3 Options in Navy’s New Shipbuilding Plan
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How will the US Navy build up its fleet? The service has provided three options on how it can be done in this year’s update, reports Navy Times. Only one of those proposals lays out a pathway to 355 ships, which has been the Navy’s goal since 2016. One plan reaches 316 ships by 2052, and another would add nine more ships during that same time. The options reflect the difficulty of predicting budgets, technological advances, and Chinese and Russian moves, said VADM Scott Conn, deputy chief of naval operations for warfighting requirements and capabilities, reports Defense One.
NavSec Carlos Del Toro said Friday that unit commanders will no longer have investigative authority over sexual harassment allegations, reports Military.com. The complaints must go to the next higher-level commander, reads the secretary’s statement.
The Defense Department has decided to withdraw its appeals of a Hawaii order requiring that it remove fuel from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility that leaked petroleum into the Navy’s water system at Pearl Harbor last year, reports Navy Times.
Representatives from several nations are expected to meet with DefSec Lloyd Austin today, April 26, in Germany to discuss sending further aid to Ukraine, reports Air Force Magazine.
DefSec Austin and SecState Antony Blinken traveled to the Ukranian capital of Kyiv over the weekend to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, reports CNN. The US officials pledged US support in the war with Russia and said that US diplomats would be returning to Ukraine. The trip to Ukraine was the highest-level visit yet from President Joe Biden’s administration, reports UPI.
Bridget Brink, now serving as the US ambassador to Slovakia, is President Biden’s choice to be the ambassador to Ukraine, reports The Hill.
Austin is pressing hard on Ukraine — but quietly, reports The Washington Post. In a profile based on interviews with more than a dozen current and former government officials, it appears Austin is “content with a backstage role” in countering the Russian invasion.
DoD has put out the call for new ideas to arm Ukraine, reports Defense News. The move is a sign of the challenge of boosting arms production in response to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. The sam.gov notice asks for input from the defense industry.
Some Capitol Hill lawmakers want to see the US establish field hospitals near Ukraine’s border and ramp up medical support for Ukrainians, reports The Associated Press. “We’re going to have to really step up in a really big way to relieve the combat wounded and civilian casualties that will be coming in the weeks and months ahead,” said Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO).
Four suicides among sailors on the USS George Washington in the past year are prompting concerns about mental health issues in the military, reports The Washington Post. Three of those suicides occurred in the past month. Mental health experts question whether underlying issues in the military’s culture might be contributing to the problem.
Boeing and Bell are in the running for Poland’s forthcoming purchase of new combat helicopters, reports Defense News. Boeing is offering the AH-64 Apache, while Bell is pitching its AH-1Z Viper.
The US Air Force and Space Force said there would be reenlistment bonuses available for dozens of job fields, reports Military.com. In the Air Force, those fields range from certain language analysts to dental hygienists and military dog handlers. Some cyber positions in the Space Force are eligible.
Howard University has joined the University Partnership Program of the Space Force, reports The Dig. With a focus on workforce development, the program aims to provide a consistent pipeline of talent through internship, mentorship, scholarship, and fellowship.
Deputy DefSec Kathleen Hicks directed the military to prioritize energy demand reduction in all new system acquisitions and upgrades of its current systems, reports Military.com. The Defense Department wants to see reduced energy consumption across all military branches. DoD is also asking Congress to fund several programs that would help the agency reduce its impact on climate change, according to an Earth Day statement from Hicks.
A FedEx delivery on Earth Day ended up in the Guinness Book of World Records, reports WTOP News. A delivery to a MOM’s Organic Market store in Washington, DC, made the 260-mile trip from New York City on a single charge, a record for the longest distance driven by an electric vehicle van on one charge. The van, a BrightDrop Zevo 600, was built by a subsidiary of General Motors.
Maryland’s oyster harvest hit a 35-year high, reports Bay Journal. Preliminary data from the state’s Department of Natural Resources could be a sign that the Chesapeake Bay bivalve might finally be recovering from the MSX and dermo diseases that began ravaging them in the 1980s.
The US State Department will hire at least 50 data scientists over the next year, reports Federal News Network, to meet an increasing demand for data analytics at the agency. It is seeking to hire at the GS-13 and GS-14 levels. Some prospective hires may require a secret security clearance or higher.
Maryland’s plans build to a new Chesapeake Bay bridge near the existing two spans that cross between Annapolis and Kent Island have been approved by the Federal Highway Administration, reports Bay Journal. The latest move concludes the first phase in the two-phase environmental study required for large projects under the National Environmental Policy Act.
Now that Maryland’s redistricting challenges have been settled, election officials are working overtime to get ready for the fast-approaching primary on July 19, reports Maryland Matters. Details, as well as deadlines for election offices to receive mail-in ballot requests, are available on the Maryland State Board of Elections website.
Contracts:
Dayton T. Brown Inc., Bohemia, New York, is awarded a $14,921,893 cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost reimbursable contract. This contract provides for continued development of mobile mission system variants, to include roll out for P-8 modernization, prototyping and modification for rapid mission specific system reconfiguration, test and operational deployment, maintenance, repair, refurbishment, logistics support, and procurement of associated materials for sustainment of units. Work will be performed in Hollywood, Maryland (95%); and Bohemia, New York (5%), and is expected to be completed in April 2023. Fiscal 2022 research, development, test, and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,288,881 will be obligated at the time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to 10 US Code 2304(c)(1). The Naval Air Warfare Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N0042122C0022).
Solipsys Corp., Fulton, Maryland, is awarded an $18,490,294 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N6523622D8015) with provisions for firm-fixed-price and cost-plus-fixed-fee task/delivery orders. The contract is for delivery of software products and services published by Solipsys Corp., as well as software updates/maintenance, software engineering/ testing services, and cybersecurity support. The contract includes a single, five-year ordering period and a two-year optional ordering period. The option period, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to an estimated $27,871,555. Fiscal 2022 working capital (Navy) funds in the amount of $25,000 will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Work will be performed in Fulton, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by April 2028. If the optional ordering period is exercised, work could continue until April 2030. The contract was procured using other than full and open competition in accordance with 10 US Code § 2304(c)(1) and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1 — only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. Naval Information Warfare Center Atlantic, Charleston, South Carolina, is the contracting activity.
United Concordia Companies Inc., Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, is awarded a sole source $323,100,790 contract extension to the TRICARE Dental Program (TDP) contract (HT9402-16-D-0001). TDP offers worldwide coverage for dental services to all eligible family members of uniformed services, and to members of the Selected Reserve and Individual Ready Reserve who are not on orders, and their eligible family members. The TDP geographic area of coverage for the continental US includes the 50 states; Washington, DC; Puerto Rico; Guam; and the US Virgin Islands. Outside the continental US, the service area includes all other countries, island masses and territorial waters. The overall potential period of performance is May 1, 2022, to Oct. 31, 2024. Fiscal 2022 operation and maintenance funds are being obligated at the time of award. The Defense Health Agency Managed Care Contracting Division, Aurora, Colorado, is the contracting activity. (Awarded April 22, 2022)
Lockheed Martin, Rotary and Mission Systems, Moorestown, New Jersey, was awarded a $106,403,231 cost-plus-incentive-fee and cost only modification to previously awarded contract N00024-20-C-5601 to exercise options for sustainment of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Component Based Total Ship System – 21st Century (COMBATSS-21) and associated Combat System elements. Work will be performed in Moorestown, New Jersey (84%); Camden, New Jersey (5%); Virginia Beach, Virginia (5%); Deer Creek, Colorado (2%); Manassas, Virginia (1%); Orlando, Florida (1%); and various other locations under 1% (2%) and is expected to be completed by April 2023. Fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $2,264,999 (80%); and fiscal 2022 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $581,373 (20%) will be obligated at time of award and $2,846,372 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity. (Awarded April 20, 2022)
Huntington-Ingalls Industries – Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi, is awarded a $20,172,978 cost-plus-award-fee modification to previously awarded contract N00024-19-C-4 313 to exercise options for the accomplishment of the planning yard services for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) in-service ships. Work will be performed in Hampton, Virginia (17%); Pascagoula, Mississippi (77%); San Diego, California (3%); and Jacksonville, Florida (3%), and is expected to be completed by April 2023. Fiscal 2021 other procurement (Navy) funding in the amount of $981,964 (5%); and fiscal 2022 other procurement (Navy) funding in the amount of $19,191,014 (95%) 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, DC, is the contracting activity.
