September 14, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
NAVY
WR Systems Ltd. Fairfax, Virginia, is awarded a $490,500,000 single award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, performance based contract with provisions for cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price task orders. The contract is for maritime position, navigation and timing systems in-service engineering and technical support services. This contract includes a five-year ordering period with a total potential contract value of $490,500,000. Fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $25,000 will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia (98%); San Diego, California (1%); and Groton, Connecticut (1%), and is expected to be completed by September 2025. The contract was competitively procured by full and open competition via the Naval Information Warfare Command e-Commerce Central website, with two timely offers received. Naval Information Warfare Center Atlantic, Charleston, South Carolina, is the contracting activity (N65236-20-D-8024).
Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Owego, New York, is awarded a $28,508,412 cost-plus-incentive-fee, firm-fixed-price order (N00019-20-F-0340) against basic ordering agreement N000019-19-G-0029. This order provides non-recurring and recurring engineering support associated with software and hardware development for Phase I integration of the Digital Magnetic Anomaly Detection sensor into the MH-60R aircraft. Work will be performed in Owego, New York (66%); and Montreal, Canada (34%), and is expected to be completed in October 2023. Non-Department of Defense participant funds in the amount of 3,020,159 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is awarded a $9,049,721 modification (P00004) to cost-plus-fixed-fee order N00019-20-F-0571 against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-19-G-0008. This modification provides labor, engineering change order planning, installation and site support activities to operate the Cameri Regional Modification, Repair, Overhaul and Upgrade facility for F-35 aircraft for the government of Italy. Work will be performed in Cameri, Italy (85%); and Fort Worth, Texas (15%), and is expected to be completed by December 2020. Non-Department of Defense funds in the amount of $9,049,721 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
Eastern Research Group Inc., Chantilly, Virginia, is awarded an $8,997,911 cost-plus-fixed-fee bridge contract for analytical engineering and technical support services. Work will be performed in Indian Head, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by September 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $623,741 will be obligated at time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1); only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technology Division, Indian Head, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00174-20-C-0012).
American Apparel Inc.,* Selma, Alabama, is awarded a $7,260,212 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the purchase of up to a maximum of 70,200 marine corps tropical combat uniforms. Work will be performed in Selma, Alabama, and is expected to be complete by September 2025. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Marine Corps) funds in the amount of $1,201,631 will be obligated on the first delivery order immediately following contract award and funds will expire at the end of fiscal 2020. This contract was competitively procured via the official contract opportunities website beta.SAM.gov, with one offer received. The Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity (M67854-20-D-1690).
ARMY
Ashford Leebcor Enterprises III LLC, Williamsburg, Virginia, was awarded a $100,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract to provide maintenance and repair of real property and minor construction work for the Fort Lee military installation. Bids were solicited via the internet with eight received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 10, 2025. U.S. Army Field Directorate Office, Fort Eustis, Virginia, is the contracting activity (W91QF5-20-D-0001).
Guyco Inc., Lampasas, Texas, was awarded a $65,705,000 firm-fixed-price contract for renovation of Hammerhead Barracks at Fort Hood. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work will be performed at Fort Hood, Texas, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 4, 2022. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $65,705,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Worth, Texas, is the contracting activity (W9126G-20-C-0034).
Lockheed Martin Corp., Owego, New York, was awarded an $18,998,690 fixed-price-incentive contract for the Modernized-Radar Frequency Interferometer. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Owego, New York, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 28, 2023. Fiscal 2018 aircraft procurement (Army); and 2020 Foreign Military Sales (Qatar) funds in the amount of $18,998,690 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-20-F-0414).
Weeks Marine Inc., Covington, Louisiana, was awarded an $18,065,000 firm-fixed-price contract for maintenance dredging of the Morehead City Harbor federal navigation channel. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work will be performed in Morehead City, North Carolina, with an estimated completion date of April 30, 2021. Fiscal 2018, 2019 and 2020 civil operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $18,065,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington, North Carolina, is the contracting activity (W912PM-20-C-0022).
Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. LLC, Oak Brook, Illinois, was awarded a $15,494,310 firm-fixed-price contract for pipeline dredging and channel improvement. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Freeport, Texas, with an estimated completion date of June 18, 2021. Fiscal 2020 civil construction and non-federal 96X8862 funds in the amount of $15,494,310 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston, Texas, is the contracting activity (W912HY-20-C-0034).
SGJV LLC,* Virginia Beach, Virginia, was awarded a $14,947,159 firm-fixed-price contract for construction of a new fueling facility at Columbus Air Force Base. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Columbus, Mississippi, with an estimated completion date of July 6, 2021. Fiscal 2020 military construction (Defense-wide) funds in the amount of $14,947,159 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W91278-20-C-0027).
Stantec Consulting Service Inc., Fenton, Missouri, was awarded a $12,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for civil works design. Bids were solicited via the internet with ten received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 10, 2025. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Louis, Missouri, is the contracting activity (W912P9-20-D-0017).
Raytheon Co., Marlborough, Massachusetts, was awarded a $9,842,441 modification (P00055) to contract W58RGZ-17-C-0070 for air traffic navigation integration and coordination services. Work will be performed in Marlborough, Massachusetts, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 24, 2021. No funds were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.
Science Applications International Corp., Reston, Virginia, was awarded an $8,520,938 modification (000194) to contract W31P4Q-18-A-0011 for converged infrastructure engineering support for operational intelligence. Work will be performed at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 10, 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $8,520,938 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Boulder, Colorado, was awarded an $8,000,000 modification (P00094) to contract W9113M-12-C-0055 for engineering services support for the Joint Tactical Ground Station. Work will be performed in Boulder, Colorado, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2021. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Army) funds in the amount of $810,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.
AIR FORCE
Battistella S.p.A., Pordenone, Italy (FA5682-20-D-0001); Eiffage Infraestructuras SA, Sevilla, Spain (FA5682-20-D-0003); Ganter Interior GmbH, Waldkirch, Germany (FA5682-20-D-0004); and JV SKE Italy 2012, Vicenza, Italy (FA5682-20-D-0002), have collectively been awarded an estimated $96,000,000, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple-award construction contract. This contract provides for a broad range of design-build, sustainment, maintenance, repair, alteration, renovation and minor construction projects to include residential and commercial work for Aviano Air Base, Italy, as well as supporting installations throughout Italy. Work will be performed primarily at Aviano Air Base, and geographically separated units in Italy and is expected to be completed by Sept. 10, 2025. This contract is the result of a competitive acquisition and 12 offers were received. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $2,500 are being obligated to each awardee at the time of the award. The 31st Contracting Squadron, Aviano Air Base, Italy, is the contracting activity.
A-Tech Corp., doing business as Applied Technology Associates, Albuquerque, New Mexico, has been awarded a $17,663,490 other transaction prototype project agreement. The purpose of the agreement is to obtain a ground-based Directed Energy Weapon (DEW) prototype for the purpose of fixed-site Air Force Air Base Air Defense against Group 1 and Group 2 unmanned aerospace system (UAS) threats. The objective of the Directed Energy Counter-UAS prototype effort is to develop, assemble, and ultimately test a prototype DEW in an operationally relevant environment. This prototype effort will be divided into two phases, with Phase 2 being an option. Phase 1 consists of prototype design, assembly and contractor test. Work will be performed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and is expected to be completed by Sept. 10, 2021. This award is the result of competitive procedures under the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Consortium Initiative umbrella agreement FA8604-19-9-4050. A two-step solicitation was issued; 13 white papers and eight proposals were received. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) funds in the amount of $17,600,106; and fiscal 2020 RDT&E funds in the amount of $63,384 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8604-19-9-4050).
Correction: The contract announced on Aug. 31 for General Dynamics Mission Systems, Marion, Virginia was announced with an incorrect award date, value amount and completion date. The contract was awarded Sept. 11. General Dynamics Mission Systems, Marion, Virginia, has been awarded a $17,536,820 firm-fixed-price contract for Wide Band Radomes. This contract provides for production of Wide Band Radomes supporting U.S. Air Force F-16 aircraft outfitted with Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars. Work will be performed in Marion, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by Sept. 10, 2032. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal year (FY) 2018 aircraft procurement funds in the amount of $14,421,156 and FY 2020 aircraft procurement funds in the amount of $3,115,663 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8615-20-D-6067).
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Benco Dental Supply Co., Pittston, Pennsylvania, has been awarded a maximum $32,860,940 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for pharmaceutical products. This was a competitive acquisition with 16 offers received. This is a one-year base contract with nine one-year option periods. Location of performance is Pennsylvania, with a Sept. 10, 2021, ordering period end date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 warstopper funds. The Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity (SPE2D0-20-D-0015).
General Electric Aviation, Cincinnati, Ohio, has been awarded a maximum $32,522,610 firm-fixed price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to overhaul F108 engines. This was a limited source acquisition using justification 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. This is a one-year base contract with four one-year option periods. Locations of performance are Ohio and Canada, with a Sept. 10, 2021, performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 defense appropriated funds and working capital funds. The Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Richmond, Virginia, is the contracting activity (SPE4AX-20-D-9005).
Rohr Inc., doing business as Collins Aerospace, Chula Vista, California, has been awarded a $24,100,000 modification (P00003) to five-year, firm-fixed-price contract SPE4AX-18-D-9403 with one five-year option period for additional aviation-related spare parts and related services. This modification increases the base contract from $576,000 to $24,676,000. Location of performance is California, with an April 30, 2023, performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2018 through 2023 defense working capital funds. The Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Richmond, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
Navistar Defense LLC, Melrose Park, Illinois, has been awarded a maximum $12,229,316 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for pneumatic wheel tires. This was a sole-source acquisition using justification 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. This is a three-year contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Illinois and Ohio, with a Sept. 11, 2023, ordering period end date. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2023 Army working capital funds. The Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity (SPRDL1-20-D-0015).
DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY
L3Harris Technologies Inc., Colorado Springs, Colorado, was awarded a $22,152,476 cost-plus-fixed-fee completion contract for a research project for the Secure Advanced Framework for Simulation and Modeling (SAFE-SiM) program. SAFE-SiM seeks to build a government owned and controlled, faster-than-real time modeling and simulation environment. This capability would enable rapid analysis supporting senior-level decisions for concept of operations development, force structure composition, resource allocation and targeted technology insertion. Work will be performed in Colorado Springs, Colorado (23%); Arlington, Texas (25%); Round Rock, Texas (18%); Camden, New Jersey (13%); Chantilly, Virginia (8%); Culver City, California (7%); and Clifton Park, New York (6%), with an expected completion date of September 2021. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $5,275,000 are being obligated at the time of award. This contract was a competitive acquisition in which 10 offers were received. The Defense Advanced Research Agency, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HR0011-20-C-0145).
DEFENSE HEALTH AGENCY
Booz Allen Hamilton, McLean, Virginia, was awarded a $9,125,494.37 firm-fixed-price contract modification exercising Option Period Four on previously awarded task order HT0011-16-F-0011 for integrated professional services across the Military Health System (MHS). The underlying task order provides professional services to allow robust performance management and continuous process improvement support to maintain the MHS as a high-reliability organization. The exercised option includes additional strategic communications services valued at $457,791.30 for this current option period and supports communication and coordination with the Military Treatment Facilities through the Office of the Chief Medical Officer (CMO). This includes maintenance of the CMO website and increased support for the CMO office coordination, in addition to more frequent pushed messages and product development. This option will render continued execution of multiple work streams inherent to this contract with 54 deliverables that will unite the Services and the Defense Health Agency together as an integrated system. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $9,125,494.37 are obligated at time of award. The Defense Health Agency, Falls Church, Virginia, is the contracting activity. (Awarded September 4, 2020)
Optum Health Care Solutions LLC, Eden Prairie, Minnesota, was awarded an $8,489,105.00 firm-fixed-price modification to previously awarded contract HT0011-17-C-0017 for Nurse Advice Line support services. The modification provides for additional resources to support a surge in the Nurse Advice Line due to significant increases in call volumes during the months of March, April and May 2020. At the onset of the pandemic in March, the demand for healthcare outpaced the capacity of the health system resulting in a rapid influx of calls into the Nurse Advice Line. Fiscal 2020 COVID-19 funds are being obligated at the time of award. The Defense Health Agency, Falls Church, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
*Small Business
https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2345436/source/GovDelivery/
August 21, 2018 | International, Naval
The U.S. Navy's aircrew systems program office intends to host an industry day in late September for a real-time physiological monitoring and alerting ... http://aviationweek.com/defense/us-navy-seeks-real-time-physiological-monitoring-system
October 10, 2018 | International, Aerospace, Land
By: Valerie Insinna WASHINGTON — General Dynamics and AeroVironment are teaming up to integrate ground combat vehicles with drone technology in preparation for two high-stakes Army and Marine Corps vehicle programs, the companies announced Oct. 8. General Dynamics Land Systems and AeroVironment plan to network GD's entrant for the Marine Corps' armored reconnaissance vehicle, or ARV, program with the drone makers' Switchblade missile and the Shrike 2 unmanned aerial system still in development by the company, said Dave Sharpin, AeroVironment's head of tactical UAS. The first tests will begin this fall. The recently unveiled Shrike 2 is a hybrid vertical-takeoff-and-landing drone, with rotors that allow it to take off and land like a helicopter. It also has fixed wings to provide more endurance and the ability to fly like an airplane. It “will be the eyes in the sky, going out and doing the reconnaissance mission, finding things, reporting them back, and then once we have that situational awareness, then a Switchblade will be launched if we want to go do something kinetic with the target,” he said. The hope, Sharpin said, is to fill a need expressed by the Marine Corps but also relevant to the Army — a vehicle that can interface with a UAS that is organic to it, as well as a new way to strike targets that would be found by the drone. Ultimately, the companies believe they can parlay that concept into offerings for both the Marine Corps' ARV program as well as the Army's Next Generation Combat Vehicle. “The purpose of this partnership is to deliver a decisive advantage to ground combatants, to see first and strike first, across the tactical landscape,” Don Kotchman, U.S. vice president and general manager of General Dynamics Land Systems, said in a statement. “We're confident this integrated capability, expanding the warfighter's situational awareness, survivability and over-the-next-obstacle lethality, will define the market for years to come." Full article: https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/ausa/2018/10/09/general-dynamics-aerovironment-join-forces-to-give-combat-vehicles-their-own-drones
August 1, 2018 | International, Aerospace
As big defense firms line up to pitch their fighter planes to India, the government of Narendra Modi is demanding they build in India, something that might be at odds with the Trumpian America First philosophy. By PAUL MCLEARY WASHINGTON: The Trump administration has cleared the decks for what promises to be a huge increase in technology and weapons exports to India, putting the country on the same footing as members of NATO, and allies like Japan and Australia, when it comes to favored export status. While the new status may pave the way for major U.S. defense firms to lock up multi-billion deals with the Indian government, those deals would likely come with the stipulation that production be moved to India, something American defense giants like Lockheed Martin and Boeing have promised to do, even if it runs counter to the Trump administration's focus on creating more manufacturing jobs at home. Such offsets, as they are known in the arms export business, are a staple of such deals and are a crucial part of negotiations. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross made the announcement yesterday as part of the US government's continuing efforts to draw closer to Delhi, partly as a bulwark against Chinese expansionism in the region. Granting India Strategic Trade Authorization status also comes as the Indian military is considering spending tens of billions of dollars on drones, fighters and helicopters made by U.S. defense manufacturers. Ross, speaking at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce event, said the move reflects India's efforts to abide by multilateral export rules, and “provides India greater supply chain efficiency, both for defense, and for other high-tech products.” India's ambassador to the United States, Navtej Sarna, added that it is a sign of trust in India's “capabilities as an economy and as a security partner, because it also...would allow the transfer of more sensitive defense technologies,” and “fleshes out our defense partnership in a big way.” But the new trade status can only do so much, and India's decades-long reliance on Russian weaponry over U.S. or European equipment is something that shows no sign of changing anytime soon, a fact that rankles many on Capitol Hill. In Washington, the House recently passed its version of the 2019 NDAA, which granted Defense Secretary James Mattis' request to waive sanctions on partner countries that have bought Russian arms in the past, but the Senate has yet to take up the bill, and is expected to vote on it some time next month. The waivers, Mattis said in a series of letters to lawmakers, would allow the Pentagon to forge closer ties with countries like India, Vietnam, and Indonesia, by not penalizing them for having Russian equipment, even as they move closer to the U.S. But the chronically chaotic state of the Indian military's acquisition practices also presents significant hurdles, according to experts. Air Marshal M. Matheswaran, former deputy chief of the defense staff in the Indian Ministry of Defense told an audience at the Stimson Center in Washington that the Indian government and military often seek to simply to “fill in technological gaps” they believe they have, rather than building strategically. “Their procurement is a mess. They're not joint. They're risk adverse. They've just got a ton of problems,” one former White House official, who asked to speak anonymously, told me. “Broadly, in procurement they have tried in the post-Cold War era to diversify their procurements as a political sop to potential partners,” he said. “They start to move more through the pipeline than they can actually pay for, and they end up building this very motley force in a way that's not always coherent.” As it stands, the United States accounts for about 12 percent of India's defense imports, a number which is expected to grow 6.2 percent annually through 2023, according to a recent study by Avescent, a consulting firm. The Indian defense budget, at more than $53 billion, is the fifth-largest in the world, and as the Avascent analysis noted, it “is also one of the most competitive,” as local companies battle it out, along with a mix of Russian, French, Israeli, and American firms. The air force, for example, flys Russian MiG and French Rafale fighters, along with American C-17 and C-130 transport aircraft and Israeli Heron drones. In recent years, France has emerged as the big winner in several hard-fought awards, inking an $8.6 billion contract for 36 Rafale fighter aircraft in 2016 — which will serve as India's primary nuclear delivery aircraft — and a deal for six Scorpene-class submarines for $4.6 billion in 2005. As part of the government's “Make in India” initiative, most of the work on the subs will be done at the Mazagon dockyard in Mumbai. But Russia isn't going anywhere. Moscow is on the verge of finalizing a $3.2 billion contract for four S-400 surface-to-air missile systems with India, part of about $12 billion worth of Russian arms deals in the works with the Indian government. The two countries are also close to finalizing a $1.1 billion deal for 48 additional Mi-17-V5 military transport/utility helicopters, with final signatures expected during Russian President Vladimir Putin's October visit to India. According to local reports, the contract will mandate that 30 percent of the work be done by the Indian defense industry, as part of the Modi government's push to build up the Indian manufacturing sector. The helicopters joint U.S.-made Chinooks and Apaches in the country's rotary-wing fleet. The Indian government says that it doesn't have a problem with such a mix and match approach, however, even if it does complicate supply chains. Currently, the big contract up for an award is the Indian Air Force's requirement for 110 aircraft, expected to be worth as much as $15 billion. Boeing has announced it would join with Indian firms Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and Mahindra Defense Systems to manufacture its F/A-18 Hornet in the country if it wins the contract, and Lockheed Martin has pledged to move its entire F-16 production line to India from Greenville, S.C., to India, potentially at the expense of 250 South Carolina jobs. “The F-16 gives the Indian industry a unique opportunity to be at the center of the world's largest fighter aircraft ecosystem,” Lockheed exec Vivek Lallsaid earlier this year in his pitch, adding that the company was ready to equip the jets with the same target tracking device currently on the F-35, as well as a helmet-mounted tracking system and a new radio data link system. Swedish defense giant Saab Group is also in the running for the fighter deal, and has announced it is ready to do a “full” technology transfer of its Gripen-E fighter jet production to India if it wins the competition. Boeing, in conjunction with Indian manufacturer Tata has already moved part of its Apache helicopter fuselage manufacturing to India, and the factory will eventually be the sole supplier of the part for Boeing's worldwide sales. The promise was one of the keys to the company winning the $3.1 billion deal in 2015 for 22 Apache and 15 Chinook helicopters. While the deal for the fighter planes shakes out over the coming months, the competition is merely one part of a larger American push, which included a recent visit by the Pentagon's top weapons buyer, Ellen Lord, and the upcoming “two-plus-two” meeting between defense minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and their American counterparts, James Mattis and Mike Pompeo. And in a jab at the Russians, Indian officials announced this week that they would be replacing their Russian-made Pechora air defense systems around the capital in a $1 billion deal to buy the NASAMS-II, manufactured by Kongsberg and Raytheon. https://breakingdefense.com/2018/07/despite-trumps-rhetoric-u-s-defense-firms-pitch-moving-jobs-to-india/