: L3Harris signed a framework agreement with the DoW and Lockheed Martin for a seven-year contract that would quadruple production of propulsion systems used by THAAD.

L3Harris supplies THAAD’s Solid Rocket Boost Motors and Liquid Divert and Attitude Control Systems, two key propulsion components used by the interceptor.
L3Harris has also reached a separate seven-year framework covering propulsion systems for the PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement interceptor.

Our Take:

These mega-contracts $77B for Columbia and Virginia submarines and $54B for PAC-3s are clear big bets for the DoW. These lock-in a major recapitalization of vital strategic capabilities that have been woefully delayed and limited in production.

Each contract exceeds the combined value of all OT Agreements awarded over the last two years.
They dwarf by a factor of 8.5X the total lifetime federal obligations of the NatSec100 companies ($16B) and exceed the total private capital raised for those companies ($118.2B).

None of this diminishes the value of emerging defense technologies. Autonomy, attritable systems, advanced sensors, and software-defined capabilities remain essential for distributed lethality and cost-imposition. But the sheer magnitude of these traditional programs underscores the platforms and interceptors that underwrite nuclear deterrence and theater air-and-missile defense still absorb the overwhelming share of near-term procurement dollars. The defense-tech ecosystem will continue to grow, yet it will do so in the shadow of contracts whose individual values exceed the entire lifetime federal spend of the current generation of national-security startups.

X-Bow Unveils New Low-Cost Supersonic Interceptor

BLUF: X-Bow Systems rolled out their Buckler interceptor, designed to down Shahed-type Group 3 drone threats at supersonic speed, all at an appealing and mass-procurable sub-$100,000 price point.

X-Bow’s SRMs come in all different sizes, ranging from a 34.5-inch motor (designed for big ol’ missiles, hypersonics, and space launch) to smaller motors and rocket-assisted take-off (RATO) kits for Group 3 UAVs, namely Aevex’s 200lb Disruptor drone, which it’s produced thousands of RATO kits for.
Lockheed also tapped the startup as a new independent supplier of SRMs and other services for their existing and future programs after leading X-Bow’s $105M Series B funding round last year.
X-Bow is building the Buckler’s airframe, solid-rocket motor, and propellant all in-house. X-Bow says that vertical integration is aimed at solving the industrial-base bottleneck defense leaders cite as the top constraint on scaling interceptors.

Singularity Defense Raises $80M to Build Missile Interceptors at Automotive Scale

BLUF: Singularity Defense emerged from stealth to announce an oversubscribed $80 million Series A round and with it, the most explicit public bet yet that the Western air defense crisis can be solved not through better missiles, but through better factories.

The company has been building, flight-testing, and delivering air defense capability to the U.S. military in near-total secrecy. It is not yet ready to name the system publicly.
What it is ready to say is this: the interceptor is missile-based, ground-launched, built entirely from in-house subsystems including its own solid-fuel rocket motor, and designed to integrate with the C2, radar, and fire control infrastructure already in service across the U.S. military and that the bulk of the fresh $80M is going toward production lines the company says will exceed anything currently operating in the United States for air defense.
The company's engineering thesis begins not with a new seeker or a novel propellant, but with a production philosophy borrowed from the auto industry.
Singularity builds all key subsystems in-house — including its own solid-fuel rocket motor, a significant vertical integration decision that no established defense contractor has made for interceptor-class missiles in recent memory. For components it does not build in-house, it sources from commercial suppliers already producing at high volume, ensuring the supply chain does not constrain the production line.
The test cadence is the other half of the manufacturing thesis. Singularity is conducting multiple flight tests per month — a pace that compresses development iteration cycles that typically take quarters into weeks. Each test cycle feeds directly into design changes that can be implemented without waiting for a prime contractor's quarterly review cycle, because the people designing the system and the people building the prototype are in the same building.

Our Take: Both X-Bow Systems and Singularity Defense represent a parallel shift in the interceptor market: startups leveraging deep vertical integration and production philosophies borrowed from high-volume commercial manufacturing to deliver mass-procurable, lower-cost alternatives to traditional prime-contractor munitions. Both treat costs, speed, and volume as primary design drivers, positioning vertically integrated architectures as alternatives to the traditional munitions models.

Navy Picks RAACM-ER Low-Cost Cruise Missile For Program To Help Arm Allies

BLUF: The CHAOS program aims to give friendly ground forces new, cheaper ways to strike ships and targets on land at extended ranges.

Navy awarded CoAspire a $70M OTA for development of a ground-launched version of Rapidly Adaptable Affordable Cruise Missile-Extended Range (RAACM-ER) cruise missile.
Continued work on the design will now be done under a program aimed primarily at giving U.S. allies and partners a new, lower-cost way to strike moving targets at sea and on land.
CoAspire will design, build, test, and deliver to Program Acquisition Executive for Munitions and its program office, PMX-201, an affordable, ground-launched, mid-range, cruise missile system that can attack both land-based and moving maritime targets.
The end-use Foreign Military Sale (FMS) customers are allies and coalition partners needing an affordable yet highly effective maritime strike weapon that can be easily manufactured at scale.
CoAspire is also now developing what it says is a separate surface-launched version of RAACM-ER, called GHOST, for the U.S. military’s Low-Cost Containerized Missiles (LCCM) program.

Lockheed Taps Rotating Detonation Rocket Engines to Boost Missile Range, Speed

BLUF: Lockheed Martin and Venus Aerospace have formed a joint agreement to adapt Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine (RDRE) technology for military hardware, focusing on long-range precision strikes.

Rotating detonation propulsion could enable future precision fires systems to achieve significantly greater range and speed while remaining compatible with the Army’s need for affordable, scalable production.
The contract aims to transform this advanced propulsion setup from experimental flight demonstrations into standardized missile platforms.
It aims to meet defense requirements for faster, longer-range strike assets that are scalable for high-volume manufacturing.

CDAO Announces Team of Teams for Project Swarm Forge Crucible 3

BLUF: Following a highly successful Project Swarm Forge Crucible 2, CDAO selected the top-performing commercial drone and autonomy tech companies to advance to Crucible 3 this September.

Rather than looking for individual stars, we are driving a Team of Teams approach.
To defeat complex threats, we need the private sector to collaborate. We want the best hardware builders partnering with the best autonomy software developers and AI innovators to build unified, dominant systems.

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The Pentagon’s AI Strategy Has a Funding Problem

Adam Lackey

BLUF: In the span of two weeks, the White House issued two of the most ambitious AI directives in American history. The executive order mandating rapid AI adoption and hardened cyber defense across the government and the National Security Presidential Memorandum 11 directing every element of the national security enterprise to accelerate AI adoption, anchored by four pillars: adoption, adaptation, assurance, and accountability.

The strategy is sound. The harder challenge is execution, and a fiscal squeeze on the FY26 O&M accounts threatens to stall it before it begins.
The software that those directives call for is bought with O&M, and the Iran war has drained those accounts.
Private capital has made a generational commitment to American defense technology, yet the sector still draws <1% of total Pentagon contract dollars. Investors who backed these companies expect returns, and most of these firms depend on government contracts to earn them.
The FY26 bills hits AI software at the command level. The Pentagon created a dedicated software appropriation in recent years, but it remains a limited pilot, and most fielded command tools are still bought the way other recurring services are, with operations and maintenance dollars.
That puts AI software in direct competition with training, maintenance, and operating tempo for the same dollars, and the commands that most need decision-speed tools are often the least able to afford them.
The Pentagon could use reprogramming flexibility could move meaningful dollars into the technology and software accounts that fund commercial software licenses in the weeks that remain.
If FY2026 closes without meaningful new awards in the AI and commercial technology categories because O&M funding ran dry and no one acted, there will be real damage.

The Department of War Should Establish a Strategic Compute Reserve

Andreas Theodoropoulos

BLUF: The DoW should create a Strategic Compute Reserve to mobilize America's commercial data center capacity for classified military use during wartime, mirroring how the Civil Reserve Air Fleet surges civilian airlift for national defense.

Of the more than 35 gigawatts of data center capacity currently under construction in the U.S., >90% has already been pre-committed to a corporate customer.
The Pentagon has confirmed that Maven Smart System usage during Epic Fury surged month-to-month by 38% on unclassified workloads and 89% on classified workloads. By token volume, top daily usage surged by 4,425%, hitting a peak of 20 billion tokens a day.
As of early 2025, CENTCOM’s classified network ran on just four NVIDIA H100 GPUs, with a partnership with Air Force Research Laboratory set to add 24 more.
The DoW should reimagine its regulatory frameworks around risk-based accreditation, identifying which rules still make sense in a cloud computing environment and which are obsolete.
The DoW should work with cloud service providers to upgrade and maintain physical and cyber security environments, scaled to the sensitivity of the workload and the current capabilities of each facility.
The DoW should develop a rapid conversion model that accepts some equipment may need to be removed rather than converted.

The Make-or-Buy Line has Moved

Jacob Green

BLUF: One foundational pillar of acquisition reform is the implementation of a commercial first policy, which laid out several initiatives: leveraging existing but less often used acquisition authorities, maximizing non-traditional contract vehicles, and increasing the use of more flexible solicitations. Most critically, it drives a commercial solution-first paradigm. If the immediate commercial solution isn’t sufficient, acquisition officers then find ways to modify it. If that approach does not work, then and only then do they pursue development.

Businesses have started to see exponentially growing capability in the leading large language models, industry adoption of new AI-optimized interaction protocols, and the proliferation of agentic enabling tools that astronomically reduce the barriers to developing the software they need.
The department should pursue the commercial procurement of infrastructure, agentic tools, and model access for its existing internal software development organizations. If done, it could build nearly all its software systems and applications in-house with unheard-of responsiveness, full government ownership, and at a fraction of the cost it spends today.
Open source models such as Google’s Gemma series, agentic harnesses such as Hermes Agent and Open Code, and supporting tools such as Open Notebook and Honcho offer great capability with no licensing costs.
The little-used Acquisition of Services pathway is particularly promising. This authority has the lowest barrier to entry and is built for large enterprise-wide contracts spanning many users and organizations.
Any closed-system solution that requires full adoption into its environment to see value deserves no consideration.
The Services should plan for their eventual departure from large single data platforms.
These powerful tools are only useful if partnered with knowledge and discipline.
The department needs to set conditions for these internal development teams to jump right into work and deliver value when called upon. It can do this through the establishment of pre-accredited development and production environments and a streamlined onboarding process for its internal developers to enter and begin work.

Drone Swarms vs Cruise Missiles: Range, Cost, Power Compared

BLUF: Drone swarms and cruise missiles are both designed to make life difficult for modern air-defense systems, but they do it in very different ways. Cruise missiles rely on long range, precision, low-altitude flight, and powerful warheads. Drone swarms, meanwhile, trade individual capability for numbers, coordination, and the ability to saturate defenses.

Cruise missiles remain better suited for deep, high-value precision strikes where range and explosive power are essential.
Drone swarms are potentially more useful for reconnaissance, saturation attacks, locating enemy defenses, attacking dispersed targets, and overwhelming defensive networks.

DARPA Challenge Pushes Limits of Heavy-Lift Drone Technology

BLUF: DARPA next week will kick off its inaugural Lift Challenge, a weeklong competition that aims to “revolutionize heavy vertical-lift aviation” by finding a drone capable of lifting and transporting a payload four times its own weight. The agency will award $6.5M in prizes to the winners.

The Lift Challenge has attracted more than 100 competitors for drones, ranging from drone manufacturers to engineers to academics to hobbyists.
Competitors must build a drone capable of non-assisted vertical takeoff that weighs less than 55 pounds. During the competition, the drones will have to pick up a minimum payload of 110 pounds and move it back and forth on a 1,000-foot course 30 times, or five nautical miles, in less than 30 minutes.

“Multirotor drones are limited in their usability because of their low payload-to-weight ratios, meaning they can only transport a payload equal to or less than their own weight. As payload requirements increase, so does the size and the cost of the drone. With the Lift Challenge, our goal is to dramatically increase the useful load, which will then drive down the cost per pound of transported cargo.” Phillip “Donna” Smith, the Lift Challenge Program Manager

UGVs Become Drone Bases That Launch Aerial Assets on the Move

BLUF: Target Arm and HDT Global are creating a mobile autonomous platform that allows drones to launch, recover, and continue operating without stopping or requiring human intervention.

The concept combines Target Arm’s Ralar 2 robotic system and the Hunter WOLF and WOLF-X unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) duo from HDT Global.
The integrated system is designed to keep drones operating while the ground platform itself is moving, combining robotic manipulation, sensors, and autonomy to support continuous aerial operations.
A robotic arm mounted on the vehicle captures and guides drones during recovery, while the platform also launches multiple unmanned aircraft in sequence.
Target Arm said the technology could support a range of missions beyond battlefield operations, including search and rescue, covert surveillance, logistics, and maritime patrol.
By allowing UGVs to function as autonomous launch and recovery platforms, the system could reduce the need for human involvement in routine drone operations and allow personnel to focus on higher-priority battlefield tasks.

America Should Build the Future of Unmanned Aviation

Will Hasting

BLUF: Drones will become a ubiquitous part of American life. The drone story has barely begun. Americans must ask who builds these machines and where their data goes.

From Ukraine to Iran, inexpensive drones have transformed the economics of warfare, allowing relatively cheap aircraft to threaten militaries and infrastructure worth billions. What was once a niche technology has become one of the defining weapons of modern war. But the battlefield is only the beginning.
In the coming decades, drones will become as common a tool for first responders and critical infrastructure as helicopters and radios are today, because they can solve problems that have always put human lives at risk.
American manufacturers should not win solely because foreign competitors were restricted. They should win because they built the better aircraft.
Unmanned aviation will not remove people from the mission. It is about making dangerous jobs safer and giving the people doing them better information before they have to act.
America now has the opportunity to help build that future. We should not settle for merely replacing what came before. We should build aircraft worthy of the people who will depend on them, and capable of being present when the moment matters most.

OSC Signs $820M Conditional Loan Commitment with Performance Drone Works to Expand Domestic Drone Component Manufacturing

BLUF: OSC issued a conditional loan commitment of up to $820M to PDW to establish high-volume domestic manufacturing capacity for critical drone components.

The project is intended to supply components to multiple manufacturers and platforms, representing a significant expansion of domestic production capacity for drone components.
These components are intended to support a range of Group 1 and Group 2 unmanned aircraft produced by PDW and other domestic manufacturers.
With this strategic financing, OSC will enable the development of production capacity to address critical component bottlenecks facing the broader U.S. unmanned-systems ecosystem.

"PDW will be one of several domestic component producers receiving OSC loan commitments in support of President Trump's Executive Order 14307, 'Unleashing American Drone Dominance.' Expanding domestic component production will benefit manufacturers throughout the ecosystem and improve supply-chain resilience." David Lorch, OSC Director

Other Defense Tech News:

CHAOS Industries Acquires Atropos Group, Uniting Sensing and Effects with Autonomous Airborne Platforms

BLUF: CHAOS Industries acquired Atropos Group, an aerospace company developing autonomous air platforms.

CHAOS’ counter-drone radar and sensing systems are in production at U.S. facilities and deployed to protect critical infrastructure.
The Atropos acquisition builds on that manufacturing base, bringing airframe production into the domestic supply chain and adding U.S. manufacturing capacity and jobs.
Within its first year, the Atropos Group completed six major design iterations, flew a one-fifth-scale prototype, completed a conceptual design review for a large autonomous aircraft, and advanced the initial design of a modular, long-range surveillance and strike platform.
By integrating CHAOS’ sensing and effector technologies with Atropos’ air vehicle design and autonomous flight software, the combined company will deliver a mobile platform capable of detecting, tracking, engaging, and defeating aerial and other threats while on the move.

Related Articles:

Our Take: We’re excited for our friends at Atropos for the opportunities ahead.

Boeing Mulls Building ‘Many’ Ghost Bat Production Hubs Overseas

BLUF: Boeing is considering plans to build MQ-28 Ghost Bat production facilities in more countries, as it steps up a major push to secure international orders of the drone wingman from countries who prioritize weapons built within their own borders.

Boeing announced that Hensoldt has been added to its German MQ-28 supplier base in support of a bid to land Berlin’s CCA requirement.
Germany is on course to become the first European CCA operator under a target to field the drones with crewed fighters in 2029.

“I think we’d rather have many smaller factories building them, localized for countries to meet their own local needs than having one mega factory.” Glen Ferguson, MQ-28 Global Program Director

Our Take: Boeing’s strategy makes sense for attracting foreign business, but it is a little ironic given Boeing has built its business on having large mega-factories which usually comes with increased efficiency and ability to move skilled workers across different lines when needed.

Lockheed Martin Raises 2026 Guidance Following Record $230B Backlog

BLUF: Driven by major contract wins, such as a $35B MDA contract for THAAD interceptors and multiple Army munitions awards, LMC now projects full-year sales between $79.75B and $81.75B (3% higher than projected).

LMC CEO Jim Taiclet attributed the strong performance to strategic investments made ahead of demand, including expanding munitions capacity and advancing counter-drone technologies like the Sanctum system.
To further support its growth, the company recently announced plans to acquire undersea-warfare firm Ultra Maritime for $3.45B and partnered with Rheinmetall to establish a European center for tactical missile production.

Our Take: Only time will tell if the strategic investments accelerate production of THAAD to 400 closer to 2032 or 2027. We remain disappointed that the department didn’t hedge more with a lower cost alternative to pair with THAAD production. Seems there is little procurement funding left over to pursue a more scalable and lower-cost interceptor that would provide DoW with additional options.

L3Harris Postpones Missile Unit IPO Until Mid-2027

BLUF: L3Harris is postponing its planned spinoff of its missile solutions unit until at least mid-2027, with its CEO saying that the business is being undervalued even as demand soars for solid rocket motors and other weapons components.

The company wants to let the market “settle down” rather than completing the spin off by the end of the year as originally projected.
L3Harris will continue to invest in the facilities needed to help scale up production of solid rocket motors and other missile components and won’t start to need the money from the IPO until the late 2027-2029 timeframe.
Currently, the company is one of two domestic suppliers — alongside Northrop Grumman — of large SRMs, a key propulsion technology used in missiles.

Our Take: It seems that despite initial investor enthusiasm, DoW taking an equity share has caused some consternation among the financial community given the government is simultaneously a major customer, investor and regulator. It seems the government maintains warrants (to purchase stock later at a preferred price) and that new public shareholders would likely only own a small, noncontrolling interest. That is not the only concern driving the IPO valuation but seems to be key.

This is why we have expressed concerns that DoW taking equity in some companies and not others creates a market and competition distortion. While it makes sense from a financial investor point of view, a future equity sale is unlikely to benefit DoW directly as those funds will go back to the Treasury.

Firehawk Aerospace Awarded AFRL Contract to Develop Breakthrough High-Thrust Propulsion System

BLUF: Firehawk Aerospace has been awarded a multi-million-dollar contract by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to continue developing and evaluating a hybrid rocket engine of increased size and capability.

Firehawk will develop and evaluate a hybrid engine of further increased size and performance capability and evaluate its performance as a possible propulsion system for a sled track test bed application.
Firehawk’s approach to producing hybrid rocket engines has created significant breakthroughs in reliability and performance compared to traditional hybrid rocket engines.

Saronic and Samsung Heavy Industries Team Up

BLUF: Unmanned maritime darling Saronic is teaming up with Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) to “accelerate the development of autonomy-capable maritime systems and technologies to strengthen America’s shipbuilding industrial base.”

Together, the two companies will work on autonomy and AI-powered solutions and integrate robotics and automated processes across Saronic’s shipyards.
SHI provides decades of experience in cutting-edge, high-volume shipbuilding and vessel design.

JIATF-401 Awards CACI $500M for Non-Kinetic cUAS

BLUF: CACI International has won a three-year, $500M contract to provide its non-kinetic SkyValor counter-drone system, along with “other tactical” unmanned systems, to the Joint Interagency Taskforce (JIATF) 401.

The SkyValor system specializes in providing “early warning detection” and uses radio frequency sensing and AI-enabled EW to take down drone threats
The systems will be used for the Pentagon’s Domestic Shield program — a project aimed at protecting US military installations and critical infrastructure from drone threats.

Red Cat Receives $2.49M Air Force Order for Black Widow Systems

BLUF: Red Cat Holdings, Inc, a U.S.-based provider of advanced all-domain drone and robotic solutions for defense and national security, received a $2.49M FFP contract from the Air Force for Black Widow™ sUAS, training and related support.

The customer organization is the U.S. Air Force Security Forces Center (AFSFC), which trains, equips, and managed program execution for the Air Force Security Forces enterprise worldwide.
Black Widow is Red Cat’s flagship short-range reconnaissance system and the U.S. Army’s selected platform for its Short Range Reconnaissance Program.

Honeywell Aerospace, Shield AI Collaborate to Advance Development of Autonomous Aircraft

BLUF: Honeywell Aerospace and Shield AI announced an MoU under which Honeywell will develop a trusted autonomy software stack on Shield AI’s Hivemind Software Development Kit, integrating Honeywell Aerospace’s Anthem™ avionics, navigation, and sensing portfolio.

Under the collaboration, the companies will evaluate joint pursuits of defense Unmanned Aerial System programs globally.
They will also explore how Honeywell Aerospace’s certified systems can extend Hivemind’s reach into both U.S. and international markets, supporting allied nations seeking domestic autonomy capability.

Global Drone Manufacturer Selects Fayetteville for First Flagship Manufacturing Facility in the U.S.

BLUF: Skyeton, Inc., a manufacturer of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) will invest more than $3.1M in Fayetteville to establish its first flagship manufacturing operation in the U.S. creating at least 162 new jobs in Cumberland County.

Skyeton, Inc. is the U.S. subsidiary of Skyeton Holdings, a global manufacturer of UAS for the defense and commercial sectors.
Skyeton has more than 350,000 combat-proven flight hours of its long-endurance Raybird platform for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions.
The company’s expansion will use cutting-edge technologies to design, engineer, manufacture, test, distribute, and support its composite UAS from a 28,500-square-foot production facility.

AV and Applied Intuition team up to bring collaborative autonomy to new Mayhem 10 drone

BLUF: AeroVironment and Applied Intuition are teaming up to produce a drone capable of autonomously operating in swarms or “hunter-killer” teams under the direction of one operator.

AV, best known for its Switchblade suite of loitering munitions, launched a new unmanned aerial system product line in April by unveiling the Mayhem 10.
Now, Applied Intuition will add its Acuity ISR/Strike software to the drone so teams of Mayhem 10 platforms can operate autonomously.
Billed as a “highly adaptable” launched effects system, the Mayhem 10 has the ability to switch from intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) payloads to electronic warfare, communications and precision strike missions without having to change the air vehicle.
The Mayhem system can carry a 10-pound payload and fly more than 60 miles, and the platform can be assembled and launched in less than five minutes.
The companies validated the integration by running the systems through collaborative autonomy missions and demonstrated multiple Mayhem 10 drones collaborating against different threats.

Rune Technologies Selected by Air Force to Advance AI-Enabled Logistics for Agile Combat Employment

BLUF: Rune Technologies has been selected by AFWERX for a Phase 1 SBIR award to advance AI-enabled logistics command and control for Agile Combat Employment operations. The effort applies Rune’s TyrOS platform to address the most pressing challenges in the Department of the Air Force (DAF).

Defense Unicorns and Paramify Unite

BLUF: Defense Unicorns, the leader in airgap-native software delivery and national security missions, today announced a strategic partnership with Paramify, a leading provider of compliance automation, to deliver a streamlined, scalable path to federal security compliance for defense and government customers.

The partnership integrates Paramify’s compliance automation platform directly into Defense Unicorns’ Unified Defense Stack (UDS).
Paramify’s risk-first platform automatically maps security controls across multiple frameworks, including IL 4 and 5.
This further enables teams to deploy mission-critical software in complex, regulated environments with greater speed, clarity, and most importantly collaboration with critical, additional organizations.

Other Defense Industry News:

Antares Raises $470M to Field Military-Focused Microreactors

Embracing Acquisition Reform: A Critical Step for the Army’s Future

Kevin Fahey

BLUF: In the wake of SECWAR’s address on acquisition reform, it’s clear that the Army is not just reacting but proactively leaning into a transformative approach. This is an opportunity we cannot afford to miss. The Army’s alignment with the Adaptive Acquisition Framework is essential, but it requires more than just policy adjustments—it demands a cultural shift that empowers leaders and engages all stakeholders.

At the heart of this reform is the imperative to hold Capability Portfolio Executives and program managers accountable for developing robust, risk-balanced acquisition programs that deliver capabilities in a timely manner.
Program estimates should reflect commercial pricing and incentivize effective contracts.
PAEs must be empowered to align the institution with the needs of acquisition programs, ensuring that decisions are made swiftly and effectively.
Successful acquisition hinges on 4 things:
- Clear, stable and executable requirements
- Adequate funding
- A sound acquisition strategy
- The ability to make timely decisions.
The new construct the Army is executing eliminates a multitude of difficulties by giving the PAE the responsibility of aligning the enterprise.
We must recognize that a high-ranking individual focused on institutional alignment is essential for timely decisions and successful acquisition outcomes.
With strong leadership and determination, we can reshape our approach to acquisition. I wholeheartedly support the notion of the PAE being responsible for determining requirements.
Concerns about the PAE’s readiness to navigate complex technological trade-offs are valid. However, these risks can be mitigated by surrounding the PAE with a skilled team equipped with critical thinking abilities and experience.
Another significant risk lies in the size of the portfolios and whether the span of control is manageable. If handled correctly, with accurate data and facts, this can be manageable.
For success, we must unite the best talent around common goals. Effective execution management is critical, and anyone perceived as an impediment to change must be addressed promptly.

Our Take: We could not agree more. We want PAEs to be given the maximum amount of responsibility because the diffused nature of accountability has been at the heart of acquisition reform issues. However, PAEs need to surround themselves with skilled people who think differently and are willing to help challenge the status quo because they cannot be everywhere at once. They also need to rely on their data because with so much complexity, the only way to know where attention is needed is to see the noise in the reporting. While speed is paramount, there is also a need for discipline in having an acquisition strategy that guides each effort whether it’s a small prototype or larger program. This of course should be scaled and streamlined according to the effort but it’s a disservice to industry to award a prototype without understanding (and funding) the follow-on activities if it achieves success.

Pentagon’s Special Ops Office Hosts First Shark Tank-Style Accelerator Event

BLUF: The first-ever Accelerator Event, sponsored by the office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict (SO/LIC), was a different kind of industry day where companies pitched capabilities in a Shark Tank-type exercise to solve some of the toughest problems for the special operations world.

The goal is to break down the bureaucratic barriers that are often derided in the acquisition world, seeking to prove that the acquisition system doesn’t have to take 10-plus years to deliver what SOF operators need today.
SO/LIC officials said they solicited responses from industry for problems drawn directly from operational commands, like the need for surveillance payloads on Group 3 medium-sized drones or BLOS comms that don’t use LEO satellites.
They whittled down around 700 proposals to 15 capabilities to pitch their solutions in Shark-Tank like presentations.

“We have to break away from the tradition of grading our success on our ability to follow a process that we created and to grading our success on the outcomes that we generate.” Cara Teeter, deputy assistant secretary of Defense for Special Operations Analysis, Resources, and Capabilities

Right to Repair: Law of Unintended Consequences

Jeff Kojac

BLUF: Good intentions can lead to unintended and undesirable outcomes. There is a better path than enacting new statutes that will increase government costs, reduce industry competition, and expand federal control over intellectual property.

The proposal pushed by Reps. Maggie Goodlander and Pat Harrigan in NDAA deliberations highlights real frustrations – delayed repairs, flown-in contractors for simple fixes, and degraded readiness.
People of goodwill on all sides want troops to be able to fix what they are trained to fix and save time, money, and lives; but this “right to repair” legislation is a blunt instrument that overshoots its stated goal and risks harming the very readiness it claims to protect.
Counterproductively, however, this proposal imposes a default of “government purpose rights” for virtually all technical data, computer software, and documentation delivered under future War Department contracts.
The only exception is if a contractor meets a high evidentiary bar with clear and convincing proof of more restrictive rights, plus a compliant assertions table, private-funding documentation, segregable exclusions, and portion markings.
While rhetoric focuses on troops repairing gear in the field, the bill text creates default rights that apply across competitive and non-competitive procurements, with limited carve-outs and significant new obligations on industry.
There are broader problems of data management, forecasting, and supply chain execution, and granting broader data rights does nothing to fix these root causes.
Instead, such a course of action would only pretend to solve readiness while leaving the actual bottlenecks untouched.
Worse, the new law will likely raise costs for taxpayers. Contractors facing the prospect of losing control over privately developed IP – and potentially seeing it shared with competitors – will rationally price that risk into every proposal.
DoW already possesses the tools to acquire the rights it needs.
Under existing law, including 10 U.S.C. § 3771, the Secretary of War must prescribe regulations balancing government needs with contractors’ legitimate proprietary interests.
Section 3771 protects incentives for private investment in innovation while ensuring the government obtains necessary data rights for national defense, competition, and sustainment.

Our Take: We agree with Jeff here. While there are egregious examples of primes who had all their costs fully reimbursed still declare “restricted rights” on key items and stick it to the government at every opportunity to the point where operators in the field could barely repair anything themselves. DoW should use its existing authority to garner rights from those that were paid billions in development while honoring the IP from companies that invested private funds or real non-reimbursed IRAD to bring new capability to the warfighter.

After Palantir Beef, US Withdraws Bid to Improve Military Intel

BLUF: DIA has withdrawn a bid to improve a military intelligence system called MARS, (Machine-assisted Analytic Rapid-repository System) after a protest by Palantir.

Palantir filed a protest complaining that the US was seeking to build an intelligence system from scratch when the company has commercially-available products readily available.
DIA’s military intelligence systems have incurred criticism for deficiencies and delays since MARS was developed in 2018 to replace a legacy system known as MIDB, which was created in the 1980s and still remains in use.
MARS still relies on MIDB’s user interface, for instance, and the older system’s server isn’t due to be fully retired until March 2028.

Our Take: This is a classic example of what to not do and just shows how far we have to go to train the acquisition community. Literally, Maven is being used in every combatant command at the highest levels of classification. For an acquisition office to ignore that and pursue a custom application that does the same thing was just asking for this protest.

NIST Unveils New AI Evaluation Platform

BLUF: NIST aunched a new program on Monday granting researchers access to an isolated testbed environment to safely evaluate artificial intelligence models against various commands.

The AI Technology Evaluation, or AITE fundamental goal is to offer a universal rubric to effectively evaluate AI models’ capabilities and determine the state of the art for model performance.
It provides blind data for models to process when completing tasks to gain objective insights and conduct evaluations of model capabilities.
Initially, AITE will focus on conducting image analysis tasks using large vision language models across three domains: quantum science, genomics and public safety. More tasks will be available in the future.

U.S. Digital Corps Graduates Largest Class of Fellows Yet

BLUF: The General Services Administration on Wednesday celebrated the graduation of 71 U.S. Digital Corps fellows, marking the largest graduating class since the program’s inception.

CMMC Reform

Check out the guest article from our friend Sandeep on CMMC. Turning and Burning on Cybersecurity Compliance

PAE Fires Establishes “Reveille Forge” to Accelerate Rapid Integration and Capability Delivery

BLUF: PAE Fires has launched Reveille Forge, an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) at Redstone Arsenal.

The now-operational facility capitalizes directly on the momentum from the Pathway for Innovation and Technology (PIT) led Operation Jailbreak's Sprint 1 and the Army's first ever API Marketplace.
Designed to maintain a lean standing footprint, Reveille Forge remains poised to surge support when directed to integrate new capabilities for immediate deployment to operational theaters.
Operation Jailbreak’s first sprint focused on countering Unmanned Aerial System and Integrated Air and Missile Defense threats, bringing together >50 companies and 600 participants to "jailbreak" >74 previously isolated capabilities.
PAE Fires is institutionalizing that momentum by establishing Reveille Forge as a permanent hackathon environment to support its specific portfolio objectives.
This standing facility can operate independently or in conjunction of any future Jailbreak sprints.
The driving organization behind Reveille Forge is PAE Fires, working hand-in-hand with its portfolio of existing prime contractors, emerging vendors, government stakeholders, and academia.
Reveille Forge is purpose-built as a collaborative space where all stakeholders work side-by-side, building directly on the partnership model proven during Operation Jailbreak, where Industry competitors sat shoulder-to-shoulder in shared "validation zones."
An "Integrate-First" Pathway for Emerging Vendors and Capabilities
- Initial Integration: Vendors demonstrate the viability of their product by successfully integrating it into the established government-owned architecture within Reveille Forge.
- Capability Review: Once initial integration is demonstrated, government stakeholders will engage in formal capability discussions.
- Testing: Valuable capabilities advance to the next phase of testing. Successful performance may inform follow-on testing, experimentation, acquisition decisions, or other government actions consistent with applicable laws, regulations, and competition requirements.

"Operation Jailbreak proved what's possible when industry, government, and academia stop working in silos and start working as one team. Carrying forward the momentum of Operation Jailbreak, Reveille Forge continues to drive early collaboration and integration, rapidly turning emerging technology into deployable capabilities.” LTG Frank Lozano, PAE Fires

Our Take: This is exactly the kind of integrate-first infrastructure the Army (and DoW) needs, building upon Jailbreak’s success for a more permanent collaboration engine. This enabled vendors an ability to demonstrate real integration into DoW architectures alongside established primes. Kudos to the PAE Fires team.

Army Acquisition Shift Demands New Contractor Sales Strategies

Nic Coppings

BLUF: Compressed acquisition timelines are rewarding contractors who invest in customer intelligence months before an opportunity appears. Not the ones who mobilize after it lands.

A CSO lands in your inbox on Tuesday and responses are due Friday. The customer wants a working capability to provide soldiers next month.
A smaller competitor wins not because they moved faster that week, but learning months before the opportunity existed in conversations with the customer.
Many organizations still think readiness means mobilizing capture faster. It doesn't. In compressed acquisition windows, the intelligence already exists, or you are making assumptions.
The intelligence that wins must now exist before the opportunity appears. Every competitor has the same AI, the same subscription data, and the same market intelligence. Advantage belongs to whoever creates intelligence others cannot buy.
The Army is complementing its traditional requirements process with faster, problem-based pathways. Characteristics of Need documents describe the operational problem and ask industry to solve it.
The Army is increasingly using non-FAR pathways such as commercial solutions openings and other transaction agreements, some moving from idea to award in as little as 90 days.
It is opening direct soldier touchpoints and accelerators, including the Army Pathway for Innovation and Technology, to put working prototypes in the warfighter’s hands early.
The firms pulling away won't necessarily have bigger proposal teams or better AI. They'll simply understand where their customers are heading before everyone else does.

Our Take: Fully agree that BD operates at an accelerated pace. Understanding and shaping opportunities ahead of solicitations is a competitive advantage for those who have existing contracts and deep relationships with DoW organizations. The acquisition transformation and commercial first model will pivot to where both government and industry require greater insights into each other’s camps to move out with greater speed and success. This Substack is one avenue to help.

Army Begins Shift to New AI-Enabled C2 Comms System

BLUF: The Army announced the successful demonstration of a >$3B Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) digital communications prototype, saying the technology’s development is on pace to catapult military planning and operations into the future.

The prototype NGC2 system will soon move on to larger scale testing following a slate of exercises.
The new system amounts to a massive overhaul of the Army’s communications and planning structure, replacing previous — in some cases aged conventional equipment — with a futuristic combination of custom built and off-the-shelf components being provided by a slew of advanced defense tech companies.
While the system integrates AI into the C2 communications process, it should not be viewed as a replacement for military decision making or planning.
The system is being built in four layers and is meant to more closely mimic the consumer electronics industry than prior Army equipment. It is also being conceived with rapidly developing technology in mind.
The transport layer contains much of the communications hardware that lets the system use everything from SpaceX’s Starlink system to mesh radios and 5G cellular networks.
A data layer uses cloud-based computing to store the necessary information in real time, while an integration layer translates all of the available points on a given battlefield into useful bits and bytes for applications.
There are programs such as a target system provided by Palantir and a machine learning model for geospatial imagery by Striveworks. There is even a program being developed internally by the Army to help visualize electromagnetic spectrum planning for electronic warfare.
NGC2 relies on a major contract with Anduril and Palantir. The two are on contract with the Army to be the primary data providers for the system, with both providing a common baseline for other companies to build out their products.

“It enables us to do these things distributed. When you look at the modern battlefield conditions that we think we’re gonna have to fight in … the modern battlefield is going to require us to be distributed in order to protect and preserve our most important asset which is our soldiers, our combat power.” GEN Christopher LaNeve, Army Vice Chief of Staff

Army-Backed Aircraft Delivers Cargo Three Ways in Single Sortie Without Ground Crews

BLUF: Elroy Air has expanded the mission profile of its autonomous Chaparral cargo aircraft with three new unattended delivery modes developed for the Army, allowing the drone to deliver supplies without personnel or equipment at the receiving site.

The new capabilities let the aircraft release cargo from a hover, drop payloads while flying forward, or land and unload autonomously, giving military units more options to resupply forces operating in contested or remote areas.
Engineers programmed the aircraft to complete two autonomous payload drops during a single sortie without operator intervention during the release sequence, meeting requirements for communications-denied environments.
They released payloads while hovering over the target and dropping from 65’.
Elroy Air also completed a separate test of its ground delivery mode. After landing, the aircraft automatically released its cargo before departing, eliminating the need for ground crews or dedicated unloading equipment.
The same software and hardware package will also support commercial logistics missions where infrastructure remains limited or unavailable.
The vertical takeoff and landing platform does not require a runway, fixed delivery equipment, or personnel at the destination, making it suitable for disaster response, maritime operations, and remote terrain.

See the Video of Chaparral Deliveries

Army is Launching AI-Powered, Commercial-Facing DevSecOps Platform

BLUF: Army Acting CIO Gabe Chiulli teased Project Gatekeeper to automate intake, streamline requests and accelerate delivery of commercial tools.

The Army is launching a new commercial-facing initiative to streamline how industry partners submit code and software products for military accreditation.
Project Gatekeeper will deploy a tailored version of the Army’s DevSecOps platform onto NIPRnet, using AI to provide commercial developers with instant feedback and risk assessments. The project will help remove acquisition friction.
The concept behind this is that we are going to work with industry similar to Operation Jailbreak, where we can have industry partners commit code containers, whatever might be in isolated areas, and allow us to give you that feedback.
The platform addresses a widespread operational bottleneck where individual vendor requests for sponsorship and accreditation frequently exceed the capacity of Army personnel.
By allowing companies to upload code containers into isolated staging areas without requiring a Common Access Card, the platform offers a streamlined pipeline toward pipeline authorization and security approval.
To further simplify industry collaboration, the Army is establishing focus areas to communicate technology requirements at scale rather than managing disparate vendor inquiries.

Army Picks GM Defense, Ford, BC Customs for ISV-Heavy Prototypes

BLUF: The Army awarded OT agreements to GM Defense, Ford, and BC Customs to develop prototypes for the heavy variant of the infantry squad vehicle.

The companies will each provide three ISV-Heavy variants by March 30, 2027 to undergo operational assessments and limited developmental testing.
This competitive prototyping effort directly advances Army Senior Leader directives to enhance lethality and operational flexibility on the modern battlefield.
While the original ISV has allowed soldiers to zip around the battlefield with more agility and speed, the Army is hoping the heavy variant will provide more mobile electrical power. The Army is currently facing a critical capability gap in this area.

Our Take: A CSO in March, OTA awards in June, prototypes delivered by March. Competition among three vendors. Great stuff here.

Pentagon Puts out Call for Robot Boats That Launch Attack Drones

BLUF: DIU issued a solicitation for Suitable Warfighting Adaptive Payloads (SWAP-USV) to find mature, market-ready USVs fully integrated with two or more mature, market-ready aerial drones to detect, identify, track, and defeat hostile threats.

Technology must be mature enough to be deployed to the field within 120 days.
To make this happen, DIU created a year-long contest backed by $100M in prize money. DIU wants to partner with established maritime manufacturers, autonomy developers, sensor manufacturers, and UAS developers to execute a multi-phase Prize Challenge.
The SWAP-USV project is billed as a solution to a problem that has also plagued missile and drone defense on land: the economics favor the offense.
The cost-exchange ratio for detecting and neutralizing asymmetric maritime threats in contested environments is heavily skewed in favor of the adversary.
The drone boat must carry, launch and control at least two small UAVs.
The UAVs together should be capable of conducting kinetic strikes with a combined payload of at least 2 kilograms, or just over 4 pounds.
The system must be mobile enough to fit into a standard cargo container, on road trailers or on C-17 and C-130 transports.

Related Article: DIU Wants More USVs

Navy Seeks Multi-mission Host Vessel for Unmanned Systems, Helos

BLUF: The Navy is on the hunt for a new multimission vessel to launch and recover uncrewed aircraft and surface vessels along with helicopters and small boats.

PAE Maritime issued an RFI for the design and construction of an all-new platform or the modification of an existing vessel to meet a requirement for a versatile and modular ship capable of sustained and independent operations.
The primary mission of this vessel will be to serve as an afloat forward-deployed operations and staging base for UAS, USV, small boat, and U.S./multinational C2 missions capable of sustained communication in varied sea states.
Navy is seeking a steel monohull or catamaran craft measuring 300-400 feet in length. The craft should have a minimum sustained speed of 10 knots, a range of 9,600 nautical miles and the ability to remain at sea for 30 days without resupply.
The vessel must have a flight deck or helicopter pad capable of launching and recovering Sikorsky SH-60 and MH-60 Seahawk, MH-60T Jayhawk and MH-65 Dolphin helicopters.
It must also be equipped to launch and recover vertical take-off class 2 and 3 UAS with a minimum of 20x20-foot deck space dedicated to UAS recovery and storage.
For small boats and USVs, the Navy wants a “non-deck crane-based small boat launch and recovery system” to support 24- to 44-foot vessels weighing up to 35,000 pounds. It should have either a well deck, boat ramp, elevator or boat lift system, the RFI continues.
Industry responses are due by Aug. 19.

JAGM-Armed Saildrone Surveyor USV Joins RIMPAC 2026

BLUF: A missile-armed variant of Saildrone’s 20-meter Surveyor USV officially joined the at-sea phase of the RIMPAC 2026 Exercise. Featuring a custom launcher capable of firing four AGM-179 Joint Air-to-Ground Missiles (JAGM), the deployment marks a critical milestone in the Navy’s push to field a hybrid fleet of crewed and uncrewed combatants in the Indo-Pacific.

Designed for persistent maritime and undersea surveillance operations, the 20-meter-long USV can operate for months at-sea, according to a release from Saildrone.
Surveyor is one of several drones from the company, already operationally fielded in support of Navy and Coast Guard operations in the Middle East, Pacific and Caribbean.
Earlier this year, Saildrone revealed that defense contractor Lockheed Martin invested $50M to integrate a launcher capable of firing four AGM-179 Joint Air-to-Ground Missiles (JAGM).
Succeeding the Cold War-era AGM-114 Hellfire, JAGM uses a modernized seeker and can strike targets at extended ranges in future variants.
Aside from surface strike, Lockheed Martin proposed the system for counter-unmanned aerial system roles aboard American guided-missile destroyers and littoral combat ships amid the height of Red Sea engagements.
The surface-launched deployment scheme aimed to increase the Navy’s options to counter Houthi one-way attack drones.
Alongside Saildrone’s Surveyor, sea drones from HavocAi, Leidos and Splash Industries are participating in RIMPAC.

Navy Deploys GARC USV in First Live-Fire Training Exercise

BLUF: The Navy confirmed its first live-fire training exercise of its Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft (GARC) USV during a sinking exercise (SINKEX).

This comes a little over two weeks after CENTCOM used three Corsair USV to strike a submarine and ship maintenance facility at a naval base in Iran, marking the first time American forces have employed sea drones in combat operations.
USV Division 32 (USVDIV-32) executed the Navy’s first GARC live fire.

Seasats USV Records Chinese Warship in ‌the Philippines’ Waters

BLUF: Seasat’s Lightfish USV passed a Chinese destroyer operating in the Philippines’ exclusive economic sone and recorded the first such video by a US company.

The Chinese ship approached the USV, but as a matter of safety, the Lightfish was broadcasting its position loudly through the Automatic Identification System (AIS), the international tracking system used by oceangoing ships to monitor their locations and prevent collisions.
The 11-foot-long, 3-foot-wide lightweight USV is designed primarily for maritime ISR and sensing. Despite its small size and low cost (~$250,000), the solar- and backup generator-powered Lightfish can be at sea for up to six months in Sea State 6+.
The startup has snagged a joint $24M contract with the Navy and Marines under the APFIT program to accelerate production of the Lightfish in January, which followed an $89M-ceiling SBIR Phase 3 IDIQ with the Navy to deliver the USVs to the Marine Corps last October.
It’s also completed some pretty insane journeys, including a 7,500-mile trans-Pacific voyage from San Diego to Japan last year. The Lightfish snapped a very up-close and personal picture of a Chinese destroyer northwest of Guam on that trip.

“The Lightfish had recently completed the first autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait, where they also snapped some photos of Chinese warships operating during the over 1,000 nautical mile journey. This sighting off the coast of the Philippines came on the tail end of that mission. The Chinese ship didn’t take any threatening action and Seasats “tried to maintain respectful maneuvering and distance.” Mike Flanigan, Seasats founder and CEO

Military’s Largest Supercomputer is now live at Navy base

BLUF: Naval Support Activity Monterey, California, is now home to the Pentagon’s most powerful supercomputer.

NPS received a DGX GB300 computer, the highest-performing AI processing system available for enterprises under a CRADA between NPS and AI giant NVIDIA that began in December 2024.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony to launch the new system took place with NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang and ADM Samuel Paparo, PACOM Commander.
The makeup of the supercomputer which combines 36 NVIDIA Grace CPUs with 72 NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra GPUs, according to officials enables it “to process large volumes of work in parallel rather than just sequentially.
The CRADA and installment of the supercomputer started with an expressed interest from Huang to partner with the school and help make NPS one of the premier AI institutions in the world, and definitely the premier U.S. defense institution or school for AI.

Our Take: We expect the next NPS Acquisition Research Symposium to operate at the next level armed with this supercomputer.

Navy Awards Hyliion $41.7M for Megawatt-scale Energy Platform

BLUF: Hyliion Holdings secured a $41.7M cost-plus fixed fee contract from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) to design, develop, build, test, and deliver 2-megawatt and 3-megawatt KARNO power generation systems.

While Hyliion initially introduced the KARNO platform for commercial and industrial energy applications, the Navy contract represents a move toward significantly larger power systems capable of supporting demanding military operations.
Unlike conventional diesel generators that rely on reciprocating piston engines, the KARNO Power Module is based on a linear generator architecture that converts heat into electricity with fewer moving parts.
Reliable electrical power has become increasingly important for modern military operations. Expeditionary bases, radar installations, communications facilities, ports, and logistics hubs all require dependable power generation, often in remote environments where access to conventional infrastructure is limited.
The Navy contract suggests growing government interest in modular, fuel-flexible power technologies that can provide resilient electricity generation across a range of operational environments.

Raytheon Secures $1.8B Contract Extension for Navy SPY-6 Radars

BLUF: Raytheon was awarded a $1.8B contract extension for SPY-6 radars for the U.S. Navy, building on the initial hardware production and sustainment contract awarded in March 2022. The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $3.3B.

SPY-6 is now aboard two commissioned U.S. Navy ships and is installed on 11 others, all of which are undergoing various stages of testing.
Over the next decade, SPY-6 is expected to be deployed on more than 50 U.S. Navy ships, giving the fleet unmatched sensing capability and multi-mission readiness to stay ahead of evolving threats.
Raytheon invested >$800M to modernize its radar manufacturing facilities and expand production capacity. They are positioned to double SPY-6 output by 2028, helping ensure long-term availability and lowering cost for the Navy.

Navy Targets 90% Fleet Readiness with Predictive Maintenance and Faster Repairs

BLUF: Air and Fathom5 are combining predictive maintenance with enterprise logistics software to help the Navy accelerate repairs.

Air and Fathom5 have partnered to modernize how the U.S. Navy manages maintenance and repairs, combining enterprise logistics software with artificial intelligence to improve fleet readiness.
The collaboration aims to replace fragmented maintenance systems with a connected platform that helps sailors identify parts, predict equipment failures, and complete work orders even in communications-limited environments.
The partnership follows Fathom5’s success in Phase III of the DIU’s NextMRO Prize Challenge, where the company demonstrated software that turned operational Navy maintenance data into applications designed for use by sailors.
Air and Fathom5 now plan to expand those capabilities across the Navy’s broader maintenance and procurement network.
Fathom5 will integrate its AI-powered Condition-Based Maintenance technology with Air’s Enterprise Readiness platform, creating a system that connects maintenance planning, logistics, supply chains, and repair forecasting across multiple support levels.

Navy Warships to be Built by Partner Shipyards Under HII’s New Strategy

BLUF: U.S. shipbuilder HII has decided to change how it builds some Navy warships by moving part of the construction work to outside shipbuilding partners.

HII will now use this distributed production model for the Navy’s San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock program, beginning with the future USS Philadelphia (LPD 32).
The move marks the first time Ingalls has applied the model to its amphibious ship portfolio, extending an approach previously used on the company’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer program.
The strategy is intended to increase shipyard capacity, support faster production, and strengthen the wider U.S. maritime industrial base as demand for Navy vessels continues to grow.
Under the initiative, eight structural units for USS Philadelphia have been assigned to two industry partners and have already entered early production. The modules will later be integrated into the ship at Ingalls’ Pascagoula, MS, shipyard.

B-21, Nuclear Deterrence, and the Risk of Legacy Defense Assumptions

Hannah Jude-Smith, Shane Praiswater and Brian Leitzke

BLUF: For the first time in its history, the U.S. must plan to deter and potentially fight two nuclear peer adversaries simultaneously. Russia’s persistent nuclear modernization and China’s accelerating strategic buildup together create a complex and fraught environment that existing policy assumptions have not confronted.

Into this environment arrives the B-21 Raider and its associated family of systems, offer planners new tools for horizontal escalation, precision strikes across contested geographies, and the kind of flexible, survivable conventional dominance that previous bomber generations could not reliably provide.
And yet the institutional logic governing how the United States employs its bomber force may prevent the B-21 from being used to its full potential.
The nuclear reserve requirement, an ingrained assumption that a meaningful portion of the bomber force must be held back for nuclear contingencies during a peer conflict, risks kneecapping one of the most capable conventional instruments in the American arsenal.
The B-21 Raider, paired with the F-47 and other current and future joint and coalition forces, is specifically suited to countering adversaries that field antiaccess and area-denial capabilities.
A careful reading of escalation theory, principally the ideas put forth by Thomas Schelling and Robert Powell, suggests that fully committing the B-21 to the conventional fight need not reduce deterrence. In fact, it may strengthen it.
US Strategic Command retains ultimate control of the nuclear-capable bomber force, and history suggests that this control is accompanied by a persistent reluctance to fully commit bombers to the conventional fight.
During the Korean War, Strategic Air Command commander General Curtis LeMay resisted deploying B-29s to the theater, arguing that doing so whittled away the nuclear deterrent force. The pattern repeated itself in Vietnam.
But the B-21 is not simply another bomber; it is designed to lead the combined air forces in the most contested environments imaginable. Withholding the B-21 from that role in the name of nuclear reserve does not merely reduce conventional striking power; it risks undesired escalation in a large-scale conflict.
In terms of future triad redundancy:
- Legacy bombers will still exist well into the B-21’s fielding and carry the new Long-Range Standoff weapon
- F-35s certified to carry the B61-12 gravity bomb provide a theater nuclear option that is credible against regional adversaries
- The submarine force already carries the W76-2, a deployed low-yield warhead, on the Trident D5.
- The Navy is also developing a nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile, a low-yield option for Virginia-class submarines with an initial operational capability targeted for 2034.
- The Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent, when fielded, will modernize the intercontinental ballistic missile leg of the triad entirely.
Taken together, the imminent future triad constitutes a flexible, tailored nuclear deterrent that provides options, increases credibility, and reduces the risk of escalation to nuclear use. The B-21 does not need to remain on the ramp to make that deterrent credible. If a conventional conflict starts, it needs to be in the fight.

Our Take: We couldn’t agree more with this take (which is worth a full read). We take it a step further and contend that the U.S. is squandering treasure on excessive nuclear investments that could be used on building up lacking conventional forces. The fact that the U.S. has never taken action against N Korea despite its aggressive rhetoric or Libya (while it had nuclear weapons) despite those countries having the most bare bones nuclear program reaffirms our argument made here: Going Nuclear on Nuclear

The calculus for nuclear deterrence is way overstated given the last 70 years of history that has demonstrated no country (even with aggressive, paranoid leaders like Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un) sees an incentive for deploying nuclear weapons.

AFLCMC Partners with Space Systems Command to Award Next-Gen MAVRC GPS Receiver Agreements

BLUF: SSC on behalf of AFLCMC’s Electronic Systems Directorate, has awarded two agreements to BAE Systems and Trimble Military and Advanced Systems to support development of a next-generation Maritime and Aviation Receiver Card (MAVRC) military GPS user equipment receiver.

These agreements will support requirements development, risk reduction studies, and documentation for a design concept review milestone.
The effort is the first phase in a two-part approach that will inform future prototyping, demonstrations, and integration and testing to produce a GPS M-code receiver for maritime and aviation platforms.
MAVRC is designed to provide weapons system integrators with more resilient positioning, navigation, and timing capabilities in contested environments.4
The system is expected to improve anti-jam and anti- spoof performance, reduce Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) demands, and include Regional Military Protection (RMP).

Will The F-47 Have to Fly Initially with Inferior Engines?

BLUF: With the Next Generation Adaptive Propulsion (NGAP) program not expected to be ready for integration onto an aircraft until 2030 and the F-47 expected to fly for the first time in 2028 raises the question of what engine will be used in the interim.

Both NGAP vendors (General Electric and Pratt & Whitney), announced they had completed assembly readiness reviews of their respective designs, known as the XA102 and XA103, in May.
More specific details about the XA102 and XA103 continue to be limited, but both are known to be so-called adaptive cycle designs.
In very broad terms, jet engines of this kind can perform like a turbofan when optimal and more like a turbojet when needed.
To provide additional context, GE has said in the past that the XA100 design it developed for AETP was around 25 percent more efficient than the F135.
It is not entirely uncommon for new aircraft prototypes to use a different engine from the one planned for production examples.
As one example, Lockheed’s Cold War-era F-104 Starfighter was developed around the General Electric J79 turbojet, but that engine was not ready for the start of flight testing.
Early XF-104 prototypes used older and less powerful Wright J65 turbojets instead.
Northrop Grumman originally planned to use Pratt & Whitney F401 turbofans on the F-14 Tomcat, but that engine program was cancelled.
Pratt & Whitney TF30 turbofans were used instead on early F-14As. However, problems and limitations surrounding those engines led to General Electric F110 turbofans being integrated onto later examples of the Tomcat.

Our Take: It seems likely that the Air Force will try to get the F-47 through its test points using the F-135 and maybe try to push test events related to propulsion until NGAP is available. If production proceeds, then there will just be two different variants of the F-47 until all can be modified up the latest configuration. In its favor, the F-47 is likely to struggle more with advanced mission system test points given the F-47 is not likely to be designed for dogfighting or missions that require providing close air support (where angle of attack and power can determine success or not) so the lack of an immediate XA102 or XA103 may not slow the testing much if at all. Teh bigger issue will be if the XA102 and XA103 powerplant is significantly more powerful and that energy is needed to power the rest of the aircraft. In that case, certain systems may be degraded if they can’t get the required power which could impact the mission effectiveness of the F-47. We hope that’s not the case.

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F-35 Engine Core Upgrade to Face Critical Review in August, Flight Testing in 2030

BLUF: A major planned upgrade for the F-35 fighter’s engine is expected to reach a major milestone in August when it undergoes its critical design review.

The critical design review is an important milestone in the progression of a major defense program to verify its design is stable, is likely to meet performance requirements, and is on track to meet its cost goals.
After the ECU program’s design review is finished, it is scheduled to undergo ground testing in late 2027. Flight tests will start around 2030.
GAO in a September 2025 report found that while the preliminary review validated ECU’s design met expectations, it found “major risks” such as a lack of integrated development and test schedules between the engine and the F-35, parts that were not arriving in time to support testing, and immature test plans.

Our Take: Looks like 2030 is going to be a big year for Air Force propulsion. In our experience, passing design reviews is only a small indicator of future success. Only with delivery of a prototype for test do real indicators for production readiness reveal themselves.

Air Force Reveals Plans for VTOL Bomber Prototype

BLUF: The Air Force has released plans to experiment with a prototype reusable, rocket-powered aircraft for high-speed, long-range strike missions.

Although limited to a prototype program, the interest from Air Force Global Strike Command points toward a future bomber alternative that differs markedly from the stealthy, subsonic Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider.
The prototype described in solicitation documents released in mid-July calls for a liquid-fueled, rocket-powered, vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) aircraft.
After launching vertically, or potentially on a steep diagonal trajectory, the aircraft would transition to horizontal flight and accelerate to high—likely supersonic or hypersonic—speed, perform a strike mission and then return to its launch base for a vertical landing.
The concept requires the maturation of several technologies including advanced liquid rocket propulsion, autonomous flight control, thrust-vector control, aerodynamic control surfaces, cryogenic propellant management and high-temperature structural materials to demonstrate stable flight, controlled transition between flight regimes and reliable performance.
The concept appears closely aligned with plans by New Frontier Aerospace, based in Kent, Washington. The startup announced a year ago it had signed an agreement with the Air Force Institute of Technology to collaborate on advancing an “innovative, rocket-powered hypersonic [VTOL] aircraft.”
Over the longer term, New Frontier Aerospace aims to develop cargo aircraft capable of operating within the atmosphere and in space, including a scaled-up version with intercontinental range.

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Air Force Must Fix Fleet Age, Size, Readiness Issues, Undersecretary Says

BLUF: Air Force Undersecretary Matthew Lohmeier agrees with the Heritage Foundation’s report that gave the Air Force an overall score of “weak.” While the service’s capabilities are strong, the think tank rated its capacity as weak and its readiness as very weak.

In the 25 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Air Force reduced its overall end strength by nearly 40%.
Ten aircraft types that first flew more than 50 years ago are still in service, with nearly half of the fleet having an average age of more than 40 years old.
The Air Force has delegated ~85% of contracting authority down to its newly established portfolio acquisition executives.
The Air Force has cut the time it takes to get its largest aircraft (focus on strategic airlift) through depot in half.
The Air Force is aiming to increase its use of rapid acquisition authorities and award more multi-year contracts to provide industry a stable demand signal.
In return, the service is seeking more affordable mass to increase its magazine depth without breaking the bank.

“If our partners can’t deliver what we need on budget and on time, we’re not going to do business with them and maintain that relationship. We are doing our very best to leverage this rare opportunity not to reform but transform the acquisition landscape.”
“The problem is not capability; it’s the rate of production and our ability to sustain the capability that we already have. We’re losing ground on aircraft age and fleet size and are forced to extend some aircraft to the very last year of their engineered lifespan — and in some cases, we aren’t.”

Our Take: The Air Force has certainly made progress in some key areas. Decreasing the time for depot induction is huge. Investments in FAMM and CCA are a huge step forward, but we are disappointed that more novel approaches aren’t being pursued for solving logistics and refueling challenges (both of which are critical for ACE operations). We do have big hopes for the Massed Modular Aircraft program being pursued in conjunction with DIU.

CCAs Will Be Optionally Attritable

BLUF: The Air Force’s new CCA may fly scores of missions over many years or only a few if commanders decide a mission is worth the risk of losing one, a middle ground approach being called “optionally attritable.”

The concept refinement process for the 2nd increment is expected to wrap up in about 10 months, after which the Air Force plans to whittle the number of potential vendors with workable designs to as many as six.

“We’ve actually never treated CCA as attritable. We have treated CCA as optionally attritable. CCA will have a very long service life, if they need to, or they could be attritable if that’s what the operational commander needs to happen.” Brig Gen(s) Tim Helfrich

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CCAs Head to Air Force’s Main Drone Base for Exercise

BLUF: Both the YFQ-42A and YFQ-44A Collaborative Combat Aircraft headed to Creech Air Force Base, Nev. for an exercise focused on employing the semi-autonomous drones in more austere environments.

It’s the latest example of the Air Force’s Experimental Operations Unit pushing hard to get CCAs into exercises where they can simulate operational environments.
During the exercise, the CCAs “generated multiple sorties demonstrating reliability and extended range; integrated with manned platforms in the local airspace to project power across distributed battlefields; and simulated scenarios that will inform future requirements for the platform.

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Air Force to Begin Concept Refinement of MQ-9 Replacement by End of Year

BLUF: The Air Force and the Defense Innovation Unit plan to start the concept refinement phase of its MQ-9A Reaper replacement effort during 1Q FY27.

The Air Force wants to bring multiple companies into the next stage of the Massed Modular Aircraft (MMA) program.
During that phase, both traditional and non-traditional vendors will conduct early analysis that will help the service shape its design, requirements and cost of the future unmanned aerial vehicle.
On July 7, DIU issued a commercial solutions opening for the MMA effort that called for an inexpensive, long-range drone outfitted with a variety of payloads that could “execute missions that the MQ-9A performs today.”
The notice stated that the Air Force wants to fly a full-scale MMA prototype within 21 months of awarding a contract, with plans to have 20 operational drones on stand-by by fiscal 2031.
A key aspect of the MMA effort is the platform’s overall affordability and ability to be produced en masse.
The MMA is expected to conduct a wide range of missions — including ISR and offensive strike — and could potentially fly solo or in a larger swarm formation.

Our Take: The key to success here is to keep the requirements manageable so that this doesn’t become an exquisite platform that winds up competing with CCA (or even more expensive aircraft) for funding. This should just be a truck that sensors can be swapped on (U-2 style) and a reasonable amount of specialized munitions can be employed for select missions. If this thing ever has a radar or tries to drop JDAMs, that’s how we’ll know it’s going to fail or not last.

Air Force Moves to Purchase T-7 Engines, Not Boeing

BLUF: The Air Force plans to buy the engines for its new T-7A trainer directly instead of having Boeing, the plane’s maker, provide engines as part of its contract.

The change could carry costs, but gives the service more control over a critical component of the jets.
LCMC released two “sources sought” notices for F404-103 engines in early July—one for the engines themselves, and a second for the engine’s technical data package, which is necessary for supporting acquisition and sustainment.
The notice for the technical data package is distinct from engine procurement, the Air Force spokesperson said, explaining that the data package is needed “to stand up organic depot-level repair capabilities for long-term sustainment.”

“Boeing had apparently, at least according to the government, not included proper pass-through clauses in their deals with some suppliers to get the technical data the government believes it needs.” defense analyst J.J. Gertler

Our Take: It is a little crazy that the Air Force didn’t pick up on this need (and shortfall) sooner than a year out from fielding. Usually a Depot Source of Repair Determination is held early in a program’s lifecycle so that planning should have been underway years ago.

Boeing Has Now Eaten $3B In Air Force One Cost Overruns

BLUF: Boeing has taken a fresh $280M loss on work to deliver two newly converted and fully equipped VC-25B Air Force One presidential aircraft to the Air Force.

The company says the new cost growth reflects investments to help it keep on track to finally deliver the first of these planes in 2028.
The program remains years behind schedule, as well as over budget, with Boeing now having paid more than $3B out of pocket.
The Air Force has been actively working to acquire the two VC-25Bs as one-for-one replacements for its aging VC-25A Air Force One aircraft since the late 2010s.
The Air Force has infused some additional funding into the effort, as well. This includes a $15.5 million contract modification to support communications systems work in December 2025.

Other Air Force News:

USSPACECOM Releases Space Warfighting Environment 2040 as Framework to Ensure Future of Joint Force’s All-Domain Advantage

BLUF: U.S. Space Command published The Space Warfighting Environment 2040 as a foundation for sustaining space superiority and enhancing Joint Force readiness and lethality as the operational domain continues to rapidly evolve and our competitors mobilize with intention.

SWE 2040 complements the U.S. Space Force’s Future Operating Environment 2040 and Objective Force 2040 by defining the environment and the warfighter-centered operational framework for the broader Joint Force.
By 2040, space will be more crowded, contested, and central to military operations, a reality that carries both risks and opportunities.
The document anticipates several factors that will define warfighting by 2040 and beyond, including:
- the vulnerability of fixed terrestrial space-enabling infrastructure
- proliferated dual-use spacecraft that absorb and regenerate under attack
- in-space servicing and maneuver that turn orbit into a dynamic network
- quantum developments that reshape trust, timing, and secure communication.

Our Take: We will break this down in more detail in a separate post.

SpaceX Lands $1.6B Space Force Contract for Military Sensing Satellite Launches

BLUF: SpaceX has secured $1.6B in Space Force contracts to launch 18 Falcon 9 missions supporting the military’s Space Based Sensing and Targeting (SBST) portfolio through the end of 2027.

The missions were awarded under two task orders through the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 3 Lane 1 program, which allows multiple commercial launch providers to compete for national security missions.
The satellites will support the Space-Based Sensing and Targeting portfolio, which uses spacecraft to detect and track airborne threats while relaying near real-time information to U.S. military forces.
Those capabilities are expected to support the Trump administration’s proposed Golden Dome missile defense initiative, which aims to build a layered missile defense network using space- and ground-based systems.

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Space Force Eyes Usable Airborne Target Tracking by 2028, More Capability to Follow

BLUF: The Space Force expects its nascent airborne moving target indicator program will have a “usable capability” in the next few years even while more work is needed beyond that to refine the sensing, data processing, and orchestration needed to deliver a global targeting capability from space.

The Space Force in April announced it had established an initial pool of vendors to compete for Space-Based AMTI contracts, and then in late May awarded SpaceX a $4.2B contract to begin building out the constellation.
The service plans to start launching those satellites over the next 18 months and have an initial capability on orbit by 2028.
The Air Force has long relied on ground-based radars and aircraft like the E-3 Sentry to track airborne targets like missiles, aircraft, and drones.
Now, it’s working with the Space Force and the National Reconnaissance Office to add satellites to the mix, an approach leaders expect will make the mission more resilient against adversaries’ anti-access/aerial-denial systems.
That shift is no small feat and will require a complex architecture of sensors, ground processing, and radar systems. To manage that complexity, the service is taking an iterative approach.
The award to SpaceX is meant to kickstart development of the space layer with delivery of some of the early space sensing capability in the next six to 12 months.
The SBST PAE is also working to mature the tasking, scheduling, and processing systems that will sift through data and deliver it to battle management systems.
That requires close coordination between software developers and battle managers across the military services who will use the data and incorporate it in their own workflows.

“Is it everything the joint force requires? I think that will probably extend beyond ‘28. But we are going to have capability they don’t have today. We’ll be able to do things that are high-value or value-added. We won’t be able to do them everywhere all the time.”
“We’ll compete for different space sensors, different types of sensors. We’ll go buy and populate part of the space layer, and then we will do another competition and continue to build out the space layer and then add some complementary phenomenologies to it.”
Brig Gen Ryan Frazier

Space Force Awards Key Software Contract for Strategic SATCOM

BLUF: The Space Force awarded a major deal July 27 as part of its competition to develop the core mission planning software that will manage its future fleet of nuclear command and control satellites.

Space Systems Command announced a $287M award to Sphinx Defense to develop a mission planning prototype for the Evolved Strategic Satellite Communications program’s ground segment.
ESS will eventually take over the nuclear mission that’s performed today by the Space Force’s Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellite constellation.
The program is an important component of the Pentagon’s broader work to modernize the nuclear enterprise.
The ESS ground segment, dubbed the Ground Resilient Integration Framework for Operational NC3 or GRIFFON, will manage the strategic communication satellites and the capability they provide once they’re on orbit.
To do that, the service is utilizing a number of flexible acquisition tools, including the software acquisition pathway—which allows the military services to buy software more rapidly—and a novel competitive prototyping approach, which has companies building competing ground segment prototypes across four segments:
- Framework, which is focused on establishing a modular, open architecture that can host multiple mission applications and services
- Ground integration, which includes the internal and external ground interfaces like command and control terminals and space ground links
- System of systems integration, which integrates the space and ground cryptographic terminals
- Mission applications, which ranges from testing and training support to command and control and mission planning
That iterative development strategy means that this latest mission application award builds on previous phases of competitive prototypes.

Our Take: As previous advisors supporting this program, we are immensely satisfied to see this effort take off using novel acquisition approaches.

Space Systems Command Revolutionizes Strategic SATCOM Development with Project Enigma

BLUF: SSC is changing the game in strategic satellite communications with Project Enigma, an initiative that seamlessly connects contractor development environments to a government-hosted digital platform.

Designed to support the development of the Evolved Strategic Satellite Communications (ESS) system, Project Enigma fosters secure collaboration between government and industry partners.
Project Enigma leverages model-based systems engineering tools to optimize development workﬂows, enhance system security, and automate model deployment at scale.
This Platform-as-a-Service enables Impact Level 6 (IL6) collaboration, ensuring the highest standards of cybersecurity and data protection.
The Enigma platform represents a leap in how government and industry work together to innovate, streamline development, and deliver secure solutions for national security requirements.
With cyber-hardened architecture and tools designed to accelerate system integration, Enigma sets a new benchmark for collaborative capability.
Project Enigma is championing ESS digital engineering development by addressing challenges in secure collaboration.
With uniﬁed access to critical platforms, stakeholders can co-develop solutions, share insights, and innovate while maintaining strict security controls and compliance at the highest classiﬁcation level.

ORBES Unveils Exo-ORB Maintenance Spacecraft

BLUF: ORBES, a California startup building robotic spacecraft for in-orbit servicing missions, unveiled its first inspection satellite today—called Exo-ORB.

The robotic spacecraft is one of two models ORBES is building.
ORB is a free-flying robot designed to fly inside pressurized space stations, replacing or flying alongside astronauts to perform tasks like inventory management.
Exo-ORB is the external alternative, designed to fly 10 m to 20 m away from its host spacecraft to perform up-close inspection on-orbit with a high-res camera.
Later iterations of Exo-ORB will come equipped with robotic arms to perform in-space maintenance tasks, such as repairs and component replacements.

Space Force Awards All Points $250M to Expand Satellite Processing at Vandenberg

BLUF: Space Force awarded All Points Logistics a $250M contract to expand satellite processing capacity at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California.

The award calls for additional spacecraft processing capacity — facilities where satellites are prepared for launch — to be available at Vandenberg by 2029.
All Points is the third company to receive a contract under a Commercial Solutions Opening, or CSO, initiative to expand satellite processing capacity.
The award is more than three times the size of the previous two contracts, making it the largest issued so far under the program.
- $77.5M contract issued to Astrotech Space Operations in April 2025 to expand processing capacity at Vandenberg.
- $78.25M award to Blue Origin in October 2025 for additional capacity at Cape Canaveral.
The Space Force is investing in additional capacity as the Pentagon prepares to launch more missile-warning, communications, navigation and intel satellites.
Satellite processing operations can require specialized clean rooms, high bays, hazardous-fueling areas, security systems and equipment for handling sensitive spacecraft.
Limited access to such facilities can delay missions even when rockets and launch pads are available.

Meeting the Navy’s Demand for 3D Printing

Michael Johnston

BLUF: The fleet of the future will not be built on the industrial base of the past. Industry, with support from the Navy, must adopt new methods of advanced manufacturing to accelerate new builds, clear maintenance backlogs, and claw back from a long period of decline.

3D printing is key to the shipbuilding revival. Where additive manufacturing (AM) has been used by the Navy, production and component lead times have been reduced dramatically, in some cases by up to 75%.
In 2025 alone, the Navy reportedly eliminated more than 1,400 cumulative days of delay by applying additive manufacturing to specific programs.
As CNO ADM Daryl Caudle described it, “That is not a science project. That is combat credibility gained back from the jaws of inefficiency.”
Today, only a small number of additively manufactured parts are approved by the Navy as interchangeable with traditionally manufactured parts.
The Navy has shown it can fast-track approvals for new manufacturing processes. NAVSEA approved 182 additively manufactured parts for use in ships and submarines last year, with more than 600 additional components undergoing engineering review.
NAVSEA 05 released four military standards for material process combinations covering stainless steel, titanium, and copper-nickel with an additional six materials standards slated for approval in the future.
For industry to realize the benefits of additive manufacturing, it needs the Navy’s immediate support in establishing clear requirements and specifications for parts interchangeability and source approval.

U.S. Tests More Than 35 Autonomous Systems for Future Indo-Pacific Naval Warfare

BLUF: RIMPAC 2026 launched more than 35 experiments that embed unmanned systems and emerging technologies into multinational naval operations around Hawaii. The trials will help determine how autonomous capabilities could strengthen future U.S. and allied maritime operations across the Indo-Pacific.

RIMPAC 2026 integrates autonomous systems into realistic fleet operations involving allied warships, aircraft and submarines.
The experiments combine persistent ISR, aerial threat detection, shipboard additive manufacturing, autonomous logistics and undersea warfare to assess whether these technologies can support distributed maritime operations while remaining fully interoperable with conventional naval forces and coalition command networks.
The exercise brings together 30 nations, more than 30,000 personnel, 31 surface ships, five submarines, and over 190 aircraft. Participants conduct more than 500 maritime events and 2,400 sorties while addressing over 5,000 scenario-based tactical problems.
This density requires experimental systems to share operating space, comms and procedures with crewed platforms rather than operate as separate demos.
It also exposes constraints related to multinational coordination, data circulation, and the maintenance of logistical support across an extended area.
For U.S. strategy in the Pacific, RIMPAC 2026 tests an architecture based on dispersing capabilities rather than concentrating them around a small number of major warships.
Surface and underwater drones increase surveillance persistence, while additive manufacturing and autonomous delivery reduce dependence on long and exposed logistics chains.
Integration with allied sensors, missiles, and command staffs turns each partner into a potential node for support or engagement.
In a theater defined by distance, threats to fixed bases and contested communications, the intended advantage depends as much on the resilience of the multinational network as on weapon range.

Northrop Grumman Scores $1.2B Navy Deal for Three E-2D Hawkeye Block II Aircraft

BLUF: Navy has awarded Northrop Grumman Systems a contract valued at up to $1.2B for the production, delivery and associated support of three E-2D Advanced Hawkeye (AHE) Block II airborne early warning and command and control aircraft.

The undefinitized, cost no-fee contract was awarded to Northrop Grumman’s Aerospace Systems business in Melbourne, FL, and covers the next phase of E-2D production for the Navy. Work is expected to be completed by December 2031.
The aircraft features an advanced radar system that delivers a two-generation improvement in detection and tracking capability, along with upgraded aircraft systems designed to improve reliability, supportability and operational readiness.
Its enhanced capabilities in littoral environments and over land allow carrier strike groups and joint forces to maintain situational awareness across complex operating environments.

Other Navy News:

Marine Corps Welcomes Delivery of Final MV-22B Osprey

BLUF: With the acceptance of the 359th and final tiltrotor aircraft, the Marine Corps marked the end of the MV-22B Osprey program of record, a milestone that will now shift efforts towards sustaining and modernizing the fleet for decades to come.

Though the Navy and Air Force also use variants of the Osprey, the Marine Corps maintains the majority of the fleet.
The Corps intends to keep the Osprey operational through 2055 with efforts that include improving wiring, working towards pro-rotor gear boxes, standardizing the fleet and redesigning parts of the aircraft for better safety.

“The MV-22B ... fundamentally changed the way the Marine Air-Ground Task Force generates combat power. It provides commanders with decision space that only speed and reach can provide, connecting ships, bases and distributed forces in ways previous generations could only imagine. Today, Marine commanders build operations around the assumption that the MV-22B will be there.” Lt. Gen. William Swan, Marine Corps’ Deputy Commandant for Aviation

Marine Corps 1st Maintenance Battalion Selects Tagup’s Manifest Platform to Advance Maintenance Decision-Making

BLUF: Tagup, a defense tech company delivering logistics decision advantage with next-generation AI, today announced a contract with the U.S. Marine Corps 1st Maintenance Battalion.

The battalion has selected Tagup's Manifest platform to bring AI-powered decision intelligence to Secondary Repairable Item (SECREP) maintenance, helping maintainers make more informed repair decisions that improve equipment availability and optimize limited maintenance resources.
Tagup will deploy its AI-powered Manifest platform to help Marines evaluate tradeoffs with data-driven decision support.
Using historical maintenance, repair, and supply data, Manifest simulates multiple repair courses of action, forecasts future demand, predicts turnaround times and repair costs, and recommends the repair strategy that best balances readiness, equipment availability, maintenance capacity, and mission requirements.

Marine Commandos Aim to Automate Armories with Computer Vision, Other Tech

BLUF: Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC) is on the hunt for high-tech capabilities that could streamline its armory operations.

MARSOC is teaming up with the SOFWERX innovation hub on a new automated armory initiative to bring together members of industry and other solution providers to help the command pursue commercially available technologies and other tools that could support digitization.
MARSOC armories maintain thousands of serialized weapons, optics, lasers, night vision devices, communications equipment, and other controlled assets that routinely transfer custody among operators, maintenance activities, and storage locations.
Current accountability processes rely heavily on manual inventories, handwritten forms, repetitive data entry, and multiple independent records. These processes are labor intensive, susceptible to human error, and consume significant man-hours while increasing accountability risk.
The command wants to collaborate with innovative companies to design a secure, zero-signature automated armory that relies exclusively on optical recognition and computer vision, and develop a passive, image-based inventory system where weapons, gear, and serial numbers are automatically tracked, verified, and logged simply by taking a digital photo or scanning an optical image as items enter or exit the facility.

B-21, Nuclear Deterrence, and the Risk of Legacy Defense Assumptions

Hannah Jude-Smith, Shane Praiswater and Brian Leitzke

Into this environment arrives the B-21 Raider and its associated family of systems, offer planners new tools for horizontal escalation, precision strikes across contested geographies, and the kind of flexible, survivable conventional dominance that previous bomber generations could not reliably provide.
And yet the institutional logic governing how the United States employs its bomber force may prevent the B-21 from being used to its full potential.
The nuclear reserve requirement, an ingrained assumption that a meaningful portion of the bomber force must be held back for nuclear contingencies during a peer conflict, risks kneecapping one of the most capable conventional instruments in the American arsenal.
The B-21 Raider, paired with the F-47 and other current and future joint and coalition forces, is specifically suited to countering adversaries that field antiaccess and area-denial capabilities.
A careful reading of escalation theory, principally the ideas put forth by Thomas Schelling and Robert Powell, suggests that fully committing the B-21 to the conventional fight need not reduce deterrence. In fact, it may strengthen it.
US Strategic Command retains ultimate control of the nuclear-capable bomber force, and history suggests that this control is accompanied by a persistent reluctance to fully commit bombers to the conventional fight.
During the Korean War, Strategic Air Command commander General Curtis LeMay resisted deploying B-29s to the theater, arguing that doing so whittled away the nuclear deterrent force. The pattern repeated itself in Vietnam.
But the B-21 is not simply another bomber; it is designed to lead the combined air forces in the most contested environments imaginable. Withholding the B-21 from that role in the name of nuclear reserve does not merely reduce conventional striking power; it risks undesired escalation in a large-scale conflict.
In terms of future triad redundancy:
- Legacy bombers will still exist well into the B-21’s fielding and carry the new Long-Range Standoff weapon
- F-35s certified to carry the B61-12 gravity bomb provide a theater nuclear option that is credible against regional adversaries
- The submarine force already carries the W76-2, a deployed low-yield warhead, on the Trident D5.
- The Navy is also developing a nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile, a low-yield option for Virginia-class submarines with an initial operational capability targeted for 2034.
- The Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent, when fielded, will modernize the intercontinental ballistic missile leg of the triad entirely.
Taken together, the imminent future triad constitutes a flexible, tailored nuclear deterrent that provides options, increases credibility, and reduces the risk of escalation to nuclear use. The B-21 does not need to remain on the ramp to make that deterrent credible. If a conventional conflict starts, it needs to be in the fight.

The calculus for nuclear deterrence is way overstated given the last 70 years of history that has demonstrated no country (even with aggressive, paranoid leaders like Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un) sees an incentive for deploying nuclear weapons.

AFLCMC Partners with Space Systems Command to Award Next-Gen MAVRC GPS Receiver Agreements

These agreements will support requirements development, risk reduction studies, and documentation for a design concept review milestone.
The effort is the first phase in a two-part approach that will inform future prototyping, demonstrations, and integration and testing to produce a GPS M-code receiver for maritime and aviation platforms.
MAVRC is designed to provide weapons system integrators with more resilient positioning, navigation, and timing capabilities in contested environments.4
The system is expected to improve anti-jam and anti- spoof performance, reduce Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) demands, and include Regional Military Protection (RMP).

Will The F-47 Have to Fly Initially with Inferior Engines?

Both NGAP vendors (General Electric and Pratt & Whitney), announced they had completed assembly readiness reviews of their respective designs, known as the XA102 and XA103, in May.
More specific details about the XA102 and XA103 continue to be limited, but both are known to be so-called adaptive cycle designs.
In very broad terms, jet engines of this kind can perform like a turbofan when optimal and more like a turbojet when needed.
To provide additional context, GE has said in the past that the XA100 design it developed for AETP was around 25 percent more efficient than the F135.
It is not entirely uncommon for new aircraft prototypes to use a different engine from the one planned for production examples.
As one example, Lockheed’s Cold War-era F-104 Starfighter was developed around the General Electric J79 turbojet, but that engine was not ready for the start of flight testing.
Early XF-104 prototypes used older and less powerful Wright J65 turbojets instead.
Northrop Grumman originally planned to use Pratt & Whitney F401 turbofans on the F-14 Tomcat, but that engine program was cancelled.
Pratt & Whitney TF30 turbofans were used instead on early F-14As. However, problems and limitations surrounding those engines led to General Electric F110 turbofans being integrated onto later examples of the Tomcat.

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F-35 Engine Core Upgrade to Face Critical Review in August, Flight Testing in 2030

BLUF: A major planned upgrade for the F-35 fighter’s engine is expected to reach a major milestone in August when it undergoes its critical design review.

The critical design review is an important milestone in the progression of a major defense program to verify its design is stable, is likely to meet performance requirements, and is on track to meet its cost goals.
After the ECU program’s design review is finished, it is scheduled to undergo ground testing in late 2027. Flight tests will start around 2030.
GAO in a September 2025 report found that while the preliminary review validated ECU’s design met expectations, it found “major risks” such as a lack of integrated development and test schedules between the engine and the F-35, parts that were not arriving in time to support testing, and immature test plans.

Air Force Reveals Plans for VTOL Bomber Prototype

BLUF: The Air Force has released plans to experiment with a prototype reusable, rocket-powered aircraft for high-speed, long-range strike missions.

Although limited to a prototype program, the interest from Air Force Global Strike Command points toward a future bomber alternative that differs markedly from the stealthy, subsonic Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider.
The prototype described in solicitation documents released in mid-July calls for a liquid-fueled, rocket-powered, vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) aircraft.
After launching vertically, or potentially on a steep diagonal trajectory, the aircraft would transition to horizontal flight and accelerate to high—likely supersonic or hypersonic—speed, perform a strike mission and then return to its launch base for a vertical landing.
The concept requires the maturation of several technologies including advanced liquid rocket propulsion, autonomous flight control, thrust-vector control, aerodynamic control surfaces, cryogenic propellant management and high-temperature structural materials to demonstrate stable flight, controlled transition between flight regimes and reliable performance.
The concept appears closely aligned with plans by New Frontier Aerospace, based in Kent, Washington. The startup announced a year ago it had signed an agreement with the Air Force Institute of Technology to collaborate on advancing an “innovative, rocket-powered hypersonic [VTOL] aircraft.”
Over the longer term, New Frontier Aerospace aims to develop cargo aircraft capable of operating within the atmosphere and in space, including a scaled-up version with intercontinental range.

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Air Force Must Fix Fleet Age, Size, Readiness Issues, Undersecretary Says

In the 25 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Air Force reduced its overall end strength by nearly 40%.
Ten aircraft types that first flew more than 50 years ago are still in service, with nearly half of the fleet having an average age of more than 40 years old.
The Air Force has delegated ~85% of contracting authority down to its newly established portfolio acquisition executives.
The Air Force has cut the time it takes to get its largest aircraft (focus on strategic airlift) through depot in half.
The Air Force is aiming to increase its use of rapid acquisition authorities and award more multi-year contracts to provide industry a stable demand signal.
In return, the service is seeking more affordable mass to increase its magazine depth without breaking the bank.

“If our partners can’t deliver what we need on budget and on time, we’re not going to do business with them and maintain that relationship. We are doing our very best to leverage this rare opportunity not to reform but transform the acquisition landscape.”
“The problem is not capability; it’s the rate of production and our ability to sustain the capability that we already have. We’re losing ground on aircraft age and fleet size and are forced to extend some aircraft to the very last year of their engineered lifespan — and in some cases, we aren’t.”

CCAs Will Be Optionally Attritable

The concept refinement process for the 2nd increment is expected to wrap up in about 10 months, after which the Air Force plans to whittle the number of potential vendors with workable designs to as many as six.

“We’ve actually never treated CCA as attritable. We have treated CCA as optionally attritable. CCA will have a very long service life, if they need to, or they could be attritable if that’s what the operational commander needs to happen.” Brig Gen(s) Tim Helfrich

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CCAs Head to Air Force’s Main Drone Base for Exercise

It’s the latest example of the Air Force’s Experimental Operations Unit pushing hard to get CCAs into exercises where they can simulate operational environments.
During the exercise, the CCAs “generated multiple sorties demonstrating reliability and extended range; integrated with manned platforms in the local airspace to project power across distributed battlefields; and simulated scenarios that will inform future requirements for the platform.

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Air Force to Begin Concept Refinement of MQ-9 Replacement by End of Year

BLUF: The Air Force and the Defense Innovation Unit plan to start the concept refinement phase of its MQ-9A Reaper replacement effort during 1Q FY27.

The Air Force wants to bring multiple companies into the next stage of the Massed Modular Aircraft (MMA) program.
During that phase, both traditional and non-traditional vendors will conduct early analysis that will help the service shape its design, requirements and cost of the future unmanned aerial vehicle.
On July 7, DIU issued a commercial solutions opening for the MMA effort that called for an inexpensive, long-range drone outfitted with a variety of payloads that could “execute missions that the MQ-9A performs today.”
The notice stated that the Air Force wants to fly a full-scale MMA prototype within 21 months of awarding a contract, with plans to have 20 operational drones on stand-by by fiscal 2031.
A key aspect of the MMA effort is the platform’s overall affordability and ability to be produced en masse.
The MMA is expected to conduct a wide range of missions — including ISR and offensive strike — and could potentially fly solo or in a larger swarm formation.

Air Force Moves to Purchase T-7 Engines, Not Boeing

BLUF: The Air Force plans to buy the engines for its new T-7A trainer directly instead of having Boeing, the plane’s maker, provide engines as part of its contract.

The change could carry costs, but gives the service more control over a critical component of the jets.
LCMC released two “sources sought” notices for F404-103 engines in early July—one for the engines themselves, and a second for the engine’s technical data package, which is necessary for supporting acquisition and sustainment.
The notice for the technical data package is distinct from engine procurement, the Air Force spokesperson said, explaining that the data package is needed “to stand up organic depot-level repair capabilities for long-term sustainment.”

“Boeing had apparently, at least according to the government, not included proper pass-through clauses in their deals with some suppliers to get the technical data the government believes it needs.” defense analyst J.J. Gertler

Boeing Has Now Eaten $3B In Air Force One Cost Overruns

BLUF: Boeing has taken a fresh $280M loss on work to deliver two newly converted and fully equipped VC-25B Air Force One presidential aircraft to the Air Force.

The company says the new cost growth reflects investments to help it keep on track to finally deliver the first of these planes in 2028.
The program remains years behind schedule, as well as over budget, with Boeing now having paid more than $3B out of pocket.
The Air Force has been actively working to acquire the two VC-25Bs as one-for-one replacements for its aging VC-25A Air Force One aircraft since the late 2010s.
The Air Force has infused some additional funding into the effort, as well. This includes a $15.5 million contract modification to support communications systems work in December 2025.

Other Air Force News:

USSPACECOM Releases Space Warfighting Environment 2040 as Framework to Ensure Future of Joint Force’s All-Domain Advantage

SWE 2040 complements the U.S. Space Force’s Future Operating Environment 2040 and Objective Force 2040 by defining the environment and the warfighter-centered operational framework for the broader Joint Force.
By 2040, space will be more crowded, contested, and central to military operations, a reality that carries both risks and opportunities.
The document anticipates several factors that will define warfighting by 2040 and beyond, including:
- the vulnerability of fixed terrestrial space-enabling infrastructure
- proliferated dual-use spacecraft that absorb and regenerate under attack
- in-space servicing and maneuver that turn orbit into a dynamic network
- quantum developments that reshape trust, timing, and secure communication.

Our Take: We will break this down in more detail in a separate post.

SpaceX Lands $1.6B Space Force Contract for Military Sensing Satellite Launches

BLUF: SpaceX has secured $1.6B in Space Force contracts to launch 18 Falcon 9 missions supporting the military’s Space Based Sensing and Targeting (SBST) portfolio through the end of 2027.

The missions were awarded under two task orders through the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 3 Lane 1 program, which allows multiple commercial launch providers to compete for national security missions.
The satellites will support the Space-Based Sensing and Targeting portfolio, which uses spacecraft to detect and track airborne threats while relaying near real-time information to U.S. military forces.
Those capabilities are expected to support the Trump administration’s proposed Golden Dome missile defense initiative, which aims to build a layered missile defense network using space- and ground-based systems.

Related Articles:

Space Force Eyes Usable Airborne Target Tracking by 2028, More Capability to Follow

The Space Force in April announced it had established an initial pool of vendors to compete for Space-Based AMTI contracts, and then in late May awarded SpaceX a $4.2B contract to begin building out the constellation.
The service plans to start launching those satellites over the next 18 months and have an initial capability on orbit by 2028.
The Air Force has long relied on ground-based radars and aircraft like the E-3 Sentry to track airborne targets like missiles, aircraft, and drones.
Now, it’s working with the Space Force and the National Reconnaissance Office to add satellites to the mix, an approach leaders expect will make the mission more resilient against adversaries’ anti-access/aerial-denial systems.
That shift is no small feat and will require a complex architecture of sensors, ground processing, and radar systems. To manage that complexity, the service is taking an iterative approach.
The award to SpaceX is meant to kickstart development of the space layer with delivery of some of the early space sensing capability in the next six to 12 months.
The SBST PAE is also working to mature the tasking, scheduling, and processing systems that will sift through data and deliver it to battle management systems.
That requires close coordination between software developers and battle managers across the military services who will use the data and incorporate it in their own workflows.

“Is it everything the joint force requires? I think that will probably extend beyond ‘28. But we are going to have capability they don’t have today. We’ll be able to do things that are high-value or value-added. We won’t be able to do them everywhere all the time.”
“We’ll compete for different space sensors, different types of sensors. We’ll go buy and populate part of the space layer, and then we will do another competition and continue to build out the space layer and then add some complementary phenomenologies to it.”
Brig Gen Ryan Frazier

Space Force Awards Key Software Contract for Strategic SATCOM

Space Systems Command announced a $287M award to Sphinx Defense to develop a mission planning prototype for the Evolved Strategic Satellite Communications program’s ground segment.
ESS will eventually take over the nuclear mission that’s performed today by the Space Force’s Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellite constellation.
The program is an important component of the Pentagon’s broader work to modernize the nuclear enterprise.
The ESS ground segment, dubbed the Ground Resilient Integration Framework for Operational NC3 or GRIFFON, will manage the strategic communication satellites and the capability they provide once they’re on orbit.
To do that, the service is utilizing a number of flexible acquisition tools, including the software acquisition pathway—which allows the military services to buy software more rapidly—and a novel competitive prototyping approach, which has companies building competing ground segment prototypes across four segments:
- Framework, which is focused on establishing a modular, open architecture that can host multiple mission applications and services
- Ground integration, which includes the internal and external ground interfaces like command and control terminals and space ground links
- System of systems integration, which integrates the space and ground cryptographic terminals
- Mission applications, which ranges from testing and training support to command and control and mission planning
That iterative development strategy means that this latest mission application award builds on previous phases of competitive prototypes.

Our Take: As previous advisors supporting this program, we are immensely satisfied to see this effort take off using novel acquisition approaches.

Space Systems Command Revolutionizes Strategic SATCOM Development with Project Enigma

Designed to support the development of the Evolved Strategic Satellite Communications (ESS) system, Project Enigma fosters secure collaboration between government and industry partners.
Project Enigma leverages model-based systems engineering tools to optimize development workﬂows, enhance system security, and automate model deployment at scale.
This Platform-as-a-Service enables Impact Level 6 (IL6) collaboration, ensuring the highest standards of cybersecurity and data protection.
The Enigma platform represents a leap in how government and industry work together to innovate, streamline development, and deliver secure solutions for national security requirements.
With cyber-hardened architecture and tools designed to accelerate system integration, Enigma sets a new benchmark for collaborative capability.
Project Enigma is championing ESS digital engineering development by addressing challenges in secure collaboration.
With uniﬁed access to critical platforms, stakeholders can co-develop solutions, share insights, and innovate while maintaining strict security controls and compliance at the highest classiﬁcation level.

ORBES Unveils Exo-ORB Maintenance Spacecraft

BLUF: ORBES, a California startup building robotic spacecraft for in-orbit servicing missions, unveiled its first inspection satellite today—called Exo-ORB.

The robotic spacecraft is one of two models ORBES is building.
ORB is a free-flying robot designed to fly inside pressurized space stations, replacing or flying alongside astronauts to perform tasks like inventory management.
Exo-ORB is the external alternative, designed to fly 10 m to 20 m away from its host spacecraft to perform up-close inspection on-orbit with a high-res camera.
Later iterations of Exo-ORB will come equipped with robotic arms to perform in-space maintenance tasks, such as repairs and component replacements.

Space Force Awards All Points $250M to Expand Satellite Processing at Vandenberg

BLUF: Space Force awarded All Points Logistics a $250M contract to expand satellite processing capacity at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California.

The award calls for additional spacecraft processing capacity — facilities where satellites are prepared for launch — to be available at Vandenberg by 2029.
All Points is the third company to receive a contract under a Commercial Solutions Opening, or CSO, initiative to expand satellite processing capacity.
The award is more than three times the size of the previous two contracts, making it the largest issued so far under the program.
- $77.5M contract issued to Astrotech Space Operations in April 2025 to expand processing capacity at Vandenberg.
- $78.25M award to Blue Origin in October 2025 for additional capacity at Cape Canaveral.
The Space Force is investing in additional capacity as the Pentagon prepares to launch more missile-warning, communications, navigation and intel satellites.
Satellite processing operations can require specialized clean rooms, high bays, hazardous-fueling areas, security systems and equipment for handling sensitive spacecraft.
Limited access to such facilities can delay missions even when rockets and launch pads are available.

SpaceWERX Future Series: Adaptive and Intelligent Space Challenge

BLUF: Space Force S9C and SpaceWERX selected 29 solutions for awards and advancement to the next phase of the Adaptive and Intelligent Space (AIS) Challenge.

In April 2026, innovators from small businesses and research institutions were invited to submit solutions addressing some of the most complex challenges facing future space operations. Those advancing include:

This Challenge addresses key technology needs broadly felt across national security space and complementary to where industry IRAD and private capital are headed.
This program aims to leverage STTR authority to accelerate novel dual-use technology development between academia and industry, and intentionally mature these capabilities with support from government partners.
Selected teams will have the opportunity to further develop and present their proposed technologies during a pitch day event for follow-on awards, currently anticipated for late 2026 or early 2027.

QuantX Labs Announces Successful In-Orbit Commissioning of World’s First Optical Frequency Comb

BLUF: QuantX Labs today announced the successful commissioning and operation of its optical frequency comb in orbit, marking a major milestone for Australia's space and quantum technology sector and demonstrating a world-first quantum timing capability in orbit.

The mission is supported through the Australian Space Agency's Moon to Mars Demonstrator Program and forms a key part of QuantX Labs' KAIROS program to develop next-generation precision timing technologies for space applications.
This mission also demonstrates the ability of Australian-developed quantum technologies to be integrated with international space platforms and rapidly transitioned from laboratory environments into operational space systems.

Agreement for Use of the Commercial Space Station Starlab

BLUF: Following Mitsubishi Corporation, DigitalBlast is the second company in Japan and Asia to reserve capacity aboard Starlab, advancing post-ISS space utilization.

Under this Reservation Agreement, DigitalBlast secures in advance a utilization allocation aboard Starlab — the next-generation commercial space station that will succeed the International Space Station (ISS), which is scheduled for retirement around 2030 — in order to provide services that leverage the space environment.
DigitalBlast will serve as a user-integration partner for R&D that puts the space environment to practical use, and will work to build itself into one of the gateways through which companies and research institutions in Japan and the wider Asia region can access orbit.

Two Wars Converge in the Caspian Sea as Ukraine Hits Iranian Supply Line to Russia

BLUF: Ukrainian drones have hit military-supply lines connecting Russia and Iran through the Caspian Sea, exploiting a new front in two increasingly intertwined wars.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the strikes.
The Security Service of Ukraine said that it had launched drone strikes in the Caspian against a Russian oil field, a Russian missile boat and ships used to transport Iranian drones to Russia.
The strikes, part of a long-range drone campaign that has also reached deep into Russia, have brought Iran and Ukraine one step closer to a direct confrontation.
The Caspian trade offers Iran one way to circumvent a U.S. military blockade of its ports along the Persian Gulf and the northern Arabian Sea.
Targeting the Caspian, more than 430 miles from Ukraine’s nearest border, gives Kyiv an opportunity to disrupt Moscow’s links with Tehran.

“We also achieved very strong results with long‑range strikes in the Caspian Sea—including vessels used in military cargo shipments involving Iran, as well as a warship.” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky

Cheap, Accurate and Lethal: Iran’s Best Missile Is Getting More Dangerous

BLUF: The Kheibar Shekan missile is the workhorse of Tehran’s arsenal—a cheap, mobile, accurate weapon with a range of at least 900 miles. Recently, Iran has been using it in complex attacks, proving itself to be an adaptable adversary for the U.S.

Since the fighting picked back up this month, Iran has been firing the Kheibar Shekan at American bases.
It is using a combination of different flight paths, maneuvers and speeds to try to confuse U.S. defenses.
Unlike Iran’s older missiles that require lengthy prelaunch fueling, military analysts say the Kheibar Shekans can be kept fueled and loaded quickly into trucks or other vehicles for launching in an attempt to evade U.S. and Israeli warplanes.
In some variants of the missile, the nose section, which carries the explosive warhead and detaches during the final phase of flight, is equipped with a small engine that makes it capable of adjusting its direction as it nears its target at 6,000 miles an hour.

Chinese Destroyer’s Encounter with U.S. Drone Boat Highlights Future Rules of Engagement Issues

BLUF: During a long-endurance trek across the Pacific, a small uncrewed surface vessel (USV) owned by a California company had an encounter with a Chinese guided missile destroyer near the Philippines.

The Lightfish USV, owned by Seasats, came close enough to the Type 052D guided missile destroyer that it was able to capture the warship on video.
The incident highlights the growing presence of USVs, and especially in some of the world’s most contentious locales.
The USV coming so close to the Chinese surface combatant also underscores the potential danger USVs can pose even to an advanced warship.
It also raises questions about the rules of engagement navies, and even some merchant vessels in troubled areas, will have to adopt for when they happen upon USVs that come close without explanation or clear intent.
The incident in question took place about 73 miles northwest of the Philippine island of Luzon.
The Luzon Strait is one of the world’s most strategic waterways and a potential flashpoint. It sits south of Taiwan and north of the Philippines, in a channel that provides access from the greater Pacific to the South China Sea and vice-versa.

Australian MQ-28 Ghost Bat Fighter Drones Could Be Commanded by U.S. Pilots

BLUF: The Air Force is “threaded in tight” with the work Australians are doing with the MQ-28 Ghost Bat uncrewed aircraft.

This was underscored by the MQ-28’s participation at a major exercise earlier this year, lessons from which are feeding into the Air Force’s evolving plans for its forthcoming Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drone fleets.
Deep integration between the U.S. Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) opens the door to American personnel potentially ordering Australian MQ-28s around in the future, too.
To date, the RAAF has received eight Ghost Bats, all in pre-production Block 1 configuration.
At Valiant Shield, the MQ-28 flew together with one of the U.S. Air Force’s new F-15EX Eagle II fighters, among a host of other American and allied aircraft.
Whether any of those platforms issued any direct commands to the Ghost Bat during the exercise is unclear.

ESA Taps Aalyria to Build Deep-Space Network Hub

BLUF: ESA has tapped Aalyria to build a piece of the internet’s off-world extension: a network-operations center that allows spacecraft, lunar missions, and ground stations to share data reliably across the solar system.

The center will run delay-/disruption-tolerant networking (DTN), which is a store-and-forward protocol built for space when a constant, instant connection is often impossible.
The system will deploy at Cornwall, UK’s Goonhilly Earth Station, which operates the first privately owned deep space antenna. Aalyria did not disclose the contract’s value or term.
Aalyria’s network management protocol will sit within LunaNet, the interoperability framework that NASA, ESA, and JAXA are building for the return to the Moon, alongside other operators.
The internet we use usually assumes users will always have an instant connection, but spacefarers don’t have that same luxury.
- Signals to the Moon take ~2.5 seconds round trip;
- Comms latency to Mars can exceed 40 minutes;
- And links can easily drop as spacecraft move.
Rather than requiring an uninterrupted path from source to destination, DTN parks data at each node and forwards it when the next link opens.

“What’s new here is our combination of that implementation at the protocol level with the [Aalyria] Spacetime orchestration, so that we’re directing antennas where to point when—and when to establish links. Now that you have enough people talking a common language and talking common APIs to operate their networks, it starts unlocking networks of networks.” Aalyria CEO and cofounder Brian Barritt

Ukraine Wants Prototype European Missile Defence System by mid-2027

BLUF: Ukraine wants a prototype for a European anti-ballistic system codenamed Freyja to be ready within the first half of next year, as Kyiv pushes its allies to help deliver a weapon capable of downing Russian missiles.

An international steering committee tasked with estimating the R&D costs was due to convene for the first time soon.
Leaders from 10 European countries, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, as well as around a dozen defence manufacturers gathered at a summit in Paris two weeks ago to officially launch the anti-ballistic coalition.
Ukraine is chronically dependent on U.S.-made Patriot air defence systems, which is the only weapon in its arsenal capable of reliably downing Russia's ballistic missiles.
Supplies of Patriots have been affected by political volatility, low stocks and a lengthy production cycle.
Russia has stepped up its ballistic strikes on the capital Kyiv and southern port hub of Odesa this month, launching dozens of missiles, most of which Ukraine was unable to down due to lack of interceptors.
Freyja is an attempt to build a lower-cost ⁠alternative to the Patriot, which many European countries also rely on. Other air defence systems, such as Franco-Italian SAMP/T and German IRIS-T, have not yet proven capable of downing ballistic missiles.
The overall logic of this system is that it's an open architecture.

Our Take: We applaud Ukraine and Europe’s pursuit of a lower-cost, open-architecture missile defense system that prioritizes production and modularity. The plug-and-play approach is ideal. Yet we are skeptical in European defense firms’ ability to deliver a scalable functional prototype in a timely manner given their record of slow, expensive, and closed development cycles.

Pentagon weighing options to license Patriot production to Ukraine

BLUF: The Pentagon is looking at options for how to license production of Patriot interceptors to Ukraine, but it’s too early to say when Kyiv will be able to start building its own missiles.

Earlier this month, President Trump announced at the NATO summit in Ankara that the U.S. would give Ukraine a license to produce Patriot interceptors but gave few details, raising questions about the timeline and security considerations needed to allow Ukraine to begin building sensitive US technology during a hot war with Russia.
Zelenskyy later said he had met with a team of Lockheed Martin officials to talk about future opportunities for joint production and technology exchange.
Lockheed Martin manufactures the PAC-3 interceptor, one of the weapons used by the Patriot missile defense system.
The hard part of licensing PAC-3 production to Ukraine will be qualifying and certifying the indigenous supply chain that will build the interceptors. There’s only so many engineers that know how to do this stuff. There’s only so many qualified parts. Building a new supply chain takes time to find the qualified suppliers.

“We're evaluating a set of COAs right now, which include a mix of domestic and international sourcing for end units, where they're going to be located, how we're going to build it, and which variant.” Michael Cadenazzi, ASW(IBP)

Britain to Protect Ukraine’s Attack Drones with Signal Jammers

BLUF: Britain’s new PM will host Zelensky and announce an agreement which will allow Ukraine to start mass producing UK-designed signal jammers.

The jammers, which are a part of a project called Stone Cloak, are fitted to Ukrainian attack drones and hinder Russian air defences from tracking them.
Britain has directly supplied Kyiv with thousands of the pieces of kit, which are around the same size as a tablet computer.
The Prime Minister will announce that he is signing over the intellectual rights to Ukraine so the country can mass produce them itself.
Allowing Ukraine to mass produce Stone Cloak and use it in real battlefield conditions would also be beneficial to Britain’s own defence.
Army chiefs will be able to collect data on its performance, which they will use when building the system into the next generation of drones and missiles.

Senate Confirms Hurst as Pentagon Comptroller After 1.5-Year Vacancy

BLUF: After a year-and-a-half without a confirmed Pentagon controller, today the Senate voted 50 to 47, as part of a larger en bloc package, for Jules “Jay” Hurst to officially take on the role.

In the same voting bloc with 74 nominees, lawmakers approved Erich Hernandez-Baquero (HB) as the next Air Force assistant secretary for space acquisition and integration, a role that’s charged with overseeing all Space Force acquisition programs.

The Senate’s mass confirmation vote also included a thumbs up for the administration’s nominee to head the NRO, Roger Mason.

See our NDAA and budget posts for the latest insights and analysis.

Future of Defense Innovation & National Security: FY27 NDAA and Part 2 | Moshe Schwartz
Emerging Technologies Institute

How the Army Built a Game-Changing Missile System That Soldiers Actually Want to Use | LTC Jim Lawson and Dr. Shane Thompson
Fed Gov Today

APFIT x A Family-Owned Laser Manufacturer's Success Story | Matt Meyers
Last Week in DC

America’s Most Lethal Fighter Jet | F-15EX
Sam Eckholm and Boeing

Rebuilding America’s Critical Minerals Base | Alex Grant, Wes Spurlock, and Jonathan Panter
Cogs of War

Ukraine's F-16s just scored their first AIR-TO-AIR VICTORY
Sandboxx

Drone Dominance Program: Gauntlet 2 announcement
DIU

Defeating the Drones: The Airman’s Imperative to Defend Against Small UAV
Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies

Designing and Manufacturing Modern Military Ground Vehicles | Paul Beaker
Aerospace and Defense Technology

Mission Integrity, Financial Gravity, and Lean to Incorruptible | Eric Ries
Startup Defense

NCMA World Congress
NCMA • Jul 26-29 • Orlando, FL

Life Cycle Industry Days
Air Force • Jul 27-29 • Dayton, OH

DIA TECHINT
AFCEA • Jul 28-29 • Chantilly, VA

Air and Space Summit
Potomac Officers Club • Jul 30 • McLean, VA

Drone Dominance and Airspace Sovereignty One Year Later
American Drone Leadership Summit • Jul 31 • Washington DC

Space and Missile Defense Symposium
Aug 11-13 • Huntsville, AL

TechNet Augusta 2026
AFCEA • Aug 17-20 • Augusta, GA

MODSIM World
NTSA • Aug 18-19 • Alexandria, VA

Fed SuperNova
Aug 18-20 • Austin, TX

ONR sBAA Industry Day
Aug 20 • Washington DC area

SmallSat Conference
Aug 23-26 • Salt Lake City, UT

DIB Accelerator 2026
ASW(IBP) • Aug 25-27 • Philadelphia, PA

Space Warfighting Forum
NDIA • Aug 25-27 • Colorado Springs, CO

Prodacity
Rise8 • Aug 25-27 • Nashville, TN

Intelligence and National Security Summit
AFCEA • Aug 26-27 • Bethesda, MD

See our Events Page for all the other events over the next year.

Turning and Burning on Cybersecurity Compliance

Sandeep Kathuria — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:03:47 GMT

In a stunning policy shift, the Department of War (DoW) suspended forthcoming contractual requirements under the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program for defense contractors to o…

Headlines: Go Faster and Iterate

Pete Modigliani — Sat, 25 Jul 2026 20:25:41 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

The biggest stories across the Department and the defense industry this week:

Hybrid Electric Vehicles presenting new options for lower-c…

Oversight vs Insight

Pete Modigliani — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 11:03:10 GMT

The Department of War announced another Direct Report Portfolio Manager (DRPM), this one for Unmanned Systems (UxS). Will this overcome years of institutional inertia or create greater friction among Service leaders?

Since Goldwater-Nichols (40 years ago), major Department reforms have wrestled with the same tension: how much decision authority sits at the top versus how much gets pushed to the people closest to the problem.

In 2016, Congress broke up the OSD(AT&L) enterprise into A&S and R&E, along with delegating authorities for most major programs back down to the Services. Smaller programs were further delegated to PEOs.

Over the last year, the Department rolled out ~39 Portfolio Acquisition Executives (PAEs) across the Services. These leaders are empowered to manage dynamic portfolios spanning acquisition, R&D, budgets, requirements, and sustainment, and do so to varying degrees.

The Department also established four new Direct Reporting Portfolio Managers (DRPMs) and a Munitions Acceleration Council (MAC) that report straight to the Deputy Secretary of War for select portfolios along with an Economic Defense Unit (EDU) and Business Operators for National Defense (BOND). The Acquisition Transformation Strategy empowers portfolio leaders and consolidates authority.

Where This Comes From

We started our careers in a program office then moved to the PEO level, the Air Force acquisition executive level, and finally OSD. At every stop, we kept the program office instinct: get close to the problem, trust the people closest to it, and measure yourself by what actually got delivered.

Bureaucracies have a predictable failure mode. People generally view those in layer above you as the micromanagers. They often view those in subordinate organizations as making dumb calls. Both views are usually wrong, and both are symptoms of the same root cause: nobody trusts the layer next to them enough to let go.

The 90% Problem

A former boss used to cite the Lake Wobegon effect: that if you surveyed everyone in your organization, 90% of people believe they are above average.

Program managers believe they are executing as best they can against enormous constraints. This includes being understaffed, annual budget instability, and operating in a complex, dynamic bureaucratic environment. Executives in the Pentagon often believe the program managers are missing obvious problems. Both are operating on incomplete information. This was a recurring issue we saw across major programs.

A key aspect of the new PAE portfolios is providing better metrics and reporting to provide leadership and stakeholders real insights into PAE decisions and progress. Is the portfolio delivering warfighting capabilities at greater speed and scale? Is it fueling greater industry competition to decrease costs and increase innovation?

Directing Versus Asking

The philosophy we carried up through every level was simple. Empower and mentor the people below you, let them learn by doing (and occasionally failing), and they come out better for it.

If an executive asks a manager why they did something a certain way, that question opens up a conversation. It forces critical thinking, and it puts the ownership of the answer where it belongs.

If the executive instead tells the manager how the program should be run, that closes the conversation down. The manager loses ownership of the strategy. The executive loses accountability for the outcome, because now it’s the executive’s call, not the manager’s.

When the program struggles, which most do, both sides quietly blame the other. Nobody actually owns the failure, which means nobody learns from it either.

This is the core argument against reflexive centralization: it doesn’t just slow decisions; it breaks the accountability loop that drives organizational learning.

Why Centralize Anyway

The new DRPM(UxS) will report directly to the Deputy Secretary of War and serves as Decision Authority for the unmanned portfolio, with authority over budget, contracting, technical standards, and test decisions that would normally sit at the Service level. Similar constructs already exist for submarines and strategic systems programs, and the Department is now using that model more broadly.

There’s a strong case here. Decades of entrenched process, bureaucratic hostility to autonomous systems, and platform-centric thinking do not reform themselves. Cross-cutting initiatives, like unmanned systems or munitions that touch every Service, are genuinely hard to solve through independent program offices or even a joint program structure, because no single Service has the authority or the incentive to optimize across all of them. Past attempts have failed. Higher authority gives one accountable leader leverage to force alignment, attract talent, and move faster.

But the risks are real. Decisions travel farther up and back down. The office becomes a designed bottleneck. The people who understand the engineering trade-offs, the contracting realities, and the test data in granular detail are still down at the PAE or program level. Centralizing the decision doesn’t centralize the expertise: it just adds a layer between the two.

Another problem is that fewer managers and executives across the Services are gaining meaningful experience in developing and executing high-level strategy. Without that crucible, they will be ill-prepared to lead major portfolios in the years ahead. At the same time, executives with 25 years of experience have little appetite for being treated as mere middlemen or action officers, simply executing decisions handed down from higher headquarters.

Success depends on execution and leadership personalities, not the org chart.

The Pattern this Usually Follows

Most transformation strategies inside this administration have followed a similar arc. Start with a deliberately disruptive environment to force everyone to confront the need for change. Put an experienced executive in the seat who drives the staff hard through the first few iterations. Once the organization has internalized what “right” looks like, start delegating decisions and authority back down to the level that should own them long-term.

The current wave of DRPMs and Deal Teams could be the forcing function. The real question is whether the Department follows through on delegation once the goals are met, or whether the new authorities simply become the permanent way of doing business. Both outcomes are plausible. Which one happens will say more about the institutional discipline of future administrations.

What has to Happen with PAEs

Portfolio Acquisition Executives are the linchpins. The Acquisition Transformation Strategy is explicit about empowering PAEs with a full team of subject matter experts and the authority to direct outcomes, move money, and adjust requirements without waiting on multiple layers of review. It also calls for a by-exception approach to oversight, using portfolio scorecards so senior leaders can focus on the programs that are actually in trouble instead of reviewing everything with equal intensity.

Oversight should focus on portfolio strategy and strategic trend lines: is the portfolio moving toward the capability the warfighter needs, is risk being managed at a reasonable level, are resources aligned to priority outcomes. It shouldn’t mean reviewing tactical program decisions that PAEs are supposed to own. When a large program goes sideways, and many will, that’s when leadership could get more involved, not before.

This is also the logic behind breaking large, monolithic acquisition programs into smaller, more dynamic capabilities within the portfolio. PAEs can fix issues locally before they become four-star problems.

Way Ahead

PAEs should lean forward to flex their new authorities visibly, document decisions, and explain their reasoning. They can earn more delegation by demonstrating they can handle it.

OSW, SAEs, and senior leaders should ask why before telling how. Every time they substitute judgment, they dilute ownership. Centralizing is a legitimate short-term tool. The harder discipline is knowing when and how to let go.

The spectrum from oversight to insight is still being drawn. This wave of centralization is a reasonable bet as a forcing function to drive change. Whether it becomes permanent or a remains a deliberate phase will define the transformation’s legacy.

Headlines: USVs Attack, CMMC Paused

Matt MacGregor — Sat, 18 Jul 2026 19:03:03 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

First use of US sea drones in attack on Iran; Saronic $3B shipyard in Texas
DoW suspends CMMC Phase 2 responding to industry feedback
OSC …

Headlines: The DAWG Days of Summer

Pete Modigliani — Sat, 11 Jul 2026 18:48:31 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

DIU and the Services Reshape their Portfolios
Defense focused drones continue to promulgate by land, sea, and air
DPC issues TINA-Lite gui…

Keeping Score on Procurement Reform

Madeline Hart — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 11:10:55 GMT

Over the last year, the Trump administration has prioritized procurement reform, and specifically, the acquisition of commercial products. In Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s “Wartime Footing” speech last year, he boldly stated “We will prioritize the purchase of industry-driven solutions, commercial solutions first, that meet our needs faster, even if that means bids do not meet every requirement.” The rhetoric mirrors Section 1822 of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which essentially requires the Secretary of War to approve every noncommercial acquisition. There is also Executive Order 14271 from April 2025, which requires every agency to review ongoing acquisitions that should have been commercial but were not, and Executive Order 14402 from April 2026, which mandates fixed-price contracts as the default.

These actions were welcome news for those of us who have long appreciated the straight line from effective procurement to a lethal warfighting force. The defense industry’s divergence from the commercial economy has led to unnecessary requirements and billions in waste while extending major program acquisition timelines to well over a decade—or two. Defense reformers have been burned in the past by failed attempts to encourage commercial acquisitions, but the strength of these initiatives leads many to believe that this time will be different.

Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 is the first full fiscal year under the new administration. It marks an inflection point: either we see the reforms begin to bear fruit, or FY 2026 looks much like the years before it. My new analysis of the Department of War’s spending from FY 2012 through FY 2025 shows that, based on the available data, little meaningful progress has been made in acquiring commercial solutions, buying products from commercial companies, or diversifying away from the five prime contractors. The data instead provides evidence of the acquisition workforce’s and legacy contractors’ enduring resistance to change. Breaking the bureaucratic status quo will require sustained and meaningful action.

The More Things Change

The share of defense spending on commercial technology is no higher today than it was 14 years ago—a staggering fact when one considers the hundreds of billions of venture capital dollars invested in U.S. defense tech companies in the last six years. The government is required to buy commercial technology to the maximum extent practicable per the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act (FASA) of 1994. Such products are developed at private expense and sold to the government via fixed price contracts. The logic is that industry eats the risk but also captures financial upside if its products are successful. Despite the law, the share of spend on commercial technology since 2012 has fluctuated between just 16 and 20 percent (save for 2021 and 2022, when pharmaceutical purchases during Covid led to outlier commercial spending).

The nadir of the relationship between defense and industry was 2016, when the Department of War spent just 16 percent on commercial technology. 2016 was also the year Palantir first sued the government over FASA violations—and won. If you squint, there has been some progress in procurement since then. Fiscal years 2023 to 2025 were better for commercial technology than 2016 to 2020, but only by a couple of percentage points. Even this meager progress has plateaued at around 19 percent. When the private sector outspends the government on research and development by four to one, it beggars belief that over 80 percent of defense solutions can only be built with non-commercial technology.

There’s an argument to be made that the percent spent on commercial technology is undercounted when the criteria is limited to FAR Part 12 (i.e. FASA). DoW has interpreted FASA’s “commercial item” and “of a type” provisions narrowly, limiting commercial treatment mostly to goods that already have an established commercial market—even though the statute’s language was designed to reach further, up through fully bespoke development using commercial practices. As a result, products that are privately funded and priced commercially but lack an existing commercial market do not get characterized in the data (or in preferential treatment) as commercial. AEI’s William Greenwalt proposes a different fix: rather than trying to define what counts as a commercial item, he would have DoW treat all non-traditional defense contractors (NTDC) as commercial entities, determining commerciality at the business-unit level instead of contract by contract. Another option is to establish a standardized rubric for determining commerciality that KOs can easily use.

A second meaningful data point is the share of obligations earned by NTDCs. An NTDC is any company that, within the last year, has not performed a contract or subcontract subject to the full Cost Accounting Standards. This broad definition applies to over 90 percent of contractors and includes commercial companies, yet NTDCs receive only about 25 percent of dollars.

About half of NTDC awards are not counted as commercial. If commerciality were determined at the entity level rather than the contract level, the percent of spend on commercial would rise by an additional 12 to 13 percent. This would increase the commercial number to about 30 percent—still too low, but a meaningful improvement.

Like with commercial contracts, the share of spending that goes to NTDCs has not noticeably improved over time. It’s possible that companies with a business model geared for the normal, commercial economy either cannot effectively compete for defense contracts or have chosen not to. Neither option is good.

Next, I looked at the share of spending that goes to the five prime contractors. Consistently, those companies receive one in every three dollars spent by the Department. Power law outcomes in defense contracting—and many other industries—are to be expected. During World War II, the top five contractors received 20 percent of awards. However, when there is obvious discontent about the speed at which critical new systems are delivered, it’s natural to question if continued concentration among the same set of companies has contributed to stagnation.

While programs like Collaborative Combat Aircraft and the Pentagon’s newly announced purchase of 10,000 cruise missiles make it appear like dollars are diversifying, the data does not support this conclusion. A huge portion of the defense budget remains highly concentrated among just five companies. Data to date provides little visibility into whether these legacy defense primes are increasing their use of commercial items at the sub tier level. That would be informative to understand if use of commercial technology is improving below the surface. We have seen the primes invest more into their venture capital arms and partner with startups, but it’s less clear if that is being converted into adoption of commercial capabilities.

Lastly, I looked at the share of obligations by contract type. Cost-plus contracts are the vehicle of choice for about 30 percent of dollars, and the share has remained steady over time. While it’s positive that fixed-price contracts are the majority of spend, the U.S. still spent $146 billion on cost-plus contracts in FY 2025—a sum significantly greater than Germany’s annual military spend of $114 billion.

Realistic Goals for FY 2026

The acquisition system is a formidable opponent because in any given year only about 20 percent of dollars are available for new procurement starts [1]. The majority of spend is for legacy programs, such as continuation activity, renewals, maintenance, annual funding, task orders, and more. Such dollars are already spoken for, tied up in specific contract vehicles and vendors and protected from zealous reformers.

The implication is that improvements of just five percent in the metrics reviewed would require dramatic shifts in how net new dollars are spent. Retrospective analysis of FY 2025 illustrates the limited maneuver space available for reformers:

In FY 2025, commercial spend was $93 billion, or 19 percent of $490 billion. To increase the share of commercial by five points up to 24 percent would require increasing commercial spend by $24.6 billion to $117.8 billion. However, all of that change must come from the $100 billion of marginal new spend. In 2025, 38.5 percent or $38.5 billion of new spend was commercial. Shifting $24.6 billion towards commercial would require increasing net new spend on commercial up to $63 billion, which means 63 percent of all new spend would need to be commercial. This should be reasonable to expect given the aforementioned investments that NTDCs are making to provide DoW with new capability options and the increasingly innovative commercial sector.

To summarize: for the top-line obligation number to move from 19 percent to 24 percent on commercial, marginal spend on new procurement would need to be 63 percent commercial and require a shift of an additional $24.6 billion. A similar analysis for NTDCs reveals that 74 percent of new spend would need to go towards NTDCs to increase the top-line by 5 percent to 29 percent.

Moving the needle on cost-plus is even more challenging. In FY 2025, 95 percent of new dollars were fixed-price contracts. Only $5 billion, or 5 percent, of new spend was cost-plus. All $5 billion would need to switch to fixed price to decrease the top-line cost-plus number by just one percent, from 30 percent to 29 percent. It would be impossible to move the cost-plus number by more than one percent without cancelling or overhauling legacy programs. While it’s encouraging that new dollars are overwhelmingly fixed price, the fact that bigger changes are not possible in a given year illustrates the challenges of a large legacy portfolio.

When FY 2026 is over and the contract data is available, changes on the order of one to five percentage points for the four metrics analyzed would be a real sign of progress.

Rage Against the Machine

Even modest shifts towards commercial technology will require radical action and real accountability. FOIA’d data from Executive Order 14271 on commercial acquisition shows what reformers are up against. Of the active procurements reviewed as part of the EO, 61 percent were non-commercial. Those non-commercial acquisitions were submitted for approval, where less than one percent of the submissions were denied. The machine has no ability to check itself.

The acquisition workforce has over 160,000 people. That’s about the size of the active-duty U.S. Marine Corps. Members of this shadow service are incentivized to never deviate from the status quo and to prize documentation and compliance over outcomes. The threat of audits, protests, and GAO reports hangs over the acquisition workforce like the Sword of Damocles. Meanwhile, legacy contractors face no incentive to sub-contract work to commercial companies when they can simply build custom solutions knowing they will face no consequences.

We need outsiders who will hold the system accountable. The Secretary of War should recruit an elite group of commercial leaders using existing authorities under the Federal Advisory Committee Act. This new committee of private-sector experts would review all non-commercial procurements submitted for exemption requests by contracting officers. The committee would be empowered to make recommendations to the Secretary, with a focus on where government requirements can be met with existing commercial solutions. In parallel, the DoW should staff qualified Business Operators for National Defense (BOND) agents to ensure acquisitions that should be commercial are commercial. Given the tens of thousands of acquisitions annually, an enabling technology product would be essential to scaling the operation.

Finally, contract officers should be required to publish a public notice of intent to circumvent FASA every time they pursue a non-commercial acquisition. The waiver requests could additionally be reported out in a quarterly report. This level of real-time visibility into the number of exemption requests would put positive pressure on the system.

The war in Iran is just the latest conflict to expose the fragility of the U.S. supply chain for critical weapons. America is unable to surge production because a small number of systems are made by an even smaller number of firms. We do not need more evidence that the current method of procurement is a failure mode for the long-term security of America. Rapid efforts to create a commercial industrial base will undoubtedly be painful. They should also be a national imperative.

[1] There is not an official “new start” classification in the federal obligation data. I used the following methodology on USASpend.gov data to approximate genuine new starts: Begin with base contract actions in the fiscal year, defined as transactions with modification_number = 0 for definitive contracts, purchase orders, delivery orders, and BPA calls. Then, apply a conservative keyword screen to exclude transactions with descriptors like continuation, sustainment, or renewal activity, including terms associated with sustainment, support, maintenance, repair, renewals, options, extensions, bridges, or follow-on activity. This approach is intended to avoid overcounting net-new procurement. It is not an official new-start classification and may exclude some genuinely new purchases that use continuation-style contract language. I therefore treat the resulting estimate as a conservative proxy for likely net-new procurement candidates.

Madeline Hart works Defense at Palantir and is co-author of the book MOBILIZE: How to Reboot the American Industrial Base and Stop WWIII and First Breakfast.

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Headlines: Happy Birthday America!

Pete Modigliani — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 18:15:11 GMT

Welcome to the 250th Independence Day edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

Two and a half centuries ago, a ragtag bunch of colonists looked at the world’s most powerful empire and said, “Yeah… we…

FY27 SASC NDAA Review

Matt MacGregor — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 16:49:56 GMT

The Senate Armed Services Committee approached the FY27 NDAA with a stated intent to keep the bill constrained, allowing the Department time to absorb and implement the sweeping reforms from the landmark FY26 NDAA.

They still found room for substantive action on several fronts. The bill takes on technical data rights and the Right to Repair debate in ways that will reshape how contractors protect proprietary IP. It pushes hard on munitions industrial base resilience through targeted multi-year procurement authorities and solid rocket motor dual-sourcing mandates. It builds out the economic competition architecture with statutory footing for the EDU and a ten-year extension of OSC.

Not all of it moves in the right direction. There are several provisions that we call out as likely not being helpful in advancing acquisition reform. We hope you enjoy our comprehensive summary and expert analysis of the provisions most relevant to defense acquisition professionals, industry, and reform champions. Happy 4th!

FY27 NDAA Executive Summary

FY27 NDAA Bill Language

FY27 Report Language

High Impact Provisions

These are the provisions we believe will have the greatest impact to the Department by addressing a core issue, expanding authorities/roles, and enabling acquisition transformation.

Sec. 212. Development, Test, Evaluation, Demonstration, and Transition to Production of Alternative Low-Cost Weapon Systems

Directs the SECDEF to initiate and pursue accelerated acquisition programs for alternative low-cost weapon systems in eight critical capability categories.
Programs under the section must use innovative acquisition strategies to achieve significantly lower unit costs than current baseline systems while maintaining operationally relevant performance.
The systems should be expendable designs optimized for attritable, high-volume employment.
Requires designs that can be produced at scale in quantities significantly greater than current programs of record.
Requires technology maturation, risk reduction, flight testing, and transition planning to low-rate initial production no later than FY2030 for each listed weapon category.
Requires specific cost and performance targets through competitive analysis, market research, prototyping, and experimentation.
Capability Areas
- Hypersonic strike systems: Mach 5 or greater, maneuverable, long-range precision strike, generally beyond 550 nautical miles.
- Cruise missiles: Turbojet-powered standoff precision strike missiles against land or sea targets, generally beyond 250 nautical miles, with simplified guidance, propulsion, and airframe designs.
- Shoulder-launched missiles: Man-portable or vehicle-launched anti-armor missiles with fire-and-forget or command guidance, at ranges of 1+nmi.
- Extended-range munitions: Ground-launched precision munitions for extended standoff strike, generally beyond 50 nautical miles.
- Mid-range IAMD interceptors: Interceptors for cruise missiles, aircraft, and short- to medium-range ballistic missiles, with ranges of at least 30 nautical miles and speeds of at least Mach 3.5.
- Exo-atmospheric interceptors: Kinetic hit-to-kill ballistic missile defense interceptors for exo-atmospheric engagements, beyond 300 nautical miles or above 50 nautical miles altitude, with closing speeds of at least Mach 8.
- Short-range IAMD interceptors: Terminal defense against aircraft, cruise missiles, and UAS, with ranges of at least five nautical miles and speeds of at least Mach 2.
- Medium-range air-to-air missiles: Beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles with intercept ranges of at least 60 nautical miles and maximum speed of at least Mach 3.

Our Take: This is a really consequential provision. While we generally don’t like to see program creation as an NDAA direction, here it makes sense given the importance. This is clearly a direct response to munitions expenditure rates observed in Iran and the Red Sea, where multi-million-dollar interceptors have been traded against low-cost drones. Some things are underway with PAE Fires and other service programs, but this puts the onus on leadership to move out with gusto and make it happen. Now whether this gets funded by appropriations is another question which will really drive what can be executed.

Sec. 805. Accountability and Training for Defense Acquisition

PAE Scorecards. Directs DoD to develop standardized KPIs for all PAEs covering portfolio cost variance, milestone delivery, market research and competition, MOSA use, supply chain and workforce risk, use of OTA/CSO/MTA/Software Pathway authorities, and derisking activity including capital market involvement.
Gold Tier Capital Certification Pilot. Allows each SAE to nominate 10-15 Contracting Officers annually with curriculum covering capital structure, risk allocation, deal structuring, commercial valuation, public-private partnership models, and VC/PE/investment banking distinctions.
- Includes a 6-12 month rotational immersion with VC firms, prime contractors, tech startups, or investment banks.
- Certified officers receive: positive weight for promotion, streamlined approvals for non-traditional financing, direct liaison status with the Economic Defense Unit, and priority access to industry immersion opportunities. Officers failing performance metrics for two evaluation periods forfeit certification.

The PAE scorecard and authority utilization metrics parallel the spirit of HASC Sec. 833/834 (KPOs and demonstrated proficiency requirements for the acquisition workforce), though SASC focuses specifically on PAE-level accountability while HASC addresses the broader civilian workforce.

Our Take: We are huge proponents of PAE Scorecards given that to date, there has been little real measure of PM/PEO performance beyond not hitting a Nunn-McCurdy breach. Scorecards can be effective at incentivizing right behaviors and helping leaders understand where more help may be needed.

While we have some scaling and implementation concerns with the Gold Tier certification program, it does represent a huge unmet need to provide top contracting officers with rigorous capital market training and deep immersion in industry practices. This could be instrumental in bringing needed insights for KOs to craft novel business models. We may have to first beef up the contracting workforce and provide Agreement Officer training to more non-KOs to allow top KOs to take the time required here amid historically high demand for senior contracting expertise.

Sec. 814. Limitations on the Centralized Commercial Item Capability

Withholds all FY27 funds for the centralized commercial item capability (required under 10 U.S.C. §3456) until:
- DoW issues comprehensive department-wide guidance implementing the FY26 NDAA commercial item provisions and amends DFARS accordingly.
- DoW issues stricter standards for approving non-commercial item determinations in technology-intensive areas including software, autonomous systems, AI/ML, cloud, cyber, and other commercially active domains.
Requires GAO review guidance and assess a sample of non-commercial item determinations to assess adequacy and rigor.

Our Take: DoW has historically been slow at implementing congressional provisions even for one with great support internally. This further reinforces the Department’s shift toward a commercial-first acquisition model, consistent with the Executive Order, FY26 NDAA, and ATS. It reinforces that commercial acquisition should be the default. As discussed in The Reckoning, the broader objective is to fundamentally change the behavior of both acquisition professionals and industry by making commercial pathways the norm rather than the exception.

The remainder of our analysis is for paid subscribers. We further highlight some of our favorites and concerned areas while also assessing dozens of other key provisions and their likely impact to defense acquisition and industry,

The Defense Acquisition Bill of Rights

Pete Modigliani — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 11:03:04 GMT

As America marks 250 years of constitutional government, the DoD overdue for its own founding document. One that protects the rights of warfighters, acquisition professionals, and industry from the bureaucratic tyranny they face daily.

James Madison understood something too many defense leaders have forgotten. Power left unchecked consolidates upward. Bureaucracies left unreformed accumulate process. And people closest to the problem, denied the authority to act, stop trying.

Certain corners of the Pentagon spent decades doing exactly what Madison warned against: accumulating authority, adding oversight layers, and leaving program managers, contracting officers, portfolio executives, and warfighters with few and defined powers to act.

The current reform wave is promising. PAEs with real budget authority, commercial-first mandates, and streamlined pathways are steps in the right direction. But structural reform without protected rights is just another policy memo. Reforms can be reversed by the next administration, chilled by an overzealous IG or GAO, or eroded by protests.

We need something more durable, modeled after the Bill of Rights.

As America turns 250, we propose: A Defense Acquisition Bill of Rights.

Ten amendments to protect the people who buy and field our nation’s defenses from the system they are supposed to operate.

Preamble

We hold these truths to be self-evident: that acquisition professionals are endowed with statutory authority to do their jobs; that these authorities have been buried under layers of policy, guidance, and institutional fear; and that the time has come to restore them.

Norman Augustine knew this. His Laws, published in 1983, documented with dark humor what practitioners knew in their bones: that defense programs cost more than planned, take longer than scheduled, and perform less than promised. His most quoted law projected that by 2054, the entire defense budget would purchase exactly one aircraft. He wrote in wit what the system produced in waste.

We write in the spirit of Madison and Augustine both: clear-eyed about failure, committed to something better.

Amendment I: Freedom of Acquisition Approach

Congress shall make no law, and DoD shall issue no policy, that establishes commercial acquisition as anything less than the default pathway. The right of program managers to use FAR Part 12, OT Authority, and simplified acquisition procedures shall not be abridged. The government shall not compel the use of cost-type contracts for capabilities that commercial markets have already solved.

The modern battlefield runs on commercial technology. GPS, the internet, and drone revolution are commercial. And yet the default instinct in government acquisition is still to write a specification, issue a full-and-open solicitation, and wonder why the result is obsolete before it fields.

Commercial first is not a preference. It is a mandate. Treat it like one. Use CSOs, OTs, BAAs, prizes to maximize competition, speed, and flexibility to acquire solutions. Acquisition enterprises should measure speed to capability, percentage of budgets going towards commercial solutions, and competitive landscape.

Amendment II: The Right to Rapidly Acquire Capability

A well-equipped fighting force being necessary to the security of a free nation, the right of the military Services to field, sustain, and modernize arms shall not be infringed, delayed by 14-month contracting timelines, or held hostage to a program of record that no longer reflects the threat.

Augustine’s Law I observed that although development time for military aircraft has held steady at roughly eleven years, the underlying technology doubles every seven. By the time the program delivers, the threat has lapped it twice. If the warfighter needs it, the system shall not prevent them from getting it. Use the Middle Tier of Acquisition and Software Acquisition Pathways to rapidly prototype, produce, and iteratively acquire software with active warfighter feedback and involvement. Prioritize time to deliver capabilities, iterative fielding, and modular upgrades.

Amendment III: Protection Against Obsolete System Quartering

No Service shall be held hostage to the sustainment of a legacy system whose time has passed. Every major defense program beyond its originally planned service life shall be subject to a formal sunset review, conducted by the PAE with authority to recommend termination, replacement, or reallocation of sustainment funding to new capabilities.

Augustine’s Law II is undefeated: the last 10 to 20% of system performance consumes one-third of the cost and two-thirds of the schedule. Keeping obsolete platforms alive past their useful life doesn’t preserve capability, it consumes the budget that would fund the replacement. We cannot build a 355-ship fleet, Golden Dome, F-47s, B-21s, a modern nuclear arsenal, and drone dominance while sustaining 50-year-old legacy systems in parallel. The ancient systems exposed in Epic Fury will not be enough in the Indo-Pacific.

Sunset reviews are not a threat to programs that still earn their place. They are the mechanism by which warfighters get the resources currently quartered in systems that no longer serve them.

Amendment IV: Protection Against Unreasonable Cost Accounting Searches

The right of defense industry to be secure in their records and business systems against unreasonable audit demands and cascading Cost Accounting Standards requirements shall not be violated. No cost accounting standard shall be applied to a commercial item or commercial service.

The result of current practice: nontraditional companies and small businesses refuse to enter defense markets because compliance burden exceeds contract value. Primes face no incentive to flow work to smaller suppliers who lack the compliance infrastructure to absorb it, and technical data rights locked into proprietary architectures foreclose competition long after it was achievable. Reserve cost accounting and DCAA scrutiny for major programs where it can actually influence cost. Do not impose it on a $2M firm-fixed-price software contract with a startup.

Amendment V: No Acquisition Professional Shall Be Compelled to Testify Against Themselves

No acquisition professional shall be held to answer for a good-faith acquisition decision made in accordance with applicable law and regulation, unless upon presentment or indictment of actual wrongdoing. Nor shall any person face career consequences for exercising delegated authority in support of mission outcomes, so long as they acted with transparency and documented judgment.

Fear is the dominant operating logic of the acquisition system. The contracting officer who knows the faster path hesitates because justification invites scrutiny, and scrutiny hurts or ends careers. So they choose the slower, more expensive, safer option. The warfighter waits and assumes the risk. Leaders who demand speed while punishing judgment are not reformers. This amendment protects the people who try.

Amendment VI: The Right to a Speedy Resolution

In all acquisition disputes, the accused contractor shall enjoy the right to a speedy bid protest decision. No protest shall exceed 100 days without cause. No program shall be stopped for longer than is required to resolve the protest.

The protest process has become a form of prolonged detention: programs stopped, awards delayed, warfighters waiting while lawyers argue over evaluation criteria. The protest has become a business strategy, not a legal remedy. Frivolous protests shall be dismissed with prejudice and assessed costs.

Amendment VII: The Right to Informed Review

In all program reviews, source selections, and milestone decisions, authorities shall have access to advisors with direct program management, contracting, or fielding experience.

Program reviews have a documented pattern. Decisions at higher headquarters often reflect risk aversion rather than mission analysis. The program manager closest to the contractor, the technology, and the warfighter requirement frequently has the most accurate picture. This amendment does not challenge senior decision-makers’ authority. It asks that their decisions be informed by practitioner knowledge. Delegate decision authorities to the lowest practical level, the PAEs (or lower). Replace oversight boards with peer reviews. Good oversight is not less oversight. It is better-informed oversight.

Amendment VIII: No Excessive Requirements, No Cruel and Unusual Specifications

Excessive requirements documents shall not be imposed. Specs written around a single vendor’s solution or a platform already obsolete at time of publication shall not be enforced. The acquisition system shall not impose performance requirements that tech cannot meet in the desired timeframe, and then penalize the program when it fails.

Define the operational problem. Let industry define and provide the solution. Evaluate on outcomes. Drive Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) and interface standards to ensure multi-vendor competition, composabiliy, and contribution to mission capabilities, instead of vendor-locked proprietary solutions.

Amendment IX: Retained Rights of the Acquisition Workforce

The enumeration in law and regulation of certain acquisition authorities shall not be construed to deny or disparage other tools, pathways, and approaches retained by the acquisition workforce. A program manager and contracting officer who find a legal, ethical, faster path shall be presumed to be acting correctly, until evidence of wrongdoing is established.

The FAR, DFARS, and the statutes underneath them are floors, not ceilings. OTA authority, BAAs, Prize competition, CSO, MTA, and SWP exist. None requires a waiver, they are law. The acquisition workforce that uses them deserves credit, not suspicion.

Amendment X: Reserved Powers of the Portfolio Acquisition Executive

The authorities not granted to OSD by Congress are reserved to the Services, the PAEs, the program managers, and ultimately the warfighters they serve.

Unity of command applied to the business of defense. The PAE system now being built across the Services is the most Madison-aligned reform in a generation: a single executive accountable for requirements, budget, acquisition strategy, and mission outcomes, with authority to make real-time trades. The reform will succeed if the powers delegated to PAEs are real, documented, and protected. It will fail, as every prior reform has failed, if OSD reclaims authority every time a decision is made that someone at the Pentagon dislikes. Let's empower the PAEs and enable them with the experts, tools, and resources to execute their mission.

The Work Ahead

The founders did not write the Bill of Rights because they believed government was inherently evil. They wrote it because good institutions, left without structural safeguards, drift toward self-preservation over mission.

The reforms underway are the right reforms. This is the most aligned DoD leadership has been on acquisition transformation in decades. But reforms without protected rights are executive orders waiting to be reversed. The next administration, the next IG cycle, the next protest attorney will test every reform. Without institutional backing, acquisition professionals will calculate the risk and choose the safe path. They have done it before.

What Madison asked for in 1791 applies here: Trust the people closest to the problem with the authority to solve it, protect them from the system when they try, and measure them on outcomes rather than compliance.

The nation turns 250 this year. The defense acquisition system has spent most of those years getting in its own way.

Time to amend that.

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Headlines: Primes Getting Paid

Matt MacGregor — Sat, 27 Jun 2026 18:56:41 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

DoD awards many multi-billion dollar contracts to primes for munitions.
Defense budget discussions on FY27, war supplemental, and OBBB
DoW…

The Navy Is Racing Three Clocks

John RIchardson — Thu, 25 Jun 2026 11:03:04 GMT

Imagine a Taiwan crisis in 2032. The PLA finally mobilizes forces from its Eastern Theater Command across the strait en masse. Washington is forced to respond given its regional alliances and statutory commitments. Yet the U.S. Navy, optimized for yesterday’s missions struggles to respond in the timeframe needed. Instead, they must pivot while the attack is underway. It takes them 18 months to reconfigure key command systems, deploy new unmanned capabilities, and retrain crews for a different fight. By the time it is ready, options have narrowed, and opportunities have passed. This is not a failure of current capability. It is a failure of adaptability.

Today, we measure naval power along a single axis: current capability. This includes ship counts, missile inventories, sortie rates, kill chains. While these all matter, any military force must also operate on a second axis: how quickly can it change? For seventy years after the Cold War, the U.S. Navy could afford to underweight this second axis given the relatively static nature of the adversary. That era is over.

The Navy now runs against three rapidly accelerating clocks.

The first is the national strategy clock. Policy direction, including theaters, priorities, and levels of ambition, can shift rapidly. A Navy that cannot reorient within a relevant timeframe becomes a constraint on national options rather than an enabler. A fleet that arrives late to a strategic pivot can make the pivot impossible. Keeping pace with strategy is a naval responsibility that receives too little attention.

The second is the threat clock. China launches major combatants at a pace American shipyards cannot match, it fields advanced missiles on compressed timelines, and it has built shipyard capacity that dwarfs anything in the western hemisphere. Its programs do not pause for U.S. budget cycles or acquisition delays.

The third is the technology clock. Artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, and software-defined capabilities are surging forward at commercial speeds, driven by investments that dwarf the entire defense budget. The Navy can either exploit it or fall behind. There is no third option, but the price of this one is steep.

The strategic goal in this environment is not to match China ship-for-ship. Matching is reactive, cedes initiative and is likely impossible. The goal is to render China’s heavy investments in area denial and long-range precision strike obsolete by changing the game faster than Beijing can adapt. America has done this before.

In the interwar period, constrained by treaty limits on hulls and tonnage, the Navy used its time to run the Fleet Problems — a sustained series of large-scale exercises that essentially invented carrier aviation doctrine before the carriers existed at scale. By the time the Essex class began arriving in 1943, the Navy had already trained aviators, developed unique tactics, and built the institutional culture to employ them with devastating effect. The platforms arrived at an institution that was ready.

The contrast with the Royal Navy is instructive. Britain arguably invented carrier aviation but failed to build the human infrastructure around it. Doctrine was underdeveloped, aviators were treated as second-class officers, and institutional investment in using the capability never matched investment in building it. The cost was paid in operational failures in the early years of the war.

China has placed large, fixed bets on a specific vision of how the next naval war will be fought: area denial, long-range precision strike, a force designed to keep the U.S. Navy at a distance and degrade its ability to project power into the western Pacific. Those investments are real and deserve respect. They reflect a technological moment with the autonomous systems revolution that now enables AI-enabled sensor fusion and a software-defined kill chain. This is the environment the United States can shape, if it moves with sufficient speed and intelligence.

Whether the Navy can move that fast is the question the second axis forces. Traditional shipbuilding operates on long capital cycles. Conversely, autonomous systems are faster to field, easier to adapt, and able to absorb operational risk at scales a traditional fleet cannot match. They are how the technology clock gets run offensively, fielding capability fast enough to matter now while the capital force matures.

Neither delivers its promise without command and control that is resilient, distributed, and faster than the adversary’s decision cycle. C2 is where all three clocks converge. The side that can close the OODA loop faster has a compounding advantage. That is not a technical problem. It is a strategic one. And it runs directly into the fact that China has invested heavily in denying exactly that kind of decision speed.

The Fleet Problems generation did not have more hulls. They had doctrine, trained people, and an institutional culture in place before the war arrived. They used years of constraint to build the second axis — adaptability, not just the first.

The clocks are running. The Navy that invests deliberately in adaptability will not merely match China. It will define the terms of competition for the next great power era, just as the interwar generation did. The question is whether this generation will do the same and whether the institutions of American national security have the will to let them.

ADM John Richardson served as the 31st Chief of Naval Operations from 2015 to 2019.

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Headlines

Pete Modigliani — Sat, 20 Jun 2026 20:23:59 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

CCAs and Low-Cost Hypersonics Enter Scaled Production
Drone Software Is the Weapon & Needs Guiding Principles
Manufacturing Tech Dominate…

The Reckoning

Pete Modigliani — Thu, 18 Jun 2026 11:02:46 GMT

This is the second in a two-part series on The Acquisition Reckoning.
Read Part 1: The 20-Year Machine.

Something structural shifted in the defense industrial base over the last decade, and it didn’t wait for the acquisition system to catch up.

Venture capital found defense. Companies like Anduril, Palantir, Shield AI, and Saronic raised billions in private capital, built working systems, and showed up to compete for government contracts with mature technology rather than paper proposals. SpaceX demonstrated that a commercial company investing its own capital could outperform cost-plus incumbents on cost, schedule, and technical ambition repeatedly. The drone industry, largely built on commercial supply chains and private investment, are producing more battlefield-relevant capability in five years than the traditional acquisition system delivered in two decades of UAS development.

It happened because the technology environment changed, private capital chased the opportunity, and an initial wave of enterprise reforms in rapid (MTA) and software acquisition, along with contracting (CSOs and OTs). These created enough of a crack in the wall for non-traditional companies to get a foothold. The question now is whether the institution reshapes itself around what’s working, or continues treating these as exceptions to a system that remains fundamentally unchanged.

A different model is taking shape. Here’s what it looks like.

The Funding Inversion

The sharpest structural difference between the legacy model and the emerging one isn’t contracting vehicles or program structures. It’s who funds development, and what that means for how companies behave.

Traditional primes invest roughly 3-5% of revenue in R&D, most of it recovered through indirect cost reimbursement. The government funds the input; the prime uses it to compete for the next contract. Financial exposure is limited. The incentive to move fast is limited accordingly.

Non-traditional, venture-backed defense companies operate on an entirely different logic. They raise private capital from VCs and PE firms expecting commercial returns and burn it to develop prototypes, build products, and demonstrate capability. R&D investment runs 10-20% of revenue, privately funded, with no government reimbursement backstop. They operate with negative net income for years. The business model only works if they eventually win production contracts at scale.

When a company is spending its own capital to develop capability, it has every incentive to move fast, stay close to the operator, and build something that actually works in the field. When a company is spending government money on cost-plus development, the incentives run the other direction. More staff, more time, more process which increase allowable costs and contract value along with the margins.

The emerging model is built on the premise that the government should compete for the output of industry’s private investment, not fund the input. Define the capability gap. Let industry invest in solutions. Then run a competition for production. The graphic below shows what that looks like in practice: private capital funds development on the left, a challenge or competition narrows to winners in the middle, and recurring fixed-price production contracts drive iterative delivery on the right.

Envisioned New Acquisition Model for Many Capability Areas

Large production contracts are the ultimate signal to industry to invest and compete.

Operational Needs Over Specification Sheets

The requirements system in the legacy model starts with a detailed specification. Here is exactly what the system must do, how it must perform, what interfaces it must support, what environments it must survive. Industry responds to that specification. The government evaluates conformance to it. The result is a procurement process optimized for compliance rather than capability.

The new model inverts this. Rather than specifying a system, DoD articulates an operational need and a capability gap. For example:

Neutralize small UAS threats in a contested urban environment.
Provide persistent ISR coverage across a distributed maritime theater.

Industry then brings solutions. Acquirers, testers, and operators evaluate them in realistic conditions through exercises, experiments, and demonstrations. The government selects based on performance, not paper.

Capability gap statements create space for industry to bring whatever solution is most effective including solutions the government didn’t know to ask for.

With JCIDS disestablished, the Services have a genuine opening to rebuild their requirements processes around rapid, iterative, digital mission engineering. That opening won’t stay open indefinitely. The Services that move fast to replace JCIDS with something genuinely different will be positioned to take advantage of the new model. The ones that recreate JCIDS under a different name will not. As Bill Greenwalt and Dan Patt wrote in their Required to Fail report:

“JCIDS is beyond redemption. The only responsible course is to put it out of its misery, carve it from the DoD’s body, bury it, and salt the ground so that nothing resembling it ever grows back. Now is the time for courage, not to fix JCIDS but to kill it.”

The Core Mechanics

The emerging model has several interlocking features that, taken together, represent a genuine structural departure from the legacy approach.

Fixed-price production competitions on recurring cycles. The new model centers on recurring competitions for fixed-price production contracts every few years, across a PAE portfolio. The incentive to innovate continuously is built in. Awarding to multiple vendors where feasible sustains competition and industrial base depth.

Portfolios over programs. The Portfolio Acquisition Executives (PAEs) manage suites of capabilities across multiple vendors. A counter-UAS portfolio executive manages sensors, effectors, C2, and logistics as an integrated capability set, not as four separate programs each running its own acquisition. This enables cross-domain trades, faster technology insertion, and a purchasing posture that looks more like a commercial enterprise managing a product portfolio.

Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA). MOSA is the technical enabler of continuous competition. When systems are built on open architectures with common interfaces and published standards, mid-tier suppliers can compete to provide subsystems and upgrades without going through the prime. Markets form at the component level. Technology refreshes faster and more cheaply.

Commercial-first contracting. Commercial is the default; explicit justification is required for anything else. This starts at how requirements are defined and acquisition strategies are built, not later when exploring contracting vehicles. The FAR was designed for a shrinking share of what DoD needs. Contracting leaders within each portfolio must rethink contracting norms.

Where Things Stand

The Acquisition Transformation Strategy, a wave of executive orders, and several years of NDAA provisions have put real reforms on the table. The people pushing these changes are serious, and the political will behind them is genuine.

But reform momentum and structural change are not the same thing. The acquisition system has absorbed reform efforts before. The Goldwater-Nichols era, the Packard Commission, the Better Buying Power initiatives all failed to drive lasting change because the underlying incentive structures, budget processes, and workforce habits that produce the legacy model remained intact.

The ATS has 38 initiatives, each with subordinate actions. The SECWAR’s memo added 11 priority actions. The biggest risk to their success is the limited bandwidth of key staff and leadership to execute transformational reforms on top of an already demanding day job. The DoD should resource small, high-performing teams to drive a focused set of priority initiatives to completion and only then move to the next set.

What’s moving: PAEs are the most visible and promising transformation. The Army moved quickly, pivoting all PEOs to PAEs with Capability Portfolio Executives managing sub-portfolios. The Navy, Air Force, and Space Force followed with phased implementation. PAEs are the linchpins of the new Warfighting Acquisition System. Much work lies ahead in deconstructing program barriers into dynamic portfolios which requires dynamic requirements and budget systems but the foundation exists.

What Needs a Surge

“Structure programs as schedule-driven capability increments with aggressive production delivery schedules, unit-cost ceiling goals, and broad mission effectiveness goals. Make trade-offs throughout the development to permit iterative enhancement and rapid delivery of subsequent increments. Make prudent cost, schedule, and performance trades that prioritize time-to-field, including execution of portfolio-level programming within defined and authorized boundaries.”

SECWAR Direction to PAEs

Agreements officer capacity. OTA authority without a trained agreements officer workforce is an unfunded mandate. The population of practitioners who can structure, negotiate, and administer OTA agreements at the pace and volume the new model requires is too small. DoD lost thousands of contracting officers over the last year, compounding the problem as contract actions rapidly scale. The shortfall of agreements and contracting officers will be the number one bottleneck for regrowing the industrial base and executing a potential $1.5T FY27 budget. Fixing it requires a deliberate workforce development campaign.

PPBE reform. Some flexibility has been gained. But the program-centric budget structure still dominates in practice, and the two-to-three year funding on-ramp that prevents rapid response to emerging capability needs remains largely intact. Portfolio-level funding flexibility is the ability to shift funding within a PAE portfolio without approval of all four Congressional committees is a priority. This requires rebuilding trust and expanding collaboration between DoD executives and Congressional appropriators. The RDT&E-to-procurement ratio, still heavily weighted toward government-managed development, needs to shift substantially to fund production of commercially developed capabilities at meaningful scale.

Test infrastructure. The Department cannot run recurring competitions, rapid prototyping, and operator-driven evaluations without the test ranges, experimentation environments, and digital sandboxes to support them. Industry cannot demonstrate mature capability if there’s nowhere to demonstrate it. Test infrastructure investment has lagged the reform agenda and needs to catch up. It doesn’t generate headlines, but it determines whether the new model works in practice.

Demand signals at scale. Non-traditional companies invest private capital based on their assessment of whether a viable market exists. Multi-year procurement commitments, predictable competition cycles, and clear capacity targets give them the market signal they need to justify continued investment. Without those signals, the rational choice for a VC-backed company is to limit defense exposure and chase commercial markets with more predictable returns. Closing that gap requires procurement commitments that function as genuine demand signals, not rhetoric.

Production competition by design. The current reform agenda has expanded the front end of the acquisition lifecycle with more pathways, prototyping, and experimentation. Recurring fixed-price production competitions built into the program structure from the outset, with defined cycles and published criteria are not yet standard practice. They should be the default for capability areas where multiple vendors can compete. Drive more partnerships between traditional and non-traditional defense companies as well as the emerging flexible production enterprises.

Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection.

-Mark Twain

What It Takes From Each Player

The new model doesn’t materialize from strategy documents and executive orders. It requires specific behavior changes from specific actors.

Congress has to fund capability portfolios, not just programs. Multi-year procurement commitments including new, low-cost capabilities function as real demand signals. Authorization and appropriations postures that enable portfolio-level budget flexibility. Restraint with fewer program-specific earmarks and fewer oversight requirements that add process without adding accountability where it matters.

OSW and the Services have to build the infrastructure the new model runs on: PAEs with real authority, test ranges, experimentation environments, requirements processes that produce capability gap statements rather than specs, and feedback loops that give Combatant Commanders a direct line into acquisition priorities. The Services that move first and move boldly will shape what the new normal looks like.

The acquisition workforce has to develop genuine fluency in the tools now available, commercial and fixed price default preferences, and iterative requirements development. That requires training, but more than training it requires a career environment where using these tools is rewarded rather than penalized. Acquisition professionals who take risk on new contracting approaches and succeed need to see that reflected in their careers. The ones who default to FAR and deliver slow outcomes need to see that reflected too.

Traditional primes have the most structural adaptation to do, and the most to gain from doing it well. These are companies that organized themselves rationally around the legacy incentive structure and the structure is changing. The companies that invest their own capital in competitive capabilities, embrace MOSA even when it costs them integration revenue, and build genuine partnerships with faster-moving start-ups will grow their share of an expanding defense budget. The ones that defend the legacy model past its useful life will find their market shrinking as portfolio executives direct spending toward vendors that perform.

Non-traditional companies have to close the production gap. Winning a prototype OTA is only the beginning. Speed is a competitive advantage until it isn’t. Execution at scale is what sustains a defense business. This is why we’re seeing massive funding rounds and new partnerships by the largest War Unicorns.

The Window

The acquisition system has a long institutional memory and strong reversion tendencies. Reform efforts that don’t change the underlying incentive structures including how budgets are built, how contracts are structured, how careers are made eventually get absorbed. The system doesn’t resist change through malice. It resists through the accumulated weight of process, precedent, and rational individual behavior under existing incentives.

What’s different this time is the convergence of factors that historically haven’t aligned: genuine political will at the top of the Department, a commercial defense sector mature enough to compete for major programs, a threat environment that makes the cost of delay visible and concrete, and a body of legislative reform substantial enough to support structural change if the institution chooses to use it.

The window is open. It has been open before and closed without the change taking hold. Whether it closes again depends on whether Congress, acquisition executives, and the industrial base treat this moment as the beginning of structural transformation or the latest season of reform theater.

The capability exists. The authority largely exists. The question, is will.

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The 20-Year Machine: How the Legacy Acquisition System Works

Pete Modigliani — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 11:03:39 GMT

This is the first in a two-part series on The Acquisition Reckoning how the defense acquisition system was built, why it no longer fits the threat environment, and what a transformative new model looks like.

When the DoD identifies a critical need for a new major weapon system, the typical result is a 20-year wait before that system reaches the field at scale. Understanding why requires asking how the machine was built, and whether it ever made sense.

The model that governs how America buys major weapons wasn’t assembled by bureaucrats indifferent to outcomes. It was built, layer by layer, in response to real problems: cost overruns, contractor failures, program cancellations, and concerns by Congress. The requirements, budget, and acquisition systems, along with the oversight regime each have a rationale. The problem is that the rationale fit a threat environment that no longer exists.

The Bargain

At the core of the legacy model is a bargain struck between the government and a small number of large defense contractors. The government needed industrial partners capable of designing, developing, and producing systems of extraordinary complexity to include nuclear submarines, stealth aircraft, ballistic missile defense networks. No commercial market existed for these products. The companies that could build them required enormous, sustained investment to maintain the workforce, facilities, and expertise the mission demanded.

In exchange, the government offered cost recovery. Cost-plus development contracts, indirect reimbursement of R&D, and effectively sole-source ownership of production, sustainment, and modernization once a prime won the development award.

Traditional Industry Model for Major Acquisition Programs

The government got predictability, accountability, and systems of genuine capability. Industry got stability, cost recovery, and long-term revenue streams. When the threat environment was relatively stable and the primary challenge was building exquisite, long-lived systems at manageable cost, the bargain held. The threat environment did not extend the courtesy of staying stable.

What the System Actually Produced

The legacy model has achievements. The Virginia-class submarine program is the most successful major shipbuilding program in modern Navy history. The F-22 remains the most capable air superiority fighter ever built. Aegis has been the backbone of fleet air defense for four decades. These are systems of genuine, sustained military advantage. They’re complex, integrated, and built to last.

The model was fit for purpose when the primary challenge was building exquisite, long-lived platforms against a threat environment that moved on a similar timescale. When the Soviet Union was the pacing threat and the defining competition was in aircraft carriers and ICBMs, a 20-year development cycle for a major system was painful but tolerable. The systems that came out the other end were worth the wait.

How the Machine Works

The Major Capability Acquisition pathway is the spine of the legacy model. Though formally updated under the Adaptive Acquisition Framework around 2020, its core structure has been largely unchanged for decades, much like the systems it produces.

The process begins with requirements. Under the old Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS), generating an initial requirements document could consume a year or more before a program was formally initiated. Requirements owners, knowing it may be two decades before the first systems reach the field, routinely stretched scope to capture every conceivable need and future good idea. The result was requirements documents that demanded multiple technology miracles and set programs up for cost and schedule risk from day one.

Simplified Version of MCA Pathway

From there, the program conducts an Analysis of Alternatives often biased toward a preferred solution. For Major Defense Acquisition Programs, AoAs can take a year or more as the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation shapes the AoA plan and reviews the results. Then multiple prototyping contracts mature technologies and reduce risk, running in parallel with preliminary design work and a growing stack of acquisition documentation. The larger the program, the more documents and reviews. The decision authority must approve it all to release the request for proposal.

The most consequential moment in the lifecycle is Milestone B and the decision to award the development contract to a prime contractor. It is, as the draft analogy goes, a marriage. A long-term commitment through thick and thin for the program’s life. For competitors, it is winner-take-all. Many underbid aggressively on development, often accepting low margins or even losses to secure decades of production and sustainment work. Losers risk exclusion from that market sector for a decade or more. Protests follow as a long-shot bid to overturn the award, or at minimum to delay it and damage the winner.

The winning prime then spends years finalizing designs, developing the system, and conducting initial testing through processes the DoD imposes in exhaustive detail. Program offices baseline cost and schedule early, often using related programs as analogues, then apply Earned Value Management as if designing a novel weapon system were analogous to running a 20th century factory. Design changes multiply. Schedules slip. Costs grow. Eventually the program passes another milestone review, enters low-rate initial production, completes operational testing, and reaches full-rate production.

The total time from initial need to operational capability can routinely be 20 years for major weapon systems. Former acquisition executives claimed the program clock starts at Milestone B. In reality, the operational community identified the need years earlier, and many of those who drove the requirements have since retired.

How PPBE Locks It In

The acquisition lifecycle doesn’t operate in a vacuum. The 1960’s-era Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution process is the financial architecture that governs it, and it reinforces every slow-moving tendency in the system.

PPBE operates on a cycle with lead times that can stretch two to three years from when a need is identified to when funding is available to act on it. Budgets are built around specific programs, not capability portfolios, meaning money allocated to one program cannot easily be redirected to a faster-moving alternative. The system is heavily weighted toward RDT&E funding in early phases, with procurement funding following years later after requirements are locked, designs are stable, and risks are nominally retired.

PPBE doesn’t just fund the acquisition system, it shapes it. A program that wants funding must look like a program with defined requirements, a fixed architecture, a predictable schedule. Flexibility, iteration, and commercial insertion don’t fit cleanly into a system built to plan and account for every dollar years in advance.

The Traditional Prime Business Model

The acquisition structure produced a corresponding industry structure. The companies best positioned to win under the legacy model are the primes Lockheed Martin, RTX, Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics, Boeing which organized themselves around it.

Most of their R&D investment (3-5% of revenue) is recovered through government contracts. Capital expenditures for facilities are often directly funded or reimbursed. Business strategy centers on winning the development contract at all costs, because the prize is 30 or more years of higher-margin production, sustainment, and upgrade work. Executive compensation tracks stock price and free cash flow. This incentivizes dividends and buybacks over reinvestment in production capacity. Source selection is driven by paper-based proposals in response to detailed RFPs, rewarding proposal writing sophistication as much as technical capability. Intellectual property is closely held, even when developed with government funding, to protect recurring sustainment revenue.

These are companies responding logically to the incentive structure in front of them. The structure rewarded stability, incumbency, and risk transfer to the government. They optimized accordingly.

Comparison of Traditional and Non-Traditional Defense Companies Business Models

Why It No Longer Fits

China’s military modernization has compressed timelines across every domain. Autonomous systems, EW, hypersonics, and software-defined capabilities are advancing on commercial development cycles in months and years, not decades. The war in Ukraine demonstrated that mass, adaptability, and speed of production matter as much as individual platform sophistication. The commercial tech sector, which once lagged behind defense in most relevant domains, now leads in many of them.

Some systems will always require the legacy model. Aircraft carriers, nuclear submarines, and ICBMs have no commercial analog, no competitive market, and 50-year service lives. The MCA pathway, cost-plus development, and the specialized industrial base that supports them remain necessary for those platforms.

The problem isn’t that this legacy model exists. It’s that it’s applied to far too may acquisitions. Counter-UAS systems, autonomous platforms, software-defined communications, space domain awareness are capability areas where commercial technology is mature, development cycles are fast, and competition is viable. Too many are being run through the same 20-year machine designed for exquisite systems. The result is systems that are obsolete on arrival, industrial partners with no incentive to move faster, and a warfighter waiting a generation for new capabilities.

In Part 2, we examine the model taking shape to replace it and what it asks of everyone, including the traditional primes.

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Drone World Cup: Strikes, Saves, and Swarm Defense

Pete Modigliani — Sat, 13 Jun 2026 18:15:05 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

USVs unlock a new mission: CSAR
New Defense Tech Partnerships Emerge along with a new War Unicorn
Death of Business System, Elon’s Algorit…

Launching the Creative Defense Network

Pete Modigliani — Tue, 09 Jun 2026 13:02:15 GMT

If you’ve followed Defense Tech and Acquisition, you know we don’t just analyze the defense acquisition system, we’ve spent our careers trying to transform it. From congressional panels, think tank commissions, thought pieces, direct advocacy with leaders, and serving on USD(A&S) enabling teams, we’ve been pushing for years to move acquisition into the 21st century.

We’re proud to see our efforts deploying the Adaptive Acquisition Framework and drafting policy and guidance for the Middle Tier of Acquisition and Software Acquisition pathways accelerate capability delivery but know there’s a long way to go.

That is why we left our roles at leading defense tech companies to found the Creative Defense Network (CDN) to see acquisition transformation through this next exciting phase that is underway across the DoW.

CDN is a Public Benefit Corporation dedicated to enabling the acquisition transformation through the use of practical tools, training, and services.

It is co-founded in partnership with the non-profit Creative Defense Foundation which uniquely positions us to drive change across government and industry alike. We have a shared mission of harnessing entrepreneurial innovation and creative disruption for our common defense.

Our distinguished board includes:

Richard Carroll, Chairman of Creative Defense Foundation
The Honorable Ellen Lord, former USD(A&S) and Textron CEO
ADM John Richardson, USN (Ret.), former Chief of Naval Operations.

Who We Work With

CDN works directly with the professionals driving this transformation: Portfolio Acquisition Executives standing up new portfolio structures, Service Acquisition Executives reshaping their enterprise, Rapid Capabilities Offices harnessing new tech, and program offices navigating novel authorities to get capabilities to the warfighter.

Bring Us On!

If you’re in a PAE shop or program office, reach out if you need:

Ninja Acquisition Support — 1 day to 2-week sprints
Portfolio Management — Tools, Training, and Guidance
Short Studies or Assessments — flexible duration
Red Team Evaluations — short-term sprints
Acquisition Workshops — virtual or in-person
Acquisition-Focused Venture Capital — Tools, Training, and Guidance

If you’re in industry and want to deep dive into acquisition topics or a quick primer:

Get access to Digital Pentagon, our enterprise knowledge platform to deftly navigate the complex defense ecosystem.
Schedule an educational session on leading defense acquisition topics.

To maintain our focus on supporting the government workforce, we are not taking on direct consulting assignments from industry.

Thank You!

To All Acquisition Professionals: Thank you for what you do every day to make the nation safer and deliver new capabilities to our warfighters.
To All New Defense Industry Entrants: Thank you for taking the leap and bringing your skills and knowledge to the DoD to solve the hardest national security problems.

We look forward to working with all of you to strengthen our national security!

Pete and Matt

Creative Defense Network

Cloud, Cyber, and AI Capabilities

Matt MacGregor — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 17:54:06 GMT

Welcome to the latest edition of Defense Tech and Acquisition.

A new AI Executive Order and Cloud Marketplace for National Security
DoW focuses on scaling munitions from containers to hypersonics
Five …