The Air Force Research Laboratory’s biggest impediment to being more effective is the speed at which it contracts deals with industry partners, Maj. Gen. Robert McMurry, AFRL commander, told lawmakers Wednesday. “That feedback came back resoundingly from internal customers and external,” McMurry told members of the House Armed Services Committee emerging threats and capabilities panel. An external team will review the AFRL’s processes and figure out how to accelerate them. McMurry said Direct to Phase II and other authorities that allow AFRL to contract with small businesses quickly have been very useful. Retaining contracting officers and other acquisition personnel has also been a challenge, McMurry said. “It doesn’t matter that you’re a lab, you’re really focused on trying to make those same kind of quality decisions and preparations to put something on contract,” he said. “Our researchers need to be competent at that, but we really need them to be researchers.” During the Air Force Association’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference earlier this month, McMurray said the service needs to ground its requirements in experiment-driven reality to draw a “more achievable” baseline and ensure higher success rates.
The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to buy laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons. BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance kits annually for the U.S. military.