Nouvelles

La Direction générale de l'armement (DGA), qui réalise un diagnostic précis des difficultés de la filière défense, prépare « un plan d'actions de suivi rapproché pour déterminer ce que nous pouvons faire pour assurer la soutenabilité des 1 400 entreprises considérées comme critiques pour la BITD (Base industrielle et technologique de défense) », a expliqué le Délégué général pour l'armement (DGA) Joël Barre lors de son audition fin avril à l'Assemblée nationale. La hausse budgétaire de 1,7 milliard d'euros prévue par la loi de programmation militaire (LPM) pour 2021 « soutiendra l'activité économique et la BITD », a ainsi assuré Joël Barre. La Tribune du 18 mai 2020

Dans le contexte de la crise COVID-19 et au-delà, nous prévoyons que plusieurs programmes d'acquisition sur le marché américain de la défense et sécurité seront lancés ou accélérés afin de stimuler l'économie. Plusieurs de ces opportunités seront accessibles aux entreprises de défense et de sécurité du Québec. Aéro Montréal aimerait solliciter votre intérêt pour cette veille d'opportunité du marché américain qui serait réalisée selon des critères de sélection des opportunités spécifiques à votre organisation. Les résultats de la veille seront communiqués en privé à votre organisation via la plateforme B2B SDQuebec. Un maximum de quinze entreprises seront sélectionnées parmi le groupe ayant manifesté leur intérêt. Votre participation à ce programme de trois mois est gratuite. Le programme sera évalué après trois mois. Si vous êtes intéressé, veuillez confirmer votre intérêt en envoyant un e-mail à: Sylvain Lefrançois sylvain.lefrancois@aeromontreal.ca avant le 29 mai 2020.

By: Robert DuPree For the past few months, the U.S. federal government has been, quite understandably, totally focused on addressing the enormous health care and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. These efforts will necessarily continue to be front and center in the weeks and even months ahead, no matter how rapidly the curve flattens or declines, as different sectors and regions reopen. But to move the country forward, Congress must prepare to do its regular business for the year, which largely means tackling appropriations bills. Congressional staff have reportedly been doing the prep work to get spending bills ready for whenever the House and Senate can safely convene to work on them (or to do much of this work remotely). The American people — including federal contractors large and small, and our employees — are relying on Congress to check its partisan impulses and figure out how to do two things at once in the coming months: Continue to combat the COVID-19 crisis, and develop fiscal 2021 funding bills for all federal departments and agencies to meet our nation's needs. Unfortunately, there are some who are already taking a simplistic view, saying Congress will be so busy dealing with the pandemic that it will have to just give up and pass a continuing resolution to fund the government beyond the election into next year or even for a full year. On the contrary, the pandemic is exactly why Congress should be doing its work and completing updated appropriations bills on time. First of all, in these extraordinary times, the country doesn't need appropriations bills which merely extend the decisions made on spending last December, when Congress finally completed action (over two months late) on FY20 appropriations bills. The COVID-19 pandemic was just a blip on the horizon at that time. For FY21, the country needs updated spending legislation that more accurately reflects the greatly changed world we now face. Moreover, departments and agencies also need the flexibility to enter into new contracts to meet new needs, which is generally prohibited unless expressly provided under a continuing resolution. Further, Congress and the administration must come to grips with the elephant in the room — the strict annual spending caps imposed by the Budget Control Act of 2011, as amended. To mix metaphors, this law is no longer just an elephant, it's an emperor who has no clothes. Congress has modified the BCA's statutory spending caps a number of times over the past decade (thus, the above caveat “as amended”). Now we're about to face the final year of the law's spending caps, and what do we find? The caps are a joke. The caps were meant to limit discretionary spending each year, but Congress has repeatedly found ways around them. This has usually been done in one of two ways. The first is by including some amount of normal baseline defense spending under the category of overseas contingency operations, or OCO, which is “wartime” funding; this occurs even when unrelated to America's overseas/wartime military efforts. OCO spending is exempt from the BCA caps, so funding part of the base Defense Department budget this way enables the law's defense-spending cap to be technically met while also understating the Pentagon's non-wartime expenditures. The second way is by designating certain spending as “emergency” expenditures. Yes, these are almost always for valid, unforeseen emergencies, but it is still spending that would otherwise exceed the discretionary caps. Only Congress can wave a wand and say: “No, it doesn't exceed the cap — it's for an emergency.” To be honest, the caps painted an unrealistic picture of efforts to control federal spending anyway. By only being applied to discretionary spending, exempting massive entitlement expenditures and interest on the debt, the caps presented a partial picture of true federal-spending restraint to begin with. And now the COVID-19 crisis has resulted in multiple legislative packages being enacted, which the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates could add over $2.7 trillion to the current year's deficit. But because they are loans or designated as “emergency” spending, they don't violate the caps. They just add to the deficit. In reality, true federal spending has soared far past the stable level of spending that the caps were purported to achieve when the BCA was first enacted. Yet, the caps are still in place for next year, which will impact the congressional appropriations process by either preventing the spending needed to address current needs, or leading to further contortionist efforts by legislators to circumvent the caps. So let's quit pretending. Congress and the administration should agree to repeal the final year of the caps as part of the next COVID-19 legislative package so appropriators can be upfront about the spending needed without having to hide so much of that spending behind the “emergency spending” loophole. Be transparent, and admit the country is, like during World War II, spending a whole lot more than anticipated to meet the crisis. And most of all, get the job done by acting in a bipartisan fashion to pass appropriations bills by Oct. 1, 2020, that accurately reflect our real needs and expenditures. Admittedly, that may not be easy to do in an election year, but the nation and the federal contracting community are depending on Congress to be able to manage the COVID-19 crisis response, while simultaneously conducting its regular business. Robert DuPree is manager of government affairs at Telos Corporation. He focuses on political developments in Congress and the executive branch, including the federal budget, appropriations process, national defense and cybersecurity. He previously served as legislative director for a senior member of the U.S. House of Representatives. https://www.defensenews.com/opinion/commentary/2020/05/13/a-delicate-balancing-act-the-us-government-must-juggle-a-pandemic-and-the-fy21-budget/

NAVY The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, is awarded a $1,971,754,089 firm-fixed-price contract to provide non-recurring engineering associated with the Stand-off Land Attack Missile – Expanded Response (SLAM ER) obsolescence redesign effort as well as the production and delivery of 650 SLAM ER missiles in support of the government of Saudi Arabia. Work will be performed at St. Louis, Missouri (47%); Indianapolis, Indiana (37%); Pontiac, Michigan (9%); Melbourne, Florida (3%); Middletown, Connecticut (2%); and Black Mountain, North Carolina (2%). Work is expected to be complete by December 2028. Foreign Military Sales funds in the amount of $1,971,754,089 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-4. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00019-20-C-0003). The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, is awarded a $656,981,421 modification (P00014) to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-19-C-0016). This modification procures and delivers 467 Harpoon full rate production Lot 91 Block II missiles and support equipment for various Foreign Military Sales customers. Work will be performed at St. Louis, Missouri (30%); McKinney, Texas (28%); Toledo, Ohio (6%); Grove, Oklahoma (5%); Pontiac, Michigan (4%); Putnam, Connecticut (2%); Galena, Kansas (2%); Burnley, United Kingdom (2%); Lititz, Pennsylvania (1%); Minneapolis, Minnesota (1%); and various locations within the continental U.S. (19%). This modification procures four Block II missiles and support equipment for the government of Brazil, eight Block II missiles and support equipment for the government of Thailand, 53 Block II missiles and support equipment for the government of Qatar, 402 Block II missiles and support equipment for the government of Saudi Arabia, and support equipment for the governments of Japan, the Netherlands, India and Korea. Work is expected to be complete by December 2026. Foreign Military Sales funds in the amount of $656,981,421 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Strategic Airborne Operations JV LLC,* Newport News, Virginia, is awarded a $146,834,175 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract acquires the High Endurance Electronic Warfare Jet (HEEWJ) capability. Work will be performed in Cherry Point, North Carolina (5%); and various locations within and outside the continental U.S. (95%) to be determined on individual orders. The HEEWJ capability is an offensive air support for training that provides regionally based, geographically distributed aviation with a variety of airborne threat simulation capabilities to train shipboard and aircraft weapon systems operators and aircrew to counter enemy electronic warfare and electronic attack operations in today's electronic combat environment in support of Department of the Navy, other Department of Defense (DOD) agencies, non-DOD government agencies and Foreign Military Sales customers. Work is expected to be completed in May 2024. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposal, and two offers were received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00421-20-D-0108). Q.E.D. Systems Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia, is awarded a $16,205,606 modification to previously awarded contract N00024-15-C-4400 for specification development and execution/procurement support services in support of Chief of Naval Operations availabilities, continuous maintenance availabilities (CMAVs), inactivation CMAVs, sustainment availabilities, phased modernization availabilities, re-commissioning availabilities, continuous maintenance and emergent maintenance window of opportunity for Navy surface combatant ship classes (CG 47/DDG 51). Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia (53%); San Diego, California (36%); and Everett, Washington (11%). Work is expected to be complete by October 2020. No funding will be obligated at time of award. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. BAE Systems, Information and Electronic Systems Integration Inc., Greenlawn, New York, is awarded a $14,465,881 modification (P00010) to previously awarded, firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract N00019-17-D-0006. This modification adds the requirement to procure 46 AN/UPX-41(C) digital interrogators and 10 Mode 5 change kits for the Navy, Coast Guard, the government of Japan and various countries under the Foreign Military Sales program. Work will be performed in Greenlawn, New York (80%); Austin, Texas (10%); and Manassas, Virginia (10%), and is expected to be complete by May 2023. No funds are being obligated at time of award; funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. CACI Enterprise Solutions Inc., Chantilly, Virginia, is awarded a $13,904,377 cost-plus-fixed-fee task order modification in the four option years of the integrated business systems support services contract (N32205-19-F-1044 and P00008). Information technology services in this contract assist Military Sealift Command's business systems and ashore operations branch to manage, operate and maintain the command's business systems, as well as interfaces with the Navy Enterprise Defense Business Systems. Work under this modification will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia, and is expected to be complete by December 2023. This modification includes the remaining portion (eight months) of Option Year One as well as three 12-month options. If exercised, the cumulative value of this modification will be $13,598,409. The task order was competitively procured with proposals and four offers were received. The Naval Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., a Lockheed Martin Co., Stratford, Connecticut, is awarded an $8,954,062 modification (P00091) to previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract N00019-14-C-0050. This modification provides support for the integration and transition of Windows 10 and Server 16 into various VH-92A training devices. Work will be performed in Quantico, Virginia, and is expected to be complete by October 2022. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $4,667,720 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. ARMY Northrop Grumman, McLean, Virginia, was awarded a $176,471,668 modification (P00056) to contract W58RGZ-17-C-0014 to support Army special electronic mission aircraft fixed-wing life cycle services. Work will be performed in McLean, Virginia, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 31, 2020. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $176,471,668 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity. DynCorp International LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded a $167,556,981 modification (P00057) to contract W58RGZ-17-C-0011 for support services for government-owned fixed-wing fleets performing transport aircraft missions. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas, with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $167,556,981 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity. Kiewit Infrastructure South Co., Sunrise, Florida, was awarded a $7,759,000 firm-fixed-price contract for Everglades restoration. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Miami-Dade, Florida, with an estimated completion date of Nov. 16, 2021. Fiscal 2020 civil construction funds in the amount of $7,759,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity (W912EP-20-C-0004). Michels Corp., Brownsville, Wisconsin, was awarded a $7,066,242 firm-fixed-price contract to repair levee systems in the Missouri River Basin. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work will be performed in Pender, Nebraska, with an estimated completion date of Oct. 30, 2020. Fiscal 2020 other procurement (Army) funds in the amount of $7,066,242 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha, Nebraska, is the contracting activity (W9128F-20-C-0026). Qualx Corp., Springfield, Virginia,* was awarded a $7,003,493 modification (P00010) to contract W91QF0-18-F-0047 for digitization of archival materials for the Army Heritage and Education Center. Work will be performed in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 25, 2021. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $7,003,493 were obligated at the time of the award. Mission and Installation Contracting Command, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity. DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY NuStar Terminal Partner TX L.P., San Antonio, Texas, has been awarded a maximum $22,392,616 firm-fixed-price contract for contractor-owned, contract-operated services to receive, store and issue U.S. government-owned jet propellant thermally stable. This was a competitive acquisition with one response received. This is a four-year base contract with one five-year option period with a possible six-month extension. Location of performance is Texas, with a June 30, 2024, performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2024 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia (SPE603-20-C-5006). AIR FORCE CAE USA Inc., Tampa, Florida, has been awarded a $10,544,331 firm-fixed-price modification (P00158) to contract FA8223-10-C-0013 for support of the KC-135 Aircrew Training System. This modification provides for collective bargaining agreement wage adjustments resulting from Fair Labor Standards Act and Service Contract Act – Price Adjustment, and brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $526,529,911. Work will be performed in Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma; Grissom Air Reserve Base, Indiana; MacDill AFB, Florida; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base, Ohio; Scott AFB, Illinois; Fairchild AFB, Washington; Milwaukee Air National Guard Base, Wisconsin; March AFB, California; and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. Work is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2020. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $10,544,331 are being obligated at the time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is the contracting activity. Honeywell International Inc., Phoenix, Arizona, has been award a $7,777,093 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to research, develop, integrate, validate and demonstrate Consistent Logical Automated Reasoning for Integrated System Software Assurance (CLARISSA) for development and assessment of assurance cases. This contract provides for the research and development of technology to automate generation of assurance cases from curated evidence. Work will be performed in Phoenix, Arizona, and is expected to be completed by March 12, 2024. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and two offers were received. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $380,564 are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Research Laboratory, Rome, New York, is the contracting activity (FA8750-20-C-0512). (Awarded March 19, 2020) *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2185990/source/GovDelivery/

While the pandemic continues, Pentagon metrics show production on Army programs is returning to normal, the Army's acquisition chief told Breaking Defense. By SYDNEY J. FREEDBERG JR.on May 14, 2020 at 4:01 AM WASHINGTON: The number of defense contractors reopening after COVID-19 quarantines now exceeds the number of new shutdowns, the Army's senior acquisition official said in an interview. That is happening, Bruce Jette told me, because industry is learning and adapting. New health precautions, from disinfecting tools between shifts to social distancing on the factory floor, should contain further outbreaks of COVID-19 and keep Army programs on track, he said – even if there's a new upsurge in infections nationwide. According to daily updates from Defense Contract Management Agency, Jette said, “the openings are outweighing the number of closings, and total number of closings is down significantly, so things are improving quite a bit.” Of 10,509 facilities large and small that DCMA is tracking, 248 had closed at some point — but only 40 are still closed. The number of reopenings has exceeded the number of new closings since April 20. But, I asked, what if there's another spike, whether from states relaxing shutdown orders or a change in weather come the fall? Because of the new precautions now in place, Jette told me, “I would say that in the long run, if we had some degree of a resurgence, I don't think it would be as marked as the first one.” Learning To Cope There was an initial wave of shutdowns in the first days of the pandemic, Jette said, because a single case of COVID-19 might require putting the entire workforce at a facility into quarantine, particularly at smaller companies. That wasn't a panicked reaction, but a reasonable precaution. Workers had been mingling freely in close quarters, most coronavirus carriers were asymptomatic, and virtually no reliable tests were available. A company facing a single case had no way of knowing who else might already be infected. But that's no longer true, Jette went on. Private companies and government agencies alike have now broken up large groups of workers into smaller ones, creating “bubbles” in which any contagion can be contained. “For example, in the past, one shift came in and started using the tools from the other shift,” Jette said, as one example. “Now, between shifts, a cleaning team comes in and disinfects all the tools.” Wiping down shared equipment, surfaces, and spaces is just one part of a multi-layered defense against contagion. Workers on the same shift who once all came in and out together, chatting in close quarters and shaking hands, may now arrive and leave on staggered schedules so they can stay six feet apart at all times. Workflows have been changed and workstations physically moved, where possible, to permit social distancing on the factory floor. Employees who must work side-by-side wear masks and gloves. Those precautions reduce the chance of someone catching the coronavirus in the first place – and just as important, they make it harder for one infected employee to spread the disease, especially to colleagues outside their “bubble.” So when somebody does get sick, you only need to quarantine their particular team, not shut down the whole factory. “If somebody in the bubble comes down [with COVID],” he said, “ only that bubble ends up isolated.” Even Pentagon offices like Jette's own are getting cleaned more frequently and more thoroughly, he told me, even when no one working in them has actually gotten sick. “[Even when] nobody has become infected in a particular office,” he told me, “we are having a cleaning team go through and do one office here, one office there, and just do a thorough wipe-down to make sure that there's nothing that got into that office undetected.” These precautions aren't excessively onerous, disruptive, or costly, Jette said. They're just things nobody had thought about doing before – but now they might be useful even after the pandemic is under control. “I don't see it being a significant burden on the system; it was just something we didn't see was an issue before,” he said, “[but] I may well help us have fewer flus and colds if we just continue the same practice.” Dealing With Disruption Industry may be adapting well, but a global pandemic is still extraordinarily disruptive. Like the rest of the Defense Department, the Army is closely tracking not only its prime contractors but the smaller subcontractors and sub-sub-contractors, which are much more fragile. To date, the Army has pumped $167.5 million into small businesses to help them ride out COVID disruptions. “There have been some cost implications to the government,” Jette said, “but mostly with respect to the CARES Act,” which ensures workers at facilities closed by COVID are paid instead of let go. The main way the Army has helped out companies is by making payments they already had coming, just ahead of schedule. For example, Jette said, the service has started writing checks to contractors every 15 days instead of the normal 30. It's also increasing progress payments, normally limited to 80 percent of total contract value (85 percent for small business) to 90 percent (95 for small business). “Cash flow was one of those things we concerned ourselves with,” Jette said. “Congress gave us flexibilities there. There were things passed down from OMB in the White House that gave us some flexibility as well.” To help figure out which subcontractors might be in trouble, the Army's prime contractors have opened their books and shared information with the service, far beyond anything they were contractually obligated to do, Jette said. Since the early days of the pandemic, even before shutdowns began, he's been getting a daily report on the health of subcontractors, which now routinely runs over 60 pages. “The primes ... were all very cooperative in trying to give us visibility down to the lowest level supplier,” Jette said. “It's really been helpful for us, because it helps us get a better gauge on what we have to do if something goes awry. In some cases when a subcontractor shuts down, the primes can find an alternative supplier. But despite the huge size of the defense industrial base, Jette said, there are single points of failure where only one company that's been formally qualified to build a certain part or perform a certain industrial process. It takes time to get a back-up supplier up to speed – sometimes longer than the 16.8 days that, on average, it takes a quarantined facility to reopen. That has resulted in delays, Jette acknowledges, but, so far, Army programs are finding ways to make up the time elsewhere in their schedules and still deliver new weapons to the troops on time – what's called First Unit Equipped, or FUE. “Delivery schedules on some products have slipped a little bit right...but at this point, none of them has assuredly slipped the FUE,” Jette told me. “As of right now, the vast majority of challenges that we've had with COVID, we've been able to accommodate within the current contracts with minor changes.” But the factories aren't the only part of the system that has to function. “The most significant thing isn't production,” Jette said. “It's trying to get all the testing done to make sure that all the systems work.” While some testing takes place in labs, what's most complex is operational testing, which puts a new technology in the hands of soldiers in the field to see how it works in for a real unit, interacting with all the rest of that unit's gear, conducting a realistic mission in realistic conditions. That requires bringing together not only the soldiers but technical specialists from the manufacturers, Army program offices, and Army testing organizations across the country. “Those are not simple to just change or move around, [and] that's part of what we've struggled with,” Jette said. “In some cases, we have suppliers who provide a capability and it's ready to be tested and we just don't have the facilities or the units available yet for full testing.” Officials need adequate test data before they can approve a program to start production – what's known as a Milestone C decision. But, Jette said, if you have to delay that formal approval, you can compensate by getting ready to jump-start manufacturing as soon as you have the go-ahead. The contractor can even start production ahead of Milestone C at its own risk, if it's confident that testing will not find any significant problems. At some point, it comes down to what kind of risk you're willing to take. If you rev up your manufacturing base before testing is complete, but then testing discovers a problem you have to fix, you may have to make expensive, time-consuming changes to your design, to your production process, or even to items already built. But if you wait for all the testing to get done, no matter how long it takes, you may not get the kit to troops on schedule. Unprecedented Stresses It's a difficult and stressful time; Jette can't recall anything like it in his 30 years in the defense sector. “At least based on my experience which goes back to the early '90s,” he told me, “you may have had strains on a particular vendor, [but] this is fundamentally a nationwide challenge that covers all of our programs.” “I can't think of any time where we had such a longstanding challenge to keeping programs fully operational,” he said. “Probably the closest thing,” he said, is when Congress can't pass defense funding bills on time and passes a stopgap Continuing Resolution. A CR essentially puts spending on autopilot at last year's levels with no ability to start new programs, ramp up existing ones, or cancel failing ones. Like the pandemic, a CR can impact every function of the Defense Department, or even the entire federal government, for weeks or months on end. But funding problems don't threaten the health and safety of every worker the way the pandemic does. “In this case, we have to consider the financial underpinnings, but we also have to consider the impact to the people themselves.” “Our most valuable resources are people,” Jette said. “If I don't have good people, I'm not getting good work done. I want to make sure those people want to work here, and a big piece of that is giving them a safe and healthy environment.” https://breakingdefense.com/2020/05/contractors-recovering-from-covid-shutdowns-bruce-jette/

HASSAN MEDDAH INTERNATIONAL , ALLEMAGNE , AÉRONAUTIQUE , SPATIAL , DÉFENSE PUBLIÉ LE 13/05/2020 À 18H43 Les présidents du GIFAS et de son équivalent allemand le BDLI appellent de façon urgente à un plan de relance européen ambitieux et à accélérer les investissements dans le domaine de la défense et de l'espace. Face à la crise du coronavirus qui frappe lourdement le secteur aéronautique, industriels allemands et français ont décidé d'agir en concert. Le GIFAS (Groupement des industries françaises aéronautiques et spatiales) et son homologue allemand (german aerospace industries association) ont tenu en commun ce 13 mai le bureau de leur conseil d'administration par vidéoconférence. Dans la foulée, les deux présidents respectifs Eric Trapper - par ailleurs PDG de Dassault Aviation - et Dirk Hoke, président du BDLI et CEO d'Airbus Defence & Space ont profité d'une conférence de presse pour lancer un appel commun à un plan de relance européen ambitieux. Les industriels aéronautiques des deux pays auraient dû se voir en chair et en os à cette date... si le salon aéronautique de Berlin (Allemagne) n'avait pas été annulé à cause de la pandémie mondiale. "Ensemble, nous étions forts avant la crise et nous partageons l'idée qu'il faudra que nous soyons forts après la crise pour faire face à la concurrence mondiale", a souligné Eric Trappier, le patron de Dassault Aviation. Accélérer le programme d'avion de combat du futur Selon les deux groupements, les secteurs de la défense et de l'espace peuvent permettre d'amortir le trou d'air que traverse le secteur aéronautique. Ils appellent les deux gouvernements à renforcer leurs budgets de défense afin de conserver les capacités dans ce domaine stratégique. "Ce serait une grave erreur de réduire les dépenses du secteur de la défense. C'est un facteur de stabilité qui ne doit pas être sous-estimé", a précisé Dirk Hoke. Le GIFAS et le BDLI misent sur l'accélération des programmes en coopération. La France et l'Allemagne, rejointes par l'Espagne, ont lancé le programme SCAF (système de combat aérien du futur). Ce programme, à l'horizon 2040, permettra le remplacement des Rafale français et des Eurofighter allemands. "Ce programme est un défi et nous sommes convaincus qu'il faut le renforcer et ne pas prendre de retard. Les industriels ont commencé à travailler. Nous avons besoin d'une vision à long terme et de contrats pour atteindre la première échéance d'un démonstrateur en 2026", a exhorté Eric Trappier. Des deux côtés de la frontière, l'accélération de ce programme pourrait apporter une bouffée d'oxygène à tous les acteurs qui y participent : avionneurs, fabricants de moteurs, électroniciens et leurs sous-traitants. Cela permet également de faire d'une pierre deux coups, puisque la plupart des entreprises de l'aéronautique travaillent également pour le secteur de la défense. La manne du programme spatial européen Dirk Hoke a également évoqué l'importance du secteur spatial comme amortisseur à cette crise. Il a rappelé que l'agence spatiale européenne (ESA) avait approuvé en fin d'année dernière le lancement de nombreux programmes. En novembre 2019, lors de la réunion des ministres européens en charge du secteur spatial à Séville, l'ESA avait en effet dégagé un budget de 14,4 milliards d'euros pour les cinq prochaines années. La France et l'Allemagne étant les principales contributrices avec respectivement 3,3 milliards d'euros et 2,7 milliards. Les deux partenaires ont également sollicité l'aide de l'Europe. Ils craignent toutefois que le budget du fonds européen de défense soit la victime des ajustements budgétaires en cours de négociation. A l'origine, il devait atteindre 13 milliards d'euros sur la période 2021-2027. "Ce serait un mauvais signe si ce budget était coupé pour la construction et l'autonomie stratégique de l'Europe", a averti le patron du GIFAS. https://www.usinenouvelle.com/article/pourquoi-les-industriels-europeens-de-l-aeronautique-misent-sur-les-secteurs-de-la-defense-et-l-espace.N964041

BRUSSELS — The European Union's top diplomat is warning member countries not to slash defense spending as their economies buckle under pressure from the coronavirus, as the disease could spark security challenges. After chairing a video conference of defense ministers on Tuesday, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said it was clear the pandemic is very likely to deteriorate the security environment in the years ahead. Borrell said as the crisis also hits the economy, it's important to secure the necessary funding for security and defense. Talks between the 27 EU member countries over their next long-term budget have been blocked for more than a year, well before the coronavirus hit Europe. Cuts to defense funds in that spending package were already under consideration. Given the impact of the disease, that seems even more likely now. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/05/12/eus-top-diplomat-warns-against-defense-cuts/

ARMY Raytheon/Lockheed Martin Javelin JV, Tucson, Arizona, was awarded a $121,764,089 modification (P00018) to contract W31P4Q-19-C-0076 for the Javelin weapon system. Work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 31, 2023. Fiscal 2019 and 2020 missile procurement (Army) funds in the amount of $121,764,089 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity. Construcciones Jose Carro SE, Coto Laurel, Puerto Rico, was awarded a $9,469,023 firm-fixed-price contract to construct channel scour protection and toe key revetment. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Dorado, Puerto Rico, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 28, 2021. Fiscal 2020 civil construction funds in the amount of $9,469,023 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity (W912EP-20-C-0005). NAVY Airborne Tactical Advantage Co. LLC, Newport News, Virginia, is awarded a $34,553,773 modification (P00023) to previously awarded firm-fixed-price, cost-reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract N00019-15-D-0026. This modification extends the period of performance for contractor-owned and operated Type III high subsonic and Type IV supersonic aircraft. Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia (44%); Point Mugu, California (37%); and various locations outside the continental U.S. (19%). Work will provide airborne threat simulation capabilities and updates to the government furnished property list in support of the Contracted Air Services Program. Work is expected to be complete by November 2020. Funds will be obligated on individual delivery orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Lockheed Martin Co., Stratford, Connecticut, is awarded a $29,940,372 modification (P00039) to previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee, fixed-price-incentive-firm-target and firm-fixed-price contract N00019-16-C-0048. This modification provides for rate tooling, physical configuration audits, associated systems engineering and program management in support of CH-53K aircraft production. Work will be performed in Stratford, Connecticut (28.7%); Salt Lake City, Utah (21.88%); Macomb, Michigan (11.01%); Wichita, Kansas (6.04%); Redmond, Washington (5.89%); Rome, New York (5.16%); North Haven, Connecticut (4.42%); Quebec, Connecticut (3.4%); Shelby Township, Michigan (3.36%); Newington, Connecticut (2.07%); Fort Plain, New York (1.44%); Minden, Nebraska (1.2%); Lenexa, Kansas (1.1%); various locations within the continental U.S. (3.71%); and various location outside the continental U.S. (0.62%). Work is expected to be complete by December 2023. Fiscal 2019 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds for $29,940,372 will be obligated at the time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. United Technologies Corp., Pratt and Whitney Engines, East Hartford, Connecticut, is awarded a $10,648,976 modification (P00022) to previously awarded fixed-price-incentive-firm contract N00019-17-C-0020. This modification procures one low rate initial production Lot 11 afloat spares package kit for the Marine Corps in support of the F-35 Lightning II combat aircraft program. Work will be performed in East Hartford, Connecticut (20%); Indianapolis, Indiana (17%); Windsor Lock, Connecticut (16%); North Berwick, Maine (14%); Midland, Georgia (7%); Middleton, Connecticut (7%); Rockford, Illinois (7%); Phoenix, Arizona (6%); Bristol, United Kingdom (5%); and Santa Isabel, Israel (1%). Work is expected to be complete by September 2021. Fiscal 2020 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds for $10,648,976 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Serco Inc., Herndon, Virginia, has been awarded a maximum $29,002,941 modification (P00021) exercising the third one-year option period of a one-year base contract (SP3300-17-C-5003) with four one-year option periods for chemical management services. This is a firm-fixed-price with cost-reimbursement and cost-plus-fixed-fee contract. Locations of performance are Virginia, North Carolina, Florida and California, with a May 15, 2021, performance completion date. Using customer is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is Defense Logistics Agency Distribution, New Cumberland, Pennsylvania. AIR FORCE The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, has been awarded a $25,439,155 firm-fixed-price delivery order to contract FA8621-15-D-6266 to provide C-17 training devices and spares for the NATO Airlift Management Program located at Papa Air Base, Hungary. The training system will consist of one C-17 Weapon System Trainer (composed of an air vehicle station with an instructor operator station (IOS) and a loadmaster station with an IOS, a learning center complete with computer-based training systems, core integrated processor task trainer, courseware and initial spares to support these items for two years. Work will be performed at Papa AB, Hungary, and is expected to be completed June 1, 2022. This award is a sole-source acquisition. Foreign Military Sales funds to NATO in the full amount will be obligated at the time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity. (Awarded May 8, 2020) DEFENSE HEALTH AGENCY American Systems, Chantilly, Virginia, was awarded a cost-plus-fixed-fee task order with a value of $11,636,887. HT0038-20-F-0006 provides transformation planning of the Theater Medical Information Program-Joint into a modular and portable software suite with a unified architecture. This task order has a period of performance from May 13, 2020, to Sept. 30, 2020. The estimated completion date is Sept. 30, 2020. Work will primarily occur in Chantilly, Virginia. This award will be funded by fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds; and research and development funds. This task order is a Small Business Innovation Research Phase III award. The contracting activity is the Defense Health Agency, Falls Church, Virginia. DEFENSE COUNTERINTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY AGENCY Verato Inc., McLean, Virginia, was awarded a firm-fixed-price delivery order (HS0021-20-F-0010) under HS0021-19-A-0005, for an estimated $8,735,669 for the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA). The delivery order provides for tri-merge credit reports and credit monitoring in support of the background investigation process. Work will be performed in McLean, Virginia. This delivery order is funded with fiscal 2020 DCSA working capital funds, with $2,183,917 obligated at time of award. The anticipated delivery period is from May 17, 2020, through May 16, 2021. DCSA Acquisition and Contracting, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity. *Small business