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  November 19, 2018 | International, Aerospace

  GA-ASI Selected to Provide RPAS to Australian Defence Force

  ADELAIDE, Australia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), the world's leading manufacturer of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS), has been advised that, following consideration by the Australian Government, it has been selected to provide the Armed Remotely Piloted Aircraft System under Project Air 7003 for the Australian Defence Force (ADF). “We look forward to providing our world-leading RPAS to meet the Air 7003 requirements,” said Linden Blue, CEO of GA-ASI. “We'll work closely with Team Reaper® Australia partners to provide a highly capable and affordable RPAS to the ADF, while creating meaningful and enduring Australian jobs.” The ADF joins other top-tier military forces in choosing a MQ-9 variant because of its proven multi-role combat performance. Known as the “operators” choice, the MQ-9 is part of GA-ASI's Predator® series of RPAS, which is the world's most trusted and capable Armed Medium-Altitude, Long-Endurance (MALE) RPAS, and hails from a family of RPAS which recently surpassed five million flight hours. GA-ASI announced its intention to offer a MALE RPAS to the ADF during AVALON 2017 – the Australian International Aerospace and Defence Exposition – with the launch of Team Reaper Australia, a robust grouping of Australian industry partners. The team currently consists of ten Australian companies providing a range of innovative sensor, communication, manufacturing and life-cycle support capabilities that includes Cobham, CAE, Raytheon, Flight Data Systems, TAE Aerospace, Quickstep, AirSpeed, Rockwell Collins Australia, Ultra, and SentientVision. About GA-ASI General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), an affiliate of General Atomics, is the world's leading designer and manufacturer of proven, reliable Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS), radars, and electro-optic and related mission systems, including the Predator®, Reaper® and Gray Eagle UAS programs of record and the Lynx® Multi-mode Radar. With more than five million flight hours, GA-ASI provides long-endurance, multi-mission capable aircraft with integrated sensor and data link systems required to deliver persistent flight, enabling situational awareness and rapid strike. The company also produces a variety of ground control stations and sensor control/image analysis software, offers pilot training and support services, and develops meta-material antennas. For more information, visit www.ga-asi.com. Predator, Reaper, and Lynx are registered trademarks of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20181115006098/en/

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  December 2, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

  Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - November 29, 2019

  DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Bell Boeing Joint Project Office, California, Maryland, has been awarded a maximum $218,749,892 modification (P00006) exercising the first one-year option period of a one-year base contract (SPRPA1-20-F-CD01) with four one-year option periods for performance based logistics and engineering support for the V-22 platform. This is a firm-fixed-price requirements contract. Locations of performance are Texas and Pennsylvania, with a Nov. 30, 2020, performance completion date. Using customers are Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Foreign Military Sales to Japan. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 Air Force, U.S. Special Operations Command, Navy and FMS appropriated funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NAVY Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems, San Diego, California, is awarded a $74,726,993 cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for design agent engineering services for networks and network user systems on operational landing platform/dock (LPD)-17 class amphibious transport dock ships. Work will be performed in San Diego, California (80%); Norfolk, Virginia (15%); Mayport, Florida (5%) and is expected to be complete by December 2024. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance, (Navy) funding in the amount of $689,680 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, as implemented by Part 6.302-1 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. This contract was issued on a sole-source basis to Raytheon Integrated Defense Services. This requirement is for design agent engineering and technical services for the overall management, development, testing, troubleshooting, repair, configuration, maintenance and fleet sustainment of fielded networks and associated network user systems/clients on operational LPD 17-class amphibious transport dock ships. These services are in support of Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division, Code 52, which is responsible for the lifecycle in-service engineering agent support of mission critical interior communications data networks. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity (N64498-20-D-0001). W.R. Systems, Fairfax, Virginia, is awarded a modification to a previously awarded (N65236-19-D-8001) indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-fixed-fee, with provisions for firm-fixed-price task orders, performance based contract. This single award contract (SAC) is currently in its first year with a Feb. 15, 2020, contract expiration date. This modification increases the basic contract estimated ceiling by $61,999,996, and changes the cumulative estimated value of the contract from $49,999,995, to $111,999,992. This SAC is for position, navigation and timing and geospatial information services support to naval ships and shore facilities. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by February 2020. This SAC was previously procured competitively by full and open competition via the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command e-commerce central website and the Federal Business Opportunities website. This sole-source contract was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1) and only one responsible source (Federal Acquisition Regulation subpart 6.302-1). The Naval Information Warfare Center, Charleston, South Carolina, is the contracting activity. General Dynamics/Electric Boat, Groton, Connecticut (N66604-20-D-D001); Huntington Ingalls/Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Virginia (N66604-20-D-D002); and Oceaneering International Inc., Chesapeake, Virginia (N66604-20-D-D003) are being awarded a $49,921,536 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (ID/IQ) multiple-award contract to fabricate submarine safety/Level 1 (SUBSAFE/L1) hardware, and provide technical and engineering services. For these base ID/IQ five-year contracts, funding will not be obligated at time of award; the $1,000 minimum guarantee will be executed on each awardee's initial task order. Work will be performed at the contractors' locations and minimally at government locations, and is expected to be completed by November 2024. This multiple-award contract was competitively procured with three acceptable offers received via the Federal Business Opportunities website. This requirement is to provide SUBSAFE/L1 (or related) hardware, systems engineering, technical analyses, mechanical and electrical design, manufacturing, installation, test and evaluation, maintenance and repair services required to support existing and future fleet programs. In accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1), only a limited number of responsible sources and no other supplies or services will satisfy the needs of the agency. This tasking was limited to those activities qualified to perform SUBSAFE work per the Naval Sea Systems Command Notice 5000, fiscal 2019 Navy working capital funds. The Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division Newport, Newport, Rhode Island, is the contracting activity. Washington State Community College District #3, Bremerton, Washington, is awarded a not-to-exceed $18,000,000 five-year indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for educational services in support of the apprenticeship, helper and after-hours program, which pays for tuition, lab fees, math fees, tutoring services and assessment fees in an effort to provide customers with quality, timely and cost efficient maintenance, modernization, and technical and logistics support by maintaining a highly trained and skilled workforce. These services are in support of Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Facility in Bremerton, Washington. This contract does not include options. Work will be performed in Bremerton, Washington, and is expected to be complete by December 2024. No funding will be obligated at the time of award. In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulations Part 15, this was a competitive procurement with one offer received via the Federal Business Opportunities website. Operations and maintenance (Navy) funding will be obligated at the task order level prior to each semester. This is a commercial service contract that was competed in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation Part 15. Only one proposal by the incumbent was received. The Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Washington, is the contracting activity (N4523A20D1300). ARMY General Dynamics Mission Systems, Taunton, Massachusetts, was awarded a $9,164,584 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to procure contractor field service representative support services for the warfighter. One bid was solicited with one bid received. Work will be performed in Taunton, Massachusetts, with an estimated completion date of Nov. 30, 2020. Fiscal 2019 other procurement, Army funds in the amount of $6,363,737 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W15P7T-20-F-0004). AIR FORCE Tunista Services LLC, Honolulu, Hawaii, has been awarded a $7,362,228 firm-fixed-priced contract modification (P00006) to previously awarded contract FA4855-18-C-0001 for continuation of operations, maintenance and support services at Melrose Air Force Range. The contract modification provides for the exercise of option year two procured under the basic contract. Work will be performed at Melrose, New Mexico, and work is expected to be completed by Nov. 30, 2020. The total cumulative face value of the contract is $22,676,639. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $7,362,228 are being obligated at the time of award. The 27th Special Operations Contracting Squadron, Cannon Air Force Base, New Mexico, is the contracting activity. https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2029052/source/GovDelivery/

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  July 3, 2018 | International, Aerospace

  Italy’s new defense minister commits to F-35, butts heads with France

  By: Tom Kington ROME ― Italy's new populist government may slow down but not reduce its order of F-35 fighter jets, while trimming its manpower in Afghanistan, Defence Minister Elisabetta Trenta has told Defense News. In one of her first interviews since taking office at the start of June, Trenta said Italy remained a faithful ally of the U.S., but added she was skeptical about sanctions imposed on Russia by the West. A former defense academic at the Link University in Rome and a veteran of the Italian Army's civil reserve unit, Trenta was named defense minister by a coalition government formed in June, which groups the anti-migrant League party and the anti-establishment Five Star Movement. Five Star officials promised last year to scrap Italy's purchase of 90 F-35 fighters, but Trenta said the new government would not cut orders, even if it might stretch out its purchase plan. “It's a program we inherited and we have lots of questions; that is why we will evaluate the program considering the industrial and technology benefits for national interest, as we are the new government,” she said. “What I would like to do is lighten the load since we have other spending commitments in Europe. We will try to stretch out deliveries instead of cutting the order, which would reduce offsets and mean penalties,” she said. Foreign military invovlement Trenta met U.S. national security adviser John Bolton on June 26 as he visited Rome, and she confirmed the new government's strong ties with the U.S. “The U.S. is our historic ally, we have never doubted that,” she said. Trenta said she told Bolton that Italy aims to reach NATO's defense spending target of 2 percent of gross domestic product. “But we would also like our strong presence in military missions recognized as an added value,” she said. She said that presence would still be substantial despite the government's plan to trim its headcount in Afghanistan from 900 to 700, if and when replacements could be found to step in from other nations. “We don't want to undercut stability or reduce support for Afghans. We want to start a change of pace, as established by the previous government, keeping at the same time the mission operative,” she said. “We don't want to weaken the mission, so we will look for other partners to take over tasks like logistics.” The minister said she asked Bolton for help launching a planned Italian military mission to Niger in Africa to help combat people smugglers who send migrants across the Sahara to Libya, where they embark on boats heading for Europe. The mission was announced last year but has been blocked by the Niger government, she said. She said she also asked Bolton to help Italy take a “leadership” role in bringing peace to lawless Libya, noting she would visit the country next month in hopes of meeting Gen. Khalifa Haftar, the military commander hostile to the United Nations-backed Tripoli government that is supported by Italy. Italy has been irked by French diplomacy in Libya, including backing for Haftar and support for elections by year-end. The election plan, Trenta said, was “not the best thing to do — the U.S. has seen in Iraq what happens when you rush things.” Butting heads France and Italy have meanwhile bickered this month over differing plans to deal with migrants arriving in Europe, but Trenta said no amount of political arguing would derail a planned merger between the naval operations of Italian shipyard Fincantieri and France's Naval Group. “Both countries are planning on the deal going ahead — there has been no impact from the migration discussion,” she said. The new government in Rome has not yet signed up to a French plan for a multinational rapid intervention force, which would contain fellow European Union members, but also the U.K., which is planning to leave the EU. France said it wants the initiative to exist separately to the EU's Permanent Structured Cooperation initiative for security and defense. Trenta said Italy would probably sign. “As a new government, we wanted to study it and make sure it does not weaken the EU PESCO initiative,” she said. Italy's new government rattled its European allies earlier this month when Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said he would like to end sanctions that were imposed on Moscow after Russia's 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula. Trenta shares his view. “We have to consider Italy's strategic interests — sanctions have damaged Italian exports, and it would be a good idea to evaluate alternative instruments,” she said. “We see the U.S. as an ally, but we don't see Russia as a threat — we see it as an economic partner,” she said. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2018/06/29/italys-new-defense-minister-commits-to-f-35-butts-heads-with-france/