The Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile program appears headed toward recovery but is not out of the woods yet. It will get either a green or red light after it completes flight-testing this spring, according to Air Force officials. Maj. Gen. Mark Shackelford, head of global power programs for Air Force acquisition, said most of nine ground tests performed on JASSM to characterize weapon reliability have been successful, after the program suffered a series of test misfires last year. The weapon is in the middle of two phases of testing—first is ground—to determine how reliable the fixes. One of the ground tests had an issue with motor start up, but most of the larger problems experienced with GPS reliability appear to be resolved, Shackelford told reporters at the Pentagon Thursday. A series of about 16 flight tests are slated to begin in February, lasting about six to eight weeks. The results of those flight tests will be delivered to DOD acquisition boss John Young, who will determine the future of the program, Shackelford added. Lockheed Martin expressed confidence last summer that it had solved the misfire problem.
In the wake of a major Chinese military shakeup, the head of U.S. Space Command warned of China’s “breathtakingly fast” advances in space during visits to Japan and South Korea. Gen. Stephen N. Whiting’s trip to the Indo-Pacific is his first overseas visit since taking command of SPACECOM in January.