Analysis: Spending on UAS to Surge

Three unmanned aerial systems soar in the sky Aug. 21, 2019, at Edwards Air Force Base, California. (US Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Rachel Simones via dvidshub.net)

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Unmanned aerial systems will continue to be one of the most dynamic growth sectors of the world aerospace industry this decade, Teal Group said in its latest market analysis, reports PRNewswire. Estimates show that UAS procurement funding will increase from the current worldwide level of just more than $14 billion annually in 2024 to $23.1 billion in 2033, totaling $186.8 billion over the next 10 years, according to the report. Military UAS research spending is expected to add another $71.8 billion over the same period, reports ISP Today. Teal Group is an aerospace and defense market analysis firm based in Fairfax, VA.

DefSec Lloyd Austin took responsibility for the decision not to tell the White House or Congress that he had been hospitalized early last week, reports ABC News. President Joe Biden did not learn about Austin’s hospitalization until Thursday night, three days after he was hospitalized on Jan. 1 for complications resulting from what Pentagon officials said was as “a minor, elective procedure.”

The US Navy is seeking industry input regarding a small vertical-takeoff-and-landing-capable unmanned aircraft system, according to a NAVAIR request for information posted last week, reports Inside Defense.

Three uncrewed Airborne Range Hawks equipped with sensors and instrumentation are enabling more hypersonic flight tests, reports Defense News. The drones are part of a program called SkyRange, which provides the Pentagon with a flexible, airborne testing infrastructure.

President Joe Biden wants to add smart missiles to the US military’s arsenal, reports Newsweek on MSN. The administration signed off on a $345 million contract to bolster production of StormBreaker weapons last week. The StormBreaker is a winged precision-guided bomb designed to hit moving targets in even the worst weather conditions.

The US Department of Commerce has denied Maryland’s request for a “fishery resource disaster” declaration amid a continued blue catfish invasion, reports The Baltimore Sun on MSN. According to the federal government, the commercial fisheries have not experienced a sharp enough revenue decline to warrant a disaster declaration, and the accompanying aid. “The fishery did not experience a sudden, unexpected, large decrease in fish stock biomass that resulted in a significant loss of access to the fishery resource,” US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo wrote. “The declines in the fishery have been occurring over the last decade.” Maryland is now pursuing actions to control the invasive catfish, the state’s Department of Natural Resources announced last week.

Defense contractor Leonard “Fat Leonard” Francis was back in court Thursday in San Diego, reports Navy Times, asking for new attorneys. Leonard is now in US custody after a Venezuelan prisoner swap. He had fled to South America in 2022 weeks before he was scheduled to be sentenced in a bribery scheme involving US Navy officials, defense contractors, and others.

Yemen-based Houthis have attacked ships in the Red Sea 25 times since November, reports Navy Times. The militia launched another attack on shipping lanes in the Red Sea on Thursday morning, bringing the total number of attacks since Nov. 18 to 25.

The United States and 11 other countries have called on Yemen’s Houthis to stop the attacks on merchant ships in the area, warning of unspecified “consequences,” reports The Hill.

The US Air Force said it has recovered the flight data recorder from a CV-22B Osprey that crashed off the coast of Japan in November with its data intact, reports Navy Times. Eight US service members were killed in the crash, which occurred off the coast of Yakushima Island in southwestern Japan. The Osprey was on a routine training flight enroute to Okinawa.

China sent four suspected spy balloons over Taiwan last week, according to Taiwanese defense officials, reports Houston Chronicle. Three passed near an air force base. The incursions come as China has been upping its threat to use force to annex the self-governing republic.

China is urging the Taiwanese people to vote “on the right side of history” by selecting presidential candidates open to reconnecting with the mainland, reports Fox News on MSN. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office issued a message urging the island to “consider the bigger picture” on the future of China-Taiwan relations when choosing their next leader. The election will be held Jan. 13.

The top presidential candidate Lai Ching-te said last week that a peaceful Taiwan strait is key to the world’s prosperity and security, reports Bloomberg on Yahoo! Lai, vice president and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s candidate in presidential elections, said the US is “the most important ally” for Taiwan.

With military confirmations finally making their way through the US Senate last month, Navy Times notes the military services’ top leaders heading into 2024. Republican senator from Alabama, Tommy Tuberville, had for six months kept a hold on senior military confirmations in protest of a Pentagon policy that allows paid leave and covers travel for reproductive health care access for service members.

Female Marines will get dress slacks — a replacement for the service’s last required skirt — in time for the Marine Corps birthday balls later this year, reports Marine Corps Times. Before 2023, female officers and noncommissioned officers who wore the evening dress uniform, designed for fancy events like birthday balls, were required to don a long or knee-length black skirt.

The veterans unemployment rate rose slightly in December but still finished 2023 at the lowest monthly average in more than 20 years, reports Navy Times. Data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated that roughly 261,000 veterans seeking work were unable to find full-time employment last month, an unemployment rate of 3%. That figure was 2.8% in November.

December’s jobs report showed employers added 216,000 jobs for the month while the unemployment rate held at 3.7%, reports NBC News.

Here’s good news for the roughly 6 million current and former federal employees looking to file for retirement. The Thrift Savings Plan, the federal government’s 401(k)-style retirement plan, ended the year on a high note, with all five core funds yielding positive returns for the second straight month, reports Federal Times.

Maryland’s 2024 General Assembly convenes Wednesday and will adjourn April 8. Budgeting, education, transportation, and climate plans are among top issues for this year’s session, reports The Baltimore Sun on MSN.

Maryland lawmakers might revisit the issue of drivers smelling of marijuana in the upcoming General Assembly session, reports Capital New Service. The controversy over the Fines for Smoking in Public, Stops, and Searches law continues. Maryland’s Joint Republican Caucus announced its 2024 Public Safety Agenda for the upcoming legislative session, which included a provision to overturn the smell search law. The law now limits officers’ ability to police impaired driving, some legislators said.

Sen. Cheryl Kagan (D) of Montgomery County said other important issues coming before the General Assembly include a push for more affordable housing, a possible decision on whether the state will adopt rank choice voting, whether to legalize medical aid in dying, and discussions about artificial intelligence, reports Montgomery County Media.

Contracts:

iWorks Corp., Reston, Virginia, has been awarded a $12,386,192 firm-fixed-price modification (P00018) to previously awarded contract HS002121C0002 for the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA). This modification exercises Option Period 3 to continue to provide services for seamlessly vetting personnel for access, preserving the adjudicative decision, and identifying and mitigating insider threat risk for the DCSA. Work will be performed in and around Fort George G. Meade, Maryland, with an estimated completion of Jan. 4, 2025. Fiscal 2024 DCSA operations and maintenance funds; and fiscal 2024 working capital funds in the amount of $12,386,192 were obligated at the time of award. The cumulative value of the contract to date is $54,689,151. DCSA Acquisition and Contracting, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity.

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Virginia, was awarded a $283,939,994 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-15-C-4301) for completion of the USS Columbus (SSN 762) engineered overhaul. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract modification to $300,020,836. Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by December 2025. Fiscal 2024 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $168,929,679 will be obligated at the time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity. (Awarded Dec. 21, 2023)

Huntington Ingalls Inc., Ingalls Shipbuilding Division, Pascagoula, Mississippi, is awarded an $11,711,969 modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-21-C-4205) for planning yard services for L-Class ships; LPD 17 Amphibious Transport Dock Ships, LHD 1/LHA 6 Amphibious Assault Ships, LSD 41/49 Dock Landing Ships, and an LCC 19 Amphibious Command Ship. Work will be performed in Pascagoula, Mississippi, with on-site technical support for Chief of Naval Operations availabilities at: Mayport, Florida; Norfolk, Virginia; San Diego, California; and Sasebo, Japan. Work is expected to be completed by May 2028. No funding will be obligated at time of award. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity (N00024-21-C-4205).

Lockheed Martin Corp., Rotary and Mission Systems, Manassas, Virginia, is awarded a $10,790,437) cost-plus-incentive-fee modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-18-C-6258 to exercise options for engineering support, component procurements, and other direct costs in support of the Integrated Submarine Imaging System. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (73%); Virginia Beach, Virginia (24%); Andover, Massachusetts (2%); and Arlington, Virginia (1%), and is expected to be completed by September 2024. Fiscal 2017 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $324,000 (3%); fiscal 2018 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,743,800 (16%); fiscal 2023 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $550,000 (5%); fiscal 2024 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,381,525 (13%); fiscal 2023 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,200,000 (11%); and fiscal 2024 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,591,112 (52%), 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 (N00024-18-C-6258).

The Entwistle Co. LLC, Danville, Virginia, was awarded a $9,471,167 firm-fixed-price contract for inert warheads. Bids were solicited via the internet with seven received. Work will be performed in Danville, Virginia, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 28, 2027. Fiscal 2023 Marine Corps funds, Foreign Military Sales funds, and missile procurement, Army funds in the amount of $1,498,918 were obligated at the time of the award. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W31P4Q-24-C-0016).