Defense Business Brief: A budget date; Army ditching Stryker gun; M&A continues; and more.

The Biden administration is now expected to drop its full budget proposal on May 27, the latest an annual federal spending request has been sent to Congress in at least a century. While you wait, try building your own budget request with the Defense Futures Simulator, a project of the American Enterprise Institute, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and War on the Rocks.

Facing a budget crunch, the U.S. Army plans to divest its 105-millimeter Stryker Mobile Gun Systems by the end of fiscal 2022. “This decision comes after a comprehensive analysis highlighted obsolescence and systemic issues with the system's dated cannon and automatic loader,” the Army said in a May 12 statement. “[T]he divestiture of obsolete systems is also an essential component because it frees up resources and manpower that can be applied to other critical capability needs.”

Meanwhile, American Rheinmetall, the U.S. arm of the German arms maker, opened a new facility in Sterling Heights, Michigan, as part of its pursuit of the U.S. Army’s Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle contract. The nearly 30,000 square feet will house more than 30 workers. It also has “two high bay areas that will be used for a hardware and software integration lab and prototype build area as the program progresses.” Rheinmetall has teamed with Textron Systems, Raytheon Technologies, and L3Harris Technologies in the contest to replace the Bradley Fighting Vehicle.

Lockheed Martin has pulled employees who maintain Iraq’s F-16s, because of repeated rocket attacks, the New York Times reports. “The decision by Lockheed Martin is expected to ground the few remaining F-16s from Iraq’s fleet that were still operational,” the newspaper reports.

OneWeb, the global satellite communications company building a broadband satellite network, plans to acquire TrustComm Inc., a Texas-based company that “underpins our strategy to rapidly scale satellite communications service to the U.S. Department of Defense and other government agencies as they look to integrate high throughput, low latency solutions to meet new connectivity demands,” Dylan Browne, OneWeb’s head of Government Services, said in an emailed statement. More here.

Also, Booz Allen Hamilton  plans to acquire information technology and services firm Liberty IT Solutions for $725 million.

Making moves. AeroVironment’s board has elected President and CEO Wahid Nawabi chairman, succeeding Tim Conver, who is retiring.

From Defense One

DOD Lifts Mask Mandate for Fully Vaccinated Personnel // Elizabeth Howe

Fully vaccinated DOD personnel are no longer required to wear a mask at Defense Department facilities.

It's Official: New Air Force Ones Will Be Delivered Late // Marcus Weisgerber

"Definitely a setback" said Lt. Gen. Duke Richardson, the U.S. Air Force's deputy weapons buyer, as Boeing legal battle delays production.

The Air Force Is Planning For a Future Without the F-22 // Tara Copp and Marcus Weisgerber

Just four fighters will make up the future fleet: F-35, F-16, F-15EX, and NGAD, chief says.

Space Force Aims to Take on an Air Force Surveillance Mission // Tara Copp

Ground Moving Target Indicator satellites would begin to replace decades-old aircraft as the newest service expands its mission set.

Old-Time Radio: Pentagon's Electronic-Warfare Gear Is Dated, Experts Say // Patrick Tucker

Lawmakers say more of the EW budget should go to R&D.

Time Crunch for Afghanistan Withdrawal Is Producing a Big Trash Pile // Jacqueline Feldscher

One senator objects to the way troops are destroying equipment they don't have time to sort. But there are reasons for it.

White House Aims To Beef Up Nation's Cybersecurity After Pipeline Hack // Patrick Tucker

A new executive order shifts how the government buys software and gives consumers visibility into products' security features.

Shake Off the Pentagon's Industrial-Age Bureaucracy // Dan Ward, Matt MacGregor and Pete Modigliani

Five disciplines and five initiatives can help the U.S. military better adapt to 21st-century threats.