The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a new report of interest to the defense acquisition workforce entitled “GAO-23-105008 "Middle-Tier Defense Acquisitions: Rapid Prototyping and Fielding Requires Changes to Oversight and Development Approaches."

According to the GAO, “DoD is working to improve how fast it develops and delivers weapon systems. DOD has been using a streamlined process to do so—known as the middle tier of acquisitions or MTA pathway—which aims to deliver systems within 5 years from program start. We found that certain MTA programs that we reviewed don't fully incorporate 4 key principles of product development, such as dropping less urgent requirements to stay on schedule. Following these principles could help programs develop and deliver weapon systems more quickly. Our recommendations address these and other issues. DOD's weapons acquisitions are on our High Risk List.”