Military

Army surges ahead with weapons development, says its still 'ready for war'

The Army acquisition community has set up a dedicated COVID-19 Task Force to address emerging challenges related to the widespread impact of the virus -- intended to both safeguard the workforce, track the impact upon major defense suppliers and sustain necessary weapons development.

The intent is naturally to ensure that the Army remains “ready for war” in the event that threats and challenges emerge during the outbreak, by conducting a series of industrial base reviews to assess weapons and technology development with major defense contractors and their subcontractors. The Army wants to ensure that, despite some anticipated short-term setbacks, its current and future weapons systems are ultimately not compromised in any substantial way.

“The Army has been looking at the industrial base and our ability to maintain programs for continued readiness,” Dr. Bruce Jette, Assistant Secretary of the Army, Acquisition, Logistics and Technology, told reporters. “We are running a day to day work assessment to make adjustments according to a running estimate, to make sure we are ahead of this.”