January 31, 2023 | International, Land
US Army goes virtual to help Ukraine maintain weapons
The Army is realizing the value of remote maintenance, now used to help Ukraine, for future sustainment in highly contested environments.
December 14, 2018 | International, C4ISR
Marines looking to integrate new information capabilities
By: Mark Pomerleau
The Marine Corps has famously claimed that every Marine is a rifleman, but the Corps has moved 1,000 personnel in the last two years to focus on cyber, electronic warfare, signals intelligence and information operations.
These moves have come at the cost of infantry, “a pretty big cost to go pay for the Marine Corps,” Kenneth Bible, deputy director of the C4 directorate and deputy chief information officer, said Dec. 6 at the Charleston Defense Contractors Association Defense Summit. "The commandant really had to go think about taking that out of the structure to create these [units] across the Marine Corps.”
Now the Marines are looking to integrate these new units — called Marine Expeditionary Force Information Groups, or MIGs — with traditional formations. The deputy commandant for information, a new three-star position created in 2017 to oversee all aspects of information-related warfare, is overseeing efforts to further develop the groups and integrate them into battle plans.
"How does he employ those capabilities as part of an integrated warfare plan? How does he implement a strike package in the information domain?” Bible said. “We really have to figure out how to go make that a relevant force and make it something that the MEF commanders can use.”
Bible explained these forces will be able to provide traditional military information support operations, psychological operations, military deception, or cyber to fight in the information environment.
An operational advisory group met earlier in December with all of the group commanders that focused a lot on how they were maturing capabilities, Bible said.
Some of the key questions that still remain surround how to provide intelligence support to cyber, as well as how to incorporate information support capabilities for a more integrated force package, from shaping operations to when operations actually take place.
Bible said that Lt. Gen. Lori Reynolds, the deputy commandant for information, has told the organization to start building out exercise plans to work more closely together, adding there will be more specifics to come in the near future.
Trident Juncture, NATO-led Trident Juncture exercise in Norway that took place from Oct. 25 to Nov. 7, he said, was a good example of getting limited capability out to commanders to test. New tactical defensive cyber teams participated in the exercise and commanders saw their impact, Bible said.
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July 11, 2019 | International, Other Defence
Carahsoft wins IT contract with US Department of the Navy
Carahsoft Technology has received a blanket purchase agreement (BPA) to distribute Symantec software, hardware and maintenance services to the US Department of the Navy (DoN) and affiliated branches. The contract was awarded by the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific on behalf of the US DoN. Under the contract, Carahsoft and its authorised reseller partners will provide the above-mentioned services to DoN and the US Marine Corps, Navy and reserve components of each force. The company secured the BPA under the DoN's Enterprise Software Licensing (ESL) initiative, which is responsible for the management of enterprise commercial off-the-shelf IT agreements, assets, and policies. ESL seeks to consolidate, centralise and streamline IT acquisition and management processes. The BPA comprises five years of performance, including a one-year base ordering period and four one-year option periods. The contract will run until April 2024 and has a potential of $69.14m. Symantec Federal vice-president Chris Townsend said: “The navy's decision to expand its use of Symantec's Integrated Cyber Defense Platform throughout the enterprise aligns with Symantec's mission to consolidate and integrate assets on a common platform, driving down costs and complexity and creating a more secure environment. “This BPA will allow for more advanced cyber defence capabilities for the Department of the Navy, while providing a better value to the government agencies and taxpayers.” DoN and affiliated branches will have access to Symantec's Integrated Cyber Defense Platform and associated products and services, including advanced threat protection, along with security for email and networks, as well as information protection. Carahsoft Symantec team director Annie Marshall said: “Carahsoft and our reseller partners have supported the US Navy for 15 years, and we are proud to further simplify procurement across the entire navy through this BPA. “As the navy serves our nation, offering products from one of the leading cybersecurity vendors allows it to ensure that its personnel are operating in secure virtual environments, no matter the physical environment they operate in.” https://www.naval-technology.com/news/carahsoft-wins-it-contract-with-us-department-of-the-navy/
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April 3, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval
Top Marine ‘signaling’ to industry that F-35 cuts are on the table
By: Aaron Mehta How will US Marines adjust for the future fight? | Reagan Defense Forum 2019 WASHINGTON — The top officer in the U.S. Marine Corps is sticking to the planned procurement of the F-35 joint strike fighter — but indicated a willingness to cut planes in the future if analysis says it makes sense. Marine Commandant Gen. David Berger told reporters Wednesday that he is a firm believer in the capabilities the F-35 is bringing, in particular the jump-jet B model favored by the service. However, Berger made it clear he's not wedded to long-term procurement plans, at a time the corps is shedding legacy missions as it pivots to focus to a primarily naval-focused service. “Right now, the program of record plows ahead as it is,” he said. “But I'm signaling to the industry, we have to be prepared to adjust as the operating environment adjusts. Right now, the program of record stays the same, but we will — we must — adapt to the adversary and we must adapt to the operating environment that we're challenged with being in.” Berger noted that an upcoming independent review of his force posture plans, expected to be completed in the next few months, could be a forcing function for more changes. Already, his planning guidance to the corps changed how many planes are featured in each F-35 squad, from 16 to 10. Longstanding plans call for the Marines to procure 353 of the F-35B and 67 of the F-35C carrier variants. “There's nothing like it,” Berger said of the jet. “The F-35B, the ability to operate from austere airfields and ships both, [is] incredible. In wargames, it's one of the handful of capabilities that really caused an adversary problems, because it is so flexible, it's deployable ashore or from ship. Gamechanger is sort of an overused phrase, but I'm a huge advocate of the F-35 and its capabilities.” Broadly speaking, Berger said, what will drive how many F-35s are in a squadron going forward, or how many the Corps eventually buys, comes down to maintenance — a longstanding issue for the stealthy jet. “If the maintenance readiness of the F-35 proves to be very, very strong, then of course, like any other system you need less of them because more of them are up all the time. On the other hand, if it turns out not to be so, then you're going to need more of them, to account for the ones that are in repair, that are down right now,” he said. Complicating that issue is what he called the “unique” supply chain for the jet, which in theory lets parts flow in from all over the world, as opposed to the traditional U.S. based supply. “In all aspects, we absolutely know we will learn along the way, and if its appropriate we will make adjustments” to either the squad level or the overall buy, Berger said. “But it's not a lack of confidence in the airframe at all.” https://www.defensenews.com/air/2020/04/01/top-marine-signaling-to-industry-that-f-35-cuts-are-on-the-table/