The Government Accountability Office says the Pentagon needs to improve its global posture strategy by reporting more to Congress and addressing management and funding issues. In its latest defense management report, GAO says that DOD has only addressed three of six characteristics GAO feels are vital to producing an “effective national strategy.” The three yet to be seen in any of four DOD restructuring documents are: establishing goals and performance measures; identifying resources and methods of managing risks; and defining organizational roles and responsibilities. While the Pentagon agrees to some extent with GAO, it says that it “remains concerned” that “GAO’s view of how major initiatives should be executed” is at odds with DOD’s basic approach of centralized planning that has made a “success of global defense posture.” In other words, we agree to disagree.
Boeing’s receipt of the 10th lot contract award for the KC-46 Pegasus this week leaves just three lots left to complete the Air Force’s buy of the tanker, although a further buy of 75 additional aircraft as a “bridge” to the Next-Generation Aerial-refueling System (NGAS) seems increasingly likely.