Army’s push to build air defense fit for future is stuck in the old ways,
GAO says By PHILLIP WALTER WELLMAN STARS AND STRIPES •
June 18, 2025
The Army’s push to develop and field modernized air and missile defenses may be slowed by the service’s approach to design and testing of new systems, the Government Accountability Office said in a report June 17, 2025. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes) Army efforts to protect soldiers, equipment and installations in the face of Russian and Chinese weapons advancements are running up against the service’s overreliance on old-school tools, Congress’ watchdog agency said.
A Government Accountability Office report released Tuesday urges the Army to start consistently following leading practices in the push to design air and missile defenses capable of countering near-peer adversaries. “The Army may be missing opportunities for quicker delivery of capabilities if it does not ... adopt modern design tools across its air and missile defense modernization efforts,” the GAO said.
The report notes seven major projects — including short-range air defense systems, directed-energy weapons and counter-drone technologies — that the Army has undertaken since 2017. Funding requests for these programs rose from $8.8 billion to $11.8 billion between 2021 and 2025, the GAO said.
However, most of those seven are still in development, and only one — the Sgt. Stout, a maneuverable short-range air defense system — has reached soldiers in the field, according to the report.
Read more at:
https://www.stripes.com/branches/army/2025-06-18/air-defense-development-report-18161240.htmlSource - Stars and Stripes
