Navy Orders New Rapid Capabilities Office, Shuts Down Others

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 US Navy is establishing a Naval Rapid Capabilities Office that aims to accelerate the development and fielding of new systems, reports Breaking Defense. With the new office, NavSec John Phelan wants to consolidate development efforts under a single entity responsible for fielding multidomain capabilities. As part of the new NRCO, Phelan ordered the service to shut down the Maritime Accelerated Response Capability Cell, the Disruptive Capabilities Office, and NavalX.

Phelan has appointed VADM Seiko Okano to lead the new NRCO office, according to Breaking Defense. Earlier this month she had taken on the role of principal military deputy, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, Signal reported at the time. Prior to that appointment, she served as the commander of the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command.

Doug Beck, director of the Pentagon’s commercial innovation hub, has resigned from his post, reports Politico. Circumstances of Beck’s resignation from the Defense Innovation Unit were not immediately clear. Beck, a former vice president at Apple, did not provide a reason for his departure.

DefSec Pete Hegseth fired the military’s top intelligence officer last week, reports CBS News on MSN. LTGEN Jeffrey Kruse was the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and the second high-profile Air Force general to be relieved or abruptly announce their retirement. Kruse’s report in June on Operation Midnight Hammer’s Iran strikes angered President Donald Trump. Despite the use of heavy munitions, the report’s initial assessment suggested the facilities weren’t fully taken out.

Hegseth also fired two Navy leaders: VADM Nancy Lacore, chief of the Navy Reserve, as well as RADM Milton Sands, a Navy SEAL officer who oversees the Naval Special Warfare Command, reports Navy Times.

Jane Rathburn, the Department of the Navy’s chief information officer, announced Friday that she is leaving the federal government after more than 30 years of service, reports Breaking Defense. She did not say why she is leaving the government nor what her next steps will be.

Marine Corps MAJGEN David J. Bligh is the new Judge Advocate General, or JAG, at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, DC, reports Military Times.

Hegseth said Monday that plans are coming soon to rename the Defense Department as the Department of War, reports Navy Times. During a White House press event Monday, Trump said that the Department of Defense name “didn’t sound good” to him.

The National Guard’s role in law enforcement throughout the country could expand under an executive order signed by Trump on Monday, reports Military.com. Hegseth is now required to create a specialized unit within the DC National Guard “dedicated to ensuring public safety and order in the nation’s capital.”

Pratt & Whitney has been awarded a contract modification worth up to nearly $2.9 billion to build more engines for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, reports Air Force Times. The company, a subsidiary of RTX, will produce and deliver 141 F135 engines to go into new F-35s for the Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy, as well as partner nations in the F-35 program and foreign military customers.

Boeing and Korean Air announced a deal worth about $36 billion on Monday for 103 planes, reports BBC. The deal includes 787, 777, and 737 passenger jets.

A CH-53E Super Stallion caught fire at Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, CA, late last week, reports Marine Corps Times. Authorities are investigating the fire, resulting in a ground mishap, that caused the crew to evacuate.

USNI fleet tracker weekly reports the approximate positions of the US Navy’s deployed carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups throughout the world. Here is the August 25, 2025, Fleet and Marine Tracker.

Donald McPherson, the last American fighter ace from World War II, has died at 103, reports Task & Purpose. The naval aviator scored five aerial victories flying a Grumman F6F Hellcat in the Pacific and spent the eight decades after living a life of service.

The US Navy will keep the name for the USNS Cesar Chavez despite concerns about a name change amid the renaming of other vessels, reports Navy Times. Chavez was a civil rights leader and Navy veteran. He served from 1946 to 1948 and was an American farm worker and labor leader who co-founded the United States Farm Workers Union, advocating for farmworkers’ rights.

The US Space Force’s secret X-37B spaceplane was launched last week from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, reports Defense News. While many of the experiments it will conduct in the coming months are classified, the Space Force has identified space-based laser communications and quantum sensing as two of its focus areas. The X-37B will spend an undisclosed amount of time in orbit, testing not only the capabilities of the space plane, but technology demonstrations, including testing a new sensor, which will enable GPS contact where communication would have previously been difficult, reports Florida Today on TitansWire.

The US Coast Guard offloaded 76,140 pounds of illicit narcotics on Monday, the largest single illegal drug dump in Coast Guard history, reports Defense News. The street value of the drugs was estimated at $473 million, according to the Coast Guard.

The Trump administration plans to revoke the federal approval for US Wind’s wind farm off the coast of Ocean City, reports Maryland Matters. Other wind farm projects have been halted, including a massive project off the coast of Rhode Island that is 80% complete, reports Agence France-Presse on MSN.

Personal-finance website WalletHub released its report on 2025’s Hardest-Working States in America. The data set ranges from average workweek hours to share of workers with multiple jobs to annual volunteer hours per resident.

Contracts:

Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., El Segundo, California, is awarded a $99,128,262 cost-plus-fixed-fee (N0042125F7048) against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N0001925G0003). This order is to support the Department of Defense’s (DOD) Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control vision by leveraging commercial technologies to provide resilient, interoperable and secure information dominance solutions that take advantage of higher bandwidth and low-latency data rates. Initial Providence Distributed Battle Management Command and Control System Minimum Viable Products will support the DOD use cases. The capability will be hosted in various manned and unmanned systems. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland (15%); Melbourne, Florida (15%); Fallon, California (15%); Shreveport, Louisiana (10%); Guam (10%); Washington, DC (8%); Abilene, Texas (5%); China Lake, California (5%); Hickman, Hawaii (5%); Anchorage, Alaska (3%); Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (3%); Oceanside, California (3%); and Point Mugu, California (3%), and is expected to be completed in March 2028. Fiscal 2025 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $7,471,923; and fiscal 2025 Navy working capital funds in the amount of $575,000, will be obligated at the time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This order was not competed. Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

Platform Systems Inc., Hollywood, Maryland, is being awarded a $29,607,487 firm-fixed-price, Job Order (N0016425FJ608) under the previously awarded basic ordering agreement (N0016425GJR96) for Vanilla Long Endurance Unmanned Aircraft Systems, supporting hardware, spare parts, engineering support, and logistics support. This job order includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $29,903,917. Work will be performed in Hollywood, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by August 2026. This contract action was not competitively procured in accordance with 15 US Code 638(r)(4) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase III derived from SBIR Phase II. Fiscal 2025 procurement (Department of Defense) funds in the amount of $29,370,487 (99%); and fiscal 2025 research, development, test and evaluation (Office of the Under Secretary of Defense) funds in the amount of $237,000 (1%), for a total of $29,607,487, will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, Crane, Indiana, is the contracting activity (N0016425FJ608).

Advanced Technology Systems Co., McLean, Virginia (N0003925DE004); Blue Ridge Tech Solutions, Maryville, Tennessee (N0003925DE005); Global C2 Integration Technologies LLC, Las Vegas, Nevada (N0003925DE006); Geodesicx Inc., Chesapeake, Virginia (N0003925DE008); INTECON LLC, Fredericksburg, Virginia (N0003925DE009); ITC Defense, Arlington, Virginia (N0003925DE010); and NewSat North America LLC, Indian Harbour Beach, Florida (N0003925DE012), are each being awarded a hybrid, firm-fixed-price, cost-plus fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award contract for command, control, communications, computers and intelligence integrated international support services in support of US security assistance and security cooperation programs. No contract funds will be obligated on the basic awards. Funds in the amount of $2,000 per awardee will be obligated at the time of award on the first task order under each contract. This contract will utilize Foreign Military Sales funding from various security cooperation partners that will be identified as individual task orders are issued. Work will be performed in various overseas locations based on the requirement for each task order placed. The ordering period for each contract is five years. Throughout the duration of the awarded contracts, the total obligated amount on orders for all of the awarded contracts combined will not exceed $76,756,000. These contracts were competitively procured with small business proposals solicited with 10 offers received via SAM.gov and Naval Information Warfare Systems Command E-Commerce site. The Naval Information Warfare Systems Command, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N00039).

Total Computer Solutions Inc., Burke, Virginia, was awarded a $14,539,626 modification (P00016) to contract W31P4Q-23-F-D001 for programmatic support services for the Utility Helicopters Project Office. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $14,539,626. Bids were solicited via the internet with five received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2026. The Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.

Amentum Services Inc., Chantilly, Virginia, has been awarded a $7,891,644 modification (P00131) to a previously awarded contract (FA4610-22-C-0006) for the Aerospace Support Services Contract. Work will be performed at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California; Patrick SFB, Florida; and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2026. Fiscal 2026 operations and maintenance appropriation funds in the amount of $1,969,161 are being obligated at time of award. The 30th Contracting Squadron, Vandenberg SFB, California, is the contracting activity.

Astraeus Operations LLC, Springfield, Virginia, is awarded a $22,000,000 firm-fixed-price and cost-reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide cyber operations systems engineering and technical assistance. Work will be performed in Laurel, Maryland, and is expected to be completed in August 2030. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-5(b)(4). Marine Corps System Command, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity (M67854-25-D-0185).

Airborne Tactical Advantage Co. LLC, Newport News, Virginia, is awarded a $199,067,376 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract that provides for contractor-owned and operated Contracted Air Services Type VI, highly modified business jet aircraft, to Navy fleet customers in support of a wide variety of airborne threat simulation capabilities to train, test and evaluate shipboard and aircraft squadron weapon systems, operators and aircrew on how to counter potential enemy stand-off jamming operations in today’s electronic combat environment. Work will be performed in San Deigo, California (50%); and Virginia Capes, Virginia (50%), and is expected to be completed in October 2030. No funds will be obligated at the time of the award; funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was competed; two offers were received. Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N0042125D0202).

General Dynamics Information Technology, Falls Church, Virginia, is awarded a $98,500,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N00039-25-D-7800) to accomplish the following: to continue providing service desk as a service as the managed service provider using a knowledge-based solution, employing artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing; to continue consolidating all remaining disparate Tier zero and one IT help desks and transition them under the Naval Enterprise Service Desk (NESD) infrastructure; and to continue building out capabilities to enhance the NESD solution. Fiscal 2025 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds; and other procurement (Navy) funds, will be used for obligations at the task order level. Concurrent with the award, the first task order will be issued in order to satisfy the minimum guarantee of $5,000 per the terms and conditions of the contract. This funding will expire at the end of the fiscal year. Work will be performed in Bossier City, Louisiana (50%); and New Orleans, Louisiana (50%). Performance is expected to be completed by August 2026. If all options are exercised, performance will continue until August 2028. This contract includes a one-year base ordering period and two one-year optional ordering periods, which if exercised, would bring the estimated cumulative value to $98,500,000 million. Pursuant to the Other Transactions Authority (OTA) of 10 US Code 4022(f), this contract is not competitively procured because this is a follow-on production contract following the successful completion of the OTA prototype effort that originated in 2019. The Naval Information Warfare Systems Command, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity.

South Texas Lighthouse for the Blind, Corpus Christi, Texas, is being awarded a $27,459,229 modification (P00007) under a previously awarded contract (N00604-24-D-4001) to exercise Option Year One for the acquisition of miscellaneous items for the Navy Exchange Service Command Ship Store Program. The exercise of this option will bring the estimated cumulative value of the total contract to date to $54,118,675. The original contract included a 12-month base period, four 12-month options, and a six-month extension option in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.217-8 which if exercised, the total value of this contract will be $156,541,340. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia (37%); San Diego, California (24%); Oahu, Hawaii (11%); Mayport, Florida (10%); Seattle, Washington (9%); and Diego Garcia (9%). Work is expected to be completed by September 2026; if all options are exercised, work will be completed by March 2030. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Appropriate fiscal year working capital funds (Navy) will be used as individual orders are issued. This sole-source requirement was authorized or required by statute in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation Part 8.7 Javits-Wagner-O’Day Act (41 US Code 46-48c), and the rules of the Committee for Purchase from People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled (41 Code of Federal Regulations, chapter 51) which implements the AbilityOne Program. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the contracting activity.

Mount Rogers Community Services, Atkins, Virginia (SPE1C1-25-D-N016, $76,202,871); and National Industries for the Blind, Alexandria, Virginia (SPE1C1-25-D-B015, $76,202,871), have each been awarded a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract under solicitation SPE1C1-24-R-0046 for combat flame resistant type II and type III shirts. These are three-year contracts with no option periods. The ordering period end date is Aug. 26, 2028. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2025 through 2028 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.