The pace at which the U.S. military acquires new weapons could see significant changes if recommendations from a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report are adopted. The report urges the Department of Defense (DoD) to revamp its testing protocols to streamline and expedite the weapon acquisition process.
The GAO, an independent agency tasked with auditing government operations, released a comprehensive 65-page report detailing the current inefficiencies in weapons acquisition. The report suggests 13 strategic recommendations designed to enhance the military’s capability to modernize through improved testing and evaluation processes.
Identified Gaps and Recommendations
According to the GAO’s analysis, existing DoD policies do not align with best practices in product development. The report emphasizes the need for early involvement of testers, iterative testing procedures, the use of digital simulations, and continuous user feedback. These gaps have been identified as stumbling blocks in the DoD’s efforts to keep pace with technological advancements globally.
Shelby Oakley, GAO’s director of contracting and national security acquisitions, noted that the DoD’s modernization plans necessitate new or revised policies. “We relied on DoD’s individual test and evaluation-related organizations to define modernization in the context of how they’ve defined their organizations’ future needs,” Oakley explained to Military.com.
Response from the DoD
The GAO’s recommendations were met with mixed responses from the DoD. Out of the 13 recommendations, the DoD agreed with seven, partially agreed with five, and disagreed with one. Notably, the Navy did not agree with the recommendation to include end user agreements for feedback in testing plans.
The report highlights the challenges faced by the Air Force, particularly with the T-7A Red Hawk initiative, as an example of the difficulties in accessing timely data and complying with cybersecurity requirements.
Challenges in Implementing Modernization
The GAO conducted visits to key military testing sites, including the Air Force Test Center and the Army Test and Evaluation Command, to understand better the challenges faced in modernizing testing environments. The findings indicate that the DoD’s goal of rapidly developing advanced weapon systems remains unmet, partly due to testing and evaluation bottlenecks.
The report’s release coincides with legislative efforts in Washington, such as the recently passed National Defense Authorization Act, though the timing is coincidental.
Long-standing Issues
Oakley pointed out that the challenges in weapons system acquisition have been recognized for decades, with the GAO listing them as high-risk since 1990. The pace of delivering new capabilities remains slow, with the average time frame extending to 12 years for major defense programs, compared to 10 years noted in previous assessments.
Despite these challenges, the GAO is optimistic about the DoD’s willingness to implement changes, including a November 2025 memorandum aimed at transforming defense acquisition into a warfighting acquisition system.
