A Power Competition in the Far North
A US Coast Guard cutter small boat and boarding team in the Bering Sea on Jan. 15, 2024. (US Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Jasen Newman)
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 Coast Guard cutter Kimball spotted Chinese naval ships 124 miles north of the Amchitka Pass in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska last week, reports The Associated Press. The Kimball was on a routine patrol in the Bering Sea when it came across several Chinese military ships in international waters but within the US exclusive economic zone.
The US will team with Canada and Finland on polar icebreakers to chill Russian and Chinese power in the Arctic, reports Breaking Defense. The trilateral effort, known as the Icebreaker Collaboration Effort or “ICE Pact,” is expected to produce a fleet of new polar icebreakers. A White House official said the pact is a “strategic imperative” in the race of dominance of the high north.
A recent opinion piece for the Center for Strategic & International Studies notes that China has demonstrated significant Arctic ambitions and has a “robust scientific research and foreign investment plan in the Arctic.” Authors US Navy CMDR Rachael Gosnell and Future Lab’s Senior Fellow Benjamin Jensen write that “in the future, NATO should broaden its approach to the north. With the alliance’s center of gravity shifting northward following the accession of Finland and Sweden, NATO should enhance its ability to deter and defend its northern flank.”
US Army CAPT Nicholas Tachias writes in Defense News op-ed, “The undeveloped Arctic region, with its wealth of resources, logistical nodes for faster travel, and vast military and strategic potential, has long made it an important frontier for nations including Russia and the US seeking geopolitical dominance.” Tachias says the competition between China and the United States for global supremacy is moving into a new frozen theater.
“Russia’s focus on the region is largely due to having one-fifth of its territory north of the Arctic Circle. The country wants to develop shipping lanes with the Northern Sea Route as well as the exploitation of natural resources,” Nicolas Jouan, a senior analyst with RAND, told The Debrief.
The US Bomb Technician Association has announced a new partnership with Our C4 Solutions LLC, a Georgia-based consulting firm, USBTA noted on Facebook. Nicole Motsek, president of Our C4 Solutions, will serve as USBTA’s first chief strategy officer. “We believe in USBTA’s vital mission and are honored to contribute to their long-term strategy,” Ms. Motsek said. USBTA is dedicated to facilitating training and supporting US military EOD and public safety bomb technicians in a professional organization. Late last year, USBTA received Rural Maryland Economic Development Funds for a facility expansion in Indian Head.
The first EOD Technology & Bombing Prevention Summit is being planned for Dec. 3-5, 2024, at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center at National Harbor, MD, USBTA reports. Experience the convergence of expertise and innovation at the summit, designed for professionals from every sector. The summit is designed for someone in the military, anyone who is part of a public safety team, a government official, an academic, or those navigating the private sector.
More ex-military officials are becoming venture capitalists as defense tech investment reached $35 billion last year, reports TechCrunch. As VCs continue to pour money into defense tech startups, they’re turning to a new hiring pool: veterans and ex-Department of Defense officials.
The Maryland Association of Community Colleges has received $935,680 from the state Department of Commerce to put cyber ranges in colleges across the state to be used for workforce development in cybersecurity, reports GovTech.com. The funding will combine with $2 million in federal matching funds allocated to the Cybersecurity Workforce Accelerator program launched earlier this year by MACC.
The Maryland Department of Commerce also recently awarded 11 grants for innovation in the technology sector worth a total of $9 million as part of the state’s Build Our Future grant program, which supports technology projects by local governments, educational institutions, and private companies, according to a department news release.
US President Joe Biden on Thursday announced a new $225 million aid package for Ukraine that includes a Patriot air defense system to defend against continued Russian airstrikes, reports The Hill. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised the announcement as “strong news.” But he also continued to press for Washington to give Ukraine further permission to fire US-provided, long-range missiles at targets farther across Russian borders.
The US will begin deploying long-range fires units to Germany in 2026, reports Defense News. The announcement came amid the NATO Summit in Washington, DC, last week. The capabilities will be resident in the US Army’s Multidomain Task Force already headquartered in Germany.
We the Veterans has hit its goal of recruiting 100,000 election workers, reports Army Times. When voters head to the polls to cast their ballots in November, at least one of every 10 election workers they see will be a veteran or a family member of a veteran, according to the group. The nonprofit said last week that it had signed up 136,815 people to volunteer.
Former US Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK), who served as chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee following the death of Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, has died at 89. reports Army Times. He was known for his strong support of defense spending and his denial that human activity is responsible for the bulk of climate change.
Veterans Affairs says that one of its Microsoft-based accounts was accessed in January by Russian hackers, reports Navy Times. No personal information or other data was compromised, an agency official said.
Marylanders should assume their personal health care information was included in a recent wide-reaching data breach, reports Maryland Matters. The Maryland Attorney General’s Office recommends residents take steps to protect their identity and health information as a precaution. Change Healthcare recently posted a notice to its website about the data breach and will send letters to some affected individuals on July 20.
In the latest cybersecurity scare, a file with nearly 10 billion passwords has been posted to a hacking site, reports Cybernews. Researchers discovered the file, posted on July 4, with 9,948,575,739 unique plaintext passwords. The file with the data, titled rockyou2024.txt, was posted by forum user ObamaCare.
A former US Air Force engineer has been charged with obstructing the investigation into the deadly 2017 Marine plane crash that killed 15 Marines and one Navy corpsman, reports Navy Times. James Michael Fisher, 67, was a propulsion engineer at the facility in charge of maintenance and repairs for propellers used in the Marine Corps KC-130 transport aircraft that crashed.
The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science’s latest report card gives a C-plus to the overall health of the Chesapeake Bay, reports Maryland Matters. That is a half-letter grade improvement from the previous year’s mark. It earned a 55% score, up four points from 2022.
Contracts:
Magee Technologies LLC, California, Maryland, is awarded a $175,438,705 cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract provides engineering and infrastructure, technical services, technical shops, and aircraft modification and installation teams in support of manufacturing, airworthiness, rapid reaction and transition, experimentation, concept demonstration, research, spiral development, prototyping, and test and evaluation programs and deliverables to meet prototyping requirements of the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division’s (NAWCAD) Prototype, Instrumentation, and Experimentation Department’s Aircraft Prototype Systems Division. Additionally, this requirement supports potentially new systems and existing systems within the manned and unmanned aircraft inventory. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland (80%); and California, Maryland (20%), and is expected to be completed in August 2029. 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 as a small business set-aside; three offers were received. NAWCAD, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N0042124D0019).
Nakupuna Consulting LLC, Arlington, Virginia, was awarded a $370,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the integration for functionality into the Integrated Personnel and Pay System-Army. 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 July 9, 2031. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W91CRB-24-D-0022).
Northrup Grumman, Radford, Virginia (W519TC-24-F-0296); and Global Military Products, Tampa, Florida (W519TC-24-F-0298), will compete for each order of the $299,749,070 firm-fixed-price contract for special ammunition and weapons systems requirements. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 28, 2025. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity.
EMR Inc., Niceville, Florida (W91278-24-D-0030); Healtheon Inc., New Orleans, Louisiana (W91278-24-D-0031); Howard W. Pence, Elizabethtown, Kentucky (W91278-24-D-0032); Roundhouse-MV JV, Kansas City, Missouri (W91278-24-D-0033); Southeast Cherokee Construction Inc., Montgomery, Alabama (W91278-24-D-0034); Southeastern Industrial Barlovento JV-2 LLC, Destin, Florida (W91278-24-D-0035); Speegle Construction Inc., Niceville, Florida (W91278-24-D-0036); and Web LLC, Springfield, Virginia (W91278-24-D-0037), will compete for each order of the $200,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for general construction and repair. Bids were solicited via the internet with 47 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of July 11, 2029. US Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Alabama, is the contracting activity.
Parsons Government Services Inc., Centreville, Virginia, was awarded a $68,567,100 firm-fixed-price contract for housing construction. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed at Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands, with an estimated completion date of July 13, 2027. Fiscal 2010 family housing construction, Army funds in the amount of $68,567,100 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Corps of Engineers, Far East District, is the contracting activity (W9128A-24-C-0013).
Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Manassas, Virginia, is awarded a $180,496,470 cost-plus-incentive fee, fixed-price-incentive, and cost only modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-18-C-5218) to exercise the option for hypervisor technology, AN/SQQ-89A(V)15 Surface Ship Undersea Warfare Combat Systems, and to provide funding for engineering labor in support of continued AN/SQQ-89A(V)15 Surface Ship USW Combat System development, integration, manufacture, production, and testing. This modification also increases the option amounts for engineering labor. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (70%); Lemont Furnace, Pennsylvania (15%); Syracuse, New York (13%); Clearwater, Florida (1%); and Owego, New York (1%), and is expected to be completed by March 2025. Fiscal 2024 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,623,122 (39%); fiscal 2024 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,457,785 (38%); fiscal 2024 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,363,000 (9%); fiscal 2023 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $847,420 (6%); fiscal 2021 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $646,489 (5%); and fiscal 2022 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $427,064 (3%), will be obligated at the 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.
OCR Global Inc., McLean, Virginia, is awarded a $98,495,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for .50 caliber reduced range ammunition, Ball MK322 Mod 1 and Tracer MK321 Mod 1. This contract does not include options. Work will be performed in São Paulo, Brazil (90%); and McLean, Virginia (10%), and is expected to be completed by July 2029. Fiscal 2023 procurement of ammunition (Navy and Marine Corps) funding in the amount of $3,464,995 (85%); and fiscal 2024 procurement of ammunition (Navy and Marine Corps) funding in the amount of $600,000 (15%), will be obligated at the time of award, of which none will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured on the basis of full and open competition and three offers were received via Federal Business Opportunities. Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, Crane, Indiana, is the contracting activity (N0016424DJN03).
Huntington Ingalls Inc., Newport News, Virginia, is awarded a $78,000,000 modification to previously awarded contract N00024-21-C-2106 to establish a quality-of-service improvement incentive. This special incentive will support improved quality of life for Navy sailors and shipyard workers at Newport News Shipbuilding. Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by June 2026. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity.
Systems Planning & Analysis, Inc. Alexandria, Virginia, is awarded an undefinitized contract action with a not-to-exceed amount of $24,887,000 under contract N0003024C7002, for research and development services including program office support of the nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile program. The action will be definitized as a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract line-item number. Work will be performed during July 2024 through July 2025 and performed in Alexandria, Virginia (75%); and Washington, DC (25%). Fiscal 2024 research development test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $12,443,500 will be obligated on this award. No funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract action is being awarded on a sole source basis under 10 US Code 3204(a)(1) and was previously synopsized on the System for Award Management online portal. Strategic Systems Programs, Washington DC, is the contracting activity.
HII Fleet Support Group LLC, Virginia, is awarded a $8,867,613 cost-plus-fixed-fee award delivery order (N62793-24-F-0006) as part of a previously awarded contract (N00024-21-D-4114) to provide execution for the USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) refueling complex overhaul and carrier engineering maintenance assist team support. Work includes assistance for preparation, evaluation, and execution of repairs, as well as technical guidance for maintenance execution and repairs. This contract, where specified, will provide “hands on” instruction in fault identification and application of current maintenance/repair techniques in accordance with the contract. Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia, and is expected to be completed January 2025. Fiscal 2024 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $4,433,806 was obligated at time of award and will expire at the end of fiscal 2028. The Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion and Repair, Newport News, Virginia is the contracting activity.
Textron Systems, Hunt Valley, Maryland, is awarded a $10,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-14-C-6322) for engineering and technical support for the Unmanned Influence Sweep System Unmanned Surface Vehicle program. Work will be performed in Hunt Valley, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by September 2024. Fiscal 2023 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,539,365 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity.
CORRECTION: The $14,593,995 firm-fixed-price modification to contract (M95494-18-C-0016) announced on Nov. 15, 2023, to Sodexo Management Inc., Gaithersburg, Maryland, for the management and operation of West Coast mess halls in support of the Marine Corps Regional Garrison Food Services Program only included the funded amount at the time of the modification, however the action was actually an option exercise modification awarded on Sept. 29, 2023, in the amount of $140,502,731.
CORRECTION: The $13,771,066 firm-fixed-price modification to contract (M95494-18-C-0018) announced on Nov. 15, 2023, to Sodexo Management Inc., Gaithersburg, Maryland, for the management and operation of East Coast mess halls in support of the Marine Corps Regional Garrison Food Services Program only included the funded amount at the time of the modification, however the action was actually an option exercise modification awarded on Sept. 29, 2023, in the amount of $134,838,704.
