5 Weeks, 2 Barges, 5 Tugboats. Ever Forward Refloats

The US Coast Guard, Maryland Department of the Environment and Evergreen Marine Corp., in partnership with multiple state and local responders, refloat the Ever Forward on April 17 in the Chesapeake Bay. The 1,095-foot container ship was refloated after a five-week-long salvage operation that began March 13 when the vessel grounded near the Craighill Channel. (Photo by George Mason University Department of Police and Public Safety/Released)

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River economic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

The Ever Forward container ship is now afloat in the Chesapeake Bay, reports UPI. The ship became stuck in mid-March on its trip from Baltimore to Norfolk, VA. It took two barges and five tugboats to dislodge the 1,095-foot cargo ship, after some containers were removed from the vessel.

CAPT James Belmont has taken over duties as the commanding officer of Fleet Readiness Center East at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, NC, reports Marine Corps Times. Marine Corps COL Thomas Atkinson was relieved of his duties Friday due to a “loss of confidence in his ability to command.” Atkinson will temporarily be assigned to Fleet Readiness Centers headquarters.

The Naval Aviation Training Systems and Ranges program office (PMA-205) recently delivered the first fully capable Naval Aircrewman Training Systems (NATS) and Marine Common Aircrew Trainers (MCAT) to the fleet, reports The Southern Maryland Chronicle. The NATS was delivered to Naval Air Station Mayport, FL, and two MCATs were delivered to Marine Corps Air Station New River, NC.

A Lockheed Martin’s Stalker VXE UAS demo clocked a record-setting endurance flight, the company reports. The Stalker VXE exhibited a flight time of 39 hours, 17 minutes, and 7 seconds on February 18, making a new world record for aircraft weighing between 5 and 25 kg, reports ExecutiveBiz.

The US Army is using lessons learned from Russia’s war against Ukraine as they prepare soldiers for future fights against a major adversary such as Russia or China, reports Army Times.

As several US lawmakers visited Taiwan on Friday, China staged military exercises to reinforce its threat to use force to bring Taiwan under its control, reports Military Times. The US delegation was led by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has proven that democracies must bolster their alliances and collectively we can defend ourselves from the threats posed by authoritarian nations that seek to disrupt regional peace,” said Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.

Guam is now the homeport for five US Navy submarines, reports Navy Times. That is three more than the service had based there in November 2021. The Navy had said last year that it intended to bolster its submarine force in the Indo-Pacific region.

The US is looking to reopen it embassy in the Solomons Islands as quickly as it can, reports Breaking Defense, in the face of China’s campaign to tighten relations with the tiny island state in the Pacific. China has signed a security deal with the South Pacific island nation that could lead to Beijing establishing a military presence there.

 

 

SpaceX once again successfully launched a US spy satellite, reports CNN. The rocket used in Sunday’s launch of a US National Reconnaissance Office security payload was the same one that launched an NRO payload in February.

The Defense Department has identified its two biggest competitors in space as Russia and China. Those countries increased their number of satellites by 70% in the past two years, reports Federal News Network. Making the list of major DoD concerns are the mining of off-planet assets and the increasing congestion in space.

The US Government Accountability Office’s review of the 2021 decision to move the US Space Command headquarters from Colorado to Alabama is soon expected to be made public, reports Breaking Defense. Members of Congress have been briefed, and reportedly supporters of keeping the command at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs don’t sound happy.

Lockheed Martin officials said it is adding Canadian firm MDA to its team developing a lunar rover, reports Space News. Lockheed and General Motors are currently working on the rover project. MDA will provide the robotic arm. It has already developed the robotic arms for the shuttle and the International Space Station.

The Pentagon inspector general says that US military bases in the Arctic and sub-Arctic are not properly preparing their installations for long-term climate change as required, reports The Associated Press. According to the evaluation, warmer temperatures and melting ice are already damaging base runways and roads and worsening flood risks.

A Veterans Affairs inspector general report finds that VA officials are failing to consistently notify state medical boards when department physicians are fired for malpractice or incompetence, reports Military Times. The review released earlier this month was prompted by several cases in 2020 involving the dismissal of poor-performing VA medical staffers.

A new electric vehicle charging station opened at the Navy Exchange in Lemoore, CA, reports Mirage News. The Navy Exchange Service Command operates 14 EV charging stations, including at NEX Bethesda, NEX Annapolis and NEX Patuxent River in Maryland.

The Innovation Challenge @ Dahlgren will debut next week at the University of Mary Washington’s Dahlgren campus, the university reports. The event will be presented by the UMW, Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division, MITRE Corp., and the Fredericksburg Regional Military Affairs Council and is expected to and put a spotlight on the need for STEM programs. “This collaboration and partnership provide the first steps to developing an innovation hub right here in Dahlgren,” said Nick Minor, director of economic development for King George County, VA.

The US Air Force Academy has expelled 22 students and put hundreds more on probation for cheating and plagiarism while learning from home in 2020, reports Military Times.

Commissary customers on or near eight military installations — including at Fort Belvoir, VA — will be able to test a new doorstep delivery service, reports Air Force Times. The deliveries are set to start June 1. The contracts for the new venture were awarded to two veteran-owned companies.

The Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum in Atchison, KA, has begun a capital campaign to raise funds for construction, reports WIBW13. The goal is to raise $15 million. With the support of FedEx, Garmin, and Lockheed Martin, $10 million has been raised so far. When the museum is completed, it said it will apply to become an affiliate of the Smithsonian.

Contracts:

Science Applications International Corp., Reston, Virginia, was awarded a $49,391,633 cost-plus-incentive-fee contract for various technical support elements required for the management and operation of five high-performance computing centers. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Vicksburg, Mississippi; John C. Stennis Space Center, Mississippi; Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio; and Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, with an estimated completion date of April 17, 2023. Fiscal 2022 research, development, test and evaluation, Army funds in the amount of $1,753,551 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Corps of Engineers’ Engineering and Support Center, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W912DY-22-F-0191).