The Pentagon plan to collect bids for a next generation of Global Positioning Satellites temporarily may be stalled, reports the Wall Street Journal. The GPS III program remains in budgetary limbo, since the Air Force and DOD have decided not to offer contracts for award this fiscal year. Part of the reason may be the new space acquisition policy, in which Air Force Undersecretary Ron Sega expects to curtail both technical and budgetary problems by slowing program development. Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel, the Space and Missile Systems Center commander and lead for GPS acquisition, told WSJ that pressure to keep up a faster timetable has lessened since the current GPS fleet is proving more resilient than anticipated.
The use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border this week—which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to abruptly close the airspace over El Paso, Texas—will be a “case study” on the complex web of authorities needed to employ such weapons near civilian areas and the consequences of agencies…
