Jane Edwards
The Government Accountability Office has recommended that the undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment at the Department of Defense ensure that the Missile Defense Agency gets an independent technical risk assessment and cost estimate for the Glide Phase Interceptor program prior to transitioning to the product development phase.
GAO said Thursday it made the recommendation after it found that MDA does not have plans to secure early independent evaluation of the GPI program’s performance or cost risks.
GPI is a missile designed to target an adversary’s hypersonic weapon in glide phase or mid-flight.
The congressional watchdog also assessed the Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor program, which seeks to monitor the flight path of a hypersonic weapon using space-based sensors.
For the HBTSS initiative, GAO called on DOD to ensure that MDA, the U.S. Space Force and the Space Development Agency come up with a memorandum of understanding outlining the responsibilities and roles for satellite development and operation in missile warning and defense domains.
GAO said the memo should define a process meant to prevent overlap and duplication and state which agencies will be responsible for building prototypes and operational satellites.
Join ExecutiveBiz Events for the Hypersonics Forum on July 12 to hear from federal and industry leaders as they discuss the role of public-private partnerships in hypersonics development in relation to national security, military capabilities and strategic competition in today’s evolving threat landscape.
