August 1, 2024 | International, C4ISR, Security
Google Chrome Adds App-Bound Encryption to Protect Cookies from Malware
Google Chrome's latest update introduces app-bound encryption, enhancing cookie protection against malware on Windows.
April 5, 2018 | International, Aerospace
Pentagon formulating plan to move F-35 management from central office to services
By: Valerie Insinna and Aaron Mehta
WASHINGTON — The Defense Department plans to dissolve the F-35 Joint Program Office and revert to a more traditional management structure where the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps all run their own program offices – eventually.
In a March 27 letter to Congress, the Pentagon's top acquisition official acknowledged that splitting up the F-35 management into smaller offices is likely the way to go for the future of the Pentagon's largest acquisition program.
But exactly when such a transformation will occur was not defined in the letter written by Ellen Lord, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, and the expectation in the Pentagon is that it could happen within the next several years.
“In order to effectively integrate and sustain the F-35 in the joint force, the military departments must have more direct ownership of the F-35 program and leverage organic capabilities, processes and infrastructure,” Lord wrote in the letter, which was sent to the congressional defense committees and first acquired by Inside Defense.
“The department will evaluate the right time to begin this transition through the F-35 executive steering group, which has participation across the department.”
The department intends to formulate a plan over the next year on how best to transition to service-led offices, Pentagon spokesman Cmdr. Patrick Evans told Defense News.
Evans told Defense News that the transition will occur in three phases:
- “A measured restructure of the existing F-35 management structure, which begins immediately.”
- A hybrid structure, where separate service-run F-35 program offices report to a Joint Program Executive Officer, a position currently held by JPO head Vice Adm. Mat Winter.
- The full transition, where the services will have separate program offices and program executives that will report to the military department's acquisition head. “The full transition dates will be determined through a conditions-based detailed implementation plan with risk-informed criteria,” he said.
Lord's letter lays out nine near-term actions that will enable the stand up of F-35 program offices specific to each military department. Lord's letter specifies that the eventual management structure will be comprised of an F-35A office led by the Air Force and an F-35B/C program office run the Navy and Marine Corps.
Some of the near-term changes involve greater participation by the services within the F-35 JPO. For instance, the Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy will establish service deputies at the O-6 level. Those officials will be collocated at the JPO to provide the services' feedback on JPO decisions and also to help execute the transition to separate service-led offices.
The JPO will also bring in “F-35A, F-35B and F-35C variant leads” that will eventually form the “nucleus” of future transition teams, the letter states.
Meanwhile, the services will “conduct a gap analysis, charter and implementation plan to stand up individual fleet management offices.” That plan will include a proposed schedule and criteria for initial and full operational capability for the offices.
The Pentagon will also conduct an audit of the JPO's billet structure and review the F-35 program charter with the intent to optimize manpower and cut down on bureaucracy, it said.
While the changes could make it easier for the services to have oversight over their respective F-35 variants, the eventual dissolution of the JPO could make it more difficult for international customers to interface with the program.
The JPO currently functions as a one-stop shop for foreign buyers — some of which, like Japan, are considering buying more than one variant of the aircraft. The office also oversees the work done by final assembly lines in Japan and Italy, as well as at sustainment hubs around the world.
Evans said that the department will continue to work closely with F-35 international partners, but acknowledged that “in the longer-term, current international agreements will need to be updated and transition to service-based agreements. The phased implementation approach allows time to work through these changes in close coordination with our international partners in a way that maintains our strong commitment to them and our partnership.”
In an emailed statement, the JPO said it was supportive of this initiative to improve the management of the F-35 program.
“We are implementing improvements to increase transparency, and we'll continue to assess and evaluate the most efficient ways to support and manage this vital national defense program,” the statement read.
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November 14, 2018 | International, Land
The Corps already is looking for a new light tactical vehicle
By: Shawn Snow Recon and infantry Marines only have been zooming around in the Corps' Polaris MRZR all-terrain tactical vehicles for a couple years now, but the Marines already are on the hunt for a replacement. According to a request for information posted by the Corps on Friday, the Marines want a new ultralight tactical vehicle with characteristics strikingly familiar to the MRZR. The Corps wants a highly mobile all-terrain light tactical vehicle capable of whisking wounded Marines off the battlefield, easily configurable to support a host of missions like electronic warfare, and internally transportable by CH-53 and MV-22. The Corps already has this capability in the Polaris MRZR. The Marines already have doled out nearly 248 of the all-terrain vehicles to infantry and recon Marines over the past couple years. The first batch of MRZRs were issued to the grunts in early 2017. But the life expectancy of the MRZR, or utility task vehicle, is only five years: “Therefore the Marine Corps is initiating research efforts to see what industry will have available that may meet the Corps' needs,” Manny Pacheco, a spokesman for PEO Land Systems, told Marine Corps Times in an emailed statement. The Corps has been innovative with its tactical dune buggy, even mounting a counter drone system on a pair of MRZRs. That system, known as the light Marine air defense integrated system, or LMADIS, uses electronic warfare to take down drones. An LMADIS system is currently deployed with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The current MRZR fielded by the Corps is capable of hauling nearly 1,500 pounds of supplies, which alleviates some of the burden carried by infantry Marines. https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2018/11/13/the-corps-is-already-looking-for-a-new-light-tactical-vehicle
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October 8, 2021 | International, Aerospace
Thales dévoile un nouveau type de radar pour la détection précoce des drones hostiles
Dans le cadre de l'effort mis sur la lutte anti-drone souligné dans la Loi de programmation militaire (LPM) pour la période 2019-2025, Thales dévoile un nouveau radar, le Ground Observer 20 Multi-Mission (GO20 MM), qui sera en mesure d'assurer la « surveillance simultanée des objectifs au sol et des menaces évoluant à basse altitude, avec des capacités exceptionnelles de détection avancée des drones, notamment les microdrones ». Le GO20 MM sera ainsi capable de détecter, poursuivre et classer automatiquement le « spectre complet des menaces ». Un tel radar doit donc permettre de mieux protéger les camps militaires et les convois, notamment gr'ce à sa rapidité de détection et à la classification automatique des drones à long rayon d'action. « Avec des scénarios complexes tels que les conflits asymétriques ou les combats à haute intensité, la capacité de classifier automatiquement et rapidement la menace pour obtenir un tableau précis de la situation constitue un avantage tactique non négligeable », souligne-t-on à Thales. Équipé d'une batterie 6 éléments, ce radar « offre aux forces armées et aux forces spéciales de nombreuses heures de surveillance, dans une totale transparence, et un haut niveau de protection », assure le groupe. Opex360 du 7 octobre