The House Armed Services Committee push for a roles and missions review also would require DOD to identify each service’s core competencies and provide justification for any duplication of capabilities. In his opening remarks at the committee’s markup of the 2008 defense authorization bill, Chairman Ike Skelton (D-Mo.) acknowledged, “I look at some of the duplication among the services or at some of the things that each service has gotten into by necessity or chance, and it just doesn’t make sense.” He said his committee wants to help DOD “use each part of the military’s strength to best advantage,” and added that “we must use every penny wisely.” The committee wants DOD to complete a comprehensive assessment of roles and missions every four years, beginning in 2008. And, the committee wants DOD to identify core competencies by early next year and perform a review of capabilities, justifying any duplication, by June 1, 2009.
Lockheed Martin plans to enter the Advanced Tactical Trainer fray to supply the Air Force with a new jet to bridge between undergraduate flight instruction and fighter training units, but declined to say whether it will offer a T-50A derivative, a different non-developmental airplane, or a clean-sheet design. It's comments…