The Air Force’s Transformational Satellite communications program just got an important endorsement from the Army, which needs the program to get information quickly to soldiers on the ground, reports Dow Jones Newswires. The Air Force is facing a budget squeeze after Congress cut TSAT by about $100 million in the 2007 defense authorization bill. Lawmakers profess support for TSAT but think USAF and its contractors are rushing development. However, Lt. Gen. Steven Boutelle, the Army’s chief information officer, told reporters at the Association of the US Army conference last week that the US military must “get to TSAT sooner or later” and stop relying so heavily on expensive commercial satellite services.
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
