One of the under-the-radar problems that has “plagued” SBIRS—and some other DOD programs—is its reliance on the Ada programming language, said Wynne. He added that it is “not popular any longer” and like DOS, which was invented around the same time and is “no longer even talked of,” should be abandoned. “We still have Ada-based programmers trying to [use] it, noted Wynne. He’s convinced that the Air Force—considering technology advances over the past seven years—will be better able to configure the next generation of programs.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.