The Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization released a broad agency announcement on Jan. 17 calling for proposals that could help curb the spread of the kinds of homemade explosives widely used in IEDs in Afghanistan.

Boeing has finalized plans for configuring the KC-46A tanker aircraft, a milestone that allows the Air Force to move ahead with plans for a preliminary design review of the new aircraft in March.

The Pentagon's new Joint Operational Access Concept will serve as a guide for the services when developing capabilities, Lt. Gen. George Flynn, the Joint Staff director of joint force development, told reporters today.

The Marine Corps variant of the Joint Strike Fighter is no longer on probation, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced today.

The Defense Department is kicking off the first batch of fiscal year 2012 security assistance programs drawn up with the State Department to train and equip foreign forces, funding eight efforts to bolster the capabilities of 12 European nations preparing to deploy personnel to Afghanistan to operate alongside U.S. troops, according to a Pentagon spokesman.

To increase the efficiency of the Pentagon's information technology enterprise, the defense secretary must take a clear lead on the modernization effort and the organization must establish a clear strategy with specific milestones, deadlines and metrics, according to new recommendations from an influential advisory board.

The Pentagon next week will reveal the major impacts of $487 billion in planned cuts over the next decade to weapon system investment plans, the Defense Department's No. 2 military official said today -- the first official confirmation that DOD plans to disclose highlights of its fiscal year 2013 budget proposal before the White House unveils the budget plan to Congress.

Turkey this month announced plans to purchase just two Joint Strike Fighters in the program's seventh early production lot, two-thirds less than planned, according to Pentagon sources.

The Navy might retire two of its amphibious ships due to budget constraints, Lt. Gen. Richard Mills, deputy commandant for combat development and integration, told reporters today.

The Army has set a target for spending on energy conservation measures of roughly $384 million, the service's response to a presidential directive to funnel $2 billion across the government into energy-saving, performance-based contracts within two years.

The Joint Strike Fighter program -- subjected by DOD leaders to a comprehensive technical review and restructured twice in the last two years in a bid to manage cost growth and development challenges -- is unlikely to meet two crucial operational criteria pivotal to future production decisions, according to the Pentagon's top weapons tester.

Military leaders are rushing new weapons into operational testing despite signs the systems are not ready, the Pentagon's top tester warns in a new report that spotlights big problems threatening to undermine an array of major programs.

Boeing and the Air Force's military flight test program for the KC-46A next-generation tanker is far too aggressive and should be extended by eight months or more, according to the Defense Department's director of operational test and evaluation.

The Pentagon is dumping prime contractor Boeing from the troubled Family of Advanced Beyond Line-of-Sight Terminals (FAB-T) program and inviting other contractors to develop the system.

The Navy decided not to fund the worst-case $1.1 billion estimate for the cost overrun on the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), Navy acquisition executive Sean Stackley said today.

The United States has decided not to go along with the European-proposed code of conduct for cooperation in space because it is too restrictive, according to a senior State Department official.

The Navy is gearing up to launch a competition for the development of a Next Generation Jammer, a big-ticket program that government officials say is urgently needed to modernize the Pentagon's airborne electronic warfare portfolio and outfit Joint Strike Fighters with a crucial capability.

Science Applications International Corp. and Boeing were excluded from the Army's Ground Combat Vehicle program last year because of concerns over their design's force-protection features, according to the Government Accountability Office.

About 15 percent of Navy ships are delivered to the fleet late, a number that industry needs to improve, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert said today at the Surface Navy Association's annual symposium in Arlington, VA.

Senior Pentagon officials next week will conduct the first of two Joint Strike Fighter program reviews that are expected to lead to a formal revision of the F-35's cost estimate next month, according to defense officials.