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MIRABEL, Québec, 13 novembre 2018 – L3 MAS a aujourd'hui annoncé l'obtention de deux contrats à titre de fournisseur de soutien en service pour le compte d'exploitants de flottes d'avions F/A-18 internationaux. RUAG Aviation a récemment accordé à L3 MAS un contrat de modification préventive de la structure des ailes centrales, à des emplacements jugés à priorité élevée, sur les avions F/A-18 des Forces aériennes suisses (FAS). Ces modifications s'inscrivent dans le programme de remise en état structurale (SRP2) des F/A-18 et font partie de la stratégie visant à s'assurer que la flotte d'avions atteigne en toute sécurité sa durée de vie prévue. L3 MAS a aussi été choisie par l'entreprise Vertex Aerospace LLC, dont le siège social est au Mississippi, afin de réaliser des modifications et des réparations de troisième échelon sur trois avions F/A-18 de la NASA basés au centre de recherche Armstrong Flight Research Center (ARFC) de la Edwards Air Force Base, en Californie. L3 MAS effectuera tous les travaux sur les avions dans ses installations de Mirabel. « Nous sommes ravis de continuer à développer nos relations avec RUAG Aviation, le plus important fournisseur des FAS, et de compter la NASA (par l'intermédiaire de Vertex Aerospace LLC) parmi nos nombreux clients internationaux exploitants des flottes de F/A-18. Ces contrats constituent une preuve indéniable de la confiance que témoigne la communauté internationale de F/A-18 envers L3 MAS en tant que Centre d'excellence en avions de chasse », a affirmé Jacques Comtois, vice-président et directeur général de L3 MAS. « Notre entreprise bénéficie de compétences uniques et éprouvées, d'outils ainsi que d'un personnel expérimenté qui nous permettent d'offrir des services de classe mondiale et une valeur ajoutée aux exploitants d'avions de chasse. » L3 MAS est un chef de file mondial dans le développement et la mise en oeuvre de solutions structurales pour les F/A-18, ayant déjà exécuté des programmes structuraux majeurs pour l'Aviation royale canadienne et la Royal Australian Air Force, et assistant d'autres opérateurs dont les FAS, la Finnish Air Force, la US Navy et la NASA. À propos de L3 MAS L3 MAS, une division du segment d'affaires L3 ISR Systems, est le plus important intégrateur canadien de soutien en service (SES). L3 MAS offre des solutions innovatrices et intégrées qui couvrent l'éventail complet des activités de SES, notamment la gestion de flotte et la planification de la maintenance annuelle et son optimisation, la gestion du cycle de vie du matériel (GCVM), le soutien logistique intégré, les environnements d'information électroniques, l'ingénierie de systèmes, la gestion du matériel, la gestion de la configuration, les publications et la gestion de données. De plus, L3 MAS est reconnue pour ses activités de conception, de prototypage, de fabrication, de réparation et révision et de certification de composants aéronautiques. Le siège social de l'entreprise est situé à Mirabel, au Québec. Plus de 800 personnes sont employées dans les divers centres d'exploitation à travers le Canada. Pour en apprendre davantage sur L3 MAS, visitez le site Internet de l'entreprise au www.L3T.com/mas. À propos de L3 Technologies L3 Technologies est un chef de file novateur et agile qui fournit des systèmes globaux de RSR et des systèmes de communication en réseau et d'électronique destinés aux clients des secteurs militaire, de la sécurité intérieure et de l'aviation commerciale. L3, dont le siège social se trouve à New York, compte environ 31 000 employés à travers le monde et conçoit des technologies de défense et des solutions commerciales avancées en matière de formation des pilotes, de sécurité aérienne, de vision nocturne et d'EO/IR, d'armes, de systèmes maritimes et d'espace. L'entreprise a enregistré des ventes de 9,6 milliards de dollars en 2017. Pour en apprendre davantage sur L3, visitez le site Internet de l'entreprise au www.L3T.com. https://www.aeromontreal.ca/L3MAS-remporte-contrats-internationaux-F18.html

Stratégie fédérale pour l'innovation et la croissance des régions du Québec : PRÈS DE 3 M$ POUR LES PME AÉROSPATIALES Objectif : Adoption des technologies de rupture en aérospatiale Gaspé, le 9 novembre 2018 — Aéro Montréal, la grappe québécoise de l'aérospatiale, a reçu aujourd'hui un financement de 2,977 millions de dollars afin de soutenir le développement de l'Initiative StartAero360°, lors du lancement de la Stratégie fédérale pour l'innovation et la croissance des régions du Québec. L'honorable Navdeep Bains, ministre de l'Innovation, des Sciences et du Développement économique et responsable de Développement économique Canada pour les régions du Québec (DEC), en a fait l'annonce ce matin, à Gaspé. Cette initiative vise à accompagner les PME technologiques aérospatiales du Québec dans la phase de pré-commercialisation de leurs produits innovants. Les PME de l'initiative seront accompagnées selon un processus structuré, dans le but de répondre de façon collaborative à une occasion d'affaires qui nécessite le développement d'une preuve de concept industriel. Cette Initiative permettra de : Favoriser et accélérer l'adoption des innovations de ruptures sur le marché ; Soutenir l'entrepreneuriat et la création d'emplois au Canada en permettant à des PME de croître à travers la commercialisation de nouveaux produits ; Accroître le rayonnement de l'industrie canadienne à l'échelle internationale gr'ce à l'adoption et à l'exportation de nouvelles technologies de niches avant-gardistes. Pour se développer, les PME aérospatiales doivent de plus en plus composer avec les technologies de ruptures, que sont les technologies numériques, les métadonnées, l'intelligence artificielle, la fabrication additive, etc. Notre rôle est de mettre à leur disposition des outils efficaces, en collaboration avec les deux paliers de gouvernement, pour encourager le virage des PME vers l'adoption des technologies de rupture. « Nos PME technologiques éprouvent encore beaucoup de difficultés à traverser la phase de pré-commercialisation, nécessaire pour assurer leur réussite commerciale. L'Initiative StartAéro360° a été développée pour permettre à nos PME de trouver le soutien nécessaire en vue de la pré-commercialisation de leurs produits les plus innovants », explique Suzanne M. Benoît, présidente-directrice générale d'Aéro Montréal. L'Initiative StartAéro360° vise l'accompagnement de 30 PME sur 3 ans. Ce programme sera doté d'un budget total de 4,385 millions de dollars, dont 1,4 million seront assumés par le secteur privé. À propos d'Aéro Montréal Créée en 2006, Aéro Montréal est un forum stratégique de concertation qui réunit l'ensemble des premiers dirigeants du secteur aérospatial québécois issus de l'industrie, des institutions d'enseignement, des centres de recherche et incluant les associations et les syndicats. Les activités d'Aéro Montréal sont rendues possibles gr'ce à la participation des gouvernements du Canada, du Québec et de la Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal, ainsi que des entreprises membres de la grappe. -30- Pour de plus amples informations : Gwenaël Brisé Responsable des communications et des relations médias Aéro Montréal 438 497-3857 gwenael.brise@aeromontreal.ca https://www.aeromontreal.ca/pres-3-m-pour-pme-aerospatiales.html

ARMY Barnard Construction Company Inc., Bozeman, Montana, was awarded a $324,422,299 firm-fixed-price contract for design and build of a pedestrian fence replacement project. Three bids were solicited via the internet with three bids received. Work will be performed in Yuma, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of April 1, 2020. Fiscal 2018 omnibus funds in the amount of $172,157,017 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Worth, Texas, is the contracting activity (W9126G-19-C-0007). SLSCO, Galveston, Texas, was awarded a $167,460,000 firm-fixed-price contract for border infrastructure design and build. Three bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Mission, Texas, with an estimated completion date of May 4, 2020. Fiscal 2018 omnibus funds in the amount of $167,460,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Worth, Texas, is the contracting activity (W9126G-19-C-0006). NAVY BAE Systems Jacksonville Ship Repair, Jacksonville, Florida (N00024-17-D-1007); Colonna Shipyards Inc., Norfolk, Virginia (N40027-17-D-1008); and Metro Machine Corp., Jacksonville, Florida (N40027-17-D-1009), are each awarded a $212,967,725 firm-fixed-price modification to their respective previously awarded multiple award contracts to exercise Option Year Two for the accomplishment of fixed priced delivery orders for docking and non-docking Chief of Naval Operations scheduled ship repair availabilities. Work will be performed in Mayport, Florida, and is expected to be completed by November 2019. No funding will be obligated at time of modification. The Southeast Regional Maintenance Center, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity. BAE Systems Jacksonville Ship Repair, Jacksonville, Florida (N40027-17-D-1001); Colonna Shipyards Inc., Norfolk, Virginia (N40027-17-D-1002); East Coast Repair and Fabrication LLC, Norfolk, Virginia (N40027-17-D-1003); Metro Machine Corp., Jacksonville, Florida (N40027-17-D-1004); North Florida Shipyards, Jacksonville, Florida (N40027-17-D-1005); and Tecnico Corp., Chesapeake, Virginia (N40027-17-D-1006), are each awarded a $42,641,520 firm-fixed-price modification to their respective previously awarded multiple award contracts to exercise Option Year Two for the accomplishment of fixed priced delivery orders for emergent and continuous maintenance availabilities. Work will be performed in Mayport, Florida, and is expected to be completed by November 2019. No funding will be obligated at time of the modification award. The Southeast Regional Maintenance Center, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity. Saifa Phommarine, doing business as Precision Dynamic,* Hayward, California (N6893619D0002); United Support Solutions – LMT Inc.,* Cedar Grove, New Jersey (N6893619D0003); ZYCI LLC,* Atlanta, Georgia (N6893619D0004); Modern Machine Co.,* Tehachapi, California (N6893619D0005); and Wutzler Machine Corp.,* Hemet, California (N6893619D0006), are each being awarded firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts. The estimated aggregate ceiling for all contracts is $11,500,000, with the companies having an opportunity to compete for individual orders. These contracts provide for commercially available products manufactured from several different materials in different forms, shapes, sizes, complexity; specialty services for rapid processing, ranging from heat treating of manufactured items to paint and coating of manufactured items, and grinding services. These services are in support of the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD), China Lake's Applied Manufacturing Technology Division. Work will be performed at NAWCWD, China Lake, California; and at various awardee's facility sites in Hayward, California; Cedar Grove, New Jersey; Atlanta, Georgia; Tehachapi, California; and Hemet, California; and various customer sites to be determined on individual orders, and is expected to be completed in November 2023. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. These contracts were competitively procured via an electronic request for proposals as a 100 percent small business set-aside; five offers were received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, California, is the contracting activity. Detyens Shipyards Inc., North Charleston, South Carolina, is awarded a $10,046,484 firm-fixed-price contract for a 60-calendar day shipyard availability for the regular overhaul dry docking of USNS Joshua Humphreys (T-AO 188). Work will include general services; clean and gas free tanks; 01 level and tank deck hydro-blast and recoat; flight deck preservation and non-skid; stability test; main engine turbo charger overhaul; ship's service diesel engine overhaul; life boat davit blocks; recertify lifeboats and winches; fire and smoke damper service; dry-docking and undocking the vessel; propeller system maintenance; overhauling sea valves; underwater hull cleaning and painting; ground tackle inspection and preservation; simplex stern tube seals; cargo ballast system tanks overhaul; ram tensioner preservation; and repair and preservation of saddle winches. The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the total contract value to $11,054,691. Work will be performed in North Charleston, South Carolina, and is expected to be completed by March 17, 2019. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount $10,046,484 will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured, with proposals solicited via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with two offers received. The Navy's Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N3220519C4013). DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Stern Produce Co. Inc.,* Phoenix, Arizona, has been awarded a maximum $99,850,000 firm-fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for fresh fruits and vegetables. This is a 48-month contract with no option periods. This was a competitive acquisition with one response received. Location of performance is Arizona, with a Nov. 12, 2022, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps; and Department of Agriculture schools and reservations. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 through 2022 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE300-19-D-P343). AIR FORCE The Boeing Co., Layton, Utah, has been awarded a $70,500,000 cost-plus-incentive-fee request for equitable adjustment contract modification to contract FA8214-15-C-0001 for the Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Flight Test, Telemetry, and Termination program. This modification changes the specifications for the parts management plan, flight termination receiver, electromagnetic interference, cable qualification requirements, and antenna testing requirements. Most of the work is being performed in Huntington Beach, California; and work is expected to be completed by Jan. 29, 2021. No funds are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Nuclear Weapon Center, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contract activity. *Small business https://dod.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract-View/Article/1689528/

By: Valerie Insinna WASHINGTON — The two companies responsible for producing chaff and flares for U.S. military aircraft could be poised for a major shakeup, and the Pentagon and congressional critics have begun sounding the alarm about this small, vulnerable segment of the defense-industrial base. In an October report to the White House on the health of the defense-industrial base, the Pentagon relayed concerns about the small number of domestic chaff and flare producers, and stated that weakened demand — especially for flares — could leave companies little incentive to make internal investments. Only one producer of chaff exists in the United States: Esterline Defense Technologies, also known as Armtec. Esterline, which also makes flares, is joined by one other domestic flare manufacturer: Kilgore Flares Co., a part of Chemring Countermeasures USA, which itself is a subsidiary of a firm based in the United Kingdom. This already precarious industrial situation may be further rattled by TransDigm Group Inc.'s proposed acquisition of Esterline, two lawmakers said. In an Oct. 29 letter to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, Reps. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., and Walter Jones, R-NC, called on the Defense Department to block the deal until its inspector general completed an investigation into TransDigm's business practices. The letter was first reported by The Capitol Forum. “TransDigm has repeatedly purchased companies that are the sole providers of Department of Defense items and engaged in price gouging,” Speier and Jones wrote. “The abuses have been sufficiently common and severe enough to warrant a DoD inspector general investigation. Unsurprisingly, Esterline is the sole DoD chaff provider and one of two flare providers. The alarm bells should be ringing.” The industrial base issues, however, extend far beyond TransDigm's proposed acquisition. A small but critical market Chaff and flare are countermeasures used by military planes and helicopters to help evade a missile attack by an enemy aircraft. For the non-stealthy fourth-generation assets that make up the bulk of the services' inventory, these systems are pivotal to that aircraft's defense. Chaff — which comprises “millions of tiny aluminum or zinc-coated fibers” — is stored onboard an aircraft in tubes and ejected behind the plane to confuse radar-guided missiles, the Pentagon's defense-industrial base report stated. Meanwhile, flares distract heat-seeking, infrared-guided missiles “by ejecting magnesium pellets from tubes to ignite in the wake behind an aircraft,” the report states. Those pellets are so hot — more than 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit — that the temperature exceeds that of the aircraft's engine or exhaust, tricking an infrared-guided missile about the path of the aircraft. According to the industrial base report, “defense unique requirements and decreasing DoD demand drove out other suppliers, leaving a single qualified source for chaff.” Peter Navarro, the White House's director of the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, called attention to the fragile chaff supply base during a Nov. 9 speech at the Center of Strategic and International Studies, calling it a “single point of failure.” Meanwhile, the outlook for flare companies seems even more grim, with the report noting a number of explosions that had plagued both Esterline and Kilgore over the past several years, often leading to factorywide shutdowns that delayed deliveries of product to the Defense Department. “Both companies have experienced quality and delivery problems since the accidents,” the report stated. “As program offices look to improve quality and cost, they are beginning to look offshore at more modern facilities, where there are fewer quality and safety concerns.” One of the biggest problems facing chaff and flare manufacturers is the fluctuating demand signal from the Defense Department — their only customer for the product — based on the military's operational needs, the Association of Old Crows, a professional organization centered on electronic warfare and other countermeasures, said in a statement to Defense News. “Spending on countermeasures flares in the U.S. and among several NATO allies surged during Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom and then dropped sharply as these conflicts reduced their operations tempo or wound down,” the organization stated. “The industrial base is small, yet it must be able to meet big fluctuations in customer demand. This creates a tremendous challenge that could be managed more successfully with better coordination among U.S. military customers or even between NATO partners." A history of safety issues and scandal Though chaff and flare companies usually fly under the radar of the defense trade press, when they do appear in the media, it's usually related to life-threatening accidents at manufacturing facilities or the like. In May 2016, Esterline was forced to temporarily halt operations at its plant in East Camden, Arkansas, after an explosion injured two employees. Local newspaper El Dorado News Times reported that one of the victims suffered “a blast to the face,” which left burns on the hands, chest and face, and took shrapnel to the elbow, according to a Facebook post by the victim's relative. Kilgore Flares also sustained several high-profile accidents in recent years, most notably a 2014 explosion that killed one employee at its factory in Toone, Tennessee. The same plant was the site of a 2016 explosion where no one was injured, according to WBBJ 7 Eyewitness News. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation of the 2014 incident, the worker had been removing residual flare materials that ignited, prompting the explosion. “The investigation identified noncompliance in process safety information, process hazard analysis and ... operating procedures. The employee suffered severe burns on multiple areas of his body and was transported to a hospital, where he received medical treatment and burn therapy, but died from his injuries,” the administration had said. Kilgore also came under the scrutiny of the U.S. Justice Department in 2016 for selling the Army flares made with magnesium that a supplier — ESM Group Inc. — illegally imported from China. The company was fined $8 million for violating a requirement that all magnesium used to make flares be sourced from American or Canadian suppliers, reported the Memphis-based CBS affiliate WREG. Kilgore and Esterline did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Pat Kumashiro, former head of the maintenance division for the Air Force's Logistics, Engineering and Force Protection Directorate and currently director of the Air Force market at LMI, said China is paying attention to weaknesses in the American defense-industrial base. “They are pretty savvy as it relates to understanding global supply chains, and when they have opportunities to buy mineral rights — and you see them doing a lot of work and being very aggressive in Africa — they are doing it for a reason,” he said. If an adversary such as Russia or China identifies that there are a limited number of sources for chaff and flare, they can find ways to impact U.S. suppliers — which in turn degrades the mission capability of fourth-generation planes, Kumashiro said. “Operational pilots are not going to go into harm's way without an operational chaff [and] flare system,” he said. The evolving landscape for chaff and flare Big changes appear to be coming down the pipeline for both Esterline and Kilgore Flares. For the former, the question is whether the Defense Department allows TransDigm to acquire Esterline. "Our general goal in this area is to promote competition among contractors but also ensure that DoD is paying fair prices for the best, most usable products that it can get,” a staff member of Rep. Speier told Defense News. But Speier and his colleague Jones believe TransDigm could artificially inflate prices by claiming there is a commercial market for those products, which would limit the ability of Defense Department procurement officers to have full access to pricing data, the staffer said. Should the Defense Department decide to allow the TransDigm deal to go forward, Speier may push to add language to next year's defense authorization bill that would pose additional limitations on what products are deemed “commercial,” or it could call on the Pentagon to study the level of competition throughout the industrial base, the staffer said. For Kilgore Flares, the changes appear to be more conventionally positive. This May, Chemring Group said it would spend $40 million to expand Kilgore's production facility in Toone and grow the plant's employment numbers from about 280 to 375 people. From 2018-2022, the company plans to improve existing facilities, construct new buildings and buy modern equipment, including a new flare extruder and assembly facility, the company said in a news release. In total, those expenditures will triple the plant's production capacity. Kilgore's investment may indicate that chaff and flare manufacturers see some relief on the horizon. Industry officials who spoke to Defense News about this sector said they were hopeful the Defense Department's industrial base report could indicate a heightened level of Pentagon interest. The department already has certain levers it can pull to address problems in its supply base. One such effort, called the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment program, involves targeted investments to sustain certain manufacturers who produce a critical capability. Another resource is the Defense Production Act Title III program, which offers grants, purchase commitments, loans or loan guarantees to portions of the industrial base that are weakening. The Defense Department called for an expansion of those programs in recommendations to the White House submitted as part of the industrial base report. A classified annex also includes detailed fixes for certain critical industries. So far, however, it's unclear what assistance could be coming down the pipeline for the chaff and flare industry. https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2018/11/13/the-militarys-chaff-and-flare-industry-is-on-fragile-ground

By: Mike Yeo MELBOURNE, Australia ― The first Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport for the Republic of Korea Air Force has landed in South Korea for its acceptance tests. According to a news release from the manufacturer, the aircraft, which was piloted by a joint Airbus and Air Force crew, arrived at Gimhae Air Base in Busan after a ferry flight from the Airbus Final Assembly Line in Getafe, Spain, with a stop in Vancouver, Canada. It will now undergo ground and flight tests in Gimhae. The Air Force will be supported by a team from Airbus, which will be based in South Korea for the duration of the tests and until the aircraft is officially handed over to the customer. Airbus did not specify how long the acceptance tests will last, and referred questions about the specifics of the test program to the Air Force. This aircraft is the first of four ordered by South Korea. Its arrival marks the second regional customer of the A330 MRTT to receive its first aircraft this year, with the first of Singapore's six aircraft having been delivered in August. Another customer, France, had also taken delivery of its first MRTT in October. The A330 MRTT marks the introduction of a dedicated tanker capability for South Korea's Air Force, and it will allow the service's fighters to increase their persistence during missions. The service is currently operating the Boeing F-15K Slam Eagle and the Lockheed Martin KF-16C/D Fighting Falcon as its primary combat aircraft. South Korea has also ordered the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, with the first one for the Air Force rolling out earlier this year. South Korea selected the A330 MRTT for its $1.26 billion KC-X program in 2015 after evaluating competing proposals from Boeing, with the KC-46 Pegasus, and Israel Aerospace Industries, who proposed converting 767 airliners in a tanker aircraft. https://www.defensenews.com/air/2018/11/13/airbus-a330-delivery-brings-dedicated-tanker-capability-to-south-korean-air-force

OTTAWA — For the second year in a row, the federal government is expected to spend billions of dollars less on new military equipment than promised because of a combination of good and bad news: cost savings on some projects and delays in others. The Trudeau government in 2016 released a new defence policy that included dramatic increases in spending on new aircraft, ships, armoured vehicles and other military equipment over the next 20 years. The investments are vital to replacing the Canadian Forces' fighter jets, ships and various other types of aging equipment with state-of-the-art kit. Yet while new budget documents filed in the House of Commons show the Department of National Defence has so far been given authority to spend $4 billion this fiscal year, the policy had predicted total spending of $6.5 billion. The department does have until March 31 — when the federal government's fiscal year ends — to make up the $2.5-billion difference, but its top civilian official, deputy minister Jody Thomas, admitted Thursday that a large shortfall is likely. Part of the reason is that the department expects to save about $700 million on various projects that ended up costing less than planned, Thomas told The Canadian Press following a committee appearance on Parliament Hill. “We've delivered things more efficiently than was anticipated and so we don't need the money,” she said. “And we can apply it to projects, either new projects or projects that have a cost overrun.” But delays moving some projects through the military procurement system have also caused their fair share of problems, Thomas said, and the department is expecting to have to put off $1 billion to $1.3 billion in purchases it had planned to make this year. “We'd like to (spend) $6 billion every year. Can I guarantee to you that we're going to do that? No, there's slowdowns in projects, there's slowdowns with suppliers, there's changes in scope. Things change,” she said. “I'm hoping to get it below $1 billion. I'm not committing to getting it to below $1 billion. ... We're driving projects to get it as low as possible and spend funds efficiently and effectively. We're not wasting money.” The government spent $2.3 billion less than planned last year. That was also largely because of delays in projects such as the government's multibillion-dollar plan to buy new warships, though also because some things ended up costing less than expected. The government does deserve credit for having increased investments in equipment to levels not seen since the height of the war in Afghanistan in 2010 and 2011, said defence analyst David Perry of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. “And if they can actually move as much as the deputy (minister) was saying, and they only leave $1 billion on the table, that will be the best year in the last several decades,” said Perry, who has previously warned that delays in the procurement system could derail the defence policy. “But there are a bunch of impacts from not being able to spend money on schedule. One is you don't have the actual gear to do what you want. And project budgets lose purchasing power when money is not spent on schedule. So it's not good to have delays.” https://windsorstar.com/pmn/news-pmn/canada-news-pmn/ottawa-on-track-to-invest-less-on-new-military-kit-than-promised-for-second-year

France is leading a 10-country defense initiative in a bid to "face new threats" outside existing structures. Germany is wary that the project could entangle its military in foreign interventions and undermine the EU. Defense ministers from 10 European countries gathered in Paris on Wednesday to set the agenda for the European Intervention Initiative (EI2), a defense coalition spearheaded by French President Emmanuel Macron. "To face new threats, Europe needs a strong defense," the French Defense Ministry said in a tweet after the meeting. "With the European Intervention Initiative, 10 European countries are committed to its protection." EI2's goal is to create a results-based common strategic culture that allows for rapid response joint military operations, including in humanitarian efforts. As such, it is not aimed at establishing a supranational European army. However, as an initiative outside EU and NATO frameworks, the French Defense Ministry has tried to alleviate concerns that it would undermine defense structures in the bloc and alliance. "With the European Intervention Initiative, the whole European Union and the European pillar in NATO will also be strengthened," it added. 'Germany felt pressured' But France's efforts have done little to placate concerns in Berlin, which Paris sees as a pivotal actor in the initiative. Claudia Major, senior international security associate at the Berlin-based German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), told DW that German officials are wary because "it's explicitly and deliberately organized and set up outside the European Union's structures." "For the Germans, making a deliberate attempt to setting up something meaningful outside the EU's structures — and outside NATO — is not seen as a positive move but rather as undermining the EU," Major said. "In the end, Germany felt pressured to agree and engage in the initiative, because otherwise all the talk about France and Germany being the engine of Europe and the heart of Europe, and driving European integration and cooperation forward, would look cheap, wouldn't it?" Full article: https://amp.dw.com/en/germany-cautious-as-france-leads-european-defense-initiative/a-46201409

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Science Applications International Corp.,* Fairfield, New Jersey, has been awarded a $900,310,334 firm-fixed-price, requirements contract for supply and supply chain management of certain tires, supporting the Global Tire Program integrator contract. This was a competitive acquisition with two responses received. This is a five-year base contract with two two-year option periods, plus four two-month option periods. Locations of performance are Texas and other areas located outside the continental U.S., with a March 8, 2024, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and foreign military sales. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 through 2024 defense working capital funds; and foreign military sales funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime, Columbus, Ohio (SPE7LX-19-D-0029). WGL Energy Services Inc., Vienna, Virginia, has been awarded a $137,122,332 firm-fixed-price, requirements contract to supply and deliver retail electricity and ancillary/incidental services. This was a competitive acquisition with 11 offers received. This is a two-year contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Maryland; Washington, District of Columbia; and Pennsylvania, with a Dec. 31, 2020, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Defense Logistics Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency, Defense Information Systems Agency and other federal civilian agencies. Using customers are solely responsible to fund this requirements contract and vary in appropriation type and fiscal year. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia (SPE604-19-D-8004). Ziehm Imaging, Orlando, Florida, has been awarded a maximum $135,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for radiology systems, accessories and training. This is a five-year base contract with one five-year option period. This was a competitive acquisition with 50 responses received. Location of performance is Florida, with a Nov. 8, 2028, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2018 through 2028 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2D1-19-D-0004). Constellation NewEnergy Inc., Baltimore, Maryland, has been awarded a $23,896,130 firm-fixed-price, requirements contract to supply and deliver retail electricity and ancillary/incidental services. This was a competitive acquisition with 11 offers received. This is a two-year contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Maryland, New Jersey, Illinois and Pennsylvania, with a Dec. 31, 2020, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Air Force, Defense Intelligence Agency, Defense Contract Management Agency and other federal civilian agencies. Using customers are solely responsible to fund this requirements contract and vary in appropriation type and fiscal year. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia (SPE604-19-D-8003). Direct Energy Business LLC, Iselin, New Jersey, has been awarded a $7,082,242 firm-fixed-price, requirements contract to supply and deliver retail electricity and ancillary/incidental services. This was a competitive acquisition with 11 offers received. This is a two-year contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Maryland; Washington, District of Columbia; and Ohio, with a Dec. 31, 2020, performance completion date. Using customers are Marine Corps, Defense Logistics Agency and the Computer Science Study Group. Using customers are solely responsible to fund this requirements contract and vary in appropriation type and fiscal year. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia (SPE604-19-D-8004). NAVY Enterprise Services LLC, Herndon, Virginia, is awarded a potential maximum value $485,965,204 modification under a previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity existing Next Generation Enterprise Network contract (N00039-13-D-0013). This modification will add a new option period that will extend the potential ordering period by eight months from Oct. 1, 2019, through May 31, 2020. Current and future work will be performed throughout the U.S., Europe, Guam, Korea and Japan. No additional funding will be placed on contract or obligated at the time of modification award. This contract modification was not competitively procured because it is a sole-source acquisition pursuant to the authority of 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1), One source or limited sources (Federal Acquisition Regulation subpart 6.302-1). This action is a result of a justification and approval that authorizes extending the ordering period. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity. The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Cambridge, Massachusetts, is awarded $109,531,179 for modification P00001 to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee contract (N00030-19-C-0001) to provide research into the applications of technologies to meet guidance requirements for operations on the common missile compartment for the U.S. Columbia-class program and the United Kingdom Dreadnought-class program; provide specialized technical knowledge and support for the hypersonic guidance, navigation and control application; provide technical and engineering services to support the guidance, navigation and control system that will support the Navy's hypersonic flight experiments. Work will be performed in Cambridge, Massachusetts (81 percent); and El Segundo, California (19 percent), with an expected completion date of Sept. 30, 2019. Fiscal 2019 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $11,306,900; operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $92,708,279; and United Kingdom funds in the amount of $5,516,000 will be obligated. Funds in the amount of $92,708,279 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole-source acquisition pursuant to 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1)&(4). Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. KBR Diego Garcia LLC, Houston, Texas, is awarded a $61,979,897 modification under a previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N62742-17-D-3600) to exercise Option One for base operations support services at U.S. Navy Support Facility, Diego Garcia. The work to be performed provides for general management and administration services; command and staff (information technology services, information technology support and management, telephone services, telecommunication services, antenna maintenance); public safety (fire protection and emergency services); air operations (ground electronics, airfield facilities, and passenger terminal and cargo handling); port operations; supply (supply services and petroleum, oil and lubricant management and operations, and ship's store service activities); morale, welfare and recreation support; galley; bachelor quarters; facilities support (facility management, facility investment sustainment, restoration and modernization, custodial, pest control, integrated solid waste management, grounds maintenance, and pavement clearance); utilities (electrical, compressed gases, wastewater, steam, hot water and demineralized water, and potable water); base support vehicles and equipment; and environmental to provide integrated base operating services. After award of this option, the total cumulative contract value will be $118,107,288. Work will be performed in Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory, and is expected to be completed November 2019. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy and Air Force); and fiscal 2019 non-appropriated funds in the amount of $43,553,618 for recurring work will be obligated on individual task orders issued during the option period, of which $42,716,660 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year, and $836,958 is subject to the availability of funds for the next fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Pacific, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the contracting activity. Navy Transportation Partners JV, Virginia Beach, Virginia, is awarded a maximum amount $30,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity architect-engineering contract for traffic engineering and planning services in support of projects primarily located at military installations in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. The work to be performed provides for comprehensive architect-engineering services required for transportation planning, design, and construction services in support of new construction, repair, replacement, demolition, alteration, and/or improvement of Navy and other governmental facilities. Projects may involve single or multiple disciplines, including, but not limited to, architectural, structural, mechanical, electrical, civil, landscape design, fire protection, and interior design. Task order 0001 is being awarded at $199,921 for the design of an anti-terrorism perimeter and security entry point at Rome, New York. Work for this task order is expected to be completed by September 2019. All work on this contract will be performed at various Navy facilities and other government facilities within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic area of responsibility including, but not limited to the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. The term of the contract is not to exceed 60 months with an expected completion date of November 2023. Fiscal 2018 military construction, (Air Force) contract funds in the amount of $199,921 are obligated on this award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Future task orders will be primarily funded by military construction (Navy); operations and maintenance (Navy); and Navy working capital funds. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with seven proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N40085-19-D-9008). Colonna's Shipyard Inc., Norfolk, Virginia, is awarded a $10,473,071 firm-fixed-price contract for a 121-calendar day shipyard availability for the regular overhaul and dry docking of USNS Zeus (T-ARC 7). Work will include furnishing general services for the ship, inspect main propulsion motors, cable handling upgrades, heavy overboard system replacement, antenna mast modification, high precision acoustic positioning upgrade, docking and un-docking vessel, propeller shaft inspection, underwater hull cleaning and painting, freeboard cleaning and painting, and sea valve replacement. The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the total contract value to $13,429,595. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by April 13, 2019. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $13,429,595 are obligated at the time of award. Contract funds will not expire. This contract was competitively procured with proposals solicited via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with three offers received. The Navy's Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N3220519C4151). ARMY AECOM Energy & Construction Inc., Greenwood Village, Colorado, was awarded an $117,338,000 firm-fixed-price contract for major rehabilitation, demolition, temporary facilities, surveying, dewatering and protecting lock chamber, blasting, removing and replacing horizontal concrete at Illinois River Basin, LaGrange Lock and Dam. Bids were solicited via the internet with one bid received. Work will be performed in Versailles, Illinois, with an estimated completion date of July 16, 2021. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of 24,700,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity (W912EK-19-C-0002). VERSAR Inc., Springfield, Virginia, was awarded a $25,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for support program management, contract administration, project engineering, quality assurance, real estate, and support staff for continued operations in Iraq. Bids were solicited via the internet with six bids received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 13, 2023. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Winchester, Virginia, is the contracting activity (W912ER-18-D-0012). IDS International Government Services LLC, Arlington, Virginia, was awarded a $22,037,300 firm-fixed-price contract for operations and maintenance (O&M) services for critical infrastructure, facilities, and Afghan national O&M vocation training for Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan in the planning and construction of Afghanistan National Security Forces facilities. One bid was solicited via the internet with once bid received. Work will be performed in Afghanistan with an estimated completion date of March 11, 2019. Fiscal 2018 Afghan Security Forces Funding funds in the amount of $14,000,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Winchester, Virginia, is the contracting activity (W912ER-19-C-0003). CORRECTION: A Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018, announcement that Deloitte & Touche LLP, Arlington, Virginia, was awarded an $18,056,941 firm-fixed-price contract to provide a cyberspace analytics capability was incorrect. That contract has not yet been awarded. CORRECTION: A Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018, announcement that Parsons Government Services Inc., Pasadena, California, was awarded a $15,837,195 firm-fixed-price contract to provide the Defensive Cyberspace Operations Mission Planning program was incorrect. That contract has not yet been awarded. AIR FORCE Pride Industries, Roseville, California, has been awarded a $14,193,270 modification (P00042) awarded for civil engineering services, and is for operations and maintenance, engineering, environmental, and grounds maintenance for 61st Civil Engineer and Logistics Squadron. Work will be performed at Los Angeles Air Force Base, California; Fort MacArthur, California; and Defense Contract Management Agency, Carson, California, and is expected to be completed by Nov. 30, 2019. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $10,429,104 are being obligated at the time of award. Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, California, is the contracting activity (FA2816-17-C-0001). *Small business https://dod.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract-View/Article/1687755/source/GovDelivery/

By Aaron Boyd, The Defense Department isn't doing a good job determining how much to spend to prevent damage from nature's basic chemical reactions. Rust costs the Pentagon more money annually than many of its most expensive weapons systems—up to $21 billion per year, according to a Defense Department-commissioned audit released in March. The report indicates the corrosion of metals that make up modern weapons systems like fighter jets, ships, ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons can sometimes approach one-third of the total operations and maintenance costs of those systems. The problem is so large, in 2002, the department established the Office of Corrosion Policy and Oversight to ensure big-dollar weapons systems weren't taken offline by oxidation and to help branches determine how much money ought to be spent on rust prevention. But the data being reported by the military branches has been inconsistent and the office has yet to issue guidance on how funding levels should be categorized, according to a related audit released Thursday by the Government Accountability Office. For example, “In fiscal year 2017, the Army and Navy used direct costs, such as salary and training costs, to identify their funding levels, but the Army also included other associated costs. The Air Force used the prior year's funding level and adjusted it for inflation,” the report states. These different methods led to funding requests based on different criteria, making it difficult for Congress to determine what an appropriate funding level should look like. It has also led to vastly different funding requests. In 2017, the Army requested $2.4 million and the Air Force $3 million, while the Navy only requested $220,000. Similarly, all three branches either failed to accurately report the supporting data or, in the Air Force's case, did not provide any data at all some years. “The Army data GAO received did not reconcile with data presented in the Corrosion Office annual reports to Congress for five of eight fiscal years,” auditors wrote. “The Navy data did not reconcile for two of eight fiscal years, and there was no supporting documentation identifying how these figures were calculated. Air Force officials did not provide any figures or supporting documentation for four fiscal years, stating that these figures were not available.” Army officials told GAO they're not able to accurately report how much is spent preventing or combating corrosion because many of those duties are performed by personnel who do many other things, as well. This includes the Army's lead corrosion executive, who also serves as the aviation logistics and safety officer for the Army G-4 logistics organization. “The corrosion-related costs of conducting the corrosion executive role are not separated from this other function,” they told GAO. The Navy had a similar issue but took a different tack. The Navy merely requested $220,000 for the corrosion executive's salary, despite the fact that “this method does not capture other costs, such as personnel assigned to other offices that provide support to the corrosion executive.” The misreported numbers don't appear to be malfeasance, according to the GAO report, but a natural consequence of a lack of direction from the Corrosion Office on how to identify funding needs and properly report that data. GAO made three recommendations to the Defense Department: Issue guidance for identifying and reviewing funding levels for performing corrosion executive duties. Ensure that the Corrosion Office develops a process to maintain documentation of its reviews of corrosion planning. Ensure that corrosion executives establish guidance on reviewing the adequacy of corrosion planning. Defense officials agreed with all three recommendations. https://www.nextgov.com/cio-briefing/2018/11/rust-costs-pentagon-21-billion-year/152709/