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June 10, 2020 | International, Naval, Security

White House Orders New Icebreaker Strategy For Coast Guard

“I certainly hope the Pentagon is not going to come back after studying this again, saying there's no need," for more Arctic infrastructure, said Sen. Dan Sullivan. "The infrastructure is not fine. It doesn't exist. And we need it to exist.”

By on June 09, 2020 at 5:37 PM

WASHINGTON: The White House today ordered a major rethink of current plans for a new Coast Guard heavy icebreaker fleet, calling for the ability to launch drones, install intelligence-collection systems, and consider “defensive armament” to “defend against threats by near-peer competitors” and consider the “potential for nuclear-powered propulsion.”

The call to consider new designs for at least three ships already slated to be built over the next half-decade is a sure sign of growing concern in Washington over Russian and Chinese advances in putting more heavy, nuclear-powered ships in the water while the US remains stuck with just two 40 year-old operational breakers. The Coast Guard already has plans for three new, non-nuclear icebreakers to be built by 2026, with several medium icebreakers to follow in later years. It's not clear if the White House is asking for a complete redesign of those ships, but the memo clearly indicates a desire to expand their capabilities significantly.

The memo gives acting Homeland Security secretary Chad Wolf, in conjunction with the State and Defense departments, just 60 days to come up with a plan to run a study of how to build a new icebreaking fleet that consists of “at least” three heavy polar-class security cutters that are “operationally tested and fully deployable by Fiscal Year 2029.”

The ships should be able to perform “the full range of national and economic security missions (including the facilitation of resource exploration and exploitation and undersea cable laying and maintenance),” the memo states, a clear nod to worries that both China and Russia are rushing to secure natural resources long trapped under the polar ice caps.

The Pentagon and Navy are slated to take part in the snap 60-day assessment, which includes a demand for recommendations for least two new bases in the US, and at least two new international bases.

At least one of those bases would likely be in Alaska, meeting a years-long demand from Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan, who is waiting for the Pentagon to finish a study on a potential strategic port in his state later this summer.

Sullivan managed to get language in the 2020 defense authorization bill ordering the Pentagon to study new ports in Alaska, after years of the military saying there was no need.

“At long last, the federal government has woken up to the fact that the Arctic is a region of great strategic competition,” the senator said in an emailed statement. “Unfortunately, our adversaries are well ahead of the United States when it comes to Arctic infrastructure.” Noting his efforts to bring the Pentagon's attention to these issues, he added, “this presidential memo will add weight to these efforts and will send a signal to our adversaries and those who are laying claim to the Arctic that the United States will not cede ground in this strategic location.”

Pentagon officials have said privately that refurbishing existing ports in Alaska for military use would be expensive, and they're not fully convinced there is a need. Sullivan, aware of those arguments, added, “I certainly hope the Pentagon is not going to come back after studying this again, saying there's no need. The infrastructure is not fine. It doesn't exist. And we need it to exist.”

One congressional staffer who is familiar with with the issue said part of the problem Arctic advocates have encountered is that “there is no clear official within the Department of Defense that handles Arctic issues,” and despite some efforts on Capitol Hill to create a new deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Arctic, military leaders see the region as “not as high a priority as some other things — the Department of Defense seems to be one of the last federal agencies in the country to understand the strategic importance and relevance of the Arctic.”

While the Coast Guard already has an icebreaker plan in hand, this new White House push might scramble those if the executive branch demands significant changes to the class, the first of which is slated to begin construction in 2021.

As Washington ponders the possibility of building nuclear-powered icebreakers, two Russian companies are already at work building the world's most powerful nuclear breaker, the first step in an ambitious new Arctic strategy Moscow hopes will open lucrative new shipping routes in the Arctic. The country currently operates 40 icebreakers along the Northern Sea Route in the high north. Moscow has also unveiled plans to build dozens of non-nuclear new icebreakers in the coming years, including at least 13 heavy icebreakers, nine of which would be nuclear-powered, if plans laid out by Russian President Vladimir Putin hold.

For its part, China has already matched the US in the number of icebreakers it has in its fleet, though only one of the two was built domestically. Beijing has expressed a desire to float a nuclear-powered breaker at some point in the future, though plans remain unclear. The first ship, MV Xuelong, was built at a Ukrainian shipyard but has since been upgraded by Chinese shipyards.

https://breakingdefense.com/2020/06/white-house-orders-new-icebreaker-strategy-for-coast-guard

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  • Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - December 21, 2020

    December 22, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

    Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - December 21, 2020

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General Electric Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, has been awarded a $20,049,879 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, requirements contract to provide contractor engineering and technical services engine support for Air National Guard and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) partners. Work will be performed in Bahrain, Egypt, Israel, Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Cincinnati, Ohio, and is expected to be completed Dec. 21, 2022. FMS funds will be used, with no funds being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8604-21-D-8004). Northrop Grumman, doing business as Alliant Techsystems Inc., Fort Worth, Texas, has been awarded a $15,152,856 firm-fixed-price modification (P00061) to contract FA8106-16-C-0004 for contractor logistic support for the Iraqi Air Force's Cessna 208 and 172 fleet. Work will be performed in Balad Airbase, Iraq, and is expected to be completed June 30, 2021. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Foreign Military Sales funds in the full amount are being obligated at the time of award. The total cumulative face value of the contract is $235,000,000. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, is the contracting activity. ARMY ASRC Federal Data Network Technologies, Beltsville, Maryland, was awarded a $249,000,000 hybrid (cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price) contract to support program management activities across the Department of Defense High Performance Computing Modernization program. Bids were solicited via the internet with nine received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 21, 2025. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W912DY-21-D-0030). General Dynamics Land Systems Inc., Sterling Heights, Michigan, was awarded a $15,509,730 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for contractor logistics support services for M1A1SA Abrams tanks and M88A1/A2 recovery vehicles. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Camp Taji, Iraq, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2022. Fiscal 2020 Foreign Military Sales (Iraq) funds in the amount of $15,509,730 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Detroit Arsenal, Michigan, is the contracting activity (W56HZV-21-C-0072). Amentum Services Inc., Germantown, Maryland, was awarded an $11,622,300 modification (0001CG) to contract W52P1J-12-G-0028 for logistics support services. Work will be performed at Fort Polk, Louisiana, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 17, 2021. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $11,622,300 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity. MORSE Corp Inc.,* Cambridge, Massachusetts, was awarded a $10,861,000 modification (P00002) to contract W911NF-19-C-0101 to develop novel artificial intelligence/machine learning test, evaluation and algorithmic ensembling capabilities. Work will be performed in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2021. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Defense-wide) funds in the amount of $9,038,737 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity. New South Associates Inc.,* Stone Mountain, Georgia, was awarded a $10,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for cultural resources services. Bids were solicited via the internet with eight received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 20, 2025. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W91278-21-D-0017). NAVY AttainX Inc.,* Fairfax, Virginia (N39430-21-D-2305); Golden IT-JV,* Olathe, Kansas (N39430-21-D-2306); OM Group Inc.,* Piscataway, New Jersey (N39430-21-D-2307); Stellar Innovations & Solutions Inc.,* Moraine, Ohio (N39430-21-D-2308); and Yakshna Solutions Inc.,* Herndon, Virginia (N39430-21-D-2309), are awarded an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract with a maximum amount of $151,000,000 to provide full information technology (IT) lifecycle support to Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command's (NAVFAC) core facilities management, construction management and installation management systems. The work to be performed is IT services and solutions through the performance of broad ranges of services across multiple functional areas, including but are not limited to, systems development lifecycle support, cybersecurity support, business systems operations and support, IT operations management and enterprise, cloud operations/migration/system development, secure infrastructure and analysis and management services. No task orders are being issued at this time. Work on this contract could be performed in the following sites, but is not limited to, Port Hueneme, California; San Diego, California; Washington, D.C.; Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Norfolk, Virginia; Kansas City, Missouri; Bremerton, Washington; and Yokosuka, Japan. The term of the contract is not to exceed 66 months with an expected completion date of August 2026. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Navy) (O&M,N) contract funds in the amount of $10,000 minimums for each contractor are obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Future task orders will be primarily funded by O&M,N; and military construction (Navy). This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website and Federal Business Opportunities website with 28 proposals received. NAVFAC Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center, Port Hueneme, California, is the contracting activity. Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission System, Orlando, Florida, is awarded a $101,001,289 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract. 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Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems, Marlborough, Massachusetts, is awarded a $48,773,600 modification to previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract N00039-16-C-0050 to produce, test and deliver fully integrated Navy multiband terminals (NMT) and spare parts. NMT is a multiband capable satellite communications terminal that provides protected and wideband communications. The total cumulative face value of the contract is $557,882,121. Work will be performed at Largo, Florida (54%); South Deerfield, Massachusetts (25%); Stow, Massachusetts (13%); and Marlborough, Massachusetts (8%), with an expected completion date of May 2022. Fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy); fiscal 2021 other procurement (Navy); fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Navy); fiscal 2021 Navy working capital funds; fiscal 2020 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy); and fiscal 2021 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $48,773,600 will be obligated at the time of award. 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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Epic Foods LLC,* Columbia, South Carolina, has been awarded a maximum $18,860,000 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for pouched bacon. This was a competitive acquisition with one response received. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are South Carolina and North Carolina, with a Dec. 21, 2025, ordering period end date. Using military services are Army, Navy 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 (SPE3S1-21-D-Z231). DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY Systems and Technology Research (STR), Woburn, Massachusetts, was awarded a $15,177,171 cost-plus-fixed-fee completion contract for a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency research project for the Joint All-Domain Warfighting Software (JAWS) program. JAWS seeks to develop a software suite to maximize the effectiveness of military force through theater scale battle management command and control with automation and predictive analytics. This capability would develop the enabling software for the warfighter to adaptably set up and execute synchronized kill webs encompassing the undersea, sea surface, land, air, space and electromagnetic domains. Work will be performed in Woburn, Massachusetts (54%); Alexandria, Virginia (15%); Dayton, Ohio (14%); Menlo Park, California (13%); Columbia, Maryland (2%); and Fairfax, Virginia (2%), with an expected completion date of March 2022. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $1,420,486; and fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $3,979,425 are being obligated at the time of award. This contract was a competitive acquisition in which 12 offers were received. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HR0011-21-C-0011). *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2454191/source/GovDelivery/

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    August 5, 2024 | International, Aerospace

    QinetiQ Group : €284 million Aerial Training Services contract award

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