Space Acquisitions: Government and Industry Partners Face Substantial Challenges in Developing New DOD Space Systems

摘要

Despite a growing investment in space, the majority of large-scale acquisition programs in the Department of Defense's (DOD) space portfolio have experienced problems during the past two decades that have driven up cost and schedules and increased technical risks. The cost resulting from acquisition problems along with the ambitious nature of space programs have resulted in cancellations of programs that were expected to require investments of tens of billions of dollars. Along with the cost increases, many programs are experiencing significant schedule delays as much as 7 years. resulting in potential capability gaps in areas such as positioning, navigation, and timing; missile warning; and weather monitoring.