Citing industry readiness and anticipated congressional support, the head of the Air Force's Special Operations Command said today "there's a good likelihood" the armed overwatch program will transition to procurement in fiscal year 2022. Coming off a fiscal year in which the program experienced significant funding cuts 210481 and endured lawmakers' demands for extra oversight, Lt. Gen. Jim Slife told reporters during the Air Force Association conference here this morning that "congressional support seems to be firming up for armed overwatch." While officials had hoped to transition to procurement in FY-21, the timeline was delayed on the heels of the passage of the FY-21 Defense Appropriations Act, which allocated $21 million of the $101 million the Pentagon had requested to start buying new armed overwatch aircraft. But amid the current appropriation and authorization process, Slife noted that initial committee feedback has signaled to the service that progress wouldn't be stalled.
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