Bases Considered for Migrant Children
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.
Four military bases in Texas and Arkansas will be evaluated for suitability to house migrant children whose families cross the border illegally, reports The Washington Post. Dallas News reports the Texas bases are the Army’s Fort Bliss in El Paso, Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo, and Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene. Little Rock Air Force Base in Arkansas also will be evaluated.
The House Armed Services Committee plans to use the NDAA bill to make domestic violence a crime under military law, calling its omission from the Uniform Code of Military Justice a dangerous oversight, reports Military Times. The HASC also added a provision requiring DoD to certify its university grants go only to researchers who haven’t participated in a talent-recruitment program by Russia, China, Iran, or North Korea, reports Defense One.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that 14 missile regiments would receive the new Yars intercontinental missile complexes to replace their old Topol complexes this year as part of a build-up of the state’s armed forces.
A two-year prison sentence was handed down this week to former Navy senior chief Clayton Pressley III for involvement in a procurement fraud scheme that resulted in a $2.3 million loss to the Navy. Navy Times reports Pressley conspired with two others to form a sham government contracting firm in May 2014. The company was ostensibly formed to provide “inert training aids” to Navy units.
The US Merchant Marines declined from 1,288 international trading vessels in 1951 to 81 today, reports Task and Purpose. The once-mighty commercial fleet has nearly collapsed under the weight of high labor costs, zigzagging federal policies, and intense competition from abroad, damaging America’s position as the only country in the world able to supply and sustain a long-distance war.
The Trump administration is moving forward with plans to make it easier to sell abroad small arms “widely available” in US, such as semiautomatic rifles, a policy long sought by the gun industry, reports Defense News.
The Navy adds more bonuses and expands needed skills as it struggles to retain the forces it needs, reports Navy Times. This is the third update to re-up bonuses in the past five months. The changes are effective immediately.
From FY 2002 to 2017, 16 percent of the US discretionary budget went to fight counterterrorism, reports Defense News, an average of $186.6 billion per year, more than the overall 2017 defense expenditures of Russia, India, and South Korea combined.
A suspect has been identified in the leak last year of a large portion of the CIA’s computer hacking arsenal, reports The Washington Post. Despite months of investigation, prosecutors have been unable to bring charges against the man, who is a former CIA employee being held in a Manhattan jail on unrelated charges.
Air Force A-10 Warthogs are over Farah city, Afghanistan, in an attempt to prevent the city’s fall to Taliban forces during the first major assault against a provincial capital since the Taliban began its annual fighting season, reports Air Force Times. The Long War Journal reports the situation around Farah province has been deteriorating for months.
The Air Force needs new ammo and new wings to keep its A-10 Thunderbolt II fleet flying through 2030, reports Military.com.
Israeli company Assembrix Ltd. and Boeing agree to use Assembrix cloud-based software to securely manage and share 3-D printing data with clients, reports Defense News.
North Korea canceled a high-level meeting with South Korea, claiming military exercises with Seoul and Washington are invasion rehearsals, reports Military Times. Also threatened is the historic summit next month between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The National Guard has high-tech surveillance equipment along the border, but are prohibited from using it to look into Mexico, reports The New York Times. The troops are also prohibited from performing law-enforcement duties, making arrests or interacting with migrants.
Contracts:
Huntington Ingalls Inc., Newport News, Virginia, is awarded a $91,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the accomplishment of repair, alteration, maintenance, and/or modernization requirements on Navy nuclear aircraft carriers at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS and IMF) supported locations. This requirement entails personnel that are uniquely trained, qualified, and authorized to perform nuclear carrier propulsion plant maintenance. The action will supplement the PSNS and IMF labor force to accomplish time critical propulsion plant and plant related work on nuclear-powered aircraft carriers scheduled for repair, alteration and/or modernization over the next five years. The nuclear propulsion plant related efforts include technical support, planning, maintenance, repairs, corrective measures, testing and performance evaluations, and modernization efforts. Work will be performed in Bremerton, Washington (75 percent); and San Diego, California (25 percent); and is expected to be completed by October 2022. Fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $9,404,832 will be obligated at the time of award to satisfy the minimum guarantee and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured after posting intend to award to the Federal Business Opportunities website. This requirement entails personnel that are uniquely trained, qualified, and authorized to perform nuclear aircraft carrier propulsion plant maintenance either on a completion or term basis in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 16.306. The Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is the contracting activity (N4523A18D1058).
Booz Allen Hamilton, Lexington Park, Maryland, is awarded an $88,290,938 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide advanced research and development support, engineering and technical support, quality management support, cybersecurity services, and technical management support for the Rapid Capability Engineering and Integration Department, Ship and Air Integrated Warfare Division. The scope of this effort encompasses rapidly developed engineering designs for end products intended for immediate warfighter operational use, and may include C5ISR systems, subsystems and components of strategic and tactical airborne, land-based, and mobile, sea-based surface and sub-surface platforms. Work will be performed in Lexington Park, Maryland (60 percent); St. Inigoes, Maryland (35 percent); and Patuxent River, Maryland (5 percent), and is expected to be completed in September 2023. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposals, with one offer received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00421-18-D-0030).
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., San Diego, California, is awarded a $45,000,000 fixed-price-incentive, firm target advance acquisition contract for long-lead materials components, material, parts, and associated efforts required to maintain the MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system planned production schedule. Work will be performed in San Diego, California (25.3 percent); Baltimore, Maryland (22.7 percent); Salt Lake City, Utah (20.2 percent); Bridgeport, West Virginia (8.2 percent); Red Oak, Texas (4.7 percent); Vandalia, Ohio (.2 percent); and various locations in the continental US (15.1 percent); and locations outside the continental US (3.6 percent), and is expected to be completed in January 2019. Fiscal 2018 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $45,000,000 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00019-18-C-1028).
Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co., Sunnyvale, California, is awarded $40,790,312 for cost-plus-incentive-fee, cost-plus-fixed-fee modification P00010 to a previously announced contract (N00030-17-C-0100) for Trident II (D5) missile production and deployed system support. The work will be performed in Sunnyvale, California (43.92 percent); Rockford, Illinois (15.2 percent); Cape Canaveral, Florida (8.34 percent); Lancaster, Pennsylvania (6.15 percent); Kings Bay, Georgia (6.04 percent); Elkton, Maryland (5.47 percent); Denver, Colorado (4.32 percent); Titusville, Florida (3.50 percent); Bangor, Washington (3.29 percent); East Aurora, New York (2.25 percent); and other various locations (less than 1.00 percent each; 1.52 percent total), and work is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2022. Fiscal 2018 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $33,356,870; fiscal 2017 weapons procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $3,624,664; fiscal 2017 research, development, test, and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $2,626,901; fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $932,922; and United Kingdom funds in the amount of $124,000 are being obligated on this award; $3,559,823 of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Subject to availability, fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $124,955, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year, will be obligated for the effort awarded and incrementally funded. Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity.
PricewaterhouseCoopers Public Sector LLP, a large business of McLean, Virginia, has been awarded a not–to-exceed $16,575,547 modification, P00010 to previously awarded HQ0423-15-F-5002 for audit readiness, audit liaison, and systems support for the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller). This modification exercises option year three with a period of performance of May 26, 2018, through May 25, 2019. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $56,055,468 from $39,479,921. Work will be performed at the Pentagon; and in remote locations within the national capital region with an expected completion date of May 25, 2019. Defense-wide operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $16,575,547 are being obligated at time of award. The Defense Finance and Accounting Service in Columbus, Ohio, is the contracting activity.
