The House Armed Services Committee would like to eliminate DOD’s ability to select a contractor to serve as lead system integrators for complex weapons acquisition programs, reports Megan Scully of CongressDaily. Language included in the 2008 defense authorization bill would preclude the military services from awarding new contracts to oversee a major program after Oct. 1, 2011. The provision came in the form of an amendment from Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) and Rep. Gene Taylor (D-Miss.) during full committee markup of the defense bill last week. The Air Force has been considering using a contractor as program integrator for the Global Positioning System Block III satellites.
The Air Force is moving forward with a new, algorithm-driven system to help U.S. Northern Command better detect airborne threats. NORTHCOM and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, which are tasked with protecting the homeland from attack, depend on a slew of radars and other data systems to monitor U.S.…