By Emelie Rutherford
The Pentagon’s latest budget-rejiggering proposal seeks congressional approval for 10 so-called new start programs, efforts lawmakers often hesitate to approve in such money shifts.
The new proposals include missile-defense radar and Army vehicle efforts.
The four congressional defense committees now are vetting the Pentagon’s request to reprogram a total of $3.9 billion in funding already in its coffers. The Pentagon sent this omnibus reprogramming request, signed by its Comptroller Robert Hale on July 2, to Capitol Hill late last week. The proposal seeks to shift around the funding–originally approved by Congress and the White House for fiscal years 2008 through 2010–before FY ’10 ends Sept. 30.
Within the lengthy 89-page request to add and cut funding for varied Pentagon initiatives are 10 proposals for initiating new-start programs.
The most costly of the new starts is a missile defense proposal. The reprogramming seeks to boost the defense-wide procurement account by $191.1 million to accelerate the purchase of the Army Navy/Transportable Radar Surveillance-Model 2 (AN/TPY-2) Radar #8.
This action is intended to mitigate the delay of fielding Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) batteries made necessary by the immediate contingency deployment of the AN/TPY-2 Radar #6, the reprogramming document states. Thus, it says, reallocating the $191.1 million would accelerate the AN/TPY-1 Radar #8 procurement so it aligns with the THAAD battery fielding requirements.
The omnibus reprogramming seeks two new-start development efforts in the Army: to replace the M113 armored personnel carrier and improve night-vision systems used in Afghanistan.
The Pentagon wants to add $10 million to begin developing the Advanced Tank Armament System, the M113 replacement platform.
“These funds will inform the Army on the current state-of-the-art M113 replacement options, potentially provide a forum for industrial teaming allowing the Army to refine its requirement document and explore current vehicles for adaptability to the M113 requirements,” the reprogramming states. “These funds will support test (including live fire test and evaluation), integration of materiel equipment packages, contract and government support, training, and logistics costs.”
The current M113 was deemed unsuitable for asymmetrical warfare because of the high threat of improvised explosive devices in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Army is planning to make the so-called Materiel Development Decision for the new Advanced Tank Armament System program in late 2011.
For the improved night-vision systems, the Pentagon wants to shift $6.2 million to a research effort to “implement improvements for interoperability with the Afghanistan Mission Network within the Base Expeditionary Targeting Surveillance System-Combined (BETTS-C) project and to implement lessons learned for this program.”
For the Navy’s DDG-51 destroyer program, the reprogramming seeks to add $6.7 million for a study to analyze the cost and capability of the Flight IIA and Flight III versions of the ship. The Flight III ship is the latest version under the new plan to restart production of the vessel. The Navy also needs additional monies for developing a DDG-51 Capability Development Document and an analysis of operational requirements.
Also for the Navy, the Pentagon wants to shift $7.7 million to aircraft procurement for modifying eight EP-3 spy aircraft, in order to allow chat and IP-based data sharing with ground forces in theater.
Other new-start proposals in the Pentagon’s reprogramming request would shift:
- $1 million to the Air Force to begin developing a Very Low Collateral Damage Weapon that commanders in theater sought via an Urgent Operational Need request;
- $10.6 million to defense-wide procurement for information-technology system projects at the U.S. Africa Command;
- $2.3 million to defense-wide research for Defense Geospatial-Intelligence Program efforts including the demonstration of a Wide Area Persistent Surveillance prototype for automated activity monitoring;
- $3.6 million to defense-wide procurement for file sanitation tools to secure data transfers between contractor-logistics-support networks in the Afghanistan area; and
- $12.5 million to the Air Force’s research coffers for integrating the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) into the Mode 5 Raytheon [RTN] APX-119 transponder used in aircraft.
Lawmakers often deny new-start proposals within such Pentagon reprogramming requests.