The Pentagon released the executive summary of the study on acquisition review led by retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Ronald Kadish in December with little public flourish. It now joins the ranks of some 128 previous so-called acquisition reform studies that have cited various problems and recommended numerous fixes—all basically to no avail. For as the Kadish report points out, the current review revealed many of the same situations documented by earlier reviews, citing in particular the Packard Commission review of 20 years ago. As Norm Augustine points out in the foreword to the new report, it will be judged not by problem identification or proffered solutions, but by what it “actually makes happen.”
The Space Force wants to emphasize small, low-cost systems and commercial capabilities in the next generation of Silent Barker surveillance satellites, drawing lessons from its work to replace the Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness program.
