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  • US Missile Defense Agency boss reveals his goals, challenges on the job

    August 20, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Land

    US Missile Defense Agency boss reveals his goals, challenges on the job

    By: Jen Judson HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — The Missile Defense Agency has a new director, Vice Admiral Jon Hill, who will be tasked to carry out major missile defense endeavors laid out in the Missile Defense Review released in January. Hill is the son of an Army air defender and became deputy director of the agency in 2016. Prior to that he served as the U.S. Navy's Program Executive Officer for Integrated Warfare Systems (PEO IWS) beginning in 2014. The new director will have to guide the agency through a series of major decisions in the coming years —from refining its approach to a global, layered missile defense, to tackling advanced threats like hypersonic missiles, upgrading homeland defense to protect against, ballistic missiles, to designing, developing and initiating a space-based sensor layer, just to name a few. With his expansive plate full, Hill said he's prepared to ensure the agency has investment in the right places and that efforts move as quickly as they can to outpace current and emerging missile threats. Defense News sat down with Hill in an exclusive interview at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama, to discuss his goals and the challenges ahead. What are your major priorities as you take up your post as Missile Defense Agency director and what do you believe will be your biggest challenges on the job? I would say the number one challenge is the poorly defined term of “transfer to the services.” After looking at this problem very closely, considering congressional language, looking at how it's interpreted differently, I really do think that, we, as a country, need to say what is the right thing to do to take care of the war fighter. That should be the number one issue here. So there's been lots of discussion about the [Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System]and the SM-3 [missile] transfer to the services. What does that mean? If it's operations and sustainment, that's done. Put it in the done pile. The Army invests heavily in the operations and sustainment of THAAD. I don't know what more we would want out of them. ... The [Army and Navy] are not running away from the mission. They want to execute the mission, and again, they do operations and sustainment very well. I often hear that we don't know how to transfer. Look at the Aegis ships today. Navy procures those ships with Ballistic Missile Defense capability. The Navy has come in and said, “Hey, we're going to build a multi-mission radar to include BMD capability in SPY-6.” Man, what's wrong with that? That's fantastic. You look at the SM-6, where the Navy procures, produces that missile. It's a multi-mission missile. We insert sea-based terminal capability. So it tends to come down to those two systems that are BMD focused — SM-3 and THAAD — and so that's why it gets suspicious when we don't have a fully defined term because all it really results in is fracturing a program during a time where it's most critical to have those programs stable and taking care of the warfighter. What are some other priorities and challenges you will tackle? I would say the bigger challenge though is really driven by the threat today and Dr. [Michael] Griffin [under secretary for research and engineering in the Office of the Secretary of Defense] speaks about the Space Development Agency. We're aligned with the strategy, we're aligned with their architecture and their engineering of [a space] constellation because we bring the capability for hypersonic and ballistic tracking. We have support from Congress to do that. The department wants and needs us to go do that. It's just important to get that deployed as soon as possible. So we have to maintain stable investment. We need to get to a near-term, on-orbit demo as fast as we can, and then we need to build out the constellation in concert with the Space Development Agency. If we do that, we're in a great place. And in parallel, we need to start looking at our existing systems, which we have been doing. We're making modifications to today's sensors, both terrestrial and in space today on ships, on land, and we're modifying those today to deal with that new, high-end threat. We're also looking at existing weapons. What can they do? Somewhere in that battle space though, there's probably the need for more capability and that's really the next step and where we as a country need to go. You advocated for a Hawaiian missile defense radar and noted that while the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense System, designed to protect the homeland, is a good system, more radars need to be in place. Can you talk more about the advanced threat and the need to enhance missile defense sensing capability? When you look at a ballistic flight for example, you boost, you have things like V-Bands and separation mechanisms, you've got staging, you've got post-boost vehicles, and you've got the lethal object; that's messy from the standpoint of a radar. So when the radar's staring at all that mess — the word discrimination means, “Hey, I've have got to discriminate all the garbage and make sure I'm pointing at the right thing.” Reduce the amount of radar energy I'm putting on all the garbage, so I've got to very quickly discriminate. So discrimination's important. And as they become more complex, the radar, in a sense of the architecture we have today, is not ready to take on larger numbers coming in and more complexity. Having a large radar on the island allows you to see out far. So the bigger the aperture is, the more fine detail it gets too. I think we owe it to the Hawaiian people. We owe it to that state. It's part of this country and they deserve to be defended and they want to be defended. We have great congressional support. So at the federal level we're good, at the state level, we're good. We're at the sensitive level now where the local communities are concerned about what it means for the environment and we understand that. So we're working very closely with them. It's an important capability. It fills out the sensor architecture and takes us to the next level in terms of central architecture in that region. Why do we need a space-based missile defense sensor layer? We're running out of islands to put radars on and the ships that the Navy has, they are equipped with 360-degree radars, very powerful radars that can discriminate. But ... we need to free up those ships as much as we can and get as much persistent sensor coverage as we possibly can. And space really answers the mail on all those aspects, it frees up those other assets that we can go use for other missions. An analysis of alternatives has been completed on hypersonic defense. Is there anything you can share about the findings in the AOA and how that is guiding the path forward? For that space mission you have to look at the sum total of the detection, the control and the engagement. [It is] the sensors, it is the command-and-control, it is the fire control and it is the weapons, whether they're hard kill or non-kinetic. So, it's all of that. It provides the department a broad view: here is the threat space we're dealing with, here's the architecture, here are the pieces of that architecture that do detection, control and engagement. And now Department of Defense, where shall we put our next dollar? Could be that next dollar goes to space. It could be that next dollar goes toward fire control improvements so that you can handle something that's flying this fast, greater than Mach 5. It could be that we're going to put another dollar on improving an existing system or that we need a new engagement system. So that's what it does. It's really a tool. It's not the answer. I've seen a lot of the reports that say, “Oh my God, it's so expensive. We'll never execute it.” The intent is never to go fully execute what's in an AOA. It's the full trade space. Now we've got to go pick from that trade space and so we finished up a [Cost Assessment Program Evaluation] sufficiency review. Not only have we done the work to do the alternatives ... the CAPE has come in and they've costed those out to say, here's what's a reasonable set. The department can make a decision as to what would be best. Is the SM-3 Block IIA missile test that goes up against an intercontinental ballistic missile threat still scheduled for next year? It is still scheduled for next year. Now what you should know is that Congress has sent us some messaging that says maybe we don't want to do that, maybe we should more fully explore the battle space for which the missile was designed. ... Congress first told us to go against an ICBM. That's what we're focused in on. And so if the appropriations come through and there's a change, then we have to go back and replan. Would the delay in the test result in overall program delays? It wouldn't delay the program. But it makes it difficult for us to say that there is a potential for an underlay. So, if we want to give the combatant commanders a layered defense against ICBMs, it kind of takes that off the table or it delays that for awhile and we'll use the IIAs for their intended battle space and we won't try to expand it. What's happening with the “strategic pause” on the Redesigned Kill Vehicle for the GMD system? We're still in a decision space. ... Dr. Griffin is going through the end-game of discussions now within the building. We're in full support and in the end we'll make a decision and we'll press forward with that. Do you have a timeline for making a decision on the RKV? We're definitely pressured and what drives that pressure is the fact that we were on a path to deliver the additional 20 [ground-based interceptors]. ... We're building out the missile field. So there is pressure to come to a decision quickly so that we can then get back to work. https://www.defensenews.com/pentagon/2019/08/19/us-missile-defense-agency-boss-reveals-his-goals-challenges-on-the-job/

  • RTX BBN Technologies to develop tool for DARPA

    November 11, 2024 | International, Land

    RTX BBN Technologies to develop tool for DARPA

    RTX BBN Technologies has secured a contract to bolster the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) cyber resiliency programme.

  • Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - August 25, 2020

    August 26, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security, Other Defence

    Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - August 25, 2020

    DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Oklahoma City Water Utilities Trust, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, has been awarded a $617,452,596 regulated tariff contract for the ownership, operation and maintenance of the water and wastewater utility systems at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. 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 50-year contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Oklahoma, with an Aug. 31, 2071, performance completion date. Using military service is the Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2071 Air Force operations and maintenance funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia (SP0600-20-C-8331). Atlantic Diving Supply Inc., doing business as ADS, Virginia Beach, Virginia, has been awarded a maximum $28,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for facility maintenance, repair and operations supplies and related incidental services. 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 327-day bridge contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Southwest Africa, with a July 19, 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 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support Europe and Africa, Kaiserslautern, Germany (SPE5B1-20-D-0003). CORRECTION: The contract modification announced on Aug. 20, 2020, for Bremen-Bowdon Investment Co., Bowdon, Georgia (SPE1C1-17-D-1085 P00012), for $8,125,822, was actually awarded on Aug. 21, 2020. NAVY FlightSafety Services Corp., Denver, Colorado, is awarded a $220,766,476 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for aircrew training services for the TH-73A Advanced Helicopter Training System to include flight training devices (FTD) and classroom instruction to train student naval aviators (SNAs) to the standards necessary to meet an annual pilot production rate of over 600 advanced rotary wing and intermediate tilt-rotor SNAs. Additionally, it provides for the operation and maintenance of FTDs. Work will be performed in Milton, Florida, and is expected to be completed in June 2026. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposal; two offers were received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity (N61340-20-D-0021). Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Manassas, Virginia, is awarded a $191,723,019 cost-plus-incentive-fee contract (N00024-20-C-6117) for the procurement of engineering design development services and associated material and travel, supporting the fleet of Navy submarines and Foreign Military Sales requirements. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $2,224,208,878. This contract combines purchases for the Navy (90%); and the governments of Canada (8%); Japan (1%); and Australia (1%). Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (85 %); Virginia Beach, Virginia (11%); Fairfax, Virginia (2%); San Diego, California (1%); and Waterford, Connecticut (1%), and is expected to be completed by June 2030. If all options are exercised, work will continue through June 2030. Fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy) funding in the amount of $500,000 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. In accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1), this contract was not competitively procured (only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements). The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-20-C-6117). SeaLandAire Technologies Inc.,* Jackson, Michigan, is awarded a $9,706,013 cost-plus-fixed-fee order (N68335-20-F-0456) against previously issued basic ordering agreement N68335-20-G-1049. This order provides for continued advanced technology research and development efforts for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) products for airborne anti-submarine warfare systems under SBIR topic N010-014 titled, “High Gain Array of Velocity Sensors.” Further development and research efforts will include systems engineering, modeling and analyses, measurement of target and environment data, architecture, fabrication, installation, test, maintenance, aircrew training and procurement activities. Additionally, this order provides engineering services for prototyping and delivery of 36 digital directional frequency analysis and reporting vertical line array sonobuoys in order to transfer this SBIR technology to the UnderSea Advantage Next Generation Multistatic Active Coherent system. Work will be performed in Jackson, Michigan (90%); Columbia City, Indiana (5%); and Key West, Florida (5%), and is expected to be completed in August 2025. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $370,770 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, New Jersey, is the contracting activity. U.S. TRANSPORTATION COMMAND Construction Helicopters Inc., Howell, Michigan, has been awarded a $168,759,265 modification (P00010) to contract HTC711-17-D-R016 for continued rotary wing airlift support within the U.S. Central Command Area of Responsibility. The option period of performance is from Sept. 1, 2020, to Aug. 31, 2021. Funds were not obligated at award. This modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $653,647,312 from $484,888,047. U.S. Transportation Command, Directorate of Acquisition, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity. AIR FORCE Kekolu Contracting LLC, La Plata, Maryland, has been awarded a not-to-exceed $111,700,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity enterprise contract. Work will be performed at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland; and Joint Base Anacostia Bolling, Washington, D.C., and is expected to be completed May 23, 2025. This contract is for streamlined acquisition base engineering requirements, providing minor construction projects, maintenance and repair of real property. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and seven offers were received. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $192,943 are being obligated at the time of award. The 316th Contracting Squadron, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, is the contracting activity (FA2860-20-D-0004). PAE Aviation and Technical Services LLC, Marlton, New Jersey, has been awarded a $19,766,706 modification (P00063) to contract FA4890-15-C-0018 for the Aerial Targets Program. The contract modification provides for the exercise of an option for an additional year of service under the multiple year contract which directly supports live-fire weapon system testing and enables the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group to perform developmental and operational weapons testing for all air-to-air missiles for F-15, F-16, F-22, and F-35 aircraft. Work will be performed at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida; and Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, and is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2021. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance funds will be used but no funds will be obligated at time of award. Acquisition Management and Integration Center, Joint Base Langley-Eustis Air Force Base, Virginia, is the contracting activity. ARMY HD CW JV, Charlotte, North Carolina (W912HN-20-D-2000); GHD Inc., Duluth, Georgia (W912HN-20-D-2001); and CDM Federal Programs Corp., Jacksonville, Florida (W912HN-20-D-2002), will compete for each order of the $15,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for architect-engineer general design services for civil works. Bids were solicited via the internet with 10 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 24, 2025. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah, Georgia, is the contracting activity. Nora Contracting LLC,* Detroit, Michigan, was awarded a $10,576,854 firm-fixed-price contract to construct a columbarium for the Veterans Administration (VA) at the Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work will be performed in Indianapolis, Indiana, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 26, 2022. Fiscal 2019 and 2020 VA construction funds in the amount of $10,576,854 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville, Kentucky, is the contracting activity (W912QR-20-C-0033). DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY Radiance Technologies Inc,* Huntsville, Alabama, was awarded a $10,110,811 cost-plus-fixed-fee completion contract for a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency 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 (M&S) capability for theater-wide, mission-level M&S. 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 Huntsville, Alabama (50%); Cambridge, Massachusetts (14%); Albuquerque, New Mexico (13%); Chantilly, Virginia (12%); San Diego, California (6%); and Rome, New York (5%), with an expected completion date of August 2021. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $3,750,000 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-0146). Cole Engineering Services Inc., Orlando, Florida, was awarded a $9,141,146 cost-plus-fixed-fee completion contract for a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency 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 (M&S) capability for theater-wide, mission-level M&S. 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 Orlando, Florida (65%); and Austin, Texas (35%), with an expected completion date of August 2021. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $3,310,000 are being obligated at the time of award. This contract was a competitive acquisition in which 10 offers were received. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HR0011-20-C-0144). *Small Business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2324805/source/GovDelivery/

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