Europe launches space mission in defense against city-killer asteroids

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  January 24, 2019 | International, Land

  Report: Army’s new modernization command risks cost overruns and delays

  By: Meghann Myers When the Army first announced its intention to stand up a new four-star Futures Command, senior leadership said the days of years-long, expensive modernization programs and murky requirements were over. While failing early and often can prevent some of those issues before an idea becomes a program of record, there are still some risks that, by trying to be a more nimble and innovative enterprise, AFC could still run into cost increases and drawn-out timelines if it jumps too hard on emerging technologies, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Wednesday. “There are a variety of ways to fail when it comes to developing these technologies,” Jon Ludwigson, the GAO's acting director of contracting and national security acquisitions, told Army Times in a Wednesday phone interview. “I guess the way that I would look at it is, you can make sure that you have it right, or hope that you'll get it right.” The study was mandated by the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, to take the temperature of Futures Command as it stood up. The Army officially activated the command in August, headquartered at the University of Texas in Austin. In general, the report found, the Army has applied best practices that GAO has previously touted, including close collaboration with senior leadership. On the other hand, the report found, there were a couple things that could be improved. AFC's plans to develop weapons systems with emerging technology could come back to hurt it, the report said. “GAO has raised concerns about this type of practice for almost two decades for other Army acquisitions, because proceeding into weapon systems development at earlier stages of technology maturity raises the risk that the resulting systems could experience cost increases, delivery delays, or failure to deliver desired capabilities,” according to the report. The GAO, Lugwigson said, is wary of creating programs around emerging technologies, before having a chance to test them in an operational environment. “As the Army identifies the capability, there are technologies that are used to achieve that capability,” he said. “What GAO has found is, there's an advantage to maturing those technologies before you begin what's called a program of record.” https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2019/01/23/report-armys-new-modernization-command-risks-cost-overruns-and-delays

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  January 3, 2024 | International, Land

  Bombardier wins US Army contract for new spy plane prototype

  Bombardier will supply its Global 6500 business aircraft as a prototype for the Army's newest aerial intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance plane.

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  July 16, 2018 | International, Land

  This is the city the Army has picked for its new Futures Command

  By: Jen Judson and Leo Shane III WASHINGTON — The new Army Futures Command (AFC) will be in Austin, Texas, congressional sources, who are now being notified of the choice, have confirmed. The new four-star command was stood up in October at the Association of the U.S. Army's annual conference in Washington. The plan is to realign the Army's modernization priorities under a new organization that will implement cross-functional teams that correspond with the service's top six modernization efforts: Long-Range Precision Fires, Next-Generation Combat Vehicle, Future Vertical Lift, the network, air-and-missile defense and soldier lethality. The service plans to make an official announcement on the location of the command July 13 at the Pentagon. The Army has wanted the new command's headquarters in a city or urban hub close to industry and academia and not on a base or military installation. Earlier this year it shortlisted several major cities in the U.S. as possible locations and put each through a rigorous vetting process. Congressional leaders from the locales pressed hard for a chance to host the new command. The creation of the AFC has also meant taking some elements from some of the major commands and moving them over to the new organization, Army Undersecretary Ryan McCarthy told Defense News in an exclusive interview just ahead of the Association of the U.S. Army's Global Force Symposium in March. But he said many of those elements won't have to move to the command's new location. The AFC's first commander has been reported to be Lt. Gen. John Murray, the current Army G−8,but the Army has not officially confirmed that selection. https://www.defensenews.com/land/2018/07/12/army-futures-command-headed-to-austin/