News

Un rapport parlementaire, présenté mercredi par les députés Fabien Gouttefarde (député de l'Eure) et Claude de Ganay (député du Loiret) met en évidence une nouvelle course aux armements basés sur l'intelligence artificielle. L'Usine Nouvelle rappelle que la ministre des Armées Florence Parly a déclaré en avril 2019 que la France ne déploierait pas de tels systèmes. Les députés estiment toutefois : «Il est important que la France et plus globalement l'Europe ne restent pas en marge de la révolution de l'intelligence artificielle. Ce n'est pas un choix envisageable. Au risque d'un déclassement stratégique, il faut faire de la recherche, faire des développements en matière d'intelligence artificielle de défense», préconisent-ils. L'Usine Nouvelle et La Croix du 23 juillet

Tony Osborne Ninety percent of Britain's front-line combat aircraft are crewed, but British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace says he expects a “major reversal” of these proportions by 2040. Wallace's speech at the opening of a virtual Farnborough Airshow on July 20—a message reminiscent of the late Duncan Sandys' 1957 defense white paper that declared the manned fighter redundant and guided and ballistic missiles to be the future of Britain's defense—may hint at a radically altered Royal Air Force (RAF) with heavy fielding of swarming UAVs and other additive capabilities such as “loyal wingmen” dominating fleets. But Wallace's comments also touched on the trajectory for the UK-led Tempest Future Combat Air System (FCAS), which is targeted to begin to replace the UK's fleet of Eurofighter Typhoons from 2035. Air Chief Marshal Mike Wigston, chief of the Air Staff, said at the RAF's annual air power conference on July 15 that he intended any FCAS to be optionally manned. Sandys' defense plan sent reverberations through the UK aerospace industry, but the vision for the Tempest calls for a similar fundamental revolution. Saab spending £50 million on UK FCAS hub Technologies are being matured to support year-end business case submission BAE Systems says its factory of the future will subsume the need for heavy, fixed and long-lead tooling—halving production time compared with previous programs. And industry is looking to new players for cybersecurity technology from the banking world and materials technology from the automotive sector, companies from outside the typical defense industrial base. Two years since the announcement of Team Tempest—the industry consortium of BAE Systems, Leonardo, MBDA, Rolls-Royce and the British government's Combat Air Strategy that coalesced at the 2018 Farnborough Airshow—the group is growing for the first time, with the inclusion of Bombardier UK, Collins Aerospace, GE UK, GKN, Martin-Baker, Qinetiq and Thales UK. The additions to the team come in the form of a first wave of industrial agreements, with BAE hinting that more industrial partners will follow. Of the new partners, Collins announced it had been contracted by BAE to provide advanced actuation capabilities. Sweden's Saab announced also on July 20 that it is investing £50 million ($58 million) into the creation of an FCAS center in the UK. The facility will serve as a hub for the company's participation in the FCAS and represent Stockholm's first tentative steps into the venture. Saab does not name the Tempest specifically, with CEO Micael Johansson hinting that Sweden's involvement is focused more on the technology rather than the future platform. “Saab's FCAS strategy ensures that the technology is in place to support a long-term future air capability and also to support continuous upgrades of Gripen E for decades to come,” Johansson said. While the international partnership model for the Tempest has yet to be finalized, British officials have suggested that the partnerships could be agile and scalable. In other words, allowing nations to “partner in a way that suits them,” Richard Berthon, the UK Defense Ministry's Combat Air acquisition program director, previously told Aviation Week (AW&ST July 13-26, p. 52). Johannsson said nations looking to refresh their fleets with the current generation of fighters, like the Gripen or Typhoon, should not be concerned about the push to deliver the Tempest during the 2030s. “A strong joint partnership around a future combat air system will also guarantee Gripen and Eurofighter access to new technologies,” Johannsson said. Existing customers, he said, should see the FCAS as a “seal of approval as we safeguard continuous fighter development.” Until now, the work between the national partners had been on a bilateral basis. The aim was “to define our common objectives,” BAE Systems CEO Charles Woodburn says. But this work has now extended into trilateral studies that include “assessing how we can start to realize the huge potential for collaboration across our three nations,” Woodburn says. Although the talks are now trilateral in nature, the UK says it is still keen to see more international partners “join our flightpath to discovery,” Wallace adds. Industry is already beginning to think trilaterally, with GKN Aerospace in Sweden confirming it will work with Rolls-Royce in the UK and Avio Aero in Italy on feasibility studies for a future fighter jet engine. GKN states it was contracted in the first quarter of 2020 by Sweden's defense materiel agency, FMV, to conduct a study in collaboration with Rolls-Royce. Few details have emerged on the 60 technology demonstration programs currently being developed and matured by Team Tempest in support of the UK Future Combat Air System Technology Initiative (FCAS TI). Michael Christie, BAE's head of Future Combat Air Systems, says work on maturing the technologies ready to support the business case submission to the British government at the end of this year has seen the partners “at least achieve or exceed” the maturity targets set, doing so “at great pace” and providing “fundamental evidence to the business case.” “Every one of these [60] projects will deliver a UK, European or world first,” says Cecil Buchanan, the RAF Rapid Capability Office's chief scientist. https://aviationweek.com/ad-week/trilateral-tempest-expands-industrial-base

July 22, 2020 | By Brian W. Everstine Rolls-Royce formally entered the competition to re-engine the B-52 as expected, offering its F130 engine already in use in some USAF aircraft to power the bomber. The Air Force on May 19 issued its request for proposals for the B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program, with responses due on July 22 and a contract award expected in June 2021. In addition to Rolls-Royce, GE Aviation and Raytheon Technologies' Pratt & Whitney will compete for the award. The service wants to buy 608 engines for 76 B-52s to keep the bomber flying through 2050. The bomber currently uses Pratt & Whitney TF33 engines, and the service is calling for fuel efficiency savings of about 30 percent and an increase in range of up to 40 percent. Rolls-Royce, in a July 22 statement, said the F130 engine has “the perfect size and thrust, and features a modern, efficient, and proven design.” The engine, a variant of the BR725 commercial engine, is in use in E-11s and C-37s. GE Aviation is offering the CF34-10 and Passport engines, touting that the company has already done re-engining for the KC-135, C-5, and U-2 programs along with providing engines for the B-1 and B-2 fleets. Pratt & Whitney is offering the PW800 engine, and the company has said it has expertise on the B-52, having provided the legacy powerplant. https://www.airforcemag.com/rolls-royce-formally-enters-b-52-re-engining-competition/

Updated: Jul 22, 2020 8:43 AM The PAF had acquired the F-16 Fighting Falcons a couple of years before. This time around, with the induction of the Rafale, does the IAF need more than a catchy tag line to keep the PLAAF at bay? By Wing Commander Amit Ranjan Giri “The balance rests on us”–this was the catchphrase of the IAF when the first MiG 29 thundered down and took to the skies in Pune, in the mid-eighties, heralding the parity in new generation fighter jets between the PAF and IAF. The PAF had acquired the F-16 Fighting Falcons a couple of years before. This time around, with the induction of the Rafale, does the IAF need more than a catchy tag line to keep the PLAAF at bay? As Group Captain Harkirat and his boys land the latest fighting machines at Ambala, five in all, two twins seaters (RB series) and three single-seaters (BS series), they propel the IAF to another level of air fighting capability, one which would enhance itself with the acquisition of all 36 Rafales and associated weaponry in the near future. An interesting trivia about IAF fighters is that, Russian fighters generally come in huge crates and are assembled in India whereas most ‘western' fighters are flown in, from the OEM country. This, by no means, indicates that the incoming Rafales would be able to take on the enemy immediately, it would take the IAF a little time before these jets are operationalised with a plethora of weaponry, the earlier the better. How does the Rafale fare against the Chinese fighters? The Rafales' main contender in the PLAAF would be the Chengdu J-20 and if produced and operationalised the Shenyang J-31, both are highly rated by the Chinese media and pitched as fifth-generation stealth fighters against the Rafales' 4.5 generation lineage. That having been said, the Chinese fighters' capabilities are only on paper, much of them are yet to be demonstrated or proven. True, the Rafale lacks stealth but is built around the low RCS philosophy whereas, though the J-20 proclaims itself as a proponent of stealth the ‘canards' in front and additional external hardpoints for extra fuel tanks would shatter much of its claims in this department. Just to clear the air around stealth – absolute all aspect stealth is a myth, at least as of now. Aeroplanes claiming stealth are actually low observables depending on their aspect – the way they look to the enemy sensors- never invisible from all direction. The IAF has been known to pick up Chinese J-20s on their Su 30 radars earlier. Engine, weapons and avionics: who gets the better score? With limited internal capacity of weapons and no ‘supercruise' capability as yet, the Chinese contenders do have a lot to live up to. The Rafale, in this aspect, delivers what it promises – low RCS, excellent weapon carriage capability – albeit external and supercruise – the ability to go supersonic without afterburners. When it comes to avionics, all three aircraft would pitch ‘neck to neck'. All boast of one of the most advanced radars – the Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) and all three have equivalent avionics suites onboard. However, it is yet to be seen if the Chinese have been able to integrate these technologies to match, compute and present the desired data – a capability which leapfrogs an aircraft to the next level. The Rafale's SPECTRA defensive aids system is a classic example of this – processing and amalgamating information from various sensors to safeguard the aircraft. The SCALP and Meteor are some of the goodies in the Rafale package for the IAF. Whilst the former is a ground attack precision weapon, the latter, is one of the best BeyondVisualRange (BVR) air to air missiles available at present. The J-20 in comparison carries the PL series of missiles with the PL 15 matching up with the Meteor in terms of range. As per the last reports, the PL 21 with enhanced range was yet to be operationalised. Pedigree versus Pariah, who wins? The Rafale comes from an ancestry of well-known fighters which Dassault has produced and earned their place in the annals of history. If western intelligence reports are to be believed the Chinese fighters have been an attempted copy of the F 22 Raptor and the F 35 Lightning, curtsy hackers who had managed to steal substantial amount of data from the US servers. Apart from the privileged pedigree the Rafale is also combat-proven – Libya, Iraq and Syria were all contemporary conflicts wherein the French fighter has been able to earn a name for itself. The Chinese fighters, in contrast, are yet to be proven in battle, as far as the J-31 goes there are doubts if the machine has gone beyond the prototype stage as yet. The J-20, on the other hand, does enjoy an edge over its single-engined cousin, it has entered the production stage and rumours of about one squadron of this type with PLAAF has surfaced in the intelligence circle. All the above being said it needs to be appreciated that no comparison of fighting machines can be justified with data on paper – a lot goes in exploiting platforms during the war and a major portion of the winning effort comes from other non-tangible factors – the side which exploits the entire spectrum generally lands up on the victorious side. https://www.financialexpress.com/defence/rafale-coming-in-how-does-rafale-fighter-jets-fare-against-the-chinese-plaaf-fighters/2031381/

by Ashley Roque The US Army has awarded BAE Systems with a USD32.3 million contract to refit two A2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles with hybrid electric drives (HEDs) in a bid to produce additional power for future weapons. In mid-July, the service announced the terms of the prototyping contract and said it is expecting to receive the retrofitted vehicles in two years. “By rapidly prototyping HEDs on a small scale, we can jump-start advanced electrification and hybridisation of army platforms, and encourage our industry partners to invest in these products to meet army standards,” said Lieutenant General Neil Thurgood, the director of hypersonics, directed energy, space and rapid acquisition, who is also overseeing the Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office (RCCTO). The service is eyeing the HEDs as a way to reduce fuel consumption, and increase reliability and performance without adding additional size, weight, and power (SWaP) demands. This HED effort will consist of an upgraded engine, a transmission replaced by an electric drive motor, and the addition of lithium ion batteries. As a result, the engine power can produce electricity for greater mobility and can also be used to operate additional onboard equipment. One potential power use could include directed energy weapons, such as high-powered lasers, that pose numerous SWaP challenges. “HEDs add a high-voltage generator that turns engine power into electricity for greater mobility and for operating additional equipment, both of which increase combat effectiveness,” Mike Foster, director of the RCCTO's rapid acquisition, said in the announcement. https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/bae-systems-qinetiq-tasked-with-a2-bradley-hybrid-electric-drive-retrofit

By: Mike Yeo and Valerie Insinna MELBOURNE, Australia — Singapore has told the U.S. Air Force it wants to co-locate its Arizona-based F-16 training detachment with its future F-35 training unit, with five locations in the U.S. shortlisted as potential sites for training international F-35 operators. In a statement to Defense News, U.S. Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek said the service “plans to establish an F-35 Foreign Military Sales training Center in the Continental United States which could accommodate up to 36 F-35 aircraft.” “Based on negotiations with our foreign military sales customers as well as airspace and weather considerations, the Air Force is considering five candidate locations. Those include Buckley AFB, Colorado; Fort Smith Airport, Arkansas; Hulman Field, Indiana; Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas; and Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Michigan,” she added. In a statement announcing that Fort Smith Regional Airport was under consideration, Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton said that Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett signed a memorandum July 6 to establish the training center. He also revealed that Singapore — which is a Foreign Military Sales customer for the F-35B, having been cleared earlier this year to purchase four aircraft with an option for eight more — wants to co-locate its F-16 squadron, currently based at Luke Air Force Base, with its F-35s as a “long-term Foreign Military Sales location.” The Air Force's Stefanek explained that this is “to make room for additional USAF/Partner F-35s at Luke AFB,” and that once the new FMS F-35 training location is selected, that location will also be considered for Singapore's F-16 training detachment. Defense News understands that the future F-35 FMS training base would host some countries and their jets on a rotational basis, while others might maintain a permanent presence. The latter group would likely include land-scarce Singapore, which already maintains permanent aircraft training detachments in the U.S. in addition to the Luke AFB-based F-16s. The Asian nation is also setting up a rotating training presence in Guam for its fighter aircraft. Most of the shortlisted bases currently host few or no permanent flying units, and none of them are currently earmarked to operate F-35s in the future. It will take significant capital to set up an F-35 FMS training facility because existing infrastructure will need modifications to support the fifth-generation stealth fighter's operations. Luke AFB, which is located at the outskirts of Phoenix, Arizona, will reach its aircraft hosting capacity in the coming years. Its resident U.S. Air Force squadrons are set to convert from F-16s to the F-35A, and the base itself will continue to be the training location for F-35 international partner nations. This means the two international F-16 training detachments currently on base — Singapore and Taiwan — will have to move. Taiwan's F-16 jets were set to move to the nearby Arizona Air National Guard base in Tucson, but local media reported in August 2019 that the country is instead seeking to move to a base closer to the Pacific coast to better accommodate Taiwanese pilots training with U.S. Navy carrier strike groups. https://www.defensenews.com/training-sim/2020/07/22/singapore-requests-new-f-35-training-location-also-host-its-f-16-jets

By: David B. Larter WASHINGTON – The shipyard presiding over the renovations on the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard when it caught fire July 12 was awarded a $10 million contract modification for their efforts with firefighting and follow-on clean up. The contract with General Dynamics NASSCO San Diego was among those announced Wednesday in the Defense Department's daily roundup. The work includes “USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) emergency firefighting support, dewatering, safety and initial clean-up efforts,” the announcement reads, and will be completed by November of this year. The fire, which broke out July 12, began in the lower vehicle storage area amidships and damaged 11 of the Bonhomme Richard's 14 decks, according to a letter to all Navy flag officers and master chiefs obtained by Defense News. The Navy has said there was no known welding or other “hot work” going on at the time of the fire, and it is unclear what caused the blaze. The Navy is conducting a safety investigation, which are not usually releasable to the public to encourage witnesses to speak freely, and a more formal administrative investigation accompanied by accountability recommendations that can be released. The Navy's top officer Adm. Michael Gilday told Defense News in a July 16 interview he was committed to transparency in the investigation. This is a very, very serious incident that I think will force the Navy to stand back and reevaluate itself,” Gilday said. “We've got to follow the facts, we've got to be honest with ourselves and we've got to get after it. My intention, once the investigations are done, is to make this available for the public to debate, including what we need to do to get after any systemic problems that we might have.” https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2020/07/22/san-diego-shipyard-inks-10-million-contract-for-bonhomme-richard-firefighting-and-cleanup/

By Anthony Capaccio Lockheed Martin Corp. and Boeing Co. received about half of an initial $2.3 billion in increased, accelerated payments the Pentagon provided contractors to help companies' cash flows after the Covid-19 pandemic erupted in the U.S. The initial infusion was included in $13 billion in regular, periodic progress payments paid to the companies, according to newly released defense figures. Lockheed Martin initially received $685 million while Boeing got $670 million, according to a Pentagon statement to Bloomberg News In a separate statement, Lockheed Martin said that modifications to existing contracts resulted in additional accelerated payments to the company, increasing its total received to $1.1 billion by June 30, “all of which we have flowed down to our supply base.” Lockheed and Boeing are the top two U.S. defense contractors, so they were expected to get the biggest share of the funds. Other companies receiving the accelerated payments include: Raytheon Technologies Corp.: $410 million L3 Harris Technologies Inc.: $74 million The Boeing/Lockheed United Launch Alliance LLC: $70 million Northrop Grumman Corp.: $70 million Another $321 million went to other companies. The companies are benefiting from a policy the Pentagon announced in March, just as the pandemic was building in the U.S., that provided for faster, and bigger, payments to companies. The move was intended to guarantee that critical national security contracts -- including the production of key weapons systems and supplies -- weren't interrupted by companies having problems accessing cash or credit. The extra funding would ensure production lines were able to stay open. The Defense Department's move meant that larger firms could get as much as 90% of their payments for contracts in progress, up from 80% previously. For smaller businesses, which might be more susceptible to virus impacts, the rate rose to 95% from 90%. As the initial funds were identified, the Pentagon “worked with each of the major primes to ensure that they were identifying at risk companies in their supply chain and flowing down payments to those companies, as well as all companies doing work for the prime,” said the statement. The major contractors “have been flowing down payments, in some cases more than the payments received from DOD,” it said. Pentagon officials initially estimated in March about $3 billion would be paid but that number included a potential $700 million payment on a long-standing contract that further analysis deemed was not necessary. In addition to the accelerated progress payments, the Air Force in April released to Boeing $882 million withheld from the company over current deficiencies with its KC-46 military tanker program as part of Covid-19 relief efforts. After the program was announced, Senator Elizabeth Warren, who serves on the Armed Services Committee, expressed concern about its oversight. In particular, the Massachusetts Democrat questioned whether companies might try to divert the increased payments for stock buybacks, dividends or executive pay. Pentagon Undersecretary for Acquisition and Sustainment Ellen Lord in a May 15 letter to Warren said that hasn't been the case. “Companies do not divert payments for incurred costs to share buybacks, dividends or executive salaries because contractors must have already incurred costs before they receive the increased progress payments,” Lord wrote. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-07-22/lockheed-boeing-got-half-of-2-3-billion-in-pentagon-virus-cash

AIR FORCE AECOM Management Services Inc., Germantown, Maryland (FA3002-20-D-0012); AKIMA Logistics Services LLC, Herndon, Virginia (FA3002-20-D-0013); DynCorp International LLC, Fort Worth, Texas (FA3002-20-D0010); Jacobs Technology Inc., Fort Walton Beach, Florida (FA3022-20-D-0014); Leidos Inc., Reston, Virginia (FA3002-20-D-0011); M1 Support Services LP, Denton, Texas (FA3002-20-D-0015); PAE Services LLC, Arlington, Virginia (FA3002-20-D-0016); and Vertex Aerospace LLC, Madison, Missouri (FA3002-20-D-0017), have been awarded a maximum $14,000,000,000 multiple-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract for Aircraft Maintenance Enterprise Solution -- a strategic sourcing vehicle for Air Force-wide contracted aircraft maintenance. The contractors will provide all organizational-level maintenance services for all aircraft listed in each individual task order performance work statement, which can include any aircraft platform (excluding rotary wing, tiltrotor and remotely piloted aircraft). Because this is an IDIQ, the location of performance is not known at this time and will be cited on individual task orders. Generally, work will be performed at government facilities and is expected to be completed Sept. 14, 2030. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition with 19 offers received. No funds are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Installation Contracting Center, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas, is the contracting activity (FA3002-19-R-A001). DynCorp International LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, has been awarded a $17,760,615 modification (P00004) to contract FA3002-19-D-A004 to increase the ceiling for the firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for J85 engine maintenance. This contract provides for managing the full cycle of production by planning, scheduling, directing and controlling all maintenance on jet engines and support equipment, as well as monitoring serviceable base stock levels and target serviceable requirements of each customer. Work will be performed at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, and is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2020. No funds are being obligated at the time of award. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. The Air Force Installation Contracting Center, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas, is the contracting activity. Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Herndon, Virginia, has been awarded a $16,284,463 cost-plus-award-fee undefinitized task order under the ground subsystems sustainment contract (FA8214-15-D-0001) for the Minuteman III general sustainment. Work will be performed in Layton, Utah, and is expected to be completed Aug. 31, 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $8,142,232 are being obligated at the time of award of the base period. The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity (FA8214-20-F-0082). Advantor IDS Inc., Orlando, Florida, has been awarded a $9,999,999 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for intrusion detection system (IDS) supplies and ancillary services. The contractor shall provide all supplies (hardware) and complete all installation of all IDS and test operations. Work will be performed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, and is expected to be completed July 16, 2025. This award is the result of sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $237,456 are being obligated at the time of award. The Directorate of Contracting, Edwards AFB, California, is the contracting activity. CORRECTION: The contract announced on July 20, 2020, to BAE Systems Technology Solutions & Services Inc., Rockville, Maryland, for the Instrumentation Range Support Program, has not yet been awarded. CORRECTION: The contract announced on July 20, 2020, to six firms for design-build construction efforts at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, included an incorrect location for RORE Inc. (FA4620-20-0009). The firm is actually located in Gig Harbor, Washington. ARMY Lockheed Martin Corp., Orlando, Florida, was awarded a $702,881,910 modification (P00042) to contract W31P4Q-18-C-0130 for procurement of Hellfire missiles. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2023. Fiscal 2010, 2011, 2018, 2019 and 2020 other procurement (Army) funds in the amount of $702,754,471 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity. Southwest Valley Constructors, Albuquerque, New Mexico, was awarded a $24,577,981 modification (P00016) to contract W912PL-19-C-0015 to design and construct approximately 31.65 miles of three-phase power distribution, lighting, closed-circuit television camera, linear ground detection system and shelters for the Barrier Wall Project. Work will be performed in Lukeville, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 7, 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $24,577,981 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the contracting activity. Agile Infrastructure Services LLC,* Pinehurst, Idaho, was awarded a $13,000,000 modification (P00010) to contract W9124C-15-D-0005 for construction, repair and maintenance of installation facilities on Fort Jackson, South Carolina. 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. 17, 2020. U.S. Army 419th Contracting Support Brigade, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, is the contracting activity. (Awarded July 15, 2020) Joseph B. Fay Co., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was awarded a $12,938,950 firm-fixed-price contract for the repair and rehabilitation of the gate hoist machinery and the performance of control-system upgrades at the Montgomery Locks and Dam. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Monaca, Pennsylvania, with an estimated completion date of Oct. 10, 2022. Fiscal 2019 and 2020 civil operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $12,938,950 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity (W911WN-20-C-8002). DEFENSE THREAT REDUCTION AGENCY L3 Applied Technologies Inc., a subsidiary of L3Harris Technologies Inc., San Leandro, California, will be awarded a $73,752,927 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (with one firm-fixed-price line item for long lead time materials) for X-ray simulators for test and evaluation of nuclear survivability. Work will be performed at the contractor's location in San Leandro, California, and is expected to be completed by May 2025. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $3,827,342 will be obligated at the time of award. The Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HDTRA1-20-C-0038). NAVY Crowley Government Services, Jacksonville, Florida, is awarded a $24,070,898 firm-fixed-price contract with reimbursable elements extension to continue the operation and maintenance of five T-AGOS ocean surveillance ships and two T-AGM missile range instrumentation ships. This extension includes one six-month base and two six-month option periods which, if exercised, will bring the cumulative value of this contract to $450,127,044. Work will be performed at sea worldwide. The following ships will be worked on: USNS Victorious T-AGOS 19; USNS Able T-AGOS 20; USNS Effective T-AGOS 21; USNS Loyal T-AGOS 22; USNS Impeccable T-AGOS 23; USNS Invincible T-AGM 24; and the USNS Howard T-AGM 25. Work is expected to be completed by January 2021. Navy working capital funds in the amount of $24,070,898 are obligated for fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2021 and will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. This contract extension was not competitively procured. The contract was prepared under the provisions of 10 U.S. Code §2304(c)(1), as implemented by Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1(a)(2)(iii). There is only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N62387-15-C-2505). S&S Concrete Construction,* Leesburg, Georgia, is awarded a $10,000,000 maximum amount, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity construction contract for asphalt paving and minor concrete work at Marine Corps Logistics Base, Albany, Georgia. No task orders are being issued at this time. The work will be performed in Albany, Georgia. The term of the contract is not to exceed 60 months and work is expected to be completed by September 2025. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) (O&M, N) contract funds in the amount of $5,000 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. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website and eight bids were received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N40085-20-D-0101). National Steel and Shipbuilding Co., San Diego, California, is awarded a $10,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to previously awarded contract N00024-18-C-4404 for USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) emergency firefighting support, dewatering, safety and initial clean-up efforts. Work will be performed in San Diego, California, and is expected to be completed by November 2020. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $7,700,000 was obligated at time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Southwest Regional Maintenance Center, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity. Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Moorestown, New Jersey, is awarded a $7,634,002 firm-fixed-price modification to previously awarded contract N00024-14-C-5106 for the production and delivery of AEGIS weapon system MK 6 MOD 1 spares for new construction and AEGIS modernization guided missile destroyers. Work will be performed in Clearwater, Florida (90%); and Moorestown, New Jersey (10%), and is expected to be completed by April 2022. Fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy); and 2018 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $7,634,002 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. Patriot Construction Co., Dunkirk, Maryland, is awarded a $7,173,707 firm-fixed-price contract for construction of training facilities at Marine Corps Base (MCB), Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Work will be performed in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. The work to be performed is for the construction of Special Operations Forces Human Performance Training Facilities, miscellaneous supporting structures, modifications to buildings RR-136 and RR-136A, utilities, parking, roadways and site work. The structures will be single-story steel frame buildings with brick veneer over metal studs, standing seam metal roofs, metal soffits, translucent wall panels and mezzanines. Special construction features include soil surcharge loads and storm water best management practices. Electrical systems include primary power distribution; lighting; energy monitoring/control systems; intrusion detection system; telephone/data and switch/server rooms; electrical switch gear; transformers; circuits; and fire alarms. Mechanical systems include plumbing; fire protection; compressed air; dehumidification; air conditioning systems; a chiller yard; and digital controls. Information systems include telephone, data, local area network, mass notification and intercom. Site work will include building utility systems; traffic control; parking; domestic water; fire protection water; sanitary sewer; sewage conveyance; propane gas networks; perimeter security fencing; gates; storm water; management; fiber/copper communications; cable television; and area lighting. Construction includes sustainable features complying with high performance sustainable building guiding principles. Work is expected to be completed by February 2022. Fiscal 2019 military construction (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $7,173,707 are obligated on this award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website and three proposals were received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N40085-20-C-0142). *Small Business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2283344/source/GovDelivery/