* Leadership. At last. As USMC Sgt. (then Cpl.) Dakota Meyer receives the Medal of Honor, a follow-up report affirms that his compatriot, Army Capt. William Swenson, has now been submitted as a Medal of Honor candidate for his own actions at the Ganjigal engagement. Thanks to Afghan theater commander Gen. John Allen (USMC!). In fairness, we should also note that 2 of the officers who refused Swenson’s fire support calls are looking for new lines of work now. Video embedded below.
* Britain’s GBP 30 million upgrade of its CVR-T light tracked combat vehicles has been fielded in Afghanistan.
* America’s Office of Naval Research has a new conflict of interest policy in place for contractors.
* Good news for Britain’s Type 26 frigates: their short-range CAMM air defense missile is coming along nicely. The rest of the ship is still being defined.
* Saab announces that they have delivered their 10,000th NLAW portable anti-armor missile; introduces the RBS-70 NG upgrade of its popular man-potable anti-aircraft missile. Most of the improvements are in the controller and operator sensors, but the company says the missile can also be used against ground targets like APCs.
* A year ago Ashton Carter published his “Better Buying Power” [PDF] memo. In its wake, a number of changes have been initiated in acquisition policy and documents. The latest is Principal Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition Technology & Logistics Frank Kendall‘s streamlining of the Life-Cycle Sustainment Plan (LCSP), a document focused on product support and the cost drivers that impact long-term affordability. This makes sense given the fact total ownership costs over the life of a program go way beyond initial procurement. Every acquisition program is now expected to have its LCSP.
* USAF has completed its 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) program.
* The Washington Times reports that President Obama has ruled out F-16 C/D sales to Taiwan, in line with reports surfacing up last month. There’s been no official confirmation yet but that should happen today (Friday). Earlier this week Reuters reported that for the 1st time in years the US State Department won’t have a representative to a forthcoming industry conference with Taiwan.
* The Senate Committee on Appropriations confirms its Defense Subcommittee’s markup for the FY12 bill. Highlights: JSF slower ramp-up, DWSS and JLTV cancellations, reductions to GCV, THAAD, JTRS components. There’s still ways to go to wrap up FY12 appropriations legislation. The House bill is $17B or 3.3% above the Senate’s.
* The House Oversight Subcommittee on National Security had a hearing on corruption related to trucking contracts in Afghanistan: video, POGO summary.