Gates hits army's top program
By: Jen DiMascio
April 14, 2009 04:34 AM EST
Of the more than 50 cuts and other radical changes to Pentagon weapons systems that were announced last week by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, he said reshaping the Army’s Future Combat System was the most difficult.
The Army’s top leaders defended their major modernization program — essentially a new family of combat vehicles, robots and sensors connected by a computer network. The program was conceived in 2001 to provide a lighter, faster way to deploy an Army brigade, with systems that would allow war fighters to see and respond to threats before they became deadly.
Gates, in a wide-ranging interview with reporters after announcing his proposed cuts, said he spent more time discussing the Future Combat System than any other topic with Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey and Secretary Pete Geren. Yet he had harsh words for the program, striking down its concept and execution.
After nine years and $15 billion spent in development, the program still wasn’t tackling the lessons learned in recent wars, Gates said. It was relying too heavily on the network to detect and stave off threats and did not focus enough on protecting forces after a blast had occurred.
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Gates Takes On Pentagon
(Wall Street Journal, April 16, 2009, Pg. 5)
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates took his campaign to change the Pentagon’s weapons-buying habits directly to the uniformed military, telling an audience of young officers that military brass for too long viewed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as “exotic distractions.” Gates spoke at the Air War College in Montgomery, Ala., which will be followed in the next two days by similar addresses to the Navy and Army’s leading war colleges.
Gates: Pirate Drama Shows Value of Simple Weapons
(Yahoo.com, Associated Press, April 15, 2009)
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said that the high-seas pirate drama shows why the Pentagon should buy more affordable ships, planes and weapons even if they are not perfect. “As we saw last week, you don’t necessarily need a billion-dollar ship to chase down a bunch of teen-age pirates,” he said. Gates is touring war colleges this week, selling his plan to reorder the Pentagon budget. He wants to cancel some big programs and scale back others.
Gates Hints at Big Changes
(Washington Times, April 16, 2009, Pg. 1)
A review of defense programs undertaken every four years could bring big changes in the Pentagon’s fiscal 2011 budget, beyond the sweeping overhaul already unveiled for 2010, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said. Gates said he has put off decisions on several weapons programs until the Pentagon completes an accelerated Quadrennial Defense Review later this year. Those programs include amphibious military operations, a next-generation cruiser and work on a new bomber.
Military Services Largely on Board with Gates’ Defense Budget
(Christian Science Monitor, csmonitor.com, April 16, 2009))
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates’ controversial new budget has yet to encounter the stiff resistance that even he expected from members of Congress, industry officials and even senior officers inside his own Pentagon. It is a sign that many of the wide-ranging reforms contained in his half-trillion-dollar spending plan could actually succeed.
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