Defense News

  • Navy says the Defense Production Act and a new partnership with USDA will help it generate several hundred million gallons per year of U.S.-based biofuel. The solicitations it plans to issue over the next year are a key stepping stone to the Navy's goal of getting half its energy from alternative sources by 2020.

    April 23, 2014
  • The Navy says it will move forward this year to create two new acquisition vehicles to ensure it has a stable supply of advanced biofuels. And as Federal News Radio's DoD reporter Jared Serbu reports, the service says it won't be any more expensive than petroleum products.

    April 22, 2014
  • Renewable energy is a big priority for the Department of the Navy. The ultimate renewable energy source for a ship at sea is of course seawater. Now the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory is making big steps toward using seawater for fuel. Dr. Heather Willauer, research chemist at the Naval Research Laboratory, tells In Depth with Francis Rose what they've found on the path to making seawater fuel the Navy's fleet.

    April 22, 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
  • Today's Combat Air Force has the fewest bombers and fighters and the oldest aircraft ever. The Defense Department and Congress are hitting a sweet spot to fix that, according to two experts in military aviation. Mark Gunzinger, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, writes about the future of the Air Force with retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dave Deptula, now a senior scholar at the Air Force Academy. Gunzinger talks to In Depth with Francis Rose about revamping the Air Force for the next fight.

    April 21, 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
  • In a budget environment in which cost overruns are very likely to lead to canceled programs, the Air Force says it's pressing it prime vendors to remove any costs they possibly can from their subcontracted supplier base.

    April 17, 2014
  • The Air Force is making a new push to lower the prices of its acquisition programs by asking contractors to scrub their supply chains for unnecessary costs. Federal News Radio's Jared Serbu reports the service thinks it's made some progress, but that it's still paying more than it should.

    April 16, 2014
  • The Navy and Marine Corps provided hands-on demonstrations of some of the innovative machines they use to help them do their jobs.

    April 11, 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 Naval Air Systems Command's acquisition practices are laden with so much unnecessary costs that its commander worries about its ability to meet its mission to the fleet a few years from now. NAVAIR's commander said it's time to rethink the way it engages the acquisition system and with industry.

    April 10, 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
  • The Navy has a unique way it approaches the health and wellness of its sailors. All food aboard ships is developed and approved by a triad of people. The special group consists of an executive chef, a dietitian, and a subject matter expert. Danny King, commander of the Supply Corps for the Navy and director of the Navy Food Service, spoke with Federal Drive Host Emily Kopp at the Sea Air Space Exposition. View photos and listen to more of our interviews from the expo.

    April 07, 2014
  • The Navy continues to change the way it thinks about energy consumption. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus recently outlined several energy goals for the next six years. They include reducing petroleum used afloat and increasing alternative energy use ashore. Much of the responsibility for that plan falls to Vice Admiral Philip Hart Cullom, the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Fleet Readiness and Logistics. He spoke with Federal Drive Host Emily Kopp at the Sea Air Space Exposition. View photos and listen to more of our interviews from the expo.

    April 07, 2014

On DoD

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