May 11, 2022

Duckworth Chairs SASC Airland Subcommittee Hearing on Army Modernization

 

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] — U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Chair of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) Airland Subcommittee, led a subcommittee hearing on Army modernization in review of the Defense Authorization Request for Fiscal Year 2023. Witnesses included Mr. Douglas Bush, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology; Lieutenant General James Richardson, Deputy Commanding General, Army Futures Command; and Colonel Christopher Grice, Director of Materiel, Army G-8. Watch the Senator’s opening remarks here and her questions for the witnesses here.

“As we meet to explore the Department of the Army’s investment and modernization strategy as presented in its Fiscal Year 2023 budget request, I would like to take a moment to acknowledge work Soldiers are doing across the globe and express my gratitude for military families and the vital role they play,” said Duckworth. “Soldiers and their service counterparts remain engaged in operations and training events that test equipment and identify needed capabilities. Today, thousands of Soldiers are deployed to the European continent in support of Ukraine and deterring expansion of Russian aggression. These missions validate the importance of prepositioned stocks and the complexity of contested logistics. Operations in Ukraine demonstrate the criticality of competent combined arms operations for a ground force and the power of joint and coalition operations for a nation.”

“Soldier-centered practices such as Soldier Touch Point in the prototyping phase and ‘try before you buy’ partnerships with industry improve functionality and Soldier acceptability and make more rapid fielding possible, and I applaud the Army’s progress in this area,” Duckworth continued. “The Army continues to make bold steps in its effort to modernize, but hard decisions lie ahead. I have great confidence in you all and look forward to another productive year as we continue to field a world class Army.”

Duckworth was one of the first handful of Army women to fly combat missions during Operation Iraqi Freedom. She served in the Reserve Forces for 23 years before retiring from military service in 2014 at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. She served on the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) during her four years serving in the U.S. House of Representatives.

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