The Pentagon says it wants Silicon Valley speed with defense-grade reliability. It also wants lower costs and more competition. What it’s learning is that you can’t just flip a procurement model on its head without rattling the industrial base you spent decades shaping.

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Sandra Erwin writes about military space programs, policy, technology and the industry that supports this sector. She has covered the military, the Pentagon, Congress and the defense industry for nearly two decades as editor of NDIA’s National Defense...