Army-Navy Game Moves to West Point for 2020

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.

For the first time since 1943, the Army-Navy football game will not be played in Philadelphia, reports The Washington Post. The game will be hosted at Michie Stadium at West Point on Dec. 12. The last time the Naval Academy hosted the game was in 1942, reports Army Times.

The US Navy instructor pilot killed in Friday’s T-6B Texan II has been identified. She is LT Rhiannon Ross, reports Navy Times. LT Ross and Coast Guard Ensign Morgan Garrett were flying a routine mission out of Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Florida when the turboprop plane went down. The service had not released any information Monday on the cause of the crash.

A Military Times poll says the 52% of the veterans surveyed indicate they will vote for President Donald Trump and 42% for former Vice President Joe Biden. The findings show a divide among different age, race, and gender groups within the veterans community.

The US Coast Guard is basing Enhanced Response Cutters in the western Pacific for maritime security missions, reports Reuters, citing illegal fishing and harassment of vessels by China.

The US steps up its military presence in and around the island nation of Palau in the Philippine Sea, reports Breaking Defense, a strategic location coveted by Pentagon planners as the US looks to expand its footprint in the region.

SecState Mike Pompeo is expected to visit Jakarta this week. Mr. Pompeo’s visit comes after the US approached Indonesia earlier this year to ask that the US be granted landing and refueling rights for its P-8 Poseidon surveillance planes that monitor Chinese military activity in the region, reports US News & World Report. The Trump administration’s attempts to convince some Southeast Asian countries to push back against China are not working, reports The Sydney Morning Herald.

Japanese F-35As trained alongside the US Navy’s USS America in the western Pacific, reports The Drive. The integrated air defense training involving Japanese and American forces comes as Japan works toward its own future carrier capability using the Joint Strike Fighter.

Ties between Russia and China could be deepening. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that there is not a need for a Russia-China alliance at this time, but he said it could be forged in the future, reports Military Times. “We don’t need it, but, theoretically, it’s quite possible to imagine it,” he said, speaking during a video conference with foreign policy experts.

 

 

Five Taliban fighters attacking Afghan security forces were killed in Afghanistan by US forces, reports Military Times. “We’ve shown a great deal of restraint because we’re trying to make this peace process work,” Army GEN Austin Miller said. “At the same time, we’ll defend our forces.”

Afghanistan has claimed that it killed a top al-Qaida propagandist who is on an FBI’s most-wanted list, reports Military Times.

T-34C Turbo Mentors are making their way back to Navy and Marine Corps training squadrons after completing standard five-year aircraft conditional inspections, reports The Tester. The first aircraft completed six weeks ahead of schedule and 25% under budget during a pandemic.

The Washington state Department of Agriculture says it destroyed the first nest of “murder hornets” found in the US. USA Today reports they “were sucked into oblivion.” “Got ‘em. Vacuumed out several #AsianGiantHornets from a tree cavity near Blaine this morning,” the state Agriculture Department wrote in a Twitter post.

Maryland lawmakers expressed concern about an executive order issued by President Trump last week that could change the status of thousands of federal employees, reports Maryland Matters. The order would designate federal employees who make policy to “excepted service,” making it easier for political appointees to fire these workers at will. Critics also say the order takes away hiring preferences for military veterans.

NAVAIR’s Career Planning and Development Division earned the Department of the Navy’s Organizational Impact Award as part of the DoN Human Resources and Equal Employment Opportunity Awards for Excellence, reports dcmilitary.com.

SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket into space Saturday morning, carrying 60 Internet satellites into orbit to help establish connections to remote areas, reports UPI. This marked SpaceX’s 100th successful launch since the company launched its first Falcon 1 to orbit in 2008, reports Digital Trends.

Nokia has just been awarded a $14 million NASA contract to build a 4G wireless cellphone network on the moon, reports The Motley Fool. Nokia’s central 4G system will permit lunar rovers (which will arrive later) to communicate with their base camp, and from there with orbiting spacecraft and Earth itself.

The Washington Football Team put together its most lopsided win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday since 2005, reports WTOP News. The Washington team may continue with no name into 2021, reports NBC Sports. “There’s a pretty good chance we will be the Washington Football Team next season,” said Jason Wright, team president.

Question 2 on Maryland’s 2020 election ballot asks voters if they approve of sports and event wagering in general. It does not specify where it would be allowed. Those details would be determined by the General Assembly, which is expected to do a deep dive into the issue in January, when lawmakers reconvene in Annapolis, reports Maryland Matters. Polling conducted on behalf of FanDuel has the gaming company optimistic that Question 2 will pass. A Fan Duel official said the issue isn’t getting much attention because of the presidential race, but that polling shows support in the 55% to 60% range, reports WTOP News.

Voting centers across the state opened to lines of hundreds of people Monday, the first of eight days of early voting, reports The Baltimore Sun.

Contracts:

Smartronix LLC, Hollywood, Maryland, is awarded a $78,281,152 cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract provides airborne capabilities integration support, including development, design, coding, integration, demonstration and validation of software for embedded systems, real time operating systems and hardware and software systems in support of various Navy, Department of Defense and other government new and legacy weapons systems, platforms and networks. Work will be performed in Hollywood, Maryland (30%); St. Inigoes, Maryland (28%); Huntsville, Alabama (28%); Patuxent River, Maryland (12%); Bowie, Maryland (1%); and California, Maryland (1%), and is expected to be completed in November 2025. 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 via an electronic request for proposal; three offers were received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00421-21-D-0007).