Europe’s new warplane program could finally, maybe, take off

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  7 mai 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

  Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - May 06, 2020

  DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Intuitive Surgical Inc., Sunnyvale, California, has been awarded a maximum $420,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for surgical robots, instruments and their related accessories. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. This was a competitive acquisition with 105 responses received. Location of performance is California, with a May 5, 2025, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2025 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2D1-20-D-0006). Hartford Provision Co., doing business as HPC Foodservice, South Windsor, Connecticut, has been awarded a maximum $49,473,750 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-quantity contract for full-line food distribution. This was a competitive acquisition with one response received. This is a four-year contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, with a May 6, 2024, performance completion date. Using customers are Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Navy and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2024 defense working capital funds. The contracting agency is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE300-20-D-3271). The Will-Burt Co., Orrville, Ohio, has been awarded a maximum $43,186,213 fixed-price long term contract for masts. This was a competitive acquisition with one offer received. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Ohio, with a May 5, 2025, performance completion date. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2025 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime, Columbus, Ohio (SPE7MX-20-D-0078). CORRECTION: The contract announced on April 29, 2020, for Raytheon Co., Andover, Massachusetts (SPRRA2-20-C-0023), for $13,688,190 was announced with an incorrect award date. The correct award date is May 4, 2020. NAVY Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc., Newport News, Virginia, is awarded an $187,126,853 modification to previously awarded contract N00024-18-C-2106 to prepare and make ready for the refueling complex overhaul (RCOH) of USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74). Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia (65%); and Norfolk, Virginia (35%). This modification will extend the period of performance for continued advance planning efforts including material forecasting, long lead time material procurement, purchase order development, technical document and drawing development, scheduling, resource forecasting and planning, development of cost estimates for work to be accomplished, data acquisition, pre-overhaul tests and inspections, pre-overhaul preparations, refueling preparations and other technical studies as required to prepare and make ready for the CVN 74 RCOH accomplishment. Work is expected to complete by January 2021. This modification constitutes the award of an existing option for an additional six months of effort. The original contract and this modification will be accomplished by Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc., Newport News, Virginia, under the authority of 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1). Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc. is the original building yard contractor for all ships of the CVN-68 class, the reactor plant planning yard, the lead design refueling yard and the only private shipyard capable of refueling and overhauling nuclear powered aircraft carriers. Therefore, it is the only source with the knowledge, experience and facilities required to accomplish this effort in support of the CVN 74 RCOH. Fiscal 2020 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $187,126,853 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. The Boeing Co., Seattle, Washington, is awarded a $29,059,944 modification (P00172) to previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract N00019-14-C-0067 for the production and delivery of 10 P-8A A-kits, 10 turret deployment units and eight mechanism units in support of Lot 10 P-8A production aircraft. Work will be performed in Seattle, Washington (91%); and Mesa, Arizona (9%), and is expected to be complete by January 2024. Fiscal 2019 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $29,059,944 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. W.M. Jordan Co. Inc., Newport News, Virginia, is awarded $26,929,000 for firm-fixed-price task order N40085-20-F-5271, under a multiple award construction contract for the design-build repair and renovation of Bachelor Enlisted Quarters Building (BEQB) 3609, Joint Expeditionary Base, Little Creek-Fort Story, Virginia. Work will be performed in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The work will provide for the design and construction renovation of BEQB 3609 to meet current quality standards and facility criteria for unaccompanied housing for the Navy. The site and building will be modified to meet anti-terrorism force protection requirements. Major building systems such as plumbing, heating, ventilation, and air condition, electrical and fire protection will be replaced with new systems. Work is expected to be complete by October 2022. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $26,929,000 are obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Three proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N40085-19-D-9089). L3 Adaptive Methods Inc., Centreville, Virginia, is awarded a $12,719,770 cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost contract for engineering services and capability development in support of the Undersea Warfare and Surface Warfare systems. Work will be performed in Keyport, Washington (30%); Centreville, Virginia (25%); Rockville, Maryland (15%); Manassas, Virginia (10%); Herndon, Virginia (5%); Dahlgren, Virginia (5%); Newport, Rhode Island (5%); Austin, Texas (1%); Moorestown, New Jersey (1%); Honolulu, Hawaii (1%); Fairfax, Virginia (1%); and Laurel, Maryland (1%), and is expected to be complete by April 2021. If all options are exercised, work will continue through April 2025. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $69,458,660. This contract combines purchases for the Navy (98%) and the government of Japan (2%) under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy); 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy); 2020 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy); and FMS Japan funding in the amount of $6,142,292 will be obligated at time of award. Funding in the amount of $1,191,829 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with Section 1709 of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act that modifies 15 U.S. Code 638(r), this Small Business Innovative Research Phase (SBIR) III contract is being awarded to L3 Adaptive Methods Inc., which is the same firm that was competitively selected for the SBIR Phase I and II awards. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-20-C-5211). The Boeing Co., Seattle, Washington, is awarded a $7,039,596 cost-plus-fixed-fee order (N00019-20-F-0647) against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-16-G-0001. This order procures non-recurring engineering for the design, fabrication and correction of deficiencies required for the delivery and installation of retrofit kits for Navy P-8A aircraft with Increment 3 Engineering Change Proposal (ECP) 6 capabilities. Work will be performed in Puget Sound, Washington. The P-8A ECP 6 provides a significant modification to the baseline aircraft, installing new airframe racks, radomes, antennas, sensors and wiring, while incorporating a new combat system suite with an improved computer processing and security architecture capability at the higher than secret level, a wide band satellite communication system, an anti-submarine warfare signal intelligence capability, a minotaur track management system and additional communications and acoustics systems to enhance search, detection and targeting capabilities. Work is expected to be complete by May 2021. Fiscal 2020 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $7,039,596 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. ARMY Stantec Consulting Services Inc., Lexington, Kentucky, was awarded a $45,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Dam Safety Modification Mandatory Center of Expertise, national dam and levee safety, and geotechnical services. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of May 5, 2025. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington, West Virginia, is the contracting activity (W91237-20-D-0010). Thomas Instrument Inc.,* Brookshire, Texas, was awarded an $8,788,301 firm-fixed-price contract for maintenance and overhaul of UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters. Bids were solicited via the internet with five received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of May 6, 2025. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-20-F-0368). AIR FORCE Space Exploration Technologies Corp., Hawthorne, California, has been awarded an $8,904,146 firm-fixed-price modification (P00007) to contract FA8811-19-C-0004 for non-National Security Space (NSS) Fleet surveillance. This contract provides for non-NSS Fleet surveillance efforts across the Space Exploration family of launch vehicles for non-NSS missions. The location of performance is Hawthorne, California; Vandenberg, California; and Cape Canaveral Air Force Space Station, Florida. The work is expected to be completed by Nov. 8, 2020. Fiscal 2019 missile procurement funds in the amount of $2,226,037; and fiscal 2019 space procurement funds in the amount of $6,678,110 will be obligated at the time of award. Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, California, is the contracting activity (FA8811-19-C-0004). AT&T Government Solutions Inc., Oakton, Virginia; and El Segundo, California, has been awarded a $8,449,798 modification (P00047) to contract FA8819-15-F-0005 for continued mission support services to the Space Force, Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, Special Programs Directorate. Work will be performed at Los Angeles Air Force Base, California; and Colorado Springs, Colorado, and is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, 2021. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $1,976,668; fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $453,295; and fiscal 2019 Space production funds in the amount of $76,500 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $54,074,819. The Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, California, is the contracting activity. *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2178741/source/GovDelivery/

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  25 février 2020 | International, Aérospatial, C4ISR, Sécurité

  The largest cyber exercise you’ve never heard of

  For years, the first time the Department of Defense's cyber forces faced high-end digital attacks was not in practice or in a classroom, but in actual operations. For the cyber teams that focused on offense, a playbook developed from years of National Security Agency operations guided their work. But on the defensive side, standards and processes needed to be created from scratch meaning, in part, there was a lack of uniformity and little tradecraft to follow. Because cyber leaders had focused on staffing, training opportunities for defensive cyber operators had been sparse. To help solve that problem, the Department of Defense is expected to award a contract worth roughly $1 billion later this year for a global cyber training environment. But in the meantime, some units across the joint force have gone so far as to create their own small-scale training events and exercises to keep their forces' skill sets sharp. Perhaps the best example of these efforts are the 567th Cyberspace Operations Group's “Hunt Event,” which has quickly grown to become one of the largest cyber exercises across the department. The bi-monthly exercise pits teams against each other in a competition for the coveted Goblet of Cyber trophy and bragging rights. The group aims to better train defensive hunters, improve defensive tactics, techniques and procedures and develop defensive tradecraft. “The point of this was that we didn't really have a good range space to play on that had an active and live adversary so we could, in theory, replay traffic and we could go in and generate some easy kill, low hanging fruit signatures for detection,” Capt. Reid Hottel, training flight commander at the 837th Cyber Operations Squadron, told Fifth Domain. “If we are supposed to be the primary counter to advanced persistent threats, the way that we were training was not like how we were fighting.” The exercises started roughly a year ago to teach operators how to hunt on networks. It's now evolved to where participants also work on leadership skills and build custom exploits on a large range with multiple stakeholders. In addition to the Air Force CPTs — the defensive cyber teams each service provides to U.S. Cyber Command — members from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and Mission Defense Teams, specialized defensive cyber teams that will protect critical Air Force missions and local installations, also take part. At the most recent exercise in January, a representative from NASA participated. Now, the exercises have become so popular Hottel said other services are interested in participating in the future. This includes a Marine Corps CPT at Scott Air Force Base. Building better leaders and hunters To be the best, cyber leaders recognized their teams would have to beat the best and that meant training against the world's most advanced cyber threats. Some other forms of training — such as the popular capture the flag game, which involve teams trying to find “flags” such as files or scripts inside a network — are not always the most realistic form of training. “When we were fighting, we're up against advanced adversaries. We're up against adversaries that are using tactics, techniques and procedures that are just above and beyond what simple little [scripts] ... we were using in the past,” Hottel said. “This hunt exercise allows us to do that, whereas in the past, particularly in other flag exercises, we are not training at the APT level. We [were] training at the script kiddie kind of level and here we're training at a much higher difficulty, which stretches and grows our operators into being true hunters.” He added that the exercises are also helping develop tradecraft. “That's one thing that nobody really teaches, there's no commercial course that you can go buy that teaches tradecraft, that teaches the military away, that teaches the way that we use to find the APT, which in theory, should be ever evolving because our adversary is as well,” Hottel said. “These exercises have been really eye-opening to provide tradecraft development, to become hunters, to understand what it means to be a cyber protection team.” The exercise has evolved to include custom exploits, custom root kits, custom attacks and zero-day exploits within a real-world mission where in some cases hunters don't have any indictors of compromise that exist in the public domain. This means that there is no public reporting available on the exploits or tactics the adversary is using. Participants can hone their skills, by actively hunting on a network in order to find anomalies that could lead to trouble. “As hunters,” he said, “we don't necessarily have singular methodology, we don't necessarily have a unique way that we can go about finding advanced threats mostly because we haven't really been training like that.” The training is also helpful for new mission defense teams, which are just being officially resourced within the Air Force around local installations. By having those teams sit next to CPTs, who are using generally the same tools, they can learn about tradecraft and what to look for at the local level. During the most recent exercise, officials said it was the first time they intentionally tried to trip up participants. Organizers created fake attack chains to see how the players scoped an investigation into a network and deducted points for the amount of time they wasted following that lead. This technique helps teach teams how to scope investigations without going down “rabbit holes,” and not adequately planning, Lt. Christopher Trusnik, chief of training at the 835th Cyberspace Operations Squadron, told Fifth Domain. Beyond the technical hunting, this approach helped team leader to flex leadership muscles. “It was more of teaching that leadership technique of you plan for this, how do you investigate quickly and how do you triage your investigation,” Trusnik, whose unit ran the January exercise, said. Hottel explained that following this most recent event, teams focused on leadership and organization. At one point, someone on his team previously had been coached on what they needed to include such as specific indictors that might be valuable to their mission partners to understand. At this exercise, they included those indicators. In another instance, one team member who had never run a hunt mission struggled at first. Hottel stepped in and with just a little guidance, the leader became more disciplined and was able to find things much better in the last three days. Benefits of cyberspace in training Training in cyberspace has benefits that other domains don't offer. For one, forces don't need a dedicated battlespace such as the Army's National Training Center or the range used at Nellis Air Force Base for the Air Force's Red Flag. With cyber, a custom range can be built and forces from all across the world can come in and participate. The range used for the hunt exercises stays up weeks after the formal event so individuals or teams can try their hand, though they obviously won't be eligible for the Goblet of Cyber trophy. All of this could change with the Persistent Cyber Training Environment (PCTE). PCTE is a major program being run by the Army on behalf of Cyber Command and the joint force to provide a web-based cyber training environment where cyber warriors can remotely plug in around the world and conduct individual training, collective team training or even mission rehearsal — all of which does not exist on a large scale currently. Hottel said that his forces haven't been limited thus far without PCTE. Though, once the platform is online, they can upload the range they used for a competition and it can be accessed by anyone across the joint cyber mission force. Testing new concepts But in the meantime, smaller, unit level exercises like those run by the 567th allow forces to test concepts and learn from others. Unlike larger exercises that have requirements and stated objectives, smaller exercises can serve as a proving ground for staying sharp and pushing the envelope. This allows local units more control over what their personnel do but can also allow teams to test new concepts in a relatively risk-free environment. “Let's say that a national [cyber protection] team wants to test out ... whatever they're currently using because they feel like it would provide them an advantage so they want to test out something,” Hottel said. “We can throw that on the range as well and they can utilize an entirely defensive tool set. We're not trying to make people tool experts, we're trying to make them tradecraft, defensive hunters.” Hottel also said that personnel playing on the archived range can bring new ideas, which can then be tested during the next exercise. In some cases, they may come up with an idea on their own and bring it to the next exercise to see if it actually works. Ultimately, the event is designed to create better cyber warriors. “We're not trying to make people tool experts, we're trying to make them tradecraft, defensive hunters,” Hottel said. https://www.fifthdomain.com/dod/air-force/2020/02/21/the-largest-cyber-exercise-youve-never-heard-of/

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  6 septembre 2018 | International, Terrestre

  Army Wants Extended Training for Armor, Engineers, Other Combat Jobs

  By Matthew Cox The commander of the U.S. Army's Maneuver Center of Excellence said Wednesday that basic training programs for combat arms specialties such as armor and engineers will soon start a pilot program similar to the one that is extending Infantry one station unit training to 22 weeks. About 400 recruits are now in their seventh week of the pilot at Fort Benning, Georgia that is adding eight weeks to the traditional 14-week infantry OSUT. Once that pilot program is complete, Army officials will begin extending other combat arms OSUT programs, Maj. Gen. Gary Brito, the commander of MCOE at Benning, told an audience at the Association of the United States Army's Sept. 5 Aviation Hot Topic event. "It started with infantry; now we will begin a pilot with armor one station unit training at the beginning of next calendar year," Brito said. "We also have some guidance from [Training and Doctrine Command] to do the same thing with the engineers at Fort Leonard Wood [Missouri]. "This could expand, and it most likely will, to some of the other combat MOSs over the next couple of years, to transform out to 22 weeks for all." Recruits in infantry OSUT traditionally go through nine weeks of Basic Combat Training and about four-and-a-half weeks of infantry advanced individual training. The pilot adds eight weeks of training time to hone marksmanship, land navigation and other key combat skills. "The guidance to the team is ... you have 22 weeks now to build and do the best land navigation you can do; you have 22 weeks now to have the best marksmanship training that you can do," Brito said. Full article: https://www.military.com/daily-news/2018/09/05/army-wants-extended-training-armor-engineers-other-combat-jobs.html