After spending the bulk of the year straddling two beats — the US Army and broader Pentagon — this reporter bids adieu to full-time service coverage, but not before digging into a host of contracting and acquisition changes flowing between the two.
With Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth taking the Pentagon’s helm this year, defense and industry sources were expecting changes related to not just instructional culture, but also how the services buy and field equipment. And Hegseth provided newly minted Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George with the cover to move out with some long-simmering changes.
Here are five top Army and Pentagon stories from the past 12 months, ranging from a top-level acquisition revamp of the service to cutting red tape for soldiers to use small drones on the battlefield.
1. „What the F— Is Going On?”: Industry Confusion as Army Contracts Face Scrutiny
Just days after President Donald Trump was sworn in to his second term, reports of confusion and panic began to trickle in regarding concerns of an Army pause in awarding new contracts. One industry source, speaking anonymously, was quoted asking, „What the f— is going on?”
An Army source indicated it was „a bit of a pause and review, excluding things directly tied to readiness, modernization, and people,” noting it „touches all aspects of the requirements and contracting process.” However, details on which programs would fall into the „readiness” category remained elusive. While the Pentagon later refuted a broad halt, it conceded that some „activities may be paused.” This initial uncertainty kicked off a year brimming with acquisition news from the heart of the defense establishment.
2. A Sweeping Reorganization: Army Eyes Massive Cuts to Generals, PEOs, and AFC Power
While the Army’s top general had been working on a larger service revamp for some time with Secretary Driscoll at the civilian helm, the two began plotting a massive acquisition overhaul. By late April, tentative plans circulated throughout the industry, signaling dramatic changes: a reduction in the number of four-star general officers, a cut in the number of Program Executive Offices (PEOs) managing weapons programs, and the merger of Army Futures Command (AFC) with Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC).
While initial details emerged gradually, it took another six months for the service to publicly detail the acquisition shakeup. This revamp included the establishment of the new Army Transformation and Training Command and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology (ASA(ALT)) at the top of the new structure. Under these two offices now reside six overarching Portfolio Acquisition Executives (PAEs): Fires in Redstone Arsenal, Ala.; Command and Control (C2) and Counter C2 in Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.; Maneuver Ground in Fort Benning, Ga.; Maneuver Air in Fort Rucker, Ala.; Agile Sustainment and Ammunition in Picatinny, N.J.; and Layered Protection Plus Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear in Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.
3. Hegseth’s Mandate: „Comprehensive Transformation” Unveils Divestments and Program Cuts
Although it took time for the Army to unfurl its acquisition structure overhaul, at the start of May, Defense Secretary Hegseth signed an order for the „transformation” of the Army. This directive included divesting certain formations, canceling procurement on legacy systems, and merging several internal organizations. The Army wasted no time, announcing it would cease production of Humvees and Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, and instructed General Dynamics Land Systems to halt production of its brand-new light tank, the M10 Booker.
Secretary Driscoll candidly stated at the time, „The Booker is a classic example of sunk cost fallacy, and the Army doing something wrong. We wanted to develop a small tank that was agile and could be dropped into places our regular tanks can’t. We got a heavy tank.” Also on the chopping block were the „obsolete” Gray Eagle drone, produced by General Atomics, and an order to halt work on its embattled Robotic Combat Vehicle (RCV). Instead, Hegseth directed the service to focus on several key areas and programs, including: a future Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) variant with a seeker to hit moving targets on land and at sea, ready by 2027; achieving electromagnetic and air-littoral dominance by 2027; fielding new launched effects in every division by the end of 2026 for soldiers to use from the ground or air; improving counter-UAS mobility and affordability while integrating these capabilities into maneuver platoons by 2026 and maneuver companies by 2027; and extending advanced manufacturing, including 3D printing, to operational units by 2026.
4. EXCLUSIVE: IVAS Hardware Recompete Sees Anduril-Meta Team Up Against New Entrant Rivet
This year also saw significant headwinds on a new Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) hardware redo, following years of questions about the troubled program’s fate. The initial device, based on Microsoft’s commercially available HoloLens 2, was plagued with soldier complaints ranging from cyber sickness symptoms like nausea and visual discomfort to pervasive software glitches. After years of fits, starts, and redesigns, the Army moved ahead with a plan to recompete the hardware earlier this year, officially asking industry to submit viable options for the Soldier Borne Mission Command (SBMC) competition. By April, Anduril officially assumed oversight of the original multi-billion-dollar IVAS production deal, which is expected to focus on the data architecture. The competition continued, and in September, it was reported that startup firm Rivet had been selected to go head-to-head with Anduril.
5. Cutting Through Red Tape: Pentagon’s New Drone Policy Empowers Soldiers
For the past couple of years, a central challenge hindering soldiers from widely using small drones has been the onerous red tape associated with losing them. Every time a soldier lost or broke a drone — regardless of its size or price tag — they were saddled with reporting paperwork, a mandatory investigation, and potentially a loss of pay. This bureaucracy left soldiers hesitant to fly smaller drones, prompting service officials to look for ways to reclassify drones weighing below 55 pounds as expendable.
This year, service officials announced plans to clarify Financial Liability Investigation of Property Loss (FLIPL) policies, issue a new All Army Activities memo, and work with the Office of the Secretary of Defense to implement changes. Then, in July, Secretary Hegseth issued the new „Unleashing US Military Drone Dominance” directive. This order instructed every squad to be armed with small, one-way attack drones by the end of fiscal 2026, while also enabling troops to modify small drones as necessary in the field, as part of a broader push to break through policy and acquisition barriers. One Army official, Col. Nick Ryan, director of the Army Capability Manager for Unmanned Aircraft Systems, explained that these changes are expected to make soldiers less hesitant to use small UAVs. „Army-wide fielding of advanced UAS technologies was hindered by slow bureaucratic processes, overly restrictive policies, risk-averse acquisition oversight, and sluggish budget debates that stifled innovation,” Col. Ryan stated. „This new Secretary of Defense guidance cuts through that to expedite lethal UAS directly to our Soldiers.”
