Key point: Pitch Days are an important way for the Air Force to gauge, and acquire, new technologies.

WASHINGTON – Hypersonics and “pitch days,” two of the hottest concepts at the Air Force right now, will come together for the first time Nov. 7. Breaking Defense reports. Continue reading original article

The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:

30 Oct. 2019 -- Air Force experts will judge products and ideas from startup firms related to solving key challenges to hypersonic flight, such as Mach 5-plus propulsion and new materials that can withstand extremely high temperatures.

Lt. Gen. Duke Richardson, military deputy to Air Force acquisition czar Will Roper, will oversee the panel of judges who pick the winner of a same-day contract of up to $750,000 to jump start their work, according to an Oct. 18 announcement from Air Force Materiel Command’s 96th Test Wing. The pitch day will be held at the Doolittle Institute in Niceville, Fla.

“Pitch days” for startup firms, ubiquitous in the Silicon Valley venture capital environment, have become a staple of Air Force efforts rapidly to ingest new technologies, software, data processes, and manufacturing tools into service systems development.

This article by John Keller originally appeared on Military & Aerospace Electronics in 2019.

Image: Reuters.