The Insider

The Marine Corps tallied its first overseas use of Amphibious Combat Vehicles during a May 4 training exercise that saw the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s ACV platoon complete waterborne, live-fire training off the coast of the Philippines during Exercise Balikatan.

During the exercise, ACVs launched from the well deck of amphibious warship Harpers Ferry (LSD-49) and formed into assault sections before firing 40mm training rounds at shore-based targets using their Mk 19 grenade machine guns, according to a service release.

Harpers Ferry and the embarked ACV platoon departed from Southern California on March 19, marking the first ACV operational deployment.

“During this first deployment, 15th MEU will continue to provide insights for ACV employment, embarkation, maintenance requirements, logistics trains, and integration with our allies and partners,” the service announcement states. “These insights are vital for the service to ensure we continue to provide our Marines with the most operationally ready and capable platforms.”

The ACV is an important platform for Marine Corps force design and Indo-Pacific operating concepts, providing ship-to-shore mobility and a variety of other capabilities. Though nearly 200 of the vehicles have been delivered to the Marine Corps to date, readiness kinks have slowed down fielding and operational use.

A series of training accidents, in which ACVs rolled over during waterborne exercises, prompted the Marine Corps to temporarily pause some vehicle operations and later launch initiatives to improve operator proficiency.

Now, with efforts to retrain ACV drivers and procure training simulators underway, the service is advancing fielding efforts, program manager Col. Tim Hough said last week. In June, the service plans to send 12 ACVs to the 4th Marine Regiment in Okinawa, Japan and will begin fielding to the 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion at Camp Lejeune, NC, in the second quarter of FY-25.

The Army is seeking a manufacturer to build the M10 Booker combat vehicle at full-rate production, according to a public notice.

“This solicitation is for a requirement contract for M10 Booker Full Rate Production (FRP) to procure an estimated 266 M10 Booker vehicles,” the May 8 announcement reads.

Issued as a solicitation, the announcement stipulates that the manufacturer will build the M10 according to a product configuration specification and each vehicle will include all basic issue items, component of end items, under vehicle armor and a radio kit.

Production will also include an estimated 31 M10 “refurbishment vehicles” and ancillary services supporting production, the announcement adds.

Weighing approximately 42 tons, the Booker is designed to provide firepower for dismounted units with a 105mm gun and is intended to slot between the Abrams main battle tank and the Bradley Fighting Vehicle.

General Dynamics Land Systems, which also builds the Abrams, won a low-rate production contract in 2022 after competing with BAE Systems in the rapid prototyping phase when the program was known as the Mobile Protected Firepower.

The Booker is the Army’s third program to field an infantry support vehicle with a 105mm gun. During the 1990s, the Army developed but canceled plans to field the M8 Armored Gun System, according to Infantry Magazine. In the 2000s, the Army acquired the Stryker M1128 Mobile Gun System but divested from the platform following performance and engineering issues.

The Army expects to spend between $460 million and $500 million to procure between 32-34 vehicles each fiscal year from FY-25 to FY-29, according to service budget documents.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin today said the United States has "paused" a shipment of powerful bombs to Israel, citing concerns about civilian "collateral damage" in Gaza.

Austin, confirming media reports about the paused munitions shipments, told the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee the Defense Department has paused “one shipment of high-payload munitions.”

“We have not made a final determination on how to proceed with that shipment,” he said, noting the weapons could be sent to Israel eventually.

Austin said the decision to hold the shipment, which includes 2,000-pound bombs, was made out of concern that Israel is not properly considering safeguarding civilians amid a new offensive against Hamas in Rafa.

“I think we’ve been very clear about the steps we’d like to see Israel take to account for and take care of those civilians before major combat takes place,” he said. “We certainly would like to see no major combat take place in Rafah, but certainly our focus is on making sure we protect the civilians.”

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), the committee’s ranking Republican, said DOD should not “micromanage Israel’s right to defend itself” and should keep in mind that Hamas uses civilians in Gaza as “human shields” and bears responsibility for the start of the conflict because of its Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israelis.

Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the ranking member on the Senate Armed Services Committee, released a statement criticizing the Biden administration’s decision to pause the bomb shipment.

“If Hamas laid down its weapons, the war would be over. But if Israel lays down its weapons, it would be the end of Israel,” he said. “This delay has sent a dangerous message to Hamas that if they hold out against the [Israeli Defense Forces] for long enough, they can still win.”

At the hearing, Austin said the paused shipment does not include “precision weapons” but covers 2,000-pound bombs that “could create a lot of collateral damage.”

“It's about having the right kinds of weapons for the tasks at hand,” he said. “We think it’s imperative to do more to protect civilians in the battlespace.”

Army Futures Command Commanding Gen. James Rainey envisions warfare being more data-centric in the future and told attendees today at the Ash Carter Exchange on Innovation and National Security in Washington that he sees a "re-ascendance of fires over maneuver."

“It’s gone back and forth in history. But for the Army, maneuvering to position fires in support of the joint force would drive some major changes in both how we build our formations, and the balance between say, fire brigades, air defense brigades and maneuver brigades,” he said.

Rainey has previously said the force must merge offensive and defensive fires beyond 2030 and noted at the AUSA Global Force Symposium in Huntsville, AL earlier this year that he wants this to be done for systems such as Patriot, High Mobility Artillery Rocket System and Army Tactical Missile System.

Rainey said Tuesday that the decade from 2030 to 2040 will be “really disruptive” when it comes to technology on the battlefield, but it’s also a time when the service will be able to make some “really dramatic transitions or transformations.”

“Everything going on right now is great, and I applaud things like [Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control]. But the real opportunity to move to data-centric warfare, software over hardware, where you don’t have to go out looking for the data. It’s in a place where it’s usable and accessible. Then you can really bring the power of things like AI and machine learning to bear,” he said.

Rainey also reiterated Tuesday the need for the Army to move to “capability-based” requirements documents, which he thinks will be helpful to industry.

“The less words, the better response we get out of industry,” he said.

This Monday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Pentagon's Replicator initiative, the Navy seeking solutions to resolve a sealift capacity shortage and more.

The Pentagon today announced it is beginning to invest in the first tranche of Replicator capabilities, which centers around UAS, USVs and C-UAS of multiple sizes and different payloads:

DOD announces Replicator tranche 1 focus areas and first official selected capability

Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks announced today that the first tranche of Replicator capabilities includes uncrewed aerial systems like AeroVironment's Switchblade-600 loitering munition, uncrewed surface vehicles and counter-uncrewed aerial systems.

The Navy is seeking solutions to resolve a shortage in sealift capacity:

Legislative proposal may allow Navy to buy foreign, used ships to support sealift

A legislative proposal brought forward by the Navy will potentially allow the service to acquire foreign, used vessels to bolster sealift capacity.

On May 2, Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles, Japanese Minister of Defense Kihara Minoru and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held a Trilateral Defense Ministerial Meeting in Hawaii:

Japan, Australia, U.S. announce plans for 'inaugural' regional missile defense event

Japan, Australia and the United States announced plans for a trilateral air and missile defense live-fire exercise -- an "inaugural" event -- that will be folded into the 2027 Talisman Sabre exercise that simulates a highly contested combat scenario in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Marine Corps Amphibious Combat Vehicle program office began soliciting industry for a training system to improve driver proficiency in the spring of 2023 following multiple accidents in which ACVs rolled over in the water -- incidents the service attributed largely to inadequate operator training:

Marine Corps fielding ACV driver simulators, preparing for wider vehicle deployment

The Marine Corps has fielded the first unit of a new mixed-reality training system intended to improve the performance of Amphibious Combat Vehicle operators. It expects to receive 80 more of these driver simulators by the end of fiscal year 2024.

Army acquisition chief Doug Bush spoke during a roundtable with reporters at the Pentagon last week:

Army to hold howitzer demonstrations this summer to replace some Paladins

The Army will use approximately $55 million in leftover funds to host howitzer demonstrations in August before setting capability requirements for replacing its Paladin artillery system, according to the service's acquisition executive.

This Friday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Navy needing to replenish its Standard Missile stocks in the wake of defending shipping in the Red Sea from Houthi missile attacks, plus coverage of a new Defense Innovation Unit report and more.

Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro revealed this week that the Defense Department's decision to terminate SM-3 Block IB production -- and save $1.9 billion -- was baked into the FY-25 budget request before recent real-world events provided a showcase for the advanced guided-missile interceptor to defeat ballistic missile threats:

SECNAV: DOD needs to 'relook' SM-3 Block IB termination after Iran strike, Pacific forecast

The Navy secretary says Pentagon leaders need to reconsider plans to terminate Standard Missile-3 Block IB production in light of recent Red Sea missile defense missions, Iran's missile attack last month against Israel and the likelihood of similar engagements in a potential conflict in the Pacific.

A new Defense Innovation Unit report is out:

DIU says 10 technologies made successful transitions in FY-23

The Defense Innovation Unit released its fiscal year 2023 annual report today which noted that 10 technologies successfully transitioned from prototypes to fielded capabilities.

DIU pushes partnerships with U.S. allies

The Defense Innovation Unit's fiscal year 2023 annual report highlighted successful partnerships with U.S. allies like India, the U.K., Australia, Japan and Ukraine.

Document: DIU's FY-23 annual report

The Navy's top civilian this week acknowledged that the Navy and Marine Corps are jointly developing a memorandum of understanding pertaining to amphib readiness:

Navy, Marine Corps narrowing in on amphib readiness requirements

The Navy and Marine Corps are advancing a joint effort to clarify requirements and metrics for amphibious warship readiness, according to Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro, who today said the services believe they need at least nine of the ships ready for action around the clock.

The Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management (C3BM) Aerial Networking line for the Air Force would grow to $147.1 million in the fiscal year 2025 budget request from $76.8 million asked for FY-24:

Air Force amps up ABMS work with Phalanx Griffon program in FY-25

The Air Force wants to nearly double its budget for the airborne networking segment of the Advanced Battle Management System as it ramps up a newer effort called Phalanx Griffon, according to budget documents released with the fiscal year 2025 budget request.

The CEO of HII discussed his company's quarterly earnings this week:

HII CEO: Manufacturing and shipbuilding labor major factor in delays

There is no "one-size-fits-all" solution to shipbuilding delays, but labor is the most contributing factor, shipbuilder HII Chief Executive Officer Chris Kastner told investors in a first-quarter earnings call Thursday.

The National Counterintelligence and Security Center found that semiconductors are one of the technology sectors where the opportunity for disruption of U.S. economic and national security is highest:

DOD, GSA and NASA working to implement semiconductor product ban

The Defense Department, General Services Administration and NASA are considering the implementation of a rule that would ban executive agencies from obtaining certain semiconductor products.

Lockheed Martin announced this week that Thomas Falk had been elected as independent lead director of the board.

Falk succeeds Daniel Akerson who, along with James Ellis, retired from the board following the company's annual stockholders meeting.

Falk has served on Lockheed's board of directors since 2010 and as Audit Committee chair since 2015. As independent lead director, he "will assume all duties and responsibilities of that position, including presiding over executive sessions of independent directors, approving agendas for board meetings and providing feedback to management," according to a company statement.

He will also chair the board's Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and serve as ex officio member of each of the other committees. As part of Falk's election as independent lead director, Patricia Yarrington has been appointed chair of the board's Audit Committee, the company said.