Nouvelles

ARMY Baywest LLC,* St. Paul, Minnesota (W912DY-20-D-0015); Bhate Zapata JV,* Birmingham, Alabama (W912DY-20-D-0016); HydroGeoLogic Inc.,* Reston, Virginia (W912DY-20-D-0017); IE Weston Federal Svcs JVB LLC,* West Chester, Pennsylvania (W912DY-20-D-0018); PIKA International Inc.,* Stafford, Texas (W912DY-20-D-0019); and Seres Arcadis SB JV LLC, Mount Pleasant,* South Carolina (W912DY-20-D-0020), will compete for each order of the $400,000,000 cost-plus-fixed fee, firm-fixed-price contract to perform Military Munitions Response Program responses involving conventional munitions and other munitions-related services. Bids were solicited via the internet with 18 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 3, 2025. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity. NAVY BAE Systems San Diego Ship Repair, San Diego, California (N00024-16-D-4416); Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc., San Diego, California (N00024-16-D-4417); and General Dynamics, NASSCO, San Diego, California (N00024-16-D-4418), are being awarded a $275,110,745 firm-fixed-price modification to exercise Option Period Four to previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award contracts for complex, emergent and continuous maintenance and Chief of Naval Operations availabilities on surface combatants homeported in San Diego, California. Work will be performed in San Diego, California, and is expected to be completed by March 2021. No funding will be obligated when the option is exercised. The Southwest Regional Maintenance Center, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity. Lyon Shipyard Inc.,* Norfolk, Virginia (N50054-20-D-0001); BMFT JV,* Chesapeake, Virginia (N50054-20-D-0002); Colonna's Shipyard Inc.,* Norfolk, Virginia (N50054-20-D-0003); Fairlead Boatworks,* Newport News, Virginia (N50054-20-D-0004); and East Coast Repair and Fabrication,* Norfolk, Virginia (N50054-20-D-0005), are each awarded a fixed-price, multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide messing and berthing barges support in support of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center, Norfolk, Virginia. Lyon Shipyard Inc.* is awarded $82,029,325; BMFT JV* is awarded $87,651,824; Colonna's Shipyard Inc.* is awarded $96,692,648; Fairlead Boatworks* is awarded $97,020,569; and East Coast Repair and Fabrication* is awarded $109,260,981. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative ceiling value of this contract to $109,260,981. Work will be primarily performed in the Hampton Roads area, Norfolk, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by January 2021; if options are exercised, work is expected to be completed by February 2025. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $60,000 ($12,000 minimum guarantee per contract) will be obligated at time of award, and funding in the amount of $60,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This multiple award contract was procured as a small business set-aide via Federal Business Opportunities with six offers received. The Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity. Colonna Shipyards Inc., Norfolk, Virginia, is being awarded a $10,536,728 firm-fixed-price contract for a 75-day shipyard availability for the regular post shakedown availability of USNS Burlington (T-EPF 10). Work will include Pump Room 1 and 2 renewal, tow modifications, Pump Room 7 and 8, ladder install, bilge preservation main engine rooms, line shaft bearing annual maintenance, freeze protection pipe heat trace instillation, freeze protection mission bay installation, perform annual stern ramp maintenance, install fuel sensors in diesel fuel service system, modify diesel fuel bunking piping, stern ramp upgrades, fire station isolation valves, adaptive force package temporary sensitive compartment information facility installations and temporary sensitive compartment information facility adaptive force package heating ventilation and an air condition upgrade install. This contract includes a 75-day base period and three options, which if exercised would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $10,711,518. Work will be performed at Colonna Shipyard Inc. and is expected to be completed by May 15, 2020. Navy working capital contract funds in the amount of $10,536,728 are obligated for fiscal 2020, and will expire at the end of the fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured with proposals solicited via the beta.SAM.gov website and two offers received. The Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N32205-20-C-6712). Data Link Solutions LLC, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is awarded a $9,140,302 firm-fixed-price order for Joint Tactical Information Distribution System (JTIDS) Cryptographic Modernization (CM) kits. The JTIDS CM Kits will provide a build-to-print solution to maintain secure operations of Link 16 for all versions of the JTIDS terminal. This order covers the production of 47 kits along with the associated program management, testing and logistics support to deliver the kits. This order includes one option which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this order to an estimated $12,057,419. If all options are exercised, work could continue until September 2021. Work will be performed in Wayne, New Jersey, with an expected completion date of July 2021. Fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $9,140,302 will be obligated at the time of award. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This order was negotiated as a sole-source under the authority of 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1), using the procedures defined under Federal Acquisition Regulation 13.5 for orders less than $13,000,000. The Naval Information Warfare Systems Command, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N00039-20P0003). DEFENSE HEALTH AGENCY Nexsys Electronics, doing business as MedWeb,* San Francisco, California, was awarded a definitized, firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, single award contract (HT0038-19-D-0002) with a maximum value of $52,852,585. This contract provides in-theater systems support services for the Deployed Tele-Radiology System, a commercial imaging product used at military treatment facilities. This effort has one-base year, two option years, and one six-month optional ordering period. The estimated completion date is May 11, 2022. Work location is task order dependent but will primarily occur in San Francisco, California. The base task order was funded by fiscal 2019 and 2020 operations and maintenance funds. The award is the result of a non-competitive sole-source action. The contracting activity is the Defense Health Agency, Falls Church, Virginia. (Awarded Dec. 3, 2019) DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, has been awarded a maximum $15,275,346 firm-fixed-price contract for the production of KC-135 aircraft structural component fittings (landing gear trunnions). This was a sole-source acquisition using justification 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. This is a one-year contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Missouri, with a Jan. 31, 2023, performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Richmond, Virginia (SPE4A5-20-F-8228). (Awarded Jan. 31, 2020) *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2074589/source/GovDelivery/

AIR FORCE The following eight firm-fixed price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award task order contracts (MATOC) -- each with a not to exceed price of $90,000,000 -- have been awarded to the following: Doyon Management Services, Federal Way, Washington (FA4626-20-D-0010); Geranios Enterprises Inc., Great Falls, Montana (FA4626-20-D-0011); Guy Tabacco Construction Co., Black Eagle, Montana (FA4626-20-D-0012); James Talcott Construction, Great Falls, Montana (FA4626-20-D-0013); JE Hurley Inc., Colorado Springs, Colorado (FA4626-20-D-0014); NorthCon Inc., Hayden, Idaho (FA4626-20-D-0015); Sealaska Construction Solutions LLC., Seattle, Washington (FA4626-20-D-0016); and Wadsworth Builders Co. Inc., Great Falls, Montana (FA4626-20-D-0017). This MATOC contract is a design-build, bid-build construction acquisition based on a general statement of work further defined with each individual task order. Work to be performed under the MATOC will be the general construction category, to include maintenance, repair, alteration, mechanical, electrical, heating/air conditioning, demolition, painting and earthwork. Work will be performed at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana, and is to be completed as specified in each individual task order by Feb. 2, 2027. This award is the result of a competitive solicitation to total small businesses, 8(a) small business, and HUBZone small businesses; 16 offers were received. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $4,000 ($500 each) are being obligated at the time of award. The 341st Contracting Squadron, Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana, is the contracting activity. Rolls-Royce Corp., Indianapolis, Indiana, has been awarded a $57,360,519 delivery order modification (FA8504-20-F-0007-P00002) to previously awarded contract FA8504-17-D-0002 for C-130J propulsion long term sustainment. This order provides funding for Option Three and Power By The Hour flying hours. The work is expected to be completed Feb. 1, 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $57,360,519 are being obligated at the time of award. The total cumulative face value of the contract is $57,360,519. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, is the contracting activity. Merrill Corp., Clearfield, Utah, has been awarded a firm-fixed price requirement type contract in the amount of $21,477,000 for the overhaul of duct assembly. Work will be performed in Clearfield, Utah, and is expected to be complete by Feb. 2, 2025. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2020-2025 procurement funds will be used. The base award is estimated at $4,020,084; Option One is $4,000,467; Option Two is $4,346,985; Option Three is $4,641,164; and Option Four is $4,468,298. Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, is the contracting activity (FA8119-20-D-0001). The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, has been awarded a firm-fixed-price requirement type contract in the amount of $7,907,471 for the repair of KC-135 cowling and fan ducts. Work will be performed in St. Louis, Missouri, and is expected to be complete by Feb. 2, 2025. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2020-2025 procurement funds will be used. The base award (three year amount) is estimated at $4,941,509. Option One is $1,444,206; Option Two is $1,521,756. Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, is the contracting activity (FA8119-20-D-0002). NAVY Manson Construction Co., Seattle, Washington, is awarded an $89,370,000 firm-fixed-price contract that provides for design-bid-build services for the construction of Seawolf Class Service Pier Extension, Naval Base Kitsap Bangor. The total cumulative face value of the contract including the award of four options will be $89,370,000. This contract award does not involve foreign military sales. The work to be performed provides for the construction of a 520 foot by 68-foot single level, reinforced concrete, general-purpose submarine berthing pier extension to the existing pier, with pier-side utilities, communication systems and two-580-square-foot concrete floating camels. The pier extension includes engineered pile and caps to support the pier deck, a fixed crane, equipment pads, mobile cranes and utility buildings. The project also configures and adds to the existing wave screen attenuation system and modifies the existing small craft berthing at the service pier. Additionally, the project constructs a low-rise compressor building on the pier for new tool air compressors and breathing air compressors and alters an existing building to accommodate new and existing lift stations, sewage equipment, storm drainage, industrial wastewater services and provides a new emergency generator. Work will be performed in Silverdale, Washington, and is expected to be completed by July 2022. The solicitation was competitively procured via Federal Business Opportunities with five offers received. Fiscal 2020 military construction funds for $89,370,000 are obligated on this award. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Northwest, Silverdale, Washington, is the contracting activity (N44255-20-C-2002). Rockwell Collins Simulation and Training Solutions, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was awarded a $20,337,451 modification (P00016) to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N61340-17-C-0014). This modification procures updates to the Delta Software System Configuration #3 software baseline to include the visual system and cyber security on tactics and flight trainer devices. Additionally, this modification provides technology refresh and aircraft concurrency updates on tactics devices, aircraft concurrency and aerial refueling updates on the flight devices, tactics and flight device training and associated technical data in support of the E-2D Hawkeye Integrated Training System. Work will be performed in Point Mugu, California, and is expected to be completed in June 2022. Fiscal 2018 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $2,016,274; fiscal 2019 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $13,061,234; and fiscal 2020 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,259,943 will be obligated at time of award, $2,016,274 of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Training Systems Division, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity. (Awarded Jan. 31, 2020) Raytheon Co., Integrated Defense Systems, Marlborough, Massachusetts, is awarded a $9,107,841 cost-plus-fixed-fee undefinitized contract action under a previously awarded basic ordering agreement N00024-19-G-5107 to repair and test the USS Sampson (DDG 102) SPY-1D(V) transmitter suite. This order covers repair, refurbishment, reassembly and testing of the AEGIS Weapon System (AWS) AN/SPY-1D(V) Transmitter Group in support of USS Sampson (DDG 102) as well as associated testing support. Work will be performed in Andover, Massachusetts (65%); Keyport, Washington (16%); Moorestown, New Jersey (10%); and Marlborough, Massachusetts (9%), and is expected to be completed by September 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding for $4,108,940 will be obligated at the time of award and expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This order was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1) (only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements). The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N00024-20-F-5105). Zenetex LLC, Herndon, Virginia, was awarded a $7,521,702 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to provide contractor support services (CSS) to temporarily augment government personnel to assist in the acquisition, management and sustainment of Navy training systems. CSS support includes corporate operations, research and technology, program management, logistics, engineering, instructional systems and test and evaluation support services for various training systems managed by the Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division. Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be completed in May 2020. Fiscal 2019 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $432,783; fiscal 2019 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $138,112; fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $278,344; fiscal 2020 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,002,318; fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $357,920; fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $507,119; fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $101,022; working capital (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,204,302; and Foreign Military Sales funds in the amount of $520,643 will be obligated at time of award, $785,463 of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. The Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity (N61340-20-C-0009). (Awarded Jan. 31, 2020) ARMY H2 Direct LLC,* Gulf Breeze, Florida, was awarded a $39,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for personnel, equipment, supplies, facilities, transportation, tools, materials, supervision and other items and non-personal services necessary to provide information technology management support 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 Feb. 28, 2025. The 418th Contracting Support Brigade, Fort Hood, Texas, is the contracting activity (W91151-20-D-0009). Cray Inc., Seattle, Washington, was awarded a $26,480,000 firm-fixed-price contract for Department of Defense high performance computing modernization. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Stennis Space Center, Mississippi, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 1, 2025. Fiscal 2020 other procurement, Army funds in the amount of $26,480,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W912DY-20-F-0126). Sustainable System Solutions LLC,* Herndon, Virginia, was awarded a $9,563,615 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to provide the design, development, integration, testing and fielding of test capabilities systems and/or related test infrastructure among ranges within the Department of Defense test and evaluation community. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 2, 2030. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity (W900KK-20-D-0003). Escal Institute Advanced Tech, North Bethesda, Maryland, was awarded an $8,805,373 firm-fixed-price contract to provide training and certifications to verify and validate student proficiency in cybersecurity roles. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 2, 2021. Fort Gordon, Georgia, is the contracting activity (W911S0-20-F-0111). U.S. SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND The Boeing Co., Ridley Park, Pennsylvania, was awarded an $18,186,000 firm-fixed-price type delivery order (H92241-20-F-0020) under basic ordering agreement W91215-16-G-0001 to procure the long lead components and parts in support of MH-47G rotary wing aircraft. This action is required to satisfy an urgent need to sustain U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) heavy assault, rotary wing aircraft and to mitigate the impact of the MH-47G aircraft availability in light of increased SOF operational demands. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Fiscal 2020 aircraft procurement, Army funds in the amount of $18,186,000 were obligated at the time of award. The majority of the work will be performed in Ridley Park. U.S. Special Operations Command, Tampa, Florida, is the contracting activity. *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2073298/source/GovDelivery/

By: Mark Pomerleau The Marine Corps is creating new network battalions and companies in an effort to improve oversight and the command and control of its network. These new organizations — described as a “huge, huge deal” — are part of an effort to reduce the number of organizations charged with network functions. The move will also allow for more accurate readiness reporting, said Col. Ed Debish, commanding officer of the Marine Corps Cyberspace Operations Group. “Currently, we have six different commands that have something to do with managing the Marine Corps Enterprise Network,” he said at a Jan. 31 lunch hosted by the AFCEA Quantico chapter. Now, one commander — the head of Marine Corps Forces Cyberspace Command — will oversee and manage these groups. “Primarily, what they're going to do is deliver enterprise business services down to the end user device," Debish told C4ISRNET following his remarks. "They're also going to be responsible for managing the BAN and LAN — the building area networks and the local area networks on the bases and stations around the Marine Corps.” The new commands will absorb the organizations that previously performed many of these functions, including the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) Information Technology (IT) Support Centers, or MITSCs. “The problem that it was designed to solve was unity of command and unity of effort on the Marine Corps Enterprise Network. It's going to give us visibility all the way down to the end user device where we didn't have that visibility before,” he said. The arrangement will also help Marines better understand readiness of the network. Previously, it could be difficult to determine what equipment was working and part of the network. Now, with one command, those assessments should be easier, Debish said, as they'll be managed under a single entity. Additionally, the new organizations will help with one of the Marine Corps' top IT priorities: to deploy its network abroad in a more agile and mobile way. “The idea is to move that enterprise capability to the tactical edge with the deploying force,” Debish said. “If you were to just remotely connect back into the enterprise network, you're going over a VPN connection to a data center somewhere that might be thousands of miles removed from it. But if you lost that connection, then what happens? You don't have any access to any of your data or your network.” The first battalion will be created this year at Camp Pendleton. The battalion commander will assume command around April. The first company is expected to be created this year and be based out of Marine Corps Forces Europe/Africa, located in Germany. Next year, leaders expect to create the second and third network battalions at Camp Lejeune and Okinawa, respectively. https://www.c4isrnet.com/newsletters/daily-brief/2020/02/03/how-the-marine-corps-wants-to-improve-oversight-of-its-network/

By: David B. Larter ABOARD THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER GERALD R. FORD IN THE VIRGINIA CAPES — The U.S. Navy is trying to find an alternative to shooting down anti-ship missiles with other missiles, and the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford could prove useful in this pursuit. A major difference with Ford over its Nimitz-class predecessors is its twin A1B nuclear reactors that produce more than three times the electrical power of the reactors on Nimitz — more than 100 megawatts. That means Ford, with survivability questions looming over aircraft carriers, can support large, power-sucking equipment such as lasers, according to Capt. J.J. Cummings, the Ford' commanding officer. “When you talk about innovation in the Navy, this is where it lives,” Cummings said, referring to his ship. “We're lighter — designed lighter — than Nimitz class. “Nimitz class, she's barreling down pretty good now with a lot of stuff on her, and her electric plant is almost at maximum capacity. We're light and designed to have excess capacity in our electrical system to bring future systems on board.” That's a big advantage for the class, and it's one of the reasons the Navy has pursued the Ford class despite the controversies over buggy new technology and cost overruns. The Ford class is essential for the survivability of carriers, said James Geurts, the Navy's top acquisition official. “Part of the reason Ford is so important is that it gives you the flexibility to generate the next generation of systems you'll need to ensure the carrier can continue to stay survivable,” Geurts said. Killing missiles with missiles Bryan Clark, a retired naval officer and analyst with the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, said Ford could use a boost in the survivability department and the Ford's powerful reactors could help them get there. “To improve the self-defense on carriers, you could put lasers on there to support that short-range, self-defense capacity,” Clark said. “Because the big problem with lasers right now is power management. You can build a three or four hundred-kilowatt laser, but for one, it's a big footprint so you have to find a ship big enough to put it on; and two, you have to have the power to actually supply it. So you're going to need a capacitor bank somewhere on the ship or you need a generator big enough to provide it continuously. On the Ford, you'd get that." Clark has argued for years that the Navy needs to get away from trying to shoot down missiles with missiles because a saturation attack from Russia, China, Iran, North Korea or anyone else who might have cause to attack a U.S. Navy ship could force a cruiser or destroyer to expend all its missiles and still not have defeated the threat. That's where shorter-range missiles such as the Evolved Seasparrow Missile, which can be packed four per cell in a vertical launch system, and lasers can have a big impact, even if it means the ship has to let missiles get uncomfortably close to the ship before it's taken down. “I think lasers could make a difference for Ford because the technology is pretty mature, you could fit it on the ship and it would address a big challenge for carriers, which is air defense,” Clark said. “You could put several lasers on there and really give a boost to your air defense capacity.” However, it's unlikely lasers could address all threats faced by carriers, Clark said. “It would be effective for cruise missiles up to maybe the supersonic cruise missiles,” Clark said. “Of course, it would also work against small boats and things like that. It may not work that well against hypersonic missiles or ballistic missiles.” https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2020/01/31/with-laser-weapons-coming-the-us-navys-newest-super-carrier-has-space-and-power-to-spare/

Le Pavillon France, fédéré par le Groupement des Industries de Construction et Activités Navales (GICAN) en collaboration avec le Groupement des Industries Françaises Aéronautiques et Spatiales (GIFAS), accueillera 11 entreprises sur Defexpo, salon international qui se déroulera à Lucknow en Inde du 5 au 9 février 2020. La représentation française au salon indien Defexpo est assurée par la présence de 19 entreprises représentantes de l'industrie de défense française. Il s'agit de grands groupes, mais également PME et ETI dynamiques. Cette présence marque ainsi le fort engagement de l'industrie française de la défense pour soutenir les forces armées indiennes. Les entreprises présentes sur le Pavillon France (Hall 3, stands R16 à R24, S18 et S19) sont : Arquus – Etienne Lacroix Group – Lynred – Rafale International – Rafaut Group – Roxel – RTSYS – Safran – Schneider Electric – Thales – Wartsilä Navy France. Par ailleurs, plusieurs sociétés françaises exposeront sur leur propre stand (Airbus – MBDA – Naval Group et Nexter), ou sous pavillon indien (Amphenol Interconnect – Axon'Cable – Nicomatic – Nucon Alkan – Trigo), signe de leur forte implantation dans le pays. Des rencontres entre industriels français et donneurs d'ordre indiens sont programmées tout au long de la semaine. Les industries aéronautiques, spatiales et navales françaises, rassemblées par le GIFAS et le GICAN, soutiennent la politique du «Make in India», dans les domaines de l'aéronautique, de la construction navale et de la défense. Dans cette optique, le GIFAS, le GICAN et la Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers (SIDM) organiseront un séminaire le 5 février à 15h30 dans le Seminar Hall 2. L'intention est de développer davantage le partenariat industriel entre les entreprises françaises et indiennes à tous les niveaux de la chaîne de production. Les relations stratégiques entre la France et l'Inde dans l'industrie aérospatiale sont pérennes (depuis plus de 70 ans). En 2018, une présence permanente du GIFAS en Inde a été établie à New-Delhi pour renforcer ce partenariat stratégique et développer les relations industrielles entre l'Inde et la France. En 2019, 60 membres du GIFAS sont implantés en Inde, représentant plus de 75 établissements, 20 partenariats en joint-venture et plus de 25 sites de production. https://www.aerobuzz.fr/breves-defense/forte-presence-des-industriels-francais-au-salon-indien-defexpo-2020/

By: Mark Pomerleau BAE Systems was awarded a pair of contracts worth $300 million that will support the Navy in digital endeavors. The first is a $212 million contract from the Navy's Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division to integrate and sustain critical communications systems. As part of the contract, BAE will design, acquire, integrate and test radio systems for new guided missile destroyers specifically, as well as other unspecified Navy and Coast Guard ships. The second contract is a $104.7 award from the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division for engineering and technical services for command, control, communications, computers, combat systems, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C5ISR) systems both afloat and ashore. “Maintaining reliable lines of communication and situational awareness for those at the forefront of national security is a mission-critical priority for BAE Systems and our customers,” said Mark Keeler, vice president and general manager of BAE Systems' Integrated Defense Solutions business. “We're proud to continue supporting the integration of combat systems and solutions for the U.S. Navy as they defend against advanced air, surface, and subsurface threats.” https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/2020/02/03/navy-awards-300m-for-c5isr-and-radio-systems

By: Aaron Mehta WASHINGTON — In 2017, the top two officials at the Pentagon — then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joe Dunford — testified to Congress that the defense budget needs to have 3-5 percent annual growth over inflation each year through 2023 to ensure America's military success. Dunford, speaking to the Senate Armed Services Committee in June 2017, went as far as to say: “We know now that continued growth in the base budget of at least 3 percent above inflation is the floor necessary to preserve just the competitive advantage we have today, and we can't assume our adversaries will remain still." Three years later, as the Trump administration prepares to unveil its fiscal 2021 budget request on Feb. 10, such growth appears impossible. The budget is expected to be largely flat, as a two-year budget deal reached last summer calls for $740 billion in defense spending in the next fiscal year, up just $2 billion from the enacted FY20 amount. “The 3-5 percent goal was reasonable enough and absolutely needed,” said Mackenzie Eaglen, a budget analyst with the American Enterprise Institute. “But it is not happening. The defense top line for 2021 is negative real growth, aka declining.” Susanna Blume, a defense analyst with the Center for a New American Security, said that certain parts of the defense budget, particularly maintenance and personnel costs, grow faster than the rate of inflation. “That's what's behind these comments about requiring a certain amount of real budget growth in order to sustain the joint force as it is today,” she said. But there is a wild card, according to Ellen Lord, the Defense Department's top acquisition official: a series of reform efforts led by now-Defense Secretary Mark Esper, which so far have accounted for $5 billion in savings. “We're getting more and more efficient. That is obviously what Secretary Esper is focused on with his defensewide review, that we are cutting out administrative tasks and a variety of portions of programs to make sure we return those savings to our critical modernization efforts such as [artificial intelligence], hypersonics and so forth,” Lord said during a Jan. 31 news conference at the Pentagon. “We are always having to look very carefully at our budgets and make sure we triage them to focus on the critical few. So we're always concerned, but we're always going to work it.” How much of that expected growth gap can be filled by Esper's efficiency drive is difficult to pin down. Blume said its “certainly possible that efficiencies could make up some of that gap,” but whether the work that has been done now and is planned in the near term will be enough “are questions we don't have answers to today.” Added Eaglen: “Efficiencies alone will not get the Pentagon its 3-5 percent growth in actual dollars to reinvest. The defensewide review only yielded $5 billion, and the way it works with these drills is that the money doesn't necessarily move from pot A to pot B as a result." “But that doesn't mean it is not worth doing. Any money amount is helpful. And the exercise is also about getting the bureaucracy to shift its time, tasks and attention to great power competition as much as it's about shifting funds into higher priorities that support the strategy,” Eaglen said. If one of the Pentagon's big bets work out, that could be a real game-changer, Blume said. Those bets include efforts to replace a Defense Logistics Agency warehouse using a 3D printer as well as attempts by the Air Force to rapidly develop, prototype and produce fleets of planes. If one of them goes well, Blume said, “you can potentially start to bend some of those cost curves.” https://www.defensenews.com/pentagon/2020/01/31/the-pentagon-is-racing-against-inflation-for-military-might/

By: David B. Larter ABOARD THE CARRIER GERALD R. FORD IN THE VIRGINIA CAPES — Capt. J.J. Cummings is literally jumping up and down with excitement. “Ahhhhhh I love that s---!” he shouts as the roar of an F/A-18 Super Hornet's twin engines fades into the distance. The fighter jet's low flyby a few hundred yards off the port side of the U.S. Navy's most expensive-ever warship is a loud reminder that the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford isn't a construction project anymore. For Cummings, the ship's Massachusetts-born commanding officer, and for the ship's crew, Ford is now a living, breathing warship with jets operating from its $13 billion flight deck. “I could watch flybys all day,” the career fighter pilot said Jan. 27 during a visit by Defense News aboard the vessel. Standing on the deck of the first-in-class Ford, Cummings is showing off the major redesign of the flight deck, which expanded the available space to maneuver and refit fighters to get back in the air. “This spot right here is what defines the Ford class,” he said, stopping in front of the in-deck refueling stations. “On the Nimitz class, if you want to refuel an aircraft you have to pull a hose across the flight deck and you can't drive over it so you can't maneuver aircraft the way you might like. “Now you just open this hatch, pull the aircraft up and hook up right here.” The redesigned flight deck, which was developed in consultation with NASCAR pit engineers, gives the Ford an extra half acre of real estate over its predecessors. The extra space is key to the Navy's newest platform, built from the keel up to maximize how efficiently the ship can generate sorties, as well as be adaptable to new aircraft and weapons systems over time. But the 23 new technologies incorporated into the Ford, while making the ship a technological marvel, have also been the cause of ongoing controversy as delays and cost overruns marred the program. Over the coming year, Ford will be underway 11 times over 220 days, working out the kinks, training sailors and writing the book on how the new class of carriers will operate. In the mind of the Cummings, that puts his crew in the history books. “What the American people should know is that this ship is absolutely amazing, and our crew is even more amazing than that,” Cummings said. “What people should know is that we are, no kidding, pioneers in naval aviation. Every [major] system on this ship is different from Nimitz class, so these people are pioneers. We're writing the book for the Ford class for the rest of history.” One of the enabling technologies to help them increase sortie generation is the advanced weapons elevators. The system is designed to cut the time it takes to move bombs from lower decks — where they are assembled and tested — to the flight deck for arming the Super Hornets. Delays with that technology contributed to the downfall of former Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer and have been the latest in a long line of headaches caused by new technologies the Navy packed into the Ford. To date, four of the planned 11 advanced weapons elevators work as advertised. As secretary, Spencer made a public pledge to have the weapons elevators ready by last summer, but now they may not all work until 2021, delays he blamed on shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries. Ensuring the Ford's readiness has been a major focus of the acting Navy secretary, Thomas Modly. For Modly, the continued troubles with the Ford are hurting the organization. "There is nothing worse than having a ship like that, our most expensive asset, being out there as a metaphor for why the Navy can't do anything right,” Modly said at a December U.S. Naval Institute forum. 'Managing the complexity' The high-level attention on Ford, which has become a favorite topic of President Donald Trump when he talks about major defense programs, has made the Navy eager to highlight efforts dedicated to preparing the ship for theater operations. For the crew and officers, many of the headaches come from managing the sheer number of new technologies on the ship, said Cmdr. Mehdi Akacem, the air boss on Ford. “The biggest challenge is managing the complexity,” Akacem said. “I think there is more technical complexity packed into this ship than the Apollo program. I learn so much every day, I have to constantly refocus on what's in my lane. “There are so many new systems. ... The challenge is sustaining that focus on one new thing after another. I don't think there are any five people who understand all the complexity on this ship, all these technical challenges happening in parallel.” That has made it difficult to develop maintenance and qualification procedures for the crew. However, slowly but surely the crew is figuring it out, Akacem said. “One of the parts of the overall system that's still maturing is the maintenance documentation, the technical manuals, parts lists, periodicity of preventive maintenance,” Akacem said. “One of the neat modifications on the Advanced Arresting Gear, very simple to look at but a huge time saver: We used to have to take the system offline, climb into the Advanced Arresting Gear, climb all around it with a grease gun to go grease the bearings," he added. “Now there is a manifold so the sailor can just walk up with a gun — pump, pump, pump and done. And it saves about 45 minutes out of the grease process. Those are the kinds of things we've learned through the post-shakedown availability.” That's what the officers and crew of Ford hope to figure out this year: How does this ship work, and what is the best way to man and maintain it? And for sailors, the only way to figure that out is to get the ship underway. “All good things come from ships at sea,” Akacem said. “We've sat around and philosophized about, ‘Well, can we get by with less?' or ‘Do we need more here?' Now we're proving that out." “With the Advanced Arresting Gear — that's probably where the steepest learning curve exists for our sailors — we were feeling overwhelmed the first couple days with preventative maintenance, corrective maintenance and a bunch of the technical preparations. But our level of uncertainty has gone down so much in just a couple of weeks,” he added. “Just the confidence growth has been tremendous.” The learning process has even led to some firsts for the Navy, said Cummings. “We have aviation boatswains mates — typically some our roughest, toughest people up here — and we're making them be electricians and fiber-optics experts, which is a different theme," the ship's commanding officer explained. “So now we're putting [interior communications specialists] into the air department, which is a first. So now you have your ICs, who are your techie fiber-optics people, with your hardcore, hydraulic fluid-drinking, grease-wearing hard-chargers. It's a very interesting mix in the air department," he added. “So is the manning right? Absolutely not. We're still figuring it out. Some of these systems are a little immature, and we're figuring it out, but it's going to take time.” A training challenge A major hurdles for the crew has been getting sailors trained and qualified to operate, maintain and fix their own gear, Cummings said. “Self-repair: That's a challenge” he said. “The ability to get underway, operate and fix our gear ourselves without having to pull in and bring in tech reps out from all over.” In the absence of new schoolhouses, which are on the way, sailors have relied on shore-based testing sites and simulators from vendors for training, Cummings said. “It's a challenge. The infrastructure to train up our sailors — well, it's coming and we're working toward that end,” he said. “[There's] a lot of on-the-job training." As far as schools, General Atomics will host sailors at Rancho Bernardo, a neighborhood in San Diego, California. From there, the sailors will have access to a simulator to practice catapult launches. The Navy will also send sailors to the test site for Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System and Advanced Arresting Gear in Lakehurst, New Jersey. “The schoolhouses are coming, but it's a challenge. We're a first-in-class, we get a lot of Nimitz-class stock projected on to our ship, but it doesn't work for our ship,” Cummings explained. Another challenge has been rack space. According to a recent Congressional Research Service report, the Navy is 100 racks short of what it would need to house a full crew and air wing. And while that isn't an immediate issue for this event, it could prove a problem closer to its first deployment. But Naval Sea Systems Command said in a statement that the ship has what it needs for its first deployment already. “The ship's bunks will be sufficient to meet ship's crew, air wing, and embarked staff requirements for first deployment, based on overall berthing numbers identified in the manpower estimates for the Gerald R. Ford class,” NAVSEA said in a statement. “For ship's crew, specifically, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) is designed to operate with hundreds fewer Sailors than required on the Nimitz class.” ‘Off and running' But for all the myriad issues that come from fielding a radically different first-in-class ship, Cummings and his crew are jazzed about how it's performing. Many of the key technologies, such as the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System and the Advanced Arresting Gear have performed remarkably well — a significant improvement over some of the bugs the ship faced when aircraft started landing on and launching from the carrier in 2017. “I just spoke to some of the first ones to use the flight deck back in 2017 and 2018: exponential improvement in performance,” Cummings said. “For the catapult, we smoothed out many of the software issues and tolerances. We reduced those tolerances to a right number and we've had very few issues with the catapults. “Our Advanced Arresting Gear is performing spectacularly. A couple hiccups here and there, a quick reset: off and running.” Ford has been using its time at sea to develop wind envelopes for all the aircraft currently flying in the fleet. The process included generating a series of wind conditions, launching and landing an aircraft, and downloading the technical data; then rinse and repeat. “By the time we pull in at the end of January, every fleet aircraft — C-2, E-2D, F/A-18 Super Hornet, Growler and T-45 (our jet trainer) — will be validated to be given their full envelopes for these aircraft to go on deployment or to train our young aviators,” Cummings said. The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will ultimately be integrated into the ship, which is a matter of reconfiguring some spaces to handle classified materials and storing parts, among other things, but the ship will not deploy with the jet at first. As the ship keeps to a breakneck schedule over the next year, Cummings hopes to rack up a significant number of “cats and traps” (meaning individual catapult launches and recoveries) to get a stronger idea of how the ship will stand up to the crushing operations tempo of a carrier on deployment. “Our goal is to get about 7,000-8,000 cats and traps to figure out: ‘Hey, what's going to break?' ” he said. “What parts do we need on order?' Let's refine our procedures. So through post-delivery test and trial period, that's our goal. And with an embarked air wing in the April time frame, we're going to be able to start getting after that. We've got a big year ahead of us." The Ford is doing about 10-15 traps per day as it works through the data set, and ultimately it should have about 1,000 by the time it pulls back in at the end of January, Cummings said. To get to that 7,000-8,000 goal, the Navy must get its student pilots lots of traps on Ford. “For the Next year, the only carrier on the East Coast able to provide carrier qualification capability is the Gerald R. Ford,” Cummings said. “When we get our flight deck certified in March, after that we're going straight into carrier qualifications. So all year, any chance we can: ‘Hey, bring 'em out because we need some time in the batting cage. Hit off the tee and see where we have holes in our swing.' ” The post-delivery test and trial period is supposed to last 18 months. After PDT&T, the ship is headed to full-ship shock trials, where live explosives are set off next to the ship to see how the class stands up to shock damage. Navy officials previously testified the entire process could delay the Ford's deployment by up to a year. So taking a year to conduct the trials, then fix all the broken crockery: That would allow Ford to enter the 7.5-month carrier predeployment workup cycle in the second half of 2022, and then it would likely be able to deploy by mid-2023. So, after years of delays, cost overruns and controversy, the ship is finally getting into its groove. And that's the message Cummings wants to send over the next year of operations. “This ship is kick-ass,” Cummings said. “I came here a year and a half ago, I heard all the stories, heard from the critics, came here, and they were all wrong in their assumption about our ship. What people should know is that this ship is amazing.” https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2020/01/30/the-carrier-ford-is-trying-to-shake-years-of-controversy-and-find-its-groove/

Mark Pomerleau The Pentagon has finalized the long anticipated cybersecurity standards contractors will have to follow before winning contracts from the Department of Defense, a new process called the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) 1.0. The model is a tiered cybersecurity framework that grades companies on a scale of one to five based on the level of classification and security that necessary for the work they are performing. “The government and the contractor community must keep working together to address real and growing cybersecurity threats, and we need a robust response to protect our infrastructure, information, and supply chains,” said David Berteau, president and chief executive of the Professional Services Council, a trade association for federal contractors. “With today's announcement, DoD has achieved a significant milestone. Here's what industry officials need to know about the version finalized Jan. 31. Why it was needed Previously, the Pentagon did not have unified standard for cybersecurity that businesses needed to follow when bidding for contracts. Companies could claim to meet certain industry standards for cybersecurity, but those assertions were not tested by auditors, nor did the standards take into account the type of work a company was bidding to complete. Since then, defense officials have said that cybersecurity is not a one size fits all approach. In the meantime, adversaries have discovered it is easier to target unsuspecting down tier suppliers, rather than prime contractors. “Adversaries know that in today's great power competition environment, information and technology are both key cornerstones and attacking a sub-tier supplier is far more appealing than a prime,” Ellen Lord, the under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, told reporters in a briefing at the Pentagon Jan. 31. Officials have said cyber theft by adversaries costs the United States about $600 billion a year. What will change? Contracts will mandate bidders reach a certain level of certification to win specific jobs. For example, if businesses aren't bidding on a contract that has extremely sensitive information, they must only achieve the first level of certification, which involves basic cybersecurity such as changing passwords and running antivirus software. More sensitive programs will require more stringent controls. Smaller companies down the supply chain will not, however, have to have the same level of certification as primes, said Katie Arrington, chief information security officer for the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and the point person for the certification. Another significant change with the new process is the creation of an accreditation board and assessors. The board is an outside entity, separate from DoD, that will be charged with approving assessors to certify companies in the process. The accreditation body was formed earlier this month and officials are working on identifying and training the assessors, which will be called Certified Third-Party Assessment Organizations (C3PAO). What's next? Officials explained Jan. 31 that CMMC will follow a crawl, walk, run approach to ensure companies aren't unprepared for the change. The accreditation board is in the process of training the auditors that will oversee the certificaion. Once the requirements are met, a company's certification is good for 3 years. In the meantime, DoD plans to release 10 requests for information and 10 requests for proposals that will include the new cyber standards this year. The first solicitation could come as early as June. Arrington said earlier this week that she expects 1,500 companies to be certified by the end of 2021. She added that all new contracts starting in fiscal year 2026 will contain the cybersecurity requirements, however, Lord noted that they will not be not retroactive to previous contracts. https://www.fifthdomain.com/dod/2020/01/31/pentagon-finalizes-first-set-of-cyber-standards-for-contractors/