Nouvelles

By: Sebastian Sprenger COLOGNE, Germany – A group of six European NATO nations next month will take delivery of the first two of eight Airbus A330 aircraft suitable for aerial refueling and transport missions, the alliance announced. The MFF program, short for Multinational Multi-Role Tanker and Transport Fleet, is one of only a few examples of select NATO nations jointly owning and operating equipment. The first aircraft are slated to arrive in the Netherlands at the main operating base in Eindhoven in June following “a limited delay” over the original schedule, according to a statement. The NATO Support and Procurement Agency manages the program on behalf of member nations Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Luxembourg, Norway and the Netherlands. The six nations share the cost of buying the planes as well as flying hours used for missions. The Airbus A330 MRTT aircraft are destined mainly to bolster the aerial-refueling capabilities of participating air forces, which is key to extending the operating radius of their fighter fleets. The tanker can refuel F-16, F-35, Eurofighter, Tornado and Gripen jets, as well as “most of the other” aircraft used by the alliance, including C-17 cargo planes, the NATO statement reads. Nations can also operate the tankers in a cargo, passenger or medical-evacuation configuration. According to a memorandum of understanding governing the aircraft's use, Germany has booked up to 5,500 flying hours per year, followed by the Netherlands (2,000), Belgium (1,000) Luxembourg (200), and Norway and the Czech Republic with 100 each. Besides Eindhoven as the main base hosting five of the envisioned eight total aircraft, the German city of Cologne is slated to host three. NATO officials have touted the capability to ferry cargo among nations here as key to fighting the coronavirus epidemic. Member nations have repeatedly organized flights to deliver medical equipment, for example, to help each other out. In alliance parlance, the increased transportation muscle provided by the MFF program goes to the heart of what officials have called NATO's “resilience” in the face of crises. To that end, officials have begun an examination of how the pact's military assets can help civil authorities absorb the kinds of shocks brought by the coronavirus. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/05/19/nato-group-in-europe-to-receive-first-jointly-owned-aerial-tankers/

Nathan Strout The Navy has issued two contracts totaling as much as $2 billion for Joint Tactical Radio Systems over the next five years. Viasat and the joint venture Data Link Solutions LLC (comprised of BAE Systems and Collins Aerospace) were each awarded indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contracts worth as much as $1 billion for the production, retrofitting, development and sustainment of the Multifunctional Information Distribution System Joint Tactical Radio Systems, or MIDS JTRS, terminals. There were two proposals submitted for the contracts. The MIDS JTRS terminal is a software-defined radio that provides secure, line-of-sight voice and data communications for a variety of air, sea and ground platforms. The jam-resistant radio can transmit and receive data over Link 16 and Tactical Air Navigation systems like existing technology. It can also use new communications protocals and advanced networking waveforms, including the multifunction advanced data link and the intra-flight data link. According to the contract announcement, there are three terminal variants covered by this award: the Concurrent Multi-Netting-4, the Tactical Targeting Network Technology and the F-22 variant. The combined contracts will provide terminals for the U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force and NATO nations. The award is a followup to five-year contracts issued to both companies in 2015, which are set to expire May 27. Work under the new contracts is expected to be complete by May 2025. https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/c2-comms/2020/05/20/dod-ordering-2b-worth-of-jam-resistant-radios/

By: Joe Gould WASHINGTON ― More than two dozen Democrats are demanding that House Armed Services Committee leaders cut defense spending in the 2021 defense policy bill, saying the money would be better spent combating the coronavirus pandemic. A May 19 letter, mostly from Congressional Progressive Caucus members, marked a prelude to what could be complicated efforts to pass the National Defense Authorization Act in the Democrat-led House. The panel is expected in the coming weeks to introduce and mark up a draft, in line with the $740 billion top line set by the 2019 budget deal. But 29 Democrats ― led by House Progressive Caucus Co-Chair Mark Pocan of Wisconsin and Rep. Barbara Lee, a senior appropriator and California progressive ― said the defense spending should be lower than last year's $738 billion top line. With Americans dying from COVID-19 by the thousands, tax dollars would be better spent on an expansion of testing, contact tracing, treatment and vaccine development, they said. “Congress must remain focused on responding to the coronavirus pandemic and distributing needed aid domestically,” the lawmakers wrote. “In order to do so, appropriators must have access to increased levels of non-defense spending which could be constrained by any increase to defense spending.” “Right now, the coronavirus is our greatest adversary. It has killed more than 90,000 Americans, far surpassing the number of casualties during the Vietnam War,” the letter read. “America needs a coronavirus cure, not more war. We need more testing, not more bombs." How the loss of support from 29 House Democrats will factor into passage of the NDAA remains to be seen. In a note accompanying the letter, the organizers noted that if Republicans held back support ― which they did last year ― only 19 Democrats would need to vote “no” this year for the bill to fail. Last year, House Republicans resisted an early version of the 2020 bill written by House Democrats, but even after many of their priorities were stripped out in negotiations with the Republican-controlled Senate, the compromise bill still passed the House without them, 377-48. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi found common ground with the White House on an eleventh hour paid parental leave provision that attracted most Democrats. This year, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith, D-Wash., has spoken in favor of working to protect the defense-industrial base through stimulus funding. But with a stimulus bill caught in a partisan deadlock, it's unclear whether lawmakers will see the NDAA as a potential vehicle for defense industry aid. If so, that could be a sticking point. Last month, Smith told reporters that public health needs were more pressing and that within the Pentagon's existing $738 billion budget, defense officials "have a lot of money and ought to spend that money to meet those needs” before Congress considers more. HASC ranking member Mac Thornberry, who led early Republican opposition to last year's bill, has said he is hopeful this year's bill will be more bipartisan. Thornberry, R-Texas, also opposed the idea of cutting defense to fund health care needs. “I bristle a bit at the notion, ‘well, of course [the Department of Defense has] got to get their budget cut,' " he said, “because the world's not going to be safer on the other side of COVID.” https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2020/05/19/house-progressives-demand-pentagon-cuts-citing-pandemic/

By: Bryan Clark and Timothy A. Walton The U.S. Navy's award this month of the contract for its new class of frigates starts the very necessary process of rebalancing the U.S. surface fleet, but the competition also highlighted the U.S. shipbuilding-industrial base's increasing fragility. If they lost, two of the four shipyards bidding on the frigate were at risk of either going out of business or joining the underemployed ranks of U.S. commercial shipbuilders. Due to specialization, only one or two yards construct each class of Navy combat ship with workforces, equipment, and infrastructure that would be expensive and difficult to adapt. A decision on any single ship class, as with the frigate, can shut down a shipyard and send its workers to the unemployment line. Specialization is also a problem when orders increase. The Navy's two submarine shipyards, General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Industries' Newport News division, shrank the time needed to build subs by 20 percent during the past decade while increasing production to two per year. The rising sophistication of Virginia-class submarines has now reversed this trend, however, and submarine builders' challenges are only increasing. They recently started a new contract to build up to 10 of the larger Block V Virginia submarines and are in negotiation with the Navy on a block-buy contract for the first two Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines. Supplier challenges abound U.S. shipbuilders may be fragile, but their suppliers are on life support. After decades of being whipsawed by changes to shipbuilding plans and budget uncertainty, a shrinking number of suppliers are able and willing to stay in business. The Navy's recent initiatives to improve supplier production capacity and resilience don't go far enough to address its rising dependence on sole-source suppliers, which now provide more than 75 percent of submarine parts. For example, when problems with Columbia missile tubes led the Navy to seek new suppliers, it replaced the existing, sole source — BWXT — with another — General Dynamics — that will assemble tubes at the same facilities that are constructing parts for the Virginia and Columbia submarines. Last year, the Trump administration used the Defense Production Act to establish new suppliers for military missile fuel. The Navy should build on this effort to identify sole-source items for which an additional supplier is appropriate. In selecting additional suppliers, the Navy should prioritize attributes other than cost. Sole-source items by definition are important enough to justify seeking out or creating a single supplier rather than adapting the ship's design to use an existing item. Therefore, the Navy should emphasize the provider's track record in conducting similar or other challenging engineering; its ability to adjust to what will likely be variable demand and changing specifications; and the likelihood of quality production that avoids rework. Planning for resiliency The Department of Defense could help address the shipbuilding-industrial base's fragility with its current study of the number and mix of ships needed in the future fleet. Although the primary goal of this analysis should be determining the most effective fleet possible within likely budget constraints, it must also ensure the industrial base can build and sustain the future Navy. Industrial base considerations are not new to Navy force structure planning. During the last decade, the Navy or Congress added amphibious ships, submarines, destroyers and auxiliary vessels to maintain hot production lines or keep a shipyard afloat until the next order. Each of the Navy's new combatant ships are expected to cost more than $1 billion to build, constraining the Navy's ability to spread ship construction to other qualified shipyards to fill production gaps or extend classes to keep a shipyard in operation. The Navy could better support shipbuilders by rebalancing its fleet architecture to increase the number of smaller vessels such as corvettes or tank landing ships, and reduce the number of larger destroyers and amphibious warships. Smaller, less-expensive ships could be built in larger numbers per year, providing more flexibility in shipbuilding plans to stabilize the workload for shipbuilders and providing more scalability to align shipbuilding expenditures with changing budgets. Smaller ships could also be built at a wider range of shipyards, including those that only build commercial vessels and noncombatant government ships like Coast Guard cutters and oceanographic research vessels. These “dual-use” shipbuilders suffer today from a lack of coordination between commercial and government shipbuilding, which creates a feast-or-famine cycle of orders. The Navy and nation depend on a healthy shipbuilding-industrial base. To foster the industrial base in the face of natural and man-made challenges, the Navy should change its fleet design and shipbuilding plans, while investing to establish and qualify new suppliers. Without deliberate action, the U.S. shipbuilding industry will become increasingly fragile, limiting the Navy's ability to build the ships it needs and respond when today's competitions turn to conflict. Bryan Clark is a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, where Timothy A. Walton is a fellow. https://www.defensenews.com/opinion/commentary/2020/05/20/shipbuilding-suppliers-need-more-than-market-forces-to-stay-afloat/

By: The Associated Press ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A national aerospace and defense contractor has confirmed plans to pack up operations in New Mexico and move to Arizona and elsewhere. Raytheon Technologies Corp. will close its office in Albuquerque, where it employs about 200 people, the Albuquerque Journal reported Tuesday. Company spokeswoman Heather Uberuaga said Raytheon is looking to streamline its capabilities with pursuits and programs located at other sites around the country. She described the move as being in the best interest of customers and said the company will work with employees on individual options for employment going forward. That could include transferring to a new site or applying for different positions within the company. All laid-off workers will receive severance packages, and health care coverage will continue during the severance. Raytheon's Albuquerque division has worked closely in recent years with the Air Force Research Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base to develop modern laser and microwave weapons. That work will be transferred to Raytheon Missiles and Defense headquarters in Tucson, Arizona. Raytheon expanded its operations at the Sandia Science and Technology Park on Albuquerque's south side in 2017. The company received $850,000 in economic development funding from the state to offset the expansion costs. Uberuaga said that money has been returned. https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2020/05/20/raytheon-to-move-albuquerque-operations-to-other-us-sites/

NAVY General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, Williston, Vermont, is awarded a $58,590,570 firm-fixed-price modification to previously-awarded contract N00024-20-D-5109 to exercise Option Year One for the production and shipping of Mk 82 guided-missile directors and Mk 200 director control units. Work will be performed in Williston, Vermont (50%); and Saco, Maine (50%). The Mk 82 director serves to position the fire control system antenna to a commanded and stabilized position in space for the purpose of illuminating the target. The director has two axes of motion and has slip rings and a dual radio frequency rotary joint to allow unlimited rotation in train. The Mk 200 director control houses the elevation and train servo-amplifiers for its associated director. Within the director control, solid-state servo-amplifiers provide the servo drive signals that position the director to the desired target position. These components are part of the Mk 99 missile fire control system framework, which is a critical component of the Aegis Weapon System. Work is expected to be complete by December 2025. Fiscal 2020 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy); and Foreign Military Sales funding in the amount of $58,590,570 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. A-VET/MGC JV LLC,* Warner Robins, Georgia (N69450-20-D-0028); CYE Enterprises Inc.,* Jacksonville, Florida (N69450-20-D-0029); and Pacific Tech Construction Inc., Kelso, Washington (N69450-20-D-0030), are awarded $30,000,000 for a design-build and design-bid-build, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award roofing construction contract for projects located primarily within the Florida Panhandle area of responsibility managed by the Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast. Work will be performed in Pensacola, Florida (34%); Whiting Field, Florida (33%); and Panama City, Florida (33%), and primarily consists of roof system replacements, repairs and maintenance of various types of existing low-slope and steep slope roofing. This includes but not be limited to: modified bitumen; built-up; metal roofing; waterproof roof coatings; asphalt shingles; roof systems flashings and drainage components; and abatement and handling of hazardous/regulated materials (including and not limited to asbestos, lead paint, mold remediation and polychlorinated biphenyl). Single ply roof systems, slate roofing systems and tile roof systems may be included. Projects can be based on design-build, modified design-build or full plans and specifications format. Work is expected to be complete by January 2021. The maximum dollar value for the five-year ordering period for all three contracts combined is $30,000,000. A-VET/MGC JV LLC* is awarded the initial task order at $194,733 for Building 3748 roof replacement located at Corry Station, Pensacola, Florida. The term of the contract is not to exceed 60 months, with an expected completion date of April 2025. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) (O&M, N) contract funds in the amount of $196,733 are obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Future task orders will be primarily funded by O&M, N. This contract was competitively procured via the Federal Business Opportunities website, and nine proposals were received. These three contractors may compete for task orders under the terms and conditions of the awarded contract. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity. Detyens Shipyards Inc., Charleston, South Carolina, is awarded a $24,235,291 firm-fixed-price contract (N32205-20-C-4003) for a 120-calendar day shipyard availability for the regular overhaul dry-docking of the U.S. Navy Ship Patuxent (T-AO 201). The $24,235,291 consists of the amounts listed in the following areas: Category "A" work item cost, additional government requirement, other direct costs and the general and administrative costs. Work will be performed in North Charleston, South Carolina. Work will include main and emergency switchboard cleaning, lifeboat and rescue boat davit maintenance and testing, 6,000 hour overhaul of port and starboard main engine exhaust valves, port and starboard main engine fuel injection pumps, annual firefighting inspection and certification, inspection and overhaul of shaft brakes, ship's service diesel generator #3 overhaul, prep and paint saltwater ballast tanks 10 port and starboard, prep and paint fore peak tank, prep and paint diesel fuel marine cargo tank 7 port, prep and paint jet propellant 5 contaminated tank, prep and paint diesel fuel marine contaminated tank, tank deck non-skid renewal frames 40-50, miscellaneous steel repairs, shower panel and flooring renewals, control reversible pitch propeller system and propeller blade seal maintenance, stern tube seal maintenance, underwater hull cleaning and recoating, freeboard blast and preservation, tail shaft removal and survey, carpet, tile and terrazzo replacement, bi-annual gauge calibration, blast and paint 02 level lifeboats, pump room bilge preservation, starboard capstan overhaul, reefer plant groom, tank deck sprinkler system flush, inspection and painting of diesel fuel marine piping, sea valve and waster piece overhaul, davit modifications and installation of new lifeboats, various pump overhauls, underway replenishment station permanent repairs stations 3 and 4, various steel deck renewals, miscellaneous pipe repair, underway replenishment gear maintenance, stability test, kingpost repairs (partial) trans-alternation, trash chute removal trans-alternation, Gaylord booster heater replacement trans-alternation and fire detection and alarm system replacement trans-alternation. Work is expected to be complete by October 2020. The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the total contract value to $27,416,444. Funds will be obligated on May 20, 2020. Contract completion will be Oct. 26, 2020. Contract funds in the amount of $24,235,291, excluding options, are obligated for fiscal 2020 using Navy working capital funds. This contract was competitively procured, with proposals solicited via the beta.sam.gov website and two offers were received. The Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N32205-20-C-4003). Vet Industrial Inc.,* Bremerton, Washington, is awarded $17,305,016 for a firm-fixed-price task order (N44255-20-F-4204) under a multiple award construction contract for seismic upgrades to Building 431 at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Washington. Work will be performed in Bremerton, Washington. The work to be performed provides all labor, materials and equipment to construct seismic upgrades to Building 431, and also includes the installation of a fire suppression system throughout Building 431. Work is expected to be complete by August 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $17,305,016 are obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Three proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest, Silverdale, Washington, is the contracting activity (N44255-17-D-4007). The Boeing Co., Huntington Beach, California, is awarded a $13,211,471 cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost-only modification to previously awarded contract N00024-18-C-4103, to exercise options in support of the AN/USQ-82(V) program for DDG-51 class new construction, DDG-51 class modernization, operations and maintenance, research and development and Foreign Military Sales (FMS). This contract combines purchases for the Navy (91%); the government of Japan (5%); the government of the Republic of Korea (3%); and the government of Australia (1%), under the FMS program. Work will be performed in Huntington Beach, California. AN/USQ-82(V) program is a control system network. Its purpose is to transfer mission critical data to and from users associated with combat, navigation, aviation, power, propulsion, steering, damage control systems and alarms and indicating. Work is expected to be complete by May 2021. Fiscal 2019 and 2020 other procurement (Navy) funding; 2013-2019 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding; 2020 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding; 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding; and FMS funding in the amount of $13,211,471 will be obligated at the time of award. Funds in the amount of $400,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. Raytheon Co., Keyport, Washington, is awarded a $10,480,184 modification to previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity requirements contract N61331-17-D-0001 to exercise options for maintenance and support for the AN/AQS-20 Sonar Mine Detecting Set. The AN/AQS-20 is a towed, mine hunting and identification system for program executive office, unmanned and small combatants. Work will be performed in Portsmouth, Rhode Island (65%); Keyport, Washington (30%); and Panama City, Florida (5%). This option exercise extends the period of performance and allows for continuing support including but not limited to: repair; overhauls and other scheduled maintenance; hardware and software maintenance; tracking and resolution of obsolescence issues; technology improvements; reliability and maintainability improvements; development and incorporation of change notices and engineering change proposals; test support; engineering services; spares and repair parts; design efforts and hardware upgrades to improve system performance, sustainability, reliability, and other activities in support of the program. Work is expected to be complete by May 2021. No funding will be obligated at the time of award. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Panama City Division, Panama City, Florida, is the contracting activity. Austal USA, Mobile, Alabama, is awarded an $8,229,522 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to previously-awarded contract N00024-11-C-2301 for Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) industrial post-delivery support for LCS 26. Work will be performed in Mobile, Alabama (80%); and Pittsfield, Massachusetts (20%). Austal USA will provide shipboard support to implement approved engineering change proposals, approved government-responsible deficiencies identified during test and trials, crew-related activities and preventative maintenance. Austal will also provide program management support and logistics support for technical documentation affected by the work performed. Work is expected to be complete by March 2021. Fiscal 2016 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $3,970,000 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. ARMY B.L. Harbert International LLC, Birmingham, Alabama, was awarded a $37,142,044 firm-fixed-price contract for construction of a general purpose maintenance shop. Bids were solicited via the internet with seven received. Work will be performed in Clarksville, Tennessee, with an estimated completion date of July 29, 2022. Fiscal 2020 military construction (Army) funds in the amount of $37,142,044 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville, Kentucky, is the contracting activity (W912QR-20-C-0022). Benaka,* New Brunswick, New Jersey, was awarded a $15,883,000 firm-fixed-price contract to construct a security forces and communications flight facility. Bids were solicited via the internet with six received. Work will be performed in Westhampton Beach, New York, with an estimated completion date of Nov. 30, 2021. Fiscal 2020 military construction (Army) National Guard funds in the amount of $15,883,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Property and Fiscal Office, New York, is the contracting activity (W50S8E-20-C-0001). Raptor Training Services LLC,* Oviedo, Florida, was awarded a $13,500,000 modification (P00012) to contract W900KK-14-D-0001 to accommodate known and emerging critical Special Operations Forces requirements. Bids were solicited via the internet with 16 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Nov. 11, 2021. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity. Systems Products and Solutions Inc., Huntsville, Alabama, was awarded a $13,475,295 modification (000103) to blanket purchase agreement W31P4Q-18-A-0094 for logistical support services for U.S. Army Material Command. Work will be performed in Huntsville, Alabama, with an estimated completion date of May 20, 2021. Fiscal 2020 Army working capital and operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $13,475,295 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity. B&K Construction,* Mandeville, Louisiana, was awarded a $7,941,412 modification (P00001) to contract W912P8-19-C-0071 for drainage canal work. Work will be performed in New Orleans, Louisiana, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 13, 2022. Fiscal 2020 civil operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $7,941,412 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, Louisiana, is the contracting activity. (Awarded May 18, 2020) U.S. TRANSPORTATION COMMAND Vane Line Bunkering Inc., Baltimore, Maryland, has been awarded a firm fixed-price contract, HTC711-20-C-W003, in the estimated amount of $26,662,956. The contract provides transportation of bulk jet fuel and marine diesel by tug and barge for the Defense Logistics Agency-Energy in the Atlantic and Gulf Coast regions. The location of performance is ports and points along the coast as well as inland and coastal waterways from Texas to Maine. It includes support to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The Air Force and Navy use this fuel for cargo and passenger aircraft delivering supplies to the warfighters conducting overseas contingency operations as well as routine operations. Further, the fuel supports aircrew training, crisis action response for natural disasters and threats to the homeland, and ultimately readiness which directly correlates to the nation's warfighting capabilities. Additionally, fuel provided under this contract supports the Presidential Airlift Group at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. The contract base period of performance is from Sept. 1, 2020, to Aug. 31, 2021. Fiscal 2020 defense working capital funds were obligated at award. U.S. Transportation Command, Directorate of Acquisition, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity. DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Fresh Pack Produce,* Denver, Colorado, has been awarded a maximum $12,600,000 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-quantity contract for produce. This was a competitive acquisition with two responses received. This is a four-year, six-month contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Colorado and Wyoming, with a Nov. 19, 2024, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Air Force and Air National Guard. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2024 defense working capital funds. The contracting agency is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE300-20-D-P354). Propper International Inc., Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico, has been awarded a maximum $11,965,427 modification (P00007) exercising the first one-year option period of a one-year base contract (SPE1C1-19-D-1168) with two one-year option periods for hydration system and corpsman assault packs. This is a firm-fixed price, indefinite-quantity contract. Location of performance is Puerto Rico, with a May 31, 2021, performance completion date. Using military service is Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-19-D-1168). Rocky Brands Inc., Nelsonville, Ohio, has been awarded a maximum $9,075,661 modification (P00003) exercising the first one-year option period of a one-year base contract (SPE1C1-19-D-1150) with two one-year option periods for certified safety boots. This is a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. Locations of performance are Ohio and Puerto Rico, with a May 20, 2021, performance completion date. Using military service is Navy. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Creighton AB Inc.,* Reidsville, North Carolina, has been awarded a maximum $8,256,325 modification (P00007) exercising the first one-year option period of a one-year base contract (SPE1C1-20-D-1211) with four one-year option periods for dress trousers. This is a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. Locations of performance are New York and North Carolina, with a May 22, 2021, performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. AIR FORCE Dataminr Inc., New York, New York, has been awarded a $12,180,000 firm-fixed-price contract to provide web-based, mobile and email alerting of events and breaking news based on global sources of publically available information (PAI) to all Department of Defense (DOD) authorized users for force protection and first response via a commercially-available subscription license with 24/7/365 access to alerting for DOD authorized users and maintain compliance with the terms of service and data use policies of all third party PAI data sources that are used to create news alerts. Work will be performed in New York, New York, and is expected to be completed Aug. 18, 2020. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $4,000,000 will be obligated at the time of award. Air Force District of Washington, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, is the contracting activity (FA7014-20-C-0022). Rockwell Collins Inc., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has been awarded an $11,916,073 firm-fixed-price and cost-reimbursable modification (P00101) to exercise the contractor logistics support (CLS) and contractor logistics support performance based incentive options previously awarded on contract FA8678-10-C-0058 to support the sustainment of the Common Range Integrated Instrumentation System (CRIIS) for upgrading the test and evaluation instrumentation at Air Force, Navy and Army test ranges. The objective of the CRIIS CLS is to provide repairs and sustainment management for the CRIIS equipment while verifying sustainment system performance specification requirements. CLS will ensure availability and maintainability of CRIIS equipment at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida; Edwards AFB, California; Naval Air Station, Patuxent River, Maryland; White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico; Nevada Test and Training Range, Nevada; Naval Air Weapons Station, China Lake, California; and Naval Air Station, Point Mugu, California. The contracting action is the result of a competitive acquisition and two offers were received. Work will be performed at Rockwell Collins facilities; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and Richardson, Texas, and is expected to be completed by May 31, 2025. Fiscal 2020 and 2021 Department of Defense Central Test and Evaluation Investment Program research, development, test, and evaluation funds in the amount of $1,279,875 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $340,594,567. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin AFB, Florida, is the contracting activity. *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2193451/source/GovDelivery/

Nathan Strout After landing a contract with the U.S. Air Force in April, California-based company Labelbox announced May 20 it is making its artificial intelligence training data platform available more widely to the federal government and intelligence community. Labelbox offers a software platform by the same name that allows development teams to manage the data used to train machine learning algorithms. For instance, in order for a machine learning tool to successfully begin identifying missile launchers in satellite imagery, it needs to be fed hundreds — or even millions — of pre-labeled pictures identifying the objects it needs to identify. The more accurate training data is fed to the algorithm, the better it works. Some government machine learning projects need to process petabytes of data per day, the company says, a flow of data that can be overwhelming. “Labelbox is an integrated solution for data science teams to not only create the training data but also to manage it in one place,” said CEO Manu Sharma in a statement. “It's the foundational infrastructure for customers to build their machine learning pipeline.” The platform can be used in the cloud or on-premises, allowing data science teams to work together across agencies or locations, the company claims. In April, the company announced it had won an Air Force Innovation Hub Network (AFWERX) Phase 1 Small Business Innovation Research contract to conduct feasibility studies on how their platform could integrate with ongoing Air Force efforts. Now, the company is partnering with Carahsoft Technology Corp. to make their platform more widely available to the federal government and the intelligence community. Carahsoft will be able to provide the platform to interested agencies through its NASA Solutions for enterprise-wide procurement contracts and reseller partners, the company announced May 20. https://www.c4isrnet.com/artificial-intelligence/2020/05/20/this-platform-will-help-train-ai-algorithms-for-the-military/

“I've heard some people talk about [going] back to a BCA [Budget Control Act] level of funding,” Gen. Murray says, referring to the steep cuts also known as sequestration. “And I've heard some people say that it's even going to be worse than BCA.” By SYDNEY J. FREEDBERG JR.on May 20, 2020 at 1:11 PM WASHINGTON: Over the last two years, the Army has cut or cancelled more than 240 programs to free billions for its 34 top priorities, from hypersonic missiles to new rifles. Some of those 34 may have to die as the economy and budget reel from the COVID-19 pandemic, . “I start off with what Secretary Esper and Secretary McCarthy have said consistently, across DoD: three to five real growth is what we need,” said Gen. Mike Murray, chief of Army Futures Command. “Given what's going on in this country over the last two or three months.... my personal expectation is we're not going to see three to five percent growth. We'll be lucky to see a flat line.” LRPF: Long-Range Precision Fires. NGCV: Next-Generation Combat Vehicle. FVL: Future Vertical Lift. AMD: Air & Missile Defense. SL: Soldier Lethality. SOURCE: US Army. (Click to expand) While the Army is still working on its long-term spending plan for 2022-2026, the future topline is very much in doubt. “I've heard some people talk about [going] back to a BCA [Budget Control Act] level of funding,” Murray told an online AOC conference yesterday, referring to the steep cuts also known as sequestration. “And I've heard some people say that it's even going to be worse than BCA.” “I do think budgets are going to get tighter,” Murray said. “I do think that decisions are going to get harder.” Across its actual and projected budgets for 2020 through 2025, despite a slight drop in its topline, the Army has moved $40 billion from lower-priority programs to the 34 “signature programs.” Murray's Futures Command runs 31 of the 34, grouped in six portfolios: long-range rocket and cannon artillery is No. 1, followed by new armored vehicles, Future Vertical Lift aircraft, an upgraded battlefield network, air & missile defense, and soldier gear. Meanwhile, three most technologically demanding programs – including hypersonics and high-energy lasers – are handled by the independent Rapid Capabilities & Critical Technology Office. “We're prioritizing what I call the 31 plus 3,” Murray said. “We have fully funded those priorities in the program at the expense of a lot of other things.” The XM1299 Extended Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA) howitzer in an earlier test shot last year. But Army leaders have already warned that the Big Six will need more funding as they move from concept to prototype to mass production. Even a flat budget topline will be tight — and COVID makes flat the best-scare scenario. When and if the budget shrinks, Murray warned, “I do think we're going to have to make some tough decisions.” Hypothetically, he said, the choice may come down to something like, “Is it 31 plus three, or is it 24 plus two?” Considering the agonies the Army went through in its multiple rounds of “night court” cuts to find money for the 34 priority programs in the first place, cancelling any of them will be painful – but not impossible. Yes, the Army needs capabilities from each of its six modernization portfolios to work together in what's called Multi-Domain Operations against a future foe like Russia or China. Long-range precision firepower blasts holes in enemy defenses for aircraft, armor and infantry to advance; then they hunt out enemies too well-entrenched or mobile for artillery to destroy. Meanwhile air and missile defense protects the entire force, and the network passes intelligence and targeting data. But each of the Big Six includes multiple programs, and the Army has never expected all 34 to succeed. That's a crucial difference from the service's last major modernization drive, the Future Combat Systems cancelled in 2009, which depended on each of its 20 component technologies working as planned. Army slide showing the elements of the (later canceled) Future Combat System “Is there room for failures? Yes,” Murray told reporters at an Association of the US Army conference last year. “This concept does not count on any specific piece of capability.” That doesn't make cuts painless or easy, however. “Our priorities are our priorities for a reason,” Murray said yesterday. The Army's current weapons, from missiles to tanks to helicopters, largely entered service in the Reagan era. They've been much upgraded since, but there's only so much add-on armor, souped-up horsepower, and advanced electronics a 40-year chassis can take. The Army says it needs new weapons to take it into the next 40 years. “The kids running around on armored vehicles today are riding... fundamentally the same vehicles I rode around in as a company commander, way back when,” Murray said. “My now five-year-old granddaughter [lives] up the road at Fort Hood, Texas... I've got eight grandchildren, and out of all of them, I have absolutely no doubt that she is my infantry company commander wearing an Airborne Ranger tab at some point in the future. So that makes it personal for me.” https://breakingdefense.com/2020/05/army-braces-for-post-covid-cuts-gen-murray

By: Valerie Insinna   15 hours ago WASHINGTON — General Electric, Rolls-Royce, and Pratt & Whitney will compete for the chance to outfit the U.S. Air Force's B-52 bomber fleet with new engines, with a contract award projected for June 2021. The Air Force released a request for proposals for the B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program to the three companies on May 19. The engine makers are already under contract to create digital prototypes, and they have until July 22 to submit final proposals, the solicitation stated. The Air Force operates 76 B-52s, each outfitted with eight TF33 engines. The service plans to order 608 new engines, plus spares and support, from the winner of the competition. The public version of the RFP obscures the estimated value of the program, which is projected to extend from 2021 to 2035. Pratt & Whitney, which manufactured the TF33 currently onboard the B-52, has stated it will propose the PW800. “Its industry-leading reliability, robust sustainment infrastructure, and significant fuel efficiency savings will greatly improve the legendary bomber and keep it flying for decades to come,” said Chris Johnson, Pratt & Whitney's executive director for mobility and diverse engine programs. "Our unique experience with the B-52, coupled with our expertise integrating commercial engines onto military applications, will deliver a low-risk, high-performance engine to power the Stratofortress fleet through 2050.” GE Aviation will put forward the CF34-10 and Passport engines, spokesman David Wilson said. “GE is the only company to have been involved in re-engining U.S. Air Force aircraft three times over,” he said. “Add in our deep experience powering six strategic bombers, entrenched support of air combat and the reverence we have for the role we play in protecting this country, and GE is the clear partner to ensure the B-52 is ready at all times for mission critical.” Rolls-Royce intends to offer its F130 engine, the company confirmed. “Rolls-Royce is excited to move to the proposal stage of the campaign and ready to demonstrate that the Rolls-Royce F130 engine is the perfect fit for the B-52,” Craig McVay, senior vice president for Rolls-Royce Defense, said in a statement. “The F130 is a highly reliable and proven engine which is already in commercial production. Our team is focused and energized, and eager to compete for the B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program and provide the best possible solution for the U.S. Air Force and the key missions of the B-52 weapon system.” The Air Force plans to operate the B-52 into the 2050s and sees new commercial engines as a way to reduce fuel burn and the time it takes to maintain the bomber. Last year, B-52 maintainers at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, told Defense News that modern engines would make it easier for crews to diagnose problems and make needed repairs. “I would like to know if I need to take that aircraft down out of the schedule and give it a new engine ahead of time,” said Lt. Col. Tiffany Arnold, 2nd Maintenance Squadron commander. “We could prioritize, we could understand the patterns of the engines in a way that we could maintain them better. And hopefully the new motor, whoever designs it, will have a shorter mean time between failure, and we can fly them longer.” https://www.defensenews.com/air/2020/05/20/the-air-force-launches-a-contest-to-replace-the-b-52s-engine/