Daily Report

Jan. 8, 2015

SPO: F-35 Gun On Schedule

Despite recent media reports that the F-35’s GAU-22 25mm gun and electro-optical targeting system (EOTS) don’t work—especially for the close air support mission—the two are progressing at the planned schedule, the F-35 System Program Office said Wednesday. While the online...

EOTS Meets CAS Requirements

The electro-optical targeting system on the Block 3F version software of all F-35 variants will satisfy the users’ requirements for close air support, despite media reports to the contrary, the system program office said. The online Daily Beast quoted unnamed...

Acquisition Plans, LEGO-Style

Pentagon acquisition, technology, and logistics chief Frank Kendall on Wednesday released a new set of acquisition rules, replacing the 2013 iteration of “5000-series” guidelines that told managers how to build programs. The new guidance lets managers mix and match approaches...

New Acquisition Rules Beginning, Not the End

Frank Kendall, the Pentagon’s acquisition chief, has labored to diversify the use of various approaches, from cost-plus to fixed-price deals, in a series of three installments of “Better Buying Power” revisions to the acquisition system. He believes reforms will come...

CENTCOM Releases Details on OIR Targets

US Central Command has released a comprehensive update of targets struck by US and allied warplanes participating in Operation Inherent Resolve. The list is current as of Jan. 7 and shows that both ISIS heavy weapons and vehicles, as well...

SpaceX Launch Certification Pegged for Mid-2015

Air Force Space Command aims to certify SpaceX as a second launch provider to boost defense payloads into space “no later than midyear,” Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves, commander of the Space and Missile Systems Center at Las Angeles AFB, Calif.,...

French Sending Carrier to Join ISIS Fight

France is dispatching the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to the Persian Gulf along with its fleet to join coalition efforts to combat ISIS militants in Iraq, reported Yahoo! News via Agence France-Presse. The country is contributing 15 land-based strike...

Dover: Drinking Water Not Affected by Contaminants

Perfluorinated compounds, or PFCs, have been found in shallow groundwater at four sites on Dover AFB, Del., but base officials said drinking water is not contaminated, reported Stars and Stripes. Some of the base’s shallow ground water and surface drainage...

Presidential Aircraft Prep for Museum Move

President Truman’s VC-118 presidential aircraft closed to tours this week for upgrades needed to open the aircraft to the wider public early next year. The Independence currently resides in the National Museum of the US Air Force’s presidential and research...