Contract Awards by US Department of Defense – October 14, 2020

On the same subject

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  May 6, 2022 | International, C4ISR

  Thales : la DGA commande 21 nacelles optroniques TALIOS supplémentaires

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  March 5, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security, Other Defence

  DARPA Modernizes Small Business Innovation Research Program

  Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) are the principal set-aside programs for small business participation in federal research and development funding, yet the requirements for administering and managing these programs have not changed significantly in decades. To keep pace with discovery in science and technology worldwide, DARPA now intends to release SBIR/STTR opportunities on an out-of-cycle basis, separate from the three pre-determined announcements traditionally issued directly through the Department of Defense (DoD). The change is expected to reduce the overall time from opportunity announcement to contract award. Prior to the change, the timeline for SBIR/STTR funding opportunities was managed independently of DARPA's primary technology programs, which resulted in small businesses being isolated from the benefits associated with integration into established program communities. Under the terms of the pilot program, however, DARPA will institute timesaving measures to speed program integration, such as Direct to Phase II authority, which allows the agency to bypass Phase I research requirements once performers provide satisfactory documentation of feasibility, and/or proof of scientific merit, technical merit, and commercialization potential. DARPA will also seek to identify SBIR/STTR Phase II awardees with a compelling go-to-market strategy for participation in a newly created commercialization accelerator. The DARPA accelerator will provide additional funding to employ one entrepreneur-in-residence or business development lead who will offer the awardee direct support for activities including, but not limited to, customer engagement planning, market analysis and mapping, competitive analysis, techno-economic analysis, IP securement strategy development, and financial plan creation. “It's essential to change our acquisition practices to mirror the commercial marketplace if we hope to attract revolutionary companies that normally avoid working with the federal government,” said Dr. Steven Walker, director of DARPA. “This move will provide DARPA the flexibility to operate at a much faster pace than traditional SBIR/STTR contracting cycles have historically allowed.” Congress established the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program in 1982 to provide opportunities for small businesses to participate in federal government-sponsored research and development. Since that time, DARPA has leveraged SBIR awards to promote and sustain small business innovation as well as foster the development and transition of critical national security capabilities. Full details regarding DARPA's SBIR/STTR programs and associated Broad Agency Announcements are available at: https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/for-small-businesses. https://www.darpa.mil/news-events/2019-03-01

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  June 9, 2020 | International, Aerospace

  F-15E becomes first aircraft compatible with new nuclear bomb design

  By: Aaron Mehta WASHINGTON — America's newest nuclear bomb design has been successfully tested on the F-15E, making the Strike Eagle the first fighter jet to be officially compaiable with the B61-12 design. Two test flights were flown twice in March at the Tonopah Test Range in Nevada, according to a release by Sandia Labs. The mock weapon was released on one test at about 1,000 feet and at nearly the speed of sound, while a higher-altitude test occurred at around 25,000 feet; both tests hit the target as designed. “It's representative of the environment for the weapon,” Steven Samuels, a manager with Sandia's B61-12 system's team, said in a news release. “The flight test is really everything coming together to say we're good.” The B61-12 program will replace the B61-3, -4, -7 and -10 nuclear gravity bomb variants with a new warhead design. The warhead is being developed and produced by the National Nuclear Security Administration, a semi-independent agency located within the Department of Energy, while the Pentagon is developing new tailkit assemblies for the design. An NNSA estimate puts the likely cost of the program between $8 billion to $9 billion. The upgraded variant will be certified on America's F-15, F-16 and B-2 aircraft, as well as on aircraft for NATO member nations. The F-35 is expected to go through certification on the weapon at some point in the next decade. The weapon passed its final design review in October 2018. Notably, the NNSA release states that the first production unit is scheduled for completion in fiscal 2022, when previous agency statements had set that target at March 2020. The source of the delay is likely an issue with an off-the-shelf part, which did not meet NNSA's standards for parts on the weapon, that was discovered last summer and will result in time delays and cot hundreds of millions of dollars to replace. “The success of these tests is a major milestone on the path to full rate production and the B61-12's initial operation capability on the F-15E in the coming years,” Brig. Gen. Ty Neuman, NNSA's principal assistant deputy administrator for military application, said in a statement. “Once delivered, this capability will underpin our nation's deterrent and strengthen our NATO partnerships.” https://www.defensenews.com/smr/nuclear-arsenal/2020/06/08/f-15e-becomes-first-aircraft-certified-for-new-nuclear-bomb-design/