The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is soliciting ideas from industry on Resolute Sentry–an effort to forge a clear view of military forces in potential conflicts against potential high-tech adversaries.
Resolute Sentry began in 2021 and is now a Vanguard Prospect program that has two prongs–air and surface, which is to start in fiscal 2024.
AFRL’s Resolute Sentry “two-step call requests high technology readiness level (TRL) industry services and microservices for integration and test in the Open Mission Systems (OMS) Resolute Sentry Architecture,” according to a business notice last month. “Resolute Sentry Air is currently in development. Resolute Sentry Surface begins development in FY2024. This call focuses on Resolute Sentry Air On-Ramp 1 and Resolute Sentry Surface early technical development. Services and microservices sought focus is further described in the technical data package. This call requests industry address software integration and test in the government-owned Systems Integration Laboratory (SIL).”
AFRL is requesting industry submission of white papers on Resolute Sentry by Aug. 21.
The House Appropriations Committee cuts the Department of the Air Force’s nearly $256 million research and development request for Vanguard programs in fiscal 2024 by almost $87 million, as the committee says that the department needs to demonstrate more rapid fielding (Defense Daily, June 29).
The two Vanguards are Rocket Cargo, an effort begun in June 2021 to explore the feasibility of delivering 100 tons of cargo anywhere on the globe within an hour, and Navigation Technology Satellite-3 (NTS-3), started in 2019 as one of the first three Vanguards–the other two being the Skyborg low-cost attritable aircraft and the Golden Horde collaborative, swarming munitions effort.
The House Appropriations Committee, in its June report on the committee’s version of the fiscal 2024 defense bill, said that the Air Force Vanguards “have led to several programs of record that enable warfighting capabilities.”
“However, the committee has concerns with the current and future scope of the Vanguard programs,” the report said. “First, the time from operational need identification to fielding remains far too long given the modest advances in capability. Second, the committee believes that the Air Force should focus its fiscal year 2024 efforts on the existing Vanguards and Vanguard Prospects. Due to the increase in the budget request for the Vanguards over the future years defense program, the committee urges the Air Force to demonstrate how it can more rapidly transition current Vanguard Prospects to programs of record before it invests in the Pathfinders. Additionally, it is not clear that the Vanguards are sufficiently leveraging emerging technologies in the commercial sector.”
The Pathfinders are first step programs that need concept refinement before becoming Prospects and then Vanguards once detailed concepts, transition partners, and fielding strategies are laid out.
The fiscal 2024 Air Force-requested Vanguard Pathfinders are Integrated Electronic Warfare, Integrated Networks, Advanced Emulation for Test and Training, and Enabling Technology for Agile Basing, while the Prospects are Resolute Sentry, Fight Tonight, Long Range Kill Chains, and Area Effects Demonstration.
Fight Tonight is to demonstrate artificial intelligence-based theater-level, adaptive planning against technologically advanced adversaries. The Long Range Kill Chains Prospect is to use all domain data to improve targeting and the Area Effects Demonstration is to advance the development of high-speed area effects concepts through the use of modeling and simulation and aerodynamic ground testing.
In fiscal 2024, the Air Force requested $39 million for Fight Tonight, $30 million for Resolute Sentry, about $26 million for Long Range Kill Chains, and $18 million for the Area Effects Demonstration. Under the Vanguard Pathfinders, the service requested $23 million for Integrated Electronic Warfare, $15 million for Advanced Emulation for Test and Training, $13 million for Enabling Technology for Agile Basing, and about $12.5 million for Integrated Networks.
The House Appropriations Committee zeroes the funding for the Pathfinders in its fiscal 2024 bill.