* US Senator John McCain (R-AZ, SASC Ranking Member) sent a letter to the Secretary of Defense announcing he “will not support any further reprogramming requests for new, unauthorized programs except for emergency requirements” until he has received a detailed report on reprogramming from the last 2 years. Reprogramming (ab)use has apparently been getting worse, according to a McCain staffer quoted in Foreign Policy. During Ashton Carter’s confirmation hearing as Deputy SecDef in September last year, the senator had this to say on the topic:
“Four times over just the last two months, the Department has asked this Committee to let it shift a total of over $10 billion among its spending accounts. In doing so, it asked only the Chairmen and Ranking Members of the defense committees in the Senate and the House to let it reallocate billions of dollars […] Authorizing funding in this way, outside of ‘regular order,’ subverts transparent congressional oversight, undermines accountability in how defense programs are managed, and actually encourages underperformance.”
* Lt. Gen. Charles R. Davis was nominated last week to Military Deputy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, pending Senate confirmation. Davis was deputy Program Executive Officer (PEO) then PEO for the F-35 program for 2004-06 and 2006-09 respectively. Former SecDef Robert Gates fired Davis’ successor as JSF PEO David R. Heinz after only 10 months in the job.
* RAND’s Arroyo Center released a beefy report on Army network-enabled operations. It concludes that “dominant battlespace information has allowed U.S. forces to move faster and apply military power more aggressively and more effectively than their adversaries [in major conventional combat operations]” but that advantage has not been translated into irregular warfare and counterinsurgency. Caveat: the research is reflecting operations in Iraq from a few years ago and the Army has improved its capabilities since then.
* DARPA wants to bring on-demand satellite imagery to soldiers in remote locations through a program called SeeMe (Space Enabled Effects for Military Engagements). They would like to draw from the experience of mobile phone manufacturers and other civilian sectors. the vision involves “small, short-lived, very low cost satellites at low altitudes, networked into existing fielded communications systems and handheld platforms.” An Industry Day is scheduled on March 27 in Arlington, VA, though it will also be possible to follow, but not participate, via a live multimedia feed.
* In its report on the US Navy’s report on small boat maintenance, the US Government Accountability Office is mostly satisfied but still wants another follow-up report, on which the GAO will no doubt write a report. There must be diminishing returns at some point in ordering reports about reports about reports.
* Austal and General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems want to expand their partnership beyond their existing LCS and JHSV into new opportunities and international markets.
* The Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) states [PDF] that strategic competition between the US and Iran extends beyond Syria into Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt.
* Turkey sold 10 SUAVs to Qatar for a reported $25M.