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September 24, 2020 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR

USAF Discussing Larger Fighters, Weaponized KC-46, Roper Says

Steve Trimble

Developing larger and longer-ranged fighters, weaponizing the Boeing KC-46 fleet, and possibly fielding a new type of unmanned, small and stealthy tanker are all now in discussion by U.S. Air Force leaders, assistant secretary of the Air Force Will Roper said on Sept. 23.

As the head of acquisition, technology and logistics, Roper said he and the new chief of Air Mobility Command, Gen. Jacqueline Van Ovost, are “excited” now about the direction of the long-troubled KC-46 program, as the Air Force and Boeing continue to finalize the Remote Vision System 2.0 upgrade.

The KC-46's turnaround, Roper said, is allowing acquisition and mobility officials to turn their attention to addressing another Air Force refueling problem: How to solve a yawning gap between refueling capacity and operational need for inflight refueling, especially at the forward edge of a ring of contested airspace, where large and, for now, relatively defenseless aircraft such as the KC-46 are most vulnerable.

Building a more survivable and responsive air refueling capability that can be used in a contested war zone was the focus of a meeting this week between Roper and Van Ovost, he said.

“One of those next strategic questions for the Air Force is going to be can you defend a tanker against an onslaught of fighters who know that every tanker you kill, it's like killing a lot of fighters or bombers or drones that it supports,” Roper said.

Roper prefers not to take a one-size-fits-all solution, such as a single major new acquisition program that buys only one type of aircraft. Instead, the Air Force should evaluate the solution to the contested aerial refueling problem as an architecture, with multiple options that can be dialed back and forth.

One option for reducing demand on tankers is a new fighter aircraft that is designed to carry more fuel.

“Maybe having [the] small, currently sized fighters is not the way to go in [the] future,” Roper said. “And since we're all abuzz with digital engineering and thinking about what the future fighter force could look like, thinking about bigger fighters is a natural question.”

Another way to make the KC-46 fleet more survivable, and thus operate closer to the forward edge of contested airspace, is to weaponize the aircraft, he said.

“We don't put weapons and sensors on tankers to shoot down aircraft, but the current KC-46 is a big airplane with the ability to mount sensors and weapons under the wings,” Roper said. “We just don't do it because we can use a fighter combat air patrol to defend high-value assets.”

The Air Force also may need a different kind of tanker in the future, he said. Two options are possible: A larger aircraft than the KC-46 that could carry more fuel, but needs to stay farther away from potential threats, or much smaller, unmanned and stealthy “micro-tankers” that could operate much closer or even inside defended airspace, Roper said.

“I expect that as we really look at airpower in the truly contested environment that we'll be looking at fuel very strategically,” Roper said.

https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/aircraft-propulsion/usaf-discussing-larger-fighters-weaponized-kc-46-roper-says

On the same subject

  • U.S. Air Force Launches Three-Year Fielding Plan For Skyborg Weapons

    July 31, 2020 | International, Aerospace

    U.S. Air Force Launches Three-Year Fielding Plan For Skyborg Weapons

    Steve Trimble July 07, 2020 The next combat aircraft to enter the U.S. Air Force inventory will not be a manned sixth-generation fighter or even the Northrop Grumman B-21. By fiscal 2023, the Air Force expects to deliver the first operational versions of a new unmanned aircraft system (UAS) called Skyborg, a provocative portmanteau blending the medium of flight with the contraction for a cybernetic organism. The Skyborg family of aircraft is expected to fill an emerging “attritable” category for combat aircraft that blurs the line between a reusable UAS and a single-use cruise missile. July 8 award date for Skyborg contracts Leidos is managing autonomy mission system As the aircraft are developed, Skyborg also will serve as the test case of a radical change in acquisition philosophy, with ecosystems of collaborative software coders and aircraft manufacturers replacing the traditional approach with a supply chain defined by a single prime contractor. The Air Force also plans to manage the Skyborg aircraft differently than other UAS. Although Air Combat Command (ACC) is considering the Skyborg family as a replacement for pre-Block F-16s after 2025 and MQ-9s after 2030, the aircraft is not likely to fit neatly into an existing force structure with dedicated Skyborg squadrons. “Even though we call Skyborg an attritable aircraft, I think we'll think of them more like reusable weapons,” says Will Roper, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics. The Skyborg is an attritable weapon, which means key components such as the jet engine will be designed with a short service life. Credit: AFRL via YouTube The Skyborg propulsion systems—including expendable subsonic and supersonic jet engines—will be rated with a fraction of the service life expected of a fully reusable UAS or manned aircraft. “We'll do whatever number of takeoffs and landings they're ‘spec'd' for, and then we'll attrit them out of the force as targets and just buy them at a steady rate,” Roper says. Starting in fiscal 2023, a concept of operations for a formation of four Lockheed Martin F-22s will include Skyborgs as part of the manned aircraft's load-out. “I expect that the pilots, depending on the mission, [will] decide: Does the Skyborg return and land with them and then go to fight another day, or is it the end of its life and it's going to go on a one-way mission?” Roper explains. In some cases, the pilot may decide a target is important enough that it is worth the loss of a Skyborg, even if its service life has not been used up, he adds. As the concept evolves, a diverse array of Skyborg aircraft designs will likely find roles beyond the air combat community, Roper says. “I don't think it'll just be fighters,” he says. “I think they'll fly with bombers. I think they'll fly with tankers to provide extra defensive capability. That's what I love about their versatility and the fact that we can take risks with them.” Skyborg is often presented as the epitome of the “loyal wingman” concept, in which one or multiple UAS are controlled or managed by a manned aircraft to perform a variety of surveillance, support and strike tasks during a mission. But the aircraft also could have the ability to operate independently of a manned aircraft, with the capability to launch and recover hundreds of such systems without the need for runways or even bases. The Kratos XQ-58A, which achieved first flight in March 2019, is one of several potential members of the Skyborg UAS family. Credit: U.S. Air Force “If [China and Russia] know that they have to target only tens or even hundreds of ports and airfields, we have simplified their problem,” says ACC chief Gen. Mike Holmes. The new class of attritable aircraft, he says, are designed so that “we can still provide relevant high-tempo combat power to be freed up from a runway.” If Skyborg is the future, it begins on July 8. The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is due on the second Wednesday of this month to award a contract to start developing the first in a family of experimental UAS bearing the name Skyborg. The AFRL already has a stable of potential concepts. The Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie, which has flown four times since March 2019, is the most visible example of the AFRL's Low-Cost Attritable Aircraft Technology platform. Meanwhile, the Low-Cost Attritable Aircraft Platform--Sharing project quietly kept several UAS industry leaders involved in design studies, including Boeing, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. Each company selected will be awarded a contract with a maximum value of $400 million over a five-year ordering period. But the core of the Skyborg program is the software; specifically, the military aviation equivalent of the algorithm-fed convolutional neural networks that help driverless cars navigate on city streets. In announcing Leidos on May 18 as the Skyborg Design Agent (SDA), the AFRL selected the same company that delivered the software “brain” of the Navy's Sea Hunter unmanned surface vehicle, which navigated from San Diego to Honolulu in 2018. As SDA, Leidos' role is to deliver a software core that uses artificial intelligence to learn and adapt as the aircraft flies. The autonomy mission system core—as integrated by Leidos from a combination of industry and government sources—will be inserted into multiple low-cost UAS designed by different companies, with each configured to perform a different mission or set of missions. That is how the Skyborg program is set up today, but that is not how it started. Roper created the original “Skyborg” term and concept when he led the Strategic Capabilities Office within the Office of the Secretary of Defense in 2012-17. Roper transferred Skyborg to the AFRL, where it was renamed Avatar. A year after taking over Air Force acquisition in 2017, Roper changed the name back to Skyborg and created a program office in October 2018. In March 2019, Roper revealed the Skyborg concept to a group of reporters a week before the AFRL issued the first request for information to industry about the program. At that time, Skyborg was still organized more traditionally, with plans to select a single contractor to serve as a prime integrator. By early 2020, program officials reorganized Skyborg into modular hardware and software subcomponents built on an open architecture that requires no prime integrator. As the acquisition strategy has evolved, so has the Air Force's thinking about how to use the Skyborg family of systems. “The whole idea was [that] the contested environment is going to be challenging, it's going to be uncertain, and so it makes the most sense to have something that doesn't have a pilot in it to go into the battlefield first,” Roper says. “But once you agree that's a self-evident operational concept, it opens up the door for a lot of nontraditional thinking for the Air Force.” After a 2-3 year experimental phase, the AFRL plans to deliver an early operational capability in fiscal 2023. Follow-on operational Skyborgs could be funded within the Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) project or through a separate program of record. The Skyborg concept even has links to the Air Force's architecture for the Advanced Battle-Management System (ABMS). “Attritable-ONE,” which is defined as having “multirole attritable capabilities,” is one of about 30 product lines in the ABMS architecture. “Skyborg and the AttritableONE teams are closely coordinated for planning and collaboration purposes,” the AFRL informed industry in response to questions about the Skyborg solicitation. The aircraft supplier must deliver a highly flexible design. Leidos, the design agent, will provide the autonomous mission system that will serve as the pilot, flight control computer and mission systems operator for the aircraft. But the “size, weight, power and cooling details for the Skyborg core autonomy system have not been finalized,” the AFRL told the bidding companies. “The majority of the system will be software-based and integrate with the sensors onboard the host aircraft,” the AFRL says. “Extensive collaboration between the Skyborg system design agent and the participants in this [contract] is expected.” https://aviationweek.com/ad-week/us-air-force-launches-three-year-fielding-plan-skyborg-weapons

  • Defence Secretary keynote speech at DSEi 2019

    September 18, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

    Defence Secretary keynote speech at DSEi 2019

    Defence Secretary outlines global influence of UK defence in keynote speech at the 2019 Defence and Security Equipment International. I don't intend to speak for too long. The kit, not the speeches, are the real reason you're here today. But if you're going to take home one message from the UK, it is this - we are global. We are alive to the global threats. And we have the world class industrial base and the game-changing capability to deal with the danger. To prove the point I want to briefly dwell on the success of our Defence and security sector. It is a story seldom told. This is a sector that brings in sales worth more than £19bn to our economy. A sector that is the second largest in the world – accounting for 19 per cent of global export value over the past decade. A sector that according to reports supports around 260,000 jobs directly and indirectly in the UK. What's more our Defence is the spine of our nation, spreading wealth across our entire union from the South of England to the North of Scotland. Our average expenditure with UK industry equated to £290 spent on the security of every person living in the UK. There is always the challenge of selling to wider Government what we in Defence do. It is true that what our Armed Forces do is often over a distant horizon, or below the deep ocean. But the reality is, what we do, makes an enormous global difference. Defence is often upstream focusing on keeping danger away from these shores. On this day, 18 years ago, terrorists hijacked American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, and flew them into the twin towers in New York. For many it was the first awakening of the full horror of global terrorism. But it was because of our investment in Defence, because of the strength of our capability, that the UK was able to fight alongside our allies. And because of key procurement decisions we were able to operate side-by-side across the globe. Look at how we've been taking the fight to Daesh in the past few years with our Typhoons, attacking the terrorists both day and night with power and precision, while our cyber capability eroded their communication channels and exposed the so-called caliphate for the sham it always was. Our expertise was on display last year too when Russia deployed nerve agent on British streets to murder British civilians. We immediately called on our internationally renowned medical and scientific community at DSTL in Porton Down. Their chemical and biological know-how identified the deadly use of novichok. But you do not grow the corporate knowledge of the UK's defence capability overnight. Which is why when that knowledge is channelled into the British forces' next generation needs, we provide world leading products to go alongside. In more recent times, when the arteries of worldwide trade have been threatened by hostile Iranian state action in the Strait of Hormuz, we've enlisted the global capacity of our Type 23s and Type 45s, built on shipyards on the Clyde, to defence the red ensign. And, with Hurricane Dorian ravaging the Caribbean, we were the first nation to send support, dispatching RFA Mounts Bay, equipped with amphibious vehicles and helicopters to work alongside international aid colleagues, providing residents in the Bahamas with much needed humanitarian help. A stark demonstration of Britain's ability to match global capability with global presence to deal with any eventuality. But that what's so remarkable about the British defence industry, is that we have strength and depth. We don't just make the big platforms. We machine engineer the parts. We shape the electronic systems behind them. We devise the niche capability and we innovate with the very best. For example, here today we have remarkable companies like Wiltshire-based companies Avon Protection, a world leader in Respiratory Protective Equipment (RPE). Not only does it supply the UK and its NATO allies with kit, it is also the primary supplier of Chemical Biological, Radiological and Nuclear respiratory equipment to the United States Department of Defense Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Special Operations. Then we have dynamic firms like Reaction Engines in Oxfordshire currently building a hypersonic engine capable of reaching orbit. And my Lancashire constituents would never forgive me if I didn't mention their contribution, building the aft fuselage, horizontal and vertical tails of every F-35 built as well as on the tried and test Typhoon. We're surrounded by brilliant examples of British expertise in the hall today. As the UK's new Defence Secretary we do however need to break the traditional cycle where our appetite didn't match our stomachs which led to the annual hollowing out of capability and plans, which ultimately lets down the men and women of our Armed Forces. We have to invest in our global defence force if we want to make a global difference and last week's Spending Round announcements signalled our intent. For those who didn't catch the headlines it's worth summarising. UK Defence secured an extra £2.2 billion. An increase of 2.6 per cent above inflation between 2019/20 and 2020/21. Well above government's commitment to grow the defence budget by 0.5% above inflation every year of this Parliament. It means that by 2020/2021 this year's £39 billion defence budget will rise to over £41 billion by 2020/21, the first time it's topped the £40bn mark. It means that we'll continue to exceed our NATO commitment to spend 2 per cent of GDP on Defence. It means that the UK remains the largest NATO defence spender in Europe by far. Above all, it means more money to keep investing in key capabilities such as offensive cyber, nuclear deterrent and shipbuilding. Defence will always continue to require sustained investment for the long-term. But we're already making sure we put our money where our mouth is. Look at what's happening across the domains. Let's start with shipping. Today 11 major warships are in build or on contract not to mention our next-generation of nuclear deterrent submarines. We're looking to build Type 31 frigates and we're building Type 26 global combat ships, whose designs have won plaudits and contracts in Australia and Canada. And with HMS Queen Elizabeth off to Westlant, our carrier strike is back after an absence of a decade, giving us the unparalleled ability to project power and influence across the seven seas. We're also investing in cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence. Yesterday on board the HMS Argyll I witnessed the first exercise involving our Maritime Autonomy Surface Testbed (MAST). Effectively this is the next generation underwater drone swarm, operating autonomously but collectively, to scout ahead of a ship and spot trouble in advance. Switching from sea to land, our Army is upgrading not only our Challenger 2 and Warrior vehicles but bringing in multi-role armoured vehicles to operate alongside AJAX, with a main gate decision due at the end of October. Together these vehicles will deliver the Army's new transformational Strike Force, contributing to NATO Readiness and creating as well as sustaining more than a thousand jobs. Companies like Qioptiq, less than 100 miles from my own constituency are involved in the sighting systems. They are here exhibiting today. As a former infantryman, I'm delighted we're doing more to lighten the load of our soldiers in the field. MOD has been working with BAE Systems to develop lighter ammunition, replacing the brass in the cartridge cases with stainless steel or titanium, reducing the load our troops have to carry by up to 26 percent along with the costs of transporting rounds to the front line. We're applying the same blue-skies thinking to the air domain as well. Last year at Gatwick and Heathrow we saw the peril drone technology poses to our airspace. Today I can announce that, from early next year, the RAF will be working with Leonardo on a three-year programme, looking at how to detect, track, identify and defeat rogue drones as this technology continues to evolve. And I'm pleased that we've signed a statement of intent with Italy who, alongside Sweden, will support joint working on the Tempest and our Future Combat Air Strategy. I'm looking forward to working with Italian and Swedish counterparts, as well as others, to put the Tempest programme into hyper-drive and take Global Britain into the stratosphere. Fifty years ago Britain put its first satellite, Skynet1, in space. Today we're having to deal with increasing threats to satellite-based navigation. So the need for robust communications has never been more vital. That's why we're developing Skynet6 which will give our forces unparalleled capacity to talk to each other in any hostile environment. And I can announce the launch of a new competition for an industry partner to operate and manage the Ground Stations, infrastructure and technology involved in this programme. And just as we upgrade our capability in space we're also bolstering our strength in cyber too. The nature of warfare is changing. In an Information Age the challenge is not just to prepare for contingency but to operate and engage constantly. That means we need to be able not just to repel threats from our online frontline but the ability to strike out. We need to gather, co-ordinate and exploit the information we receive across all the domains much more effectively. That's why we're initiating a major programme of change, managing our people differently, adjusting the way we run our operations and maintaining our long-standing association of working with GCHQ in this area so we can be more agile in tackling dangers and grasping opportunities. But we know that you only produce great kit if you have great partnerships between policy makers and product makers. That's why I want to see a step-change in our partnership with industry. We're determined to go out of our way to help you giving you the certainty and confidence you need to create great capability. So as well as investing we're planning for the future. A few days ago we published our Defence Technology Framework. It will help concentrate our collective minds by assessing the technologies needed to drive our defence modernisation and deliver battle-winning technologies. Now you need to help us. So we're helping you. But we expect something in return We need industry to show willing. Willingness to strengthen your competitiveness, willingness to benefit our own procurements, willingness to seize those export opportunities. The Army's newly announced industrial engagement framework marks the start of that journey. But the end point will see a fundamental shift in mindset from the regional to the global. Britain has long been a nation of makers, from the steam engine to the turbo jet, from Watt to Whittle. We remain a world leading exporter and as DSEI shows, the potential of our Defence sector is limitless. But seizing our opportunities, realising our potential, demands we think big. It demands we all have a vision. My vision for Defence is one that returns pride to the places in which things are made. A vision where our kit is wanted not simply because it carries a stamp saying made in Britain. But because it carries a stamp that proudly proclaims made in Barrow or made in Birkenhead. It's a vision where every part of the country is famed for its particular brand of expertise from air to autonomy. So we might be living through challenging times but if you're looking for solutions you've come to the right place. Tomorrow is here today. I hope you leave with the message that UK Defence is on the up, that our Defence industrial base remains the spine of our nation, allowing our forces to be the tip of our spear for Global Britain. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/defence-secretary-keynote-speech-at-dsei-2019

  • Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - December 18, 2020

    December 21, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

    Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - December 18, 2020

    ARMY General Dynamics Land Systems Inc., Sterling Heights, Michigan, was awarded a $4,620,000,000 fixed-price-incentive contract to produce Abrams M1A2 SEPv3 tanks. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of June 17, 2028. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Detroit Arsenal, Michigan, is the contracting activity (W56HZV-21-D-0001). STS International Inc., Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, was awarded a $49,500,000 firm-fixed-price contract for combat field service equipment team services. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 17, 2025. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W911QY-21-D-0001). Canadian Commercial Corp., Ottawa, Ontario, was awarded a $30,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for the removal of existing excitation equipment and replacement of solid-state excitation equipment/systems. Bids were solicited via the internet with seven received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 17, 2030. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville, Tennessee, is the contracting activity (W912P5-21-D-0002). NAVY Koa Lani JV LLC,* Orlando, Florida, is awarded an $854,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract with firm-fixed price, cost-plus incentive fee and cost-reimbursement contract line items for range operations support and base operations support services. This contract includes a 60-month base period with one 60-month option period. Work will be performed at the Pacific Missile Range Facility, Island of Kauai, Hawaii. Work is expected to be completed by December 2025; if the option is exercised, work will be completed by December 2030. Subject to the availability of funds, fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds (Navy) in the amount of $20,000,000 will be obligated at the time of award to fund the contract's minimum amount and funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The requirement was posted to the Federal Business Opportunities website and the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website as a 100% 8(a) set-aside requirement, with three offers received. The Naval Supply Systems Command, Fleet Logistics Center, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the contracting activity (N00604-21-D-4000). L3 Technologies Inc., Salt Lake City, Utah, is awarded a $495,530,542 cost-plus-incentive-fee contract. This contract provides for the production and delivery of 10 pod simulators, eight operational prototype pods, four jettison mass model pods, two captive mass models, two mission system prototypes and two technique development systems in support of engineering and manufacturing development for the Next Generation Jammer Low Band program. Work will be performed in Salt Lake City, Utah (66%); Boulder, Colorado (10%); Carlsbad, California (9%); Stuart, Florida (7%); Indianapolis, Indiana (4%); St. George, Utah (2%); and Guthrie, Oklahoma (2%), and is expected to be completed in September 2025. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $20,377,862 will be obligated at time of award, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposal; two offers were received. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00019-21-C-0021). Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Arizona, is awarded a $145,101,510 modification (P00003) to previously issued fixed-price-incentive-firm-target, firm-fixed-price contract N00019-20-C-0030. This modification exercises an option for the production and delivery of 90 full rate production Lot 17 Block V Tactical Tomahawk (TACTOM) All Up Round (AUR) Vertical Launch System missiles, including related hardware and services for the Navy. Additionally, this modification procures TACTOM AUR recertification AGR-4 spares. Work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona (40.6%); Walled Lake, Michigan (11.4%); Gainesville, Virginia (9.7%); El Segundo, California (5.1%); Clearwater, Florida (3.3%); Glenrothes, Scotland (3.1%); Spanish Fork, Utah (3%); Middletown, Connecticut (2.7%); Berryville, Arkansas (2.5%); Midland, Ontario, Canada (2.4%); Ontario, California (2%); Camden, Arkansas (1.8%); Vergennes, Vermont (1.7%); Anniston, Alabama (1.2%); and various locations within the continental U.S. (9.5%), and is expected to be completed in December 2023. Fiscal 2021 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $140,686,082; and fiscal 2020 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $4,415,428 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. Progeny Systems Corp.,* Manassas, Virginia, is awarded a $41,716,025 fixed-price-incentive (firm target), cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost only modification to previously awarded contract N00024-18-C-6410 to exercise options for the production of MK54 MOD 1 lightweight torpedo kits, associated production support material, spares and engineering and hardware support services. This modification is in support of the MK54 MOD 1 Lightweight and MK48 Heavyweight torpedo programs. This contract combines purchases for the Navy (99%); and the governments of Australia, Canada, Taiwan, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Denmark and Belgium (1% combined), under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. Work will be performed in Charleroi, Pennsylvania (70%); Salt Lake City, Utah (26%); and Manassas, Virginia (4%), and is expected to be completed by December 2023. Fiscal 2021 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $41,210,110 (99%); and FMS funds in the amount of $505,915 (1%) will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. CFM International Inc., West Chester, Ohio, is awarded a $28,529,246 modification (P00006) to previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract N00019-18-C-1071. This modification adds scope to procure two P-8A Poseidon CFM56-7B27AE engines for the governments of Australia and New Zealand. Work will be performed in Villaroche, France (53%); Durham, North Carolina (43%); Singapore (3%); and Bromont, Canada (1%), and is expected to be completed in November 2021. Foreign Military Sales funds in the amount of $14,264,623; and foreign cooperative project funds in the amount of $14,264,623 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. General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine, is awarded a $23,852,562 cost-plus-award-fee and cost modification to previously awarded contract N00024-19-C-2322 to exercise options for the accomplishment of planning yard efforts such as engineering, technical, planning, ship configuration, data and logistics efforts for DDG-1000 class destroyers post-delivery and in-service life-cycle support. Work will be performed in Bath, Maine (95%); and San Diego, California (5%), and is expected to be completed by December 2021. Fiscal 2021 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) $1,659,554 funding will be obligated at the time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-19-C-2322). Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., San Diego, California, is awarded a $22,320,161 modification (P00006) to previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee contract N00019-20-C-0025. This modification exercises options to procure software and engineering sustainment services, software support, logistics, cyber security and program related engineering in support of MQ-8 Fire Scout unmanned air systems. Work will be performed in San Diego, California, and is expected to be completed in December 2021. Fiscal 2021 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,452,295; fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Navy) in the amount of $3,982,259; and fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $139,877 will be obligated at time of award, of which $3,982,259 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. BAE Systems Platforms & Services, Minneapolis, Minnesota, is awarded an $18,000,057 fixed-price contract action for Virginia class submarine propulsors. The services under this contract include the engineering and support for the construction of fixed assemblies for the Virginia class propulsor. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $98,152,185. Work will be performed in Louisville, Kentucky (90%); and Minneapolis, Minnesota (10%), and is expected to be completed by February 2027. Fiscal 2020 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) $18,000,057 funding will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the 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 Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-21-C-4106). Daniels & Daniels Construction Co., Inc., Goldsboro, North Carolina, is awarded a $13,437,820 firm-fixed-price contract for the construction of the Marine Raider Regiment Headquarters, Marine Corps Base, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. The work to be performed constructs a headquarters facilities and includes miscellaneous supporting structures, utilities, parking, roadways, sidewalks, running trails and site work. The structures will be single-story steel frame buildings with brick veneer over metal studs, standing seam metal roofs, metal soffits and translucent wall panels. Work will be performed at Marine Corps Base, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and is expected to be completed by December 2022. Fiscal 2020 military construction (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $13,437,820 are obligated on this award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the beta.SAM.gov website with five proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N40085-19-R-9148). DRS Systems Inc., Melbourne, Florida, is awarded a $10,121,768 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost reimbursable delivery order (N00019-21-F-0238) against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-19-G-0030. This order provides non-recurring engineering for the design, development and integration of the AN/AAQ-45 Distributed Aperture Infrared Countermeasure system, including associated weapons replaceable assemblies in support of the HH-60W aircraft for the Air Force. Work will be performed in Dallas, Texas (80%); San Diego, California (11%); Fort Walton Beach, Florida (8%); and Melbourne, Florida (1%), and is expected to be completed in January 2023. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Air Force) funds in the amount of $10,121,768 will be obligated at time of award, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. The Lockheed Martin Corp., Rotary and Mission Systems, Mitchel Field, New York, is awarded a $9,273,205 cost-plus-incentive fee and cost-plus-fixed-fee contract modification (P00012) to previously awarded and announced contract N00030-20-C-0045 for the U.S. and United Kingdom (U.K.) to provide strategic weapon system Trident fleet support, Trident II SSP Shipboard Integration (SSI) Increment 8, SSI Increment 16, Columbia class and U.K. Dreadnought class navigation subsystem development efforts. Work will be performed in Mitchel Field, New York (47%); Huntington Beach, California (36%); Clearwater, Florida (9%); Cambridge, Massachusetts (6%); and Hingham, Massachusetts (2%), with an expected completion date of Nov. 30, 2023. Fiscal 2021 other procurement Navy funds in the amount of $9,273,205 will be obligated. No funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole-source acquisition in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1) and (4). The Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. Raytheon Co., McKinney, Texas, is awarded an $8,400,868 firm-fixed-price order (N68335-21-F-0102) against previously issued basic ordering agreement N68335-20-G-1043. This order provides non-recurring engineering for the Multi-Spectral Targeting System (MTS) software deficiency corrections, design and integration of four turret unit sensors and two electronics unit circuit card assemblies to address system obsolescence and provide a standard definition compatible system to multiple systems on various aircraft that utilize the MTS for the governments of India and Australia. Work will be performed in McKinney, Texas (85%); Patuxent River, Maryland (10%); and Owego, New York (5%), and is expected to be completed in September 2022. Foreign cooperative project funds in the amount of $6,853,795; and Foreign Military Sales funds in the amount of $1,547,073 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. Edison Chouest Offshore, Cut Off, Louisiana, is awarded a $7,740,555 modification (P00021) to previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract N32205-17-C-3513 to exercise a third 12-month option with reimbursable elements for one maritime support vessel MV Carolyn Chouest. This vessel will be utilized to launch, recover, refuel and resupply of various size crafts in the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command's (USINDOPACOM) area of responsibility (AOR). This contract includes a 12-month base period, three 12-month option periods and one 11-month option period. Work will be performed in the USINDOPACOM AOR, and is expected to be completed, if all options are exercised by Nov. 21, 2022. The option will be funded by fiscal 2021 (Navy) working capital funds in the amount of $6,001,581 that will expire at the end of the fiscal year; and fiscal 2022 (Navy) working capital funds in the amount of $1,738,974 that will expire at the end of fiscal 2022. The Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity. AIR FORCE The Boeing Co., Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, has been awarded a $400,000,000 modification (P00014) to contract FA8107-19-D-0001 for B-1 and B-52 bomber engineering services. This modification is for recurring and non-recurring engineering services to B-1 and B-52 aircraft. Work will be performed at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma; Edwards AFB, California; Barksdale AFB, Louisiana; and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and is expected to be completed Dec. 31, 2022. The total cumulative value of the contract is $1,200,000,000. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds in the amount of $33,903,201 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, is the contracting activity (FA8107-19-D-0001). Kegman Inc., Melbourne, Florida, has been awarded a $98,700,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract with cost-reimbursable line items for travel and material purchases as needed and approved by the government. This contract provides non-personal advisory and assistance services in support of the Air Force Technical Applications Center's (AFTAC) mission that will include, but not be limited, to technical, programmatic, acquisition, expert panel, analyses, engineering, logistical and consultation support on a task order basis. Work will be performed on Patrick Space Force Base, Florida, and is expected to be completed Dec. 31, 2025. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and one offer was received. Subject to the availability of funding, fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds in the amount of $2,267,485; fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $3,194,720; and fiscal 2021 other procurement funds in the amount of $256,955 are being obligated at the time of award. Headquarters Air Combat Command, Acquisition Management and Integration Center, Patrick Space Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity (FA7022-21-D-0002). Lockheed Martin Missile and Fire Control, Orlando, Florida, has been awarded a $48,634,855 855 cost-plus-incentive-fee and cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00017) to contract FA8682-18-C-0009 for the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile Group One development. This contract modification provides risk reduction testing, cyber testing and coatings to support the Group One development effort. Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be completed June 28, 2024. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and funds in the amount of $5,338,074; and fiscal 2019 other procurement funds in the amount of $3,100,060 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $258,029,572. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, California, has been awarded a $36,246,974 modification (P00009) to contract FA8620-20-C-2009 for France contractor logistics support MQ-9 Block Five and Block One aircraft. The contractor will provide an additional period of contractor logistics support for the French Air Force. Work will be performed in Poway, California, and is expected to be completed Dec. 31, 2021. This contract involves 100% Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to France. FMS funds in the amount in the full amount are being obligated at the time of award. The total cumulative face value of the contract is $73,305,690. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8620-20-C-2009). DynCorp International LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, has been awarded a $14,761,791 firm-fixed-price modification (P000012) to contract FA2860-19-C-0005 for rotary wing maintenance. This contract provides helicopter maintenance of aircraft assigned to the 316th Wing at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. This modification exercises Option Period Two and is expected to be completed Dec. 31, 2021. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds in the full amount are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $75,020,715. The 316th Contracting Squadron, Services Flight, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, is the contracting activity. The Raytheon Co., El Segundo, California, has been awarded a $10,873,024 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the sustainment of the Enhanced Integrator Sensor Suite (EISS) for the RQ-4 Global Hawk program. This contract provides for contractor logistics support and sustainment of the EISS on the RQ-4 Global Hawk aircraft. Work will be performed in El Segundo, California, and is expected to be completed Dec. 31, 2025. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds in the amount of $923,333 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, is the contracting activity (FA8577-21-C-0002). DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY SupplyCore, Inc.,* Rockford, Illinois, has been awarded a maximum $80,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for facilities maintenance, repair and operations supplies. 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 one-year bridge contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Nebraska, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Minnesota, Michigan, North Dakota and South Dakota, with a Dec. 18, 2021, ordering period end date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2022 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE8E3-21-D-0004). FreshPack Produce Inc., Denver, Colorado, has been awarded a maximum $41,500,000 firm-fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for fresh fruits and vegetables. This was a competitive acquisition with one response received. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Colorado, with a Feb. 28, 2026, ordering period end date. Using customers are Department of Agriculture schools and reservations. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2026 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE300-21-D-S748). TMG OpCon LLLP, Ellijay, Georgia, has been awarded a maximum $27,000,000 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for medical equipment and accessories for the Defense Logistics Agency electronic catalog. This was a competitive acquisition with 135 responses received. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Georgia, with a Dec. 17, 2025, performance completion date. - Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2026 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2DH-21-D-0054). Crown Clothing Co.,* Vineland, New Jersey, has been awarded a maximum $8,541,763 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for men's coats, belts and keepers. This was a competitive acquisition with four responses received. This is a one-year base contract with four one-year option periods. Location of performance is New Jersey, with a Dec. 17, 2021, ordering period end date. Using military service is Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2022 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-21-D1432). *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2452534/source/GovDelivery/

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