Acquisition headlines

“The Boeing T-X (which also saw Sweden’s Saab as a partner) was remarkable in not only was it a clean sheet design that triumphed against existing ‘lower risk’ competitors… but that also it came in $10bn cheaper than the $19.2bn the USAF had forecast. Post-contract award, some observers thus wondered – had Boeing aggressively ‘low-balled’ its bid by 50% in order to win T-X at any cost? Or had it managed somehow to reverse the seemingly inevitable trend of ever-increasing cost of military aircraft?” Link is here, recommended.

What is mathematical creativity, how do we develop it, and should we try to measure it?

Defense Secretary Mattis Had Secret Dinner With Amazon Official Before $10 Billion Contract Announced.

FY2020 NDAA Updates:

Defense bill calls for DOD to fast-track certain software buys. The rundown: “The new authority outlined in the bill calls for the appointment of a project manager with broad powers to supervise rapid acquisitions, reporting directly to his or her military department’s service acquisition executive. Awards under the rapid acquisition authority can be made within 90 days of a solicitation. Formal proposals aren’t required; awards can be made on the basis of discussions, statements of qualifications and past performance data.”
The US Navy’s new frigate program is careening toward a roadblock. That is, buy-American. “Several of the components that would be covered in the bill, such as auxiliary propulsion units, are not available in the United States and would require redesigns to fit American-made parts.”
“The DOD has the best bureaucracy in the world,” Fahey said, “and best doesn’t mean good.”
NDIA opposes cost and pricing data amendment. No surprise there.
At the end of the day, the national defense strategy puts a priority on modernization.

Navy Issues Final RFP for FFG(X) Next-Generation Frigate.

French Air Force deputy talks strategy, Brexit and future fighter jets.

More on the new Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC).

“A deep data analysis by Govini shows OTA activity in DoD having grown by a compound annual rate of 57% for the last six years. The base is small, but in 2018 they amounted to $3.4 billion.” Link is here.

A 360-degree tour of Lockheed Martin’s innovation lab.

Iran says it shot down an approaching US spy drone on Thursday. Here is ComNavOps on the situation:

6-Jun-2019 – Destroyed; MQ-9 Reaper; shot by SA-6
13-Jun-2019 – Miss; MQ-9 Reaper; shot at by SA-7
19-Jun-2019 – Destroyed; Navy MQ-4C Triton (BAMS) (variously reported as RQ-4A Global Hawk)

A description of acquisition in the Navy. Recommended. A slice: “The amount of funding expected to arrive in OPNAV year-to-year is impossible to predict.”

“Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan abruptly withdrew from consideration Wednesday to lead the Pentagon under a cloud of allegations surrounding domestic violence within his family.”

Neven’s law states that quantum computers are improving at a “doubly exponential” rate. If it holds, quantum supremacy is around the corner.

‘My way or the highway’: An approach to the NDAA debate. “So far, there are nearly 400 amendments filed to the bill.”

Elbit Systems Chief Financial Officer Joseph Gaspar, said defense is both expensive and a “structured, regulated business” meaning it was almost a necessity to be big to succeed.

GAO Report: OSD used to oversee 47 percent of major programs, that figure is down to 10 percent. Air Force has 20 of 31 Rapid Prototyping programs using Middle-Tier acquisition authorities, and has the only four Rapid Fielding programs.

New report finds NASA awarded Boeing large fees despite SLS launch slips. Here’s how: “NASA shifted some planned SLS scope to future missions but did not reduce the program’s cost baseline accordingly.” Before we single out NASA, the Navy accepted delivery of a deficient CVN-78 carrier, and hundreds of the delivered F-35s are not combat ready, and so forth.

Very cool: Engineers Built a Robotic Lionfish With an Energetic Bloodstream. The robo-fish pumps energy-packed liquid through vein-like tubes to move its fins and swim for hours.

“The annual value of megaproject starts in the U.S. has risen to nearly 33% of total starts in 2018, from 3% of total starts in 2013… Since 2012, at least 320 megaprojects have been awarded in the U.S., representing $718 billion in investment, with another 674 megaprojects—representing $2 trillion in investment—still in planning.”

“France and Germany have unveiled their much-anticipated Future Combat System (FCAS) at this year’s Paris Air Show, formally entering the global race for a sixth-generation fighter.” Hopefully the Europeans have better luck with a program titled Future Combat Systems than the US Army did…