Frank Kendall, nominee to be Air Force Secretary, hinted that it may be time to resurrect the Cold War practice of dual-sourcing munitions to maintain wartime surge capacity. He also warned against any jointly managed acquisition programs and suggested that the Air Force will have ...
Air Force Special Operations Command expects to conduct an armed overwatch flying demonstration “in the coming months” and U.S. Special Operations Command may make a procurement decision as early as 2022, AFSOC boss Lt. Gen. James C. “Jim” Slife said Feb. 16. “I think we ...
The Air Force's in-house software factories have become hacking targets because they are accelerating the service's fielding of new capabilities, and must be defended as the "crown jewels" they are. The Pentagon needs to apply "Zero-Trust" technology in its data systems, not only keeping hackers ...
The Air Force will flight test the U.S. military’s first hypersonic missile this month, Air Force acquisition boss Will Roper said Dec. 14 at the inaugural Doolittle Leadership Center Forum. Speaking on the theme of “From Acquisition to Lethality,” Roper also described progress on the ...
As Air Force Materiel Command makes changes to speed up how it buys, tests, and sustains weapon systems, the command is also overhauling its personnel practices to ensure its Airmen face fewer career hurdles and can succeed, the command’s boss said. AFMC is overhauling its ...
The Air Force is calling on small businesses to pitch new technologies the service can help nurture into “war-winning” capabilities, service acquisition chief Will Roper said Oct. 26. These “Skyshots”—something short of “Moon Shots”—would be comparable to USAF's flying car initiative: requiring sustained investment that ...
The Air Force is already flying a Next Generation Air Dominance combat airplane, which was designed and prototyped using new digital methods, service acquisition executive Will Roper said Sept. 15. The revelation was meant to assure people that the new approach works, works quickly, and ...
The Air Force is gearing up for “Future Games” later this month, which will explore new concepts and capabilities not already in the service's toolbox to help design the future force. Lt. Gen. S. Clinton Hinote, deputy chief of staff for strategy, integration, and requirements, ...
More than 1,600 personnel, 60 companies, over a dozen aircraft, and dozens of radars and sensors came together for a massive Air Force-led event that utilized everything from boots on the ground to satellites in space to test how the service expects to fight a ...
The Space Force on Aug. 10 rolled out its inaugural policy document that will govern how it organizes, trains, and equips service members for military space operations. The new doctrine solidifies the interdependence of civil, military, intelligence, and commercial players as the U.S. tries to ...
The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted fragility within the defense industrial base and an overreliance on Chinese manufacturers that present a security risk, prompting U.S. policymakers to look at potential changes. Without COVID-19, the Pentagon wouldn't be as aware of problems in its supply chain or ...
The Defense Department will look at ways to shift funding toward COVID-19 response, though the Pentagon’s head of acquisition said the department’s flexibility is limited without action from Capitol Hill. Some lawmakers have called on the Pentagon to use its budget for coronavirus response, and ...