Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., have introduced a bill that would direct the federal government to coordinate research and development initiatives on distributed ledger technologies.

The National R&D Strategy for Distributed Ledger Technology Act would require the Office of Science and Technology Policy to come up with a national strategy for R&D with regard to DLT and its applications, the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee said Monday.

“It is imperative that we maintain global leadership in the development of emerging technologies, including distributed ledger technology,” Wicker said. “This bill would launch pivotal exploration into this promising and novel architecture for computing and data storage.”

The measure would also direct the National Science Foundation to continue backing DLT-related research and the National Institute of Standards and Technology to take part in an applied research project to investigate and demonstrate the potential benefits of DLT.

“Distributed ledger technology has the potential to make commerce more secure and transparent, as well as reduce marketplace friction. … We need to make sure existing regulations do not stand in the way of innovation,” Lummis said.

The U.S. Marine Corps has released its 2022 Aviation Plan highlighting the importance of digital interoperability within its fleet of aircraft, Breaking Defense reported Tuesday.

The document states that the capability to fuse, sense and share information at tactical speeds within the Joint Force, allies and partners increasingly characterizes the future Marine Air Ground Task Force or MAGTF.

According to the aviation plan, MAGTF DI seeks to develop and deploy capabilities within a multiplatform aerial layer to link the space layer, ground-based maneuver units and higher echelons via redundant access points into the Joint All Domain Command and Control networks and the Naval Tactical Grid. 

“The goal of MAGTF DI is to provide the required information to the right participants at the right time, to overcome an adversary, while improving efficiency and effectiveness. MAGTF DI aims to provide greater situational awareness, accelerate the kill chain, and enhance survivability to outmaneuver and defeat the threat,” the document reads.

According to the publication, the plan includes the strategic vision by the service’s deputy commandant for aviation and projects the Marine Corps’ future aviation fleet.

President Biden on Tuesday visited Lockheed Martin’s Troy, Alabama-based factory as the U.S. ramps up production of Javelin antitank missiles for Ukraine to help the country fight Russian invasion, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Lockheed is looking for workers to help build missiles at its Alabama plant amid a labor shortage nationwide. The company has 26 vacancies at the factory, including engineers, missile assemblers and quality supervisors.

“Being the arsenal of democracy also means good-paying jobs for American workers in Alabama, in the states all across America, where defense equipment is manufactured and assembled,” Presient Biden said Tuesday during his visit to the Lockheed factory.

“Two hundred and sixty-five people here at this plant are directly employed working on the Javelin program. All told, Lockheed Martin has brought nearly 3,000 jobs to Alabama,” the president added.

A senior defense official said the U.S. has enough stocks of Javelins but wants to keep the missile production line open in support of Ukraine. According to the White House, the U.S. has transferred more than 5,000 Javelins to Ukraine.

“We had not been buying them but we’re working again with the contractor to see what has to be done to continue to keep that line going and open because it has proven to be an important piece of Ukraine’s self-defense,” said the official.

The Department of Defense has launched the 5G Smart Warehousing project at Naval Base Coronado in an effort to capitalize on 5G-enabled capabilities to streamline naval logistic operations.

DOD said Monday its 5G-NextG Initiative within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering collaborated with Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, Naval Supply Systems Command, Navy Region Southwest, Naval Base Coronado and industry partners to develop the project demonstrating the use of 5G to support trans-shipments between shore facilities and naval units.

The transportation and storage of materiel and supplies, as well as their identification, recording, organization and retrieval, are some of the warehouse operations that the initiative looks to enhance.

“As one of the first sites funded to test this technology for the U.S. military, we will help map 5G development and DoD strategies moving into the future,” said Captain Timothy Brown, commanding officer, Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center San Diego.