Army

  • The Army breaks ground Friday on a giant solar array at sunny Fort Huachuca in Arizona. Once built, it will provide about a quarter of the energy needed to power the mid-sized base. It will be the largest solar project in the military's portfolio for a while. Amanda Simpson, executive director for the U.S. Army's Energy Initiatives Task Force, described the scope of the project to Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp.

    April 25, 2014
  • The Army says it must shrink to 490,000 by October 2015, and then to 450,000 two years later. If automatic budget cuts resume, the Army will have to reduce to 420,000. The Associated Press reports while a lot of the reduction may come from voluntary retirements, resignations and decreased enlistments, Army commanders will have to force as many as 3,000 officers to leave by the end of October 2015. Of those, nearly 1,500 are captains, 550 are majors.

    April 22, 2014
  • An independent commission to make recommendations about the restructuring of the Army isn't meeting with much welcome from Army leaders. But it does have some support. Retired Army Maj. Gen. Gus Hargett, president of the National Guard Association, is one of the most outspoken advocates for the outside commission. He told In Depth with Francis Rose the Army needs an outside look before it downsizes.

    April 21, 2014
  • A group of functional domain experts are reaching out to the military services and agencies to look at service contracting spending across 12 areas. The Defense Department's goal is to use strategic sourcing to improve how it buys in these categories. The Army created a governance board to bring together all stakeholders during specific points of the acquisition process to find opportunities to collaborate.

    April 11, 2014
  • The Defense Department's overall budget will shrink by a combined $900 billion by fiscal year 2021, according to Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno. He tells the Senate Armed Services Committee how the Army will absorb more than $260 billion in cuts during that span. On Pentagon Solutions, Odierno says the Pentagon is creating a Total Army Solution for the looming budget cuts.

    April 09, 2014
  • A tight budget is forcing the Army to cut its ranks by at least 70,000 people over the next five years. The Army also has to let go of some weapons programs to keep its spending levels down. Those plans could come at the cost of military readiness.

    April 01, 2014
  • The Army is the first service to begin an analysis of its excess real estate after a Congressional prohibition against even studying the subject expired. Early results show up to a quarter of its stateside infrastructure isn't being used right now, and the Army will need even less as it shrinks in size.

    March 31, 2014
  • Lt. Gen Thomas Bostick, the Army Corps of Engineers' commanding general, talks about changes coming to the Corps as a result of the military and budget draw downs.

    March 28, 2014
  • The Army has a wardrobe problem. For years, the service has tried to improve its camouflage uniforms. But the process has been plagued by financial, technical and political problems. While that project stalls, the Army's PEO Soldier Unit is developing armor, helmets and other equipment for warfighters. Col. Robert Mortlock, program manager for the Army's Soldier Protection and Individual Equipment office, spoke with the Federal Drive's Tom Temin and Emily Kopp about the latest efforts on the Army's wardrobe front.

    March 25, 2014
  • Over the past 12 years, the Army Corps of Engineers has had a full plate — building new facilities for the last round of base realignments, dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and a lot of overseas construction in Iraq and Afghanistan. But as wars and military budgets draw down, it's time for the agency to reshape itself, says Lt. Gen. Thomas Bostick, the Corps' commanding general. He spoke with Federal News Radio DoD Reporter Jared Serbu. Hear Jared's full hour-long interview with Bostick, Weds. March 26 at 3p.m. Listen here.

    March 25, 2014
  • The Pentagon will complete the Joint Regional Security Stacks in the European theater by the end of this year, two years earlier than planned. DoD already has begun to construct this regional cyber approach in the U.S. as part of its Joint Information Environment program.

    March 21, 2014
  • An update about how robotic, unmanned vehicles will augment brigades of the future.

    March 20, 2014
  • Lt. Col. Daniel Johnston, an Army physician and the program manager for Army Fit, talks to DoD Reporter Jared Serbu about the Army's technology platform that it hopes will take the service's comprehensive resilience effort further.

    March 12, 2014
  • Military bases are earning the "green" title for doing their part to preserve and protect the environment. The Secretary of the Army Environmental Awards recognize bases that balance Army mission with sustainable practices.

    February 21, 2014

On DoD

On DoD

WEDNESDAYS, 11 A.M. & 2 P.M.

Each week, Defense Reporter Jared Serbu speaks with the managers of the federal government's largest department. Subscribe on PodcastOne or Apple Podcasts.