US and British armies eye technology collaboration

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  9 janvier 2019 | International, Aérospatial

  Bulgaria ready to start talks with U.S. on F-16 jet deal

  Angel Krasimirov, Tsvetelia Tsolova SOFIA (Reuters) - The Bulgarian government has approved a plan to start talks with the United States on buying eight new F-16 fighter jets to replace its ageing Soviet-made MiG-29s and improve compliance with NATO standards, the defense minister said on Wednesday. A deal for Lockheed Martin's F-16V Block 70 would be worth around 1.8 billion levs ($1.1 billion), Bulgaria's biggest military procurement since the fall of Communist rule some 30 years ago. The decision still requires parliament's approval. Other bidders had included Sweden, with Saab's Gripen jets, and Italy, with second-hand Eurofighters. Senior defense ministry and army officials say the F-16 is a multi-role fighter plane that had been tested in battle and had a long lifespan. The defense ministry has previously said that the United States does not need additional licenses and agreements to supply the war plans with the necessary weaponry and licenses, unlike the offers from Sweden and Italy. “The government is proposing to the parliament to allow it to start talks with the United States to acquire new war planes,” Defense Minister Krasimir Karakachanov told reporters. The center-right coalition government has a thin majority in parliament, which is expected to vote on the move next week. The plan has spurred heated political debates in the Black Sea country with supporters hailing it as a strategic choice for Bulgaria, whose NATO neighbors are also flying F-16s, while critics accused the government of breaching the tender rules. On Tuesday, the White House said the United States was ready to work with the government to tailor a deal that will fit Bulgaria's budgetary and operational requirements. Its bid at present exceeds the tender's estimated limit, officials said. “We believe that the F-16 Block 70 offers Bulgaria the best possible combination of price, capability and interoperability with other NATO air forces,” U.S. President Donald Trump's administration said in a statement. Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, a former air force commander and frequent critic of Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, is believed to favor the Swedish bid and has criticized the process as flawed and “a triumph of lobbying”. Critics have questioned whether the United States can deliver the first two F-16 jets within two years as required and pointed to a U.S. proposal for a one-off payment upon contracting rather than offering a long-term payment scheme as preferred in the tender. Sweden has expressed its disappointment over the decision and said its offer was well below the estimated budget, provided for deferred payment and was ready to deliver on time. The question of which warplanes to buy has been vexing successive governments in Bulgaria for more than a decade. Borissov's government re-launched the tender in July, after a parliament commission ruled that a previous process which favored the Gripen jets, should be reviewed. ($1 = 1.7057 leva) Editing by Kevin Liffey and Susan Fenton https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bulgaria-defence-jets/bulgaria-decides-to-start-talks-with-u-s-on-f-16-jet-deal-idUSKCN1P30W9

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  24 juillet 2020 | International, Naval

  Lockheed Martin-Led Team Begins Construction On Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship, The Future USS Beloit

  Marinette, Wis., July 22, 2020 – Lockheed Martin and Fincantieri Marinette Marine marked the beginning of construction on Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) 29, the future USS Beloit, with a ceremony in Marinette. As part of a ship-building tradition dating back centuries, a shipyard worker welded into the ship's keel plate the initials of Major General Marcia M. Anderson (U.S. Army, Retired), USS Beloit ship sponsor and a Beloit, Wisconsin, native. This plate will be affixed to the ship and travel with Beloit throughout its commissioned life. LCS 29 will be the 15th Freedom-variant LCS and will join a class of more than 30 ships. To date, four Freedom-variant LCS have deployed to support U.S. Navy presence and peacekeeping missions. In May, LCS 7 (USS Detroit) partnered with a U.S. Navy destroyer and Coast Guard teams to serve interdiction missions in the U.S. Southern Command Area of Responsibility. “With two deployments so far this year, Freedom-variant LCS have proven that they are capable and can serve a unique role in the U.S. Navy's fleet,” said Joe DePietro, vice president and general manager of Small Combatants and Ship Systems. “LCS' speed, maneuverability and flexibility allows the ship to serve a multitude of missions by quickly integrating equipment and deploying manned and unmanned aerial, surface or sub-surface vehicles.” In total, there are more than 500,000 nautical miles under the keel of Freedom-variant LCS. The ship delivers advanced capability in anti-submarine, surface, and mine countermeasure missions, and was designed to evolve with the changing security environment. As near-peer competition from large nation states increases, Lockheed Martin is partnering with the Navy to evolve LCS to meet these threats. Targeted upgrades are already underway with naval strike missiles being installed in support of upcoming deployments. Future installs of improved electronic warfare and decoy launching systems are under development. LCS 29 is the first Navy ship to be named after Beloit, Wisconsin, and the ship's sponsor has personal ties to Beloit. During a long career with the U.S. military, Major General Anderson became the first African American woman to obtain the rank of major general in the U. S. Army and U. S. Army Reserve. As a citizen-soldier, Anderson was employed for 28 years by the United States Courts, where she served as the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court, Western District of Wisconsin, located in Madison, Wisconsin, until her retirement in late 2019. "The construction of the Navy's newest Littoral Combat Ship and naming it after the city of Beloit, with its rich and storied history of supporting our nation's national security, is more than fitting,” said Major General Anderson. “When completed, the USS Beloit's voyages will be part of the tradition of small cities and towns in America sharing our story around the world." Beloit is one of six LCS in various stages of construction and test at the Fincantieri Marinette Marine shipyard. “We are proud to celebrate the future USS Beloit today,” said Jan Allman, CEO of Fincantieri Marinette Marine. “The Fincantieri Marinette Marine shipyard is honored to build this capable warship, named for another city from the wonderful state of Wisconsin. I think this is a true testament to the hard work and patriotism of Midwesterners, and we look forward to working with the City of Beloit as we continue building LCS 29 for our US Navy partner.” For additional information, visit our website: www.lockheedmartin.com/lcs. About Lockheed Martin Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 105,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. About Fincantieri Marinette Marine Fincantieri is the leading western shipbuilder with a rich history dating back more than 230 years, and a track record of building more than 7,000 ships. Fincantieri Marine Group is the American subsidiary of Fincantieri, and operates three Great Lakes Shipyards: Fincantieri Marinette Marine, Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding, and Fincantieri ACE Marine. Fincantieri Marine Group's more than 2,100 steelworkers, craftsman, engineers and technicians in the United States specialize in the design, construction and maintenance of merchant ships and government vessels, including for the United States Navy and Coast Guard. About Gibbs & Cox Gibbs & Cox, the nation's leading independent maritime solutions firm specializing in naval architecture, marine engineering and design, is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. The company, founded in 1929, has provided designs for nearly 80 percent of the current U.S. Navy surface combatant fleet; approaching 7,000 naval and commercial ships have been built to Gibbs & Cox designs. View source version on Lockheed Martin: https://news.lockheedmartin.com/lockheed-martin-led-team-begins-construction-on-navys-littoral-combat-ship-the-future-uss-beloit

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  22 juillet 2019 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité, Autre défense

  Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - July 19, 2019

  MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY Lockheed Martin Corp., Missiles and Fire Control, Dallas, Texas, is being awarded a firm-fixed-price, $1,473,941,756 modification (P00019) to previously-awarded contract HQ0147-17-C-0032 for the procurement of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) Interceptor support items in support of the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) case to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The value of this contract is increased from $3,890,665,224 to $5,364,606,980. One offer was solicited with one offer received. The work will be performed in Dallas, Texas; Sunnyvale, California; Huntsville, Alabama; Camden, Arkansas; and Troy, Alabama. The period of performance is from July 19, 2019, through July 31, 2023. KSA FMS funds in the amount of $340,940,179 are being obligated at time of award. The Missile Defense Agency, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity. AIR FORCE United Technologies Corp., doing business as Pratt & Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Connecticut, has been awarded a $253,708,434 indefinite-delivery-requirements contract for engine module remanufacture. This contract provides for F100-PW-100/-200/-220/-220E/-229/-229EEP engine module remanufacture for Foreign Military Sales (FMS) partner countries. Work will be performed at East Hartford, Connecticut; Midland, Georgia; and Midwest City, Oklahoma, and is expected to be completed by July 30, 2024. This contract involves foreign military sales to Chile, Indonesia, Taiwan, Poland, Greece, Iraq, Pakistan, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Thailand and Morocco. No funds are being obligated at the time of award. This award is the result of a sole source acquisition. The Air Force Sustainment Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, is the contracting activity (FA8121-19-D-0005). Raytheon Corp., Marlborough, Massachusetts, is being awarded a $191,011,135 modification (P00084) to previously awarded contract FA8705-14-C-0001 for exercising the production option under contract line numbers 0004, 0005, 0007, 0008 and 0018 for global aircrew strategic network terminal. This modification brings the total cumulative value of the contract from $499,014,088 to $690,025,223. Work will be performed at Largo, Florida, and is expected to be completed by Sept. 19, 2021. Fiscal 2019 procurement funds in the amount of $154,685,867 are being obligated at time of award. The Air Force Material Command, Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, is the contracting activity. DynCorp International LLC., Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded a $37,641,699 modification (P00004) to previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract FA7014-18-F-5045 for the executive airlift maintenance support contract. This contract provides for aircraft maintenance and back shop support of aircraft. Work will be performed at Joint Base Andrews, Naval Air Facility, Washington, and is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, 2020. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $37,641,699 will be obligated at the time of award. The 11th Contracting Squadron Services Flight, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, is the contracting activity. The University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio, has been awarded a $7,441,142 cost reimbursement contract for space solar array architecture, power generation, and energy storage and distribution research. This contract provides for the development of advanced materials, interfaces, and electrical contacts for high efficiency and high specific power tandem thin film photovoltaic technologies to meet the needs of the Air Force for on-demand power in space. Work will be performed at Bancroft, Ohio, and is expected to be completed by July 2024. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and four offers were received. Fiscal 2018 and 2019 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $6,617,000 are being obligated at time of award. The Air Force Research Laboratory, Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the contracting activity (FA9453-19-C-1002). DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Brit Systems LLC, Dallas, Texas, has been awarded a maximum $400,000,000 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for digital imaging network picture archiving communications system products and maintenance. This was a competitive acquisition with nine offers received. This is the sixth contract competitively awarded under the open solicitation, SPE2D1-15-R-0004. This is a five-year base contract with one five-year option period. Locations of performance are Texas, and other areas located within and outside the continental U.S., with a July 18, 2024, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 through 2024 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2D1-19-D-0020). Hartford Provisions Co., doing business as HPC Foodservice, South Windsor, Connecticut, has been awarded a maximum $7,576,803 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-quantity contract for full-line food distribution for customers located in the southern New England area (Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island). This was a sole-source acquisition in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. This is a 219-day contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Connecticut, with a Feb. 22, 2020, performance completion date. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Air National Guard and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 defense working capital funds. The contracting agency is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE300-19-D-3235). Awarded July 18, 2019 NAVY Allied Systems Co.,* Sherwood, Oregon, is awarded a $70,655,603 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide for the design, development, test and manufacture of production of the new Carrier Crash and Salvage Crane (CCSC) and Amphibious Crash and Salvage Crane (ACSC). The CCSC and ACSC will be used for lifting and moving disabled aircraft on carrier vessel, nuclear and landing helicopter assault, and landing helicopter dock class ship flight decks. The CCSC and ACSC will replace the legacy A/S32A-35A and -52 Carrier Vessel Crash Cranes; and the A/S32A-36A and -53 Amphibious Assault Crash Cranes. This effort also includes engineering and logistics support. Work will be performed in Sherwood, Oregon, and is expected to be completed in July 2024. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposal, with three offers received. The Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, New Jersey, is the contracting activity (N68335-19-D-0135). Progeny Systems Corp., Manassas, Virginia, is awarded a $51,071,180 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the procurement of Navy systems engineering services, hardware and software. This contract includes options, which if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $93,171,904. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (70%); Virginia Beach, Virginia (10%); Charleroi, Pennsylvania (10%); and Middletown, Rhode Island (10%); and is expected to be complete by June 2020, and if all options are exercised, work would continue to completion by July 2027. Royal Australian Navy funding in the amount of $1,235,312; and fiscal 2019 research, development, test, and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $709,443 will be obligated at time of award and does not expire at the end of the fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(5). The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N00024-19-C-6118). Raytheon Co., Marlborough, Massachusetts, is awarded a $27,344,029 cost-plus, incentive-fee modification to previously awarded contract N00024-14-C-5315 to settle a request for equitable adjustment for contractor provision of Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR) program Pacific Missile Range Facility site generators and associated support hardware resulting from a government change order. The AMDR contract includes engineering and manufacturing development (EMD), as well as options for up to nine low-rate initial production shipsets. This modification increases the value of the AMDR EMD phase to account for new scope resulting from a government change order directing the contractor to provide Pacific Missile Range Facility site generators and support. Work was performed in Marlborough, Massachusetts (60%); and Kekaha, Hawaii (40%), and was completed in June 2018. Obligation of funds is not required. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. General Dynamics Mission Systems, Fairfax, Virginia, is awarded a $26,053,985 cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-only contract for the procurement of Navy systems engineering services. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $211,479,513. This contract involves foreign military sales to Australia. Work will be performed in Fairfax, Virginia (89%); Cape Canaveral, Florida (6%); and Pawcatuck, Connecticut (5%), and is expected to be completed by July 2021. If all options are exercised, work will continue through July 2027. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $210,242; and Royal Australian Navy funding in the amount of $600,000 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with three offers received. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N00024-19-C-6407). General Dynamics Mission Systems, Fairfax, Virginia, is awarded a $22,778,107 cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-only modification to previously awarded contract N00024-19-C-6407 to exercise options for Navy systems engineering services. Work will be performed in Fairfax, Virginia, and is expected to be completed July 2022. If all options are exercised, work will continue through July 2027. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $1,220,000 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, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. PC Mechanical Inc., Santa Maria, California, is awarded a $19,000,000 firm-fixed-price modification under a previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N39430-15-D-1604) to exercise Option Four for inspection, overhaul, repair, refurbishment, preventive maintenance and logistics management information services to reconstitute the force of civil engineer support equipment (CESE) and civil engineer end items (CEEI) under the CESE/CEEI Life Extension Program (CLEP) at Naval Base, Ventura County. Work to be performed provides for management of CLEP to obtain inspection; overhaul; repair; refurbishment; preventive maintenance; and logistics management information services for automotive vehicles, construction equipment (motorized and non-motorized), special military construction and commercial support equipment, material and weight handling equipment, water well drilling equipment, mineral products and plant facility equipment, international standard organization shipping container assets, power production and environmental control unit equipment, fire and emergency response vehicles, and small boats and watercraft to support the Navy and other Department of Defense components worldwide. The total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $95,000,000. No task orders are being issued at this time. We work will be performed in Port Hueneme, California (60%); and Gulfport, Mississippi (40%), and is expected to be completed July 2020. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. Task orders will be primarily funded by fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy). The Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center, Port Hueneme, California, is the contracting activity. ARMY PAE Government Systems Inc., Arlington, Virginia, was awarded a $22,578,864 modification (P00012) to Foreign Military Sales (Afghanistan) contract W56HZV-17-C-0117 for contractor logistic support efforts to the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces. Work will be performed in Kabul, Afghanistan, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 30, 2022. Fiscal 2019 Afghanistan Security Forces funds in the amount of $22,578,864 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity. TDX Quality LLC,* Anchorage, Alaska, was awarded a $19,315,709 firm-fixed-price contract for the construction of Alaska U.S. Property and Fiscal Office Building at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. Bids were solicited via the internet with five received. Work will be performed in Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, with an estimated completion date of March 12, 2021. Fiscal 2019 military construction funds in the amount of $19,315,709 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Property and Fiscal Office, Alaska, is the contracting activity (W91ZRU-19-C-0003). Inland Dredging Co. LLC, Dyersburg, Tennessee, was awarded a $16,744,000 firm-fixed-price contract for furnishing one fully-crewed and equipped hydraulic pipeline cutterhead dredge on a rental basis for the removal and satisfactory disposal of shoal material. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of April 15, 2021. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, Louisiana, is the contracting activity (W912P8-19-D-0012). DEFENSE INFORMATION SYSTEMS AGENCY Iridium Satellite LLC., Tempe, Arizona, was awarded a non-competitive, firm-fixed-price contract modification (P00013) for the extension of services on the current Airtime contract (HC104714C4000). The face value of this action is $8,836,000 funded by fiscal 2019 defense working capital funds. The total cumulative face value of the contract is $478,194,000. Performance will be at the contractor's facility. The original solicitation was issued on the basis of other than full and open competition pursuant to 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1), only one responsible source and no other type of supplies or services would satisfy agency requirements. The period of performance is July 22, 2019, through Aug. 21, 2019. The Defense Information Technology Organization, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity. *Small Business